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Down and Dirty Reviews: Atari 2600 -- A - M
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No
memory back up, no
polygons, and nothing over a Megabyte. The ratio of these scores is much lower compared to newer system like the PS3 and Nintendo DS, but you still need skill to play most of these games here and that's what counts. Moon Patrol is still number 1 here by the way. I also added the model number for most Atari games to help people who go by number. All reviews are by StarSoldier unless noted. The overall scores are out of 100. The graphics, sounds, and gameplay are out of 10. |
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SCORE / NAME
67 ADVENTURE (Atari, 1981)
Just like the name
implies your a simple little block in a quest for adventure. Find items, carry
them, and avoid the giant duck like dragon to become a hero. Adventure is
a very cool and unique game back then but it's certainly very outdated by
most of today's adventure titles. Still a must for retro fanatics because
of its history and it's still better than the entire Sword Quest games
(the so called sequels) combine. This game also has the creator's name hidden
away in a secret location, one of the first real video game Easter eggs in
history. Why? Atari programmers were not aloud to get credit for their work
and this little secret was more of a form of rebellion rather than an actual
objective. When this news of a hidden feature got out to the gaming world
it actually increased sales of the game.
Model #2613
for 1 player only
graphics: 2
sound: 1
gameplay: 6
Find Adventure on eBay here!
23 AIR RAIDERS (Mattel, 1982)
Oh great, it's a serious first person flight sim for the system and yes Air Raiders is another
fairly common flight simulator for the Atari 2600 that fails to create
a true scene of flying. The game is very confusing to play thanks to some
of the overly blocky 3D graphics and slow controls.
For 1 player only
graphics: 2
sound: 1
gameplay: 4
Find Air Raiders on eBay here!
28 AIR SEA BATTLE (Atari, 1977)
Here is one of Atari's
first games on the 2600 and believe me, it really shows! Air Sea Battle is a really basic two player
only shooting gallery featuring tons of vehicles but some very limited controls.
You can find this game just about anywhere but it's still not worth picking
up.
Model #2602
For 2 players only
graphics: 2
sound: 0
gameplay: 1
Find Air Sea Battle on eBay here!
59 ARMOR AMBUSH (Mattel, 1982)
It's plays and looks like Atari's Combat but now this game takes place
on some different and more detailed terrain. Sadly, this is two players only
just like Combat so it lacks originality but if you liked Atari's earlier
game too then be sure to give this a shot too.
For 2 players only
graphics: 4
sound: 1
gameplay: 2
Find Armor Ambush on eBay here!
65
ASTEROIDS (Atari, 1981)
Here is a great classic shooter that uses flat but colourful Asteroids
and not the vector graphics found in the arcades. The game is simple: destroy
all the asteroids on the screen to finish your current level but watch out
for different alien space ships both big and small. Asteroids is a addictive space shoot
em up that suffers from bad flickering.
Model #2649
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 2
sound: 2
gameplay: 4
Find Asteroids on eBay here!
71 ASTRO BLAST (Mattel, 1981)
This shooter is also available on the Intellivision but it's under a slightly
different name. Astro Blast is a fun and very chaotic game that's a good mixture
of the games Space Invaders
and Asteroids where your ship simply moves left or right on a mission to destroy a barrage of caters and bombs. The game was OK in the day and it is actually faster
then its Intellivivsion counterpart but the graphics aren't not nearly as
sharp and it's a bit too repetitive unfortunately like most Atari 2600
games. I usually see this one cheap though so it's a safe bet.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 5
sound: 3
gameplay: 5
Find Astro Blast on eBay here!
41 ATLANTIS (Imagic, 1982)
This game reminds me of Atari's Missile Command but instead of blasting
down missiles, you're shooting down invading aircrafts. In the game you must defend the
underwater city of Atlantis with three differently placed laser guns from any enemies
in the sky. Although this game appear on some Activision collections, there
is no patch to unlock here because this was originally an Imagic title.
For 1 player only
graphics: 3
sound: 2
gameplay: 4
Find Atlantis on eBay here!
52 BATTLEZONE (Atari, 1982)
This home version of the original vector wonder has some very solid graphics
especially for the 2600 system here but the tough game play here may ruin it for others.
In Battlezone you simply blast away enemy tanks and anything else that get in the way. It's almost impossible not to get hit here by the other rival tanks out there
since the game play is so slow.
For 1 player only
graphics: 6
sound: 4
gameplay: 4
Find Battle Zone on eBay here!
83 BERZERK (Atari/Centuri, 1981)
The arcade game about a lone man running and shooting his way through
deadly corridors that kill on impact and giant robots that shoot you on site.
You should also be careful of the settings here too because the evil Mr. Happy
will hunt you down if you take too long in making your escape. Berzerk is
a fun shooter as you try to survive against a horde of evil endless robots and that's good enough for me.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 5
sound: 4
gameplay: 6
Find Berzerk on eBay here!
25 BOXING (Activision,
1980)
Here is an unbelievably
short lived overhead boxing game that can be played with a second person or
a computer controlled opponent. Simply score more points in the limited amount
of time to beat your friend to win the contest. Boxing is a fun game if you
play against a friend but the appeal is quite limited.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 2
sound: 1
gameplay: 1
Find Boxing on eBay here!
04 BARN STORMING (Activision, 1983)
What was a cool enough game at the beginning just ended after a few seconds
or minutes. All you have to do in this game is to guide your biplane and then try to fly under 10 or 25 barns
and then its game over. Barn Storming is a decent time trial idea but there
is very VERY little game play here and they should have Barn Boring.
For 1 player only
graphics: 3
sound: 1
gameplay: 0
Find Barn Storming on eBay here!
31 BREAKOUT (Atari, September 1977)
Here is the infamous one player Pong-like
game where you move a little white stick around to keep a small ball in play so it can destroy a bunch of coloured block breaking action. This simple game is about as boring
as a game could ever get because there are no power ups, weapons, or even
interesting level designs to keeps the player going but it was 1977 so I guess it's better then nothing and you can put those paddles to some use I guess.
*Paddles needed
Model #2622
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 0
sound: 0
gameplay: 1
Find Breakout on eBay here!
66 CARNIVAL (Coleco/Sega, 1981)
Carnival is just that, a video carnival game where you shoot down various toy
ducks, a spinning wheel, and many other fun mini targets in this old Sega arcade
game. Time is limited here so shoot fast or its game over plus there are ways to extend play time of course. Carnival doesn't
look like much and the bear mini game scene isn't here but it still plays fine.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 3
sound: 1
gameplay: 4
Find Carnival on eBay here!
70 CENTIPEDE (Atari, 1983)
This classic bug shooter
can be a very addictive game if you get on 'fire'! Your hero is now only a
mere block though because of the limited power of the 2600 and even the mushrooms
lack detail here but at least the simple shooting action but intense game play is still intact. Centipede on the 2600 is still very playable here.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 4
sound: 4
gameplay: 4
Find Centipede on eBay here!
51 CHECKERS (Activision, 1983)
This is one of the few stand alone Checkers video games I know of. It
sure may not be much to look at but still this game is a guilty pleasure for
me. Unlike real Checkers all the rules are already enforced so you don't have
to fight with friends if they try something funny plus for a older game the
computer AI is pretty good. Checkers is completely no frills so sadly there
is no sexy half naked girls telling you are the winner after a match (the
game just quietly freezes up) or anything like that but the game plays well
enough to be just slightly above average.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 1
sound: 1
gameplay: 3
Find Checkers on eBay here!
59 CHOPPER COMMAND (Activision, 1982)
Defender? Chopper Command plays just like Atari/Williams's space game;
Defender except for the new desert looks of course. In CC you must use your
high powered helicopter to protect friendly ground convoys from enemy choppers
and planes. This is a fairly difficult and intense shooter with some decent
graphics for its day but I dropped a few points for its lack of innovation.
For 1 player only
graphics: 5
sound: 2
gameplay: 4
Find Chopper Command on eBay here!
50 COMBAT (Atari, 1977)
Perhaps the most common Atari 2600 game in known existence is this two
player only war game that was once a pack in game for the original 2600 VCS.
The game has some nice options where you edit the environments and even the
fighting vehicles but it's always one on one fight no matter what happens and not everyone
will go for that. Basic but it works.
Model #2601
For 2 players only
graphics: 1
sound: 1
gameplay: 2
Find Combat on eBay here!
38 COMMANDO (Activision/Data
East/Capcom, 1987)
Come on, if you don't remember the other games on here then maybe you know
this Capcom arcade shoot them up, uh? Too bad the graphics are bland, the action is
slow, and using the grenades is a major hassle (you have to hold down the fire button so good luck with that).
Even the NES version is better than this and that was pretty bad too.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 2
sound: 1
gameplay: 2
Find Commando on eBay here!
23
This game may look
good in the screen shots but this jungle based game is nothing more then a
poor man's Donkey Kong. The action is hard to see and the graphics
are sub par at best thanks to all of the attention going into the well designed
backgrounds and not the actually characters themselves. Good luck making to
the top in this confusing game.
For 1 player only
graphics: 4
sound: 2
gameplay: 1
Find Congo Bongo on eBay here!
37 COSMIC
ARK
(Imagic, 1982)
In this simple game
you must protect your giant space ship from your enemies but you can only
fire in four directions and your aircraft is a pretty pretty big target too. You could do worse for the Atari 2600 but
don't expect a lot of deep game play here people.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 4
sound: 3
gameplay: 2
Find Cosmic Ark on eBay here!
52 CRACK POTS (Activision, 1982)
Despite the odd drug
friendly name, you have to kill climbing multiple coloured bugs before they
destroy your building in this unusual game here instead. As the colours change
in the bugs, the trickier they are to hit and if they destroy too much of
your building then it's game over. Crack Pots is a fun game of single screen
action and drug puns.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 6
sound: 4
gameplay: 5
Find Crackpots on eBay here!
29 CROSSBOW (Atari/Exidy, 1987)
This super lame target
game about a team of adventures looking to survive through several boring
locations. Kinda like the NES game Gumshoe you must blast away various harzards but it's a lot of trial and error to know what to shoot and when especially with the game's lack of detail. This could have a good adventure game but somehow I knew that Atari
couldn't handle it.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 4
sound: 1
gameplay: 4
Find Crossbow on eBay here!
46 CRYSTAL CASTLES (Atari, 1984)
Crystal Castles is
a strange Pac Man clone that's almost impossible to play on this old
system thanks to the strange isometric angles here. The arcade game wasn't even
too great to begin with because the awkward controls but at least it had a
roller ball for the stupid bear's movements and the 3D graphics were much better then the blocky mess here. Crystal Castles is about as fun as Crystal Pepsi.
For 1 player only
graphics: 4
sound: 3
gameplay: 3
Find Crystal Castles on eBay here!
68 DEFENDER (Atari/Williams, 1981)
The classic shoot them up of alien's trying to steal humans is here on
the Atari 2600 and it's up to you and your star ship to save everyone
or deal with the aftermath once they're captured. The game makes a few changes to the arcade original because the background mountains now look like cities for example. Defender is a good game
but takes some practice especially with the signal button control here.
Model #2609
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 3
sound: 3
gameplay: 5
Find Defender on eBay here!
65 DEFENDER II (Atari/Williams, 1988)
Although it was known as Star Gate in the arcades, it was also
named Defender II when it was released in 1988. It plays like the same old
Defender but now can warp in special wormholes on the playing field and the
graphics look more true to the classic original thanks to the classic line art style.
Model #26120
for 1 or 2 players
graphics: 7
sound: 5
gameplay: 6
Find Defender II on eBay here!
42 DEMON ATTACK (Imagic, 1981)
In this game you must shoot down various killer birds to survive from
their swarming attacks. This game got Imagic into trouble because Atari sued
the makers of Demon Attack saying it was too similar too their game called
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 5
sound: 5
gameplay: 3
Find Demon Attack on eBay here!
32 DESERT FALCON (Atari, 1988)
Desert Falcon is a really bad Zaxxon clone that takes place in
the hostile deserts instead of deep space. Sadly the game is really slow and
the position of your character makes it hard to shoot down targets and avoid attacks. This blocky shooting
game is also fairly hard on the eyes too.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 2
sound: 2
gameplay: 3
Find Desert Falcon on eBay here!
69 DIG DUG (Atari/Namco, 1983)
This is a pretty good translation of the arcade game and it even sounds
just like it too. This unique game lets you pop your enemies (there are only
two different enemies though) with a special pump while digging your way though
dirt. It's more fun then it sounds. This game is also on the Atari 5200
and 7800 systems if you're interested.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 6
sound: 7
gameplay: 5
Find Dig Dug on eBay here!
61 DOLPHIN (Activision,
1983)
Before games like Ecco the Dolphin made their entrance there was Activision's
very original Dolphin title. In it you help a Dolphin out run a deadly Squid while
avoiding the many sea creatures that get in the way. You can even turn the
tables on the Squid by getting a seagull as a power up. Dolphin maybe basic
in design but it is still a very unique title that's worth a look.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 5
sound: 4
gameplay: 5
Find Dolphin on eBay here!
56 DONKEY KONG (Coleco/Nintendo, 1981)
The arcade favourite
arrives on the 2600 but you get only the first and last levels in this action
platformer so the pie factory and conveyor belt stages are gone. Not a must have because it's almost as bad of a translation as
Atari Pac Man for the 2600 was but I did however
like the start anytime you want feature at the start of every level which
kind of works as a 'pause' plus the controls are decent enough too. At least it's not as bad as the Intellivision version.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 2
sound: 4
gameplay: 3
Find Donkey Kong on eBay here!
32 DONKEY KONG JR. (Coleco/Nintendo, 1983)
What could have been
a great action game like the arcade title where Donkey Kong's son is trying to rescue his father from Mario just has too many problems. What this game suffers from is poor controls and
some very bad graphics where everything looks like lines and basic legos. This game is even worse than the original Donkey Kong on
the 2600 and that was a fairly bad translation as well. Just a ugly game, just ugly!
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 1
sound: 2
gameplay: 4
Find Donkey Kong Junior on eBay here!
04 DOUBLE DRAGON (Activision, 1987)
If you thought the
NES and SMS were bad wait till you get a load of this! This
popular arcade fighter is basically stripped down to the core since the graphics
are super blocky and the sounds are very minimal. I can stand some bad presentation,
this is the Atari 2600 after all, but what I can't stand is the unfair
and hard to control game play.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 1
sound: 4
gameplay: 2
Find Double Dragon on eBay here!
10 DRAGSTER (Activision, 1982)
This is another one of those two player only games here on the Atari 2600.
Just like a drag race you must be the first one to cross the finish line to win the race but don't over
use your engine or you'll burn out of control and that's a instant lose. Dragster has very limited appeal and should be dragged to the trash.
For 2 players only
graphics: 3
sound: 2
gameplay: 1
Find Dragster on eBay here!
Total Recall Dud
of the Month!
41 E.T.
(Atari, 1982)
Now before you get
excited about having one of the biggest movies of all time on the Atari
2600 you should play it first! ET is a one very confusing search type
of game where you help the alien himself escape from nasty detectives and
several pitfalls while finding Resse Pieces to help him get back home. What
makes this game so appalling is the continuous pits that are little alien
friend always seems to fall in. ET is very demanding and very tedious to play
and it was so bad that it helped to destroy Atari in 1983.
For 1 player only
graphics: 2
sound: 2
gameplay: 3
Find ET on eBay here!
65 EUDURO (Activision, 1983)
Like Namco/Atari's Pole Position, Euduro is an early 3D racer where you avoid other cars and try to stay on the track. Euduro even
has changing whether conditions in another impressive feet for the Activision
programmers (they really pushed the Atari 2600 to its limits) but I hate how you have to drive in near complete darkness sometimes.
For 1 player only
graphics: 5
sound: 2
gameplay: 5
Find Euduro on eBay here!
02 FINAL APPROACH
Holy crap, it's a space shuttle simulator
on the old Atari 2600 here................... there are so many things wrong
with this concept that I don't know where to even begin. Unless you are really hardcore about the boring world of landing giant space ships this game is
virtually unplayable!
*Uncommon 2600 game
For 1 player only
graphics: 4
sound: 3
gameplay: 4
Find Final Approach on eBay here!
63 FLASH GORDON (20th Century Fox, 1982)
Flash Gordon is a
fun shooter that actually fairly deep for an Atari 2600 game since you have
a rather detailed map in plain view. This game was based on a popular character
from a few decades ago by the way and his game isn't too bad here thanks to the decent graphics and solid controls.
For 1 player only
graphics: 4
sound: 3
gameplay: 6
Find Flash Gordon on eBay here!
08 FREEWAY (Activision, 1981)
In this 'game' you help one or two chickens
get across the road in this very limited version of Frogger. Freeway
can only be played with a friend and worse yet, you can only move up or down,
and that's it! You can edit the traffic to change the difficuly if you like so maybe this was cool back in the early eighties but definitely not today. This was originally going to be a game about a average human character trying to cross the road but I guess that was too violent and Activision changed it to Chickens instead. "Give
me Frogger, and deep fry these stupid birds!"
For 2 players only
graphics: 2
sound: 2
gameplay: 1
Find Freeway on eBay here!
82 FROGGER (Parker Brothers/Konami, 1982)
It's just not a Playstation
game after all, is it? This original overhead arcade classic comes home for
the first time and those lucky Atari 2600 gamers got their chance to play
this unique adventure where you have to help a frog get home. Frogger is a great classic of timing and skill and is a must own for Atari
2600 owners because it’s so simplistic and challenging! Frogger almost
loses nothing on its Atari 2600 translation especially when it comes to game
play.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 6
sound: 6
gameplay: 6
Find Frogger on eBay here!
34 FROGS 'N FLIES (Mattel, 1983)
OK, the person or frog with the
most flies wins after the time limit, that's it. There is no comic book artist doing the graphics,
there is no famous band doing the background music, and there are no options
for a Create-a-player, trades, or stuff like that....... it's just two frogs
hopping for flies........ That’s it! Frogs 'N Flies was also known as Frog Bog on the Intellivision if you care and chances are you don't so I'll end this now. The game is decent for a few plays with a friend but killing real flies is more fun then this.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 4
sound: 3
gameplay: 1
Find Frogs N' Flies on eBay here!
25 FRONTLINE (Zellers Canada)
This is an unlicensed
version of Atari's Combat game by some of are Zellers stores
here in
For 2 players only
graphics: 1
sound: 1
gameplay: 2
Find Frontline on eBay here!
84 FROSTBITE (Activision, 1983)
Frostbite is a very
intense and actually very original jumping adventure in the dangerous
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 4
sound: 3
gameplay: 6
Find Frostbite on eBay here!
72 GALAXIAN (Atari/Namco, 1982)
If you don't know this one, Galaxian is the prequel to the famous Galaga which is also made by Namco. Sure it's old but Galaxian is still a fun basic shooter
and at least the sound effects are way better than what was on that stupid 5200
version. Galaxian is a basic Space Invader clone as you blast away
at a large group of evil aliens looking to take you out and these buggers will swoop down too.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 7
sound: 6
gameplay: 6
Find Galaxian on eBay here!
64 GORF (CBS, 1983)
The popular Space Invaders/Galaxian-like shooter comes to the 2600 as well but amazingly it has all 4 different
stages available here too. One stage is your basic Space invaders clone while others are have you battling more unique enemies including a giant boss. Gorf is a great game if you’re looking for more
variety in a shooter but its still far from arcade perfect and there are not
a lot of options either.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 6
sound: 5
gameplay: 4
Find Gorf on eBay here!
25 GRAND PRIX (Activision, 1981)
One of the first games made by Activision for the Atari 2600 is this really
simple overhead racing contest that ends as soon as you cross the finish line which
only take about a minute or two. There are a few difficulties to play with but in the end Grand Prix is super short and anything but grand!
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 2
sound: 1
gameplay: 2
Find Grand Prix on eBay here!
27 HAUNTED HOUSE (Atari, 1981)
All the rooms in this stupid haunted house all look the same and your
hero is nothing more than a pair of eyeballs in almost total darkness. It's kinda clever in a extremely lazy sort of way. Anyway maybe
this boring game would be decent if there was a map system or better graphics but I still wouldn't bet
on it.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 4
sound: 4
gameplay: 4
Find Haunted House on eBay here!
69 ICE HOCKEY (Activision,
1983)
Despite the popularity of the Atari 2600, there have been very few real Hockey
games (no, Pong
doesn't count as real Hockey) on the legendary gaming unit. Ice Hockey is
sure primitive compared to what we get now of days because it's just 2 on 2 action and you aim your shots by watching how the puck moves on your stick. This is still a lot
crazy fun and I bet Hockey fans will still like it regardless.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 3
sound: 1
gameplay: 4
Find Ice Hockey on eBay here!
36 INDIANA JONES Raiders of the Lost Ark (Atari, 1982)
Here's a game you're going to either think this is one clever game, or a pile of cow dumps. If you know the story adventurer Indiana Jones is on a quest to find the lost ark before the Nazis get it. The story is good but the game gives you little too no information what the hell you're suppose to do and you have to use two controllers here as well which is pretty annoying. I guess they were trying to create a slash action/puzzle hydrid here but it doesn't work and it isn't very fun to play without a strategy guide.
For 1 player only
graphics: 3
sound: 3
gameplay: 7
Find Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark on eBay here!
42 INDY 500 (Atari, 1977)
Just imagine video game racing in the 1970? Not pretty! Indy 500 is a very
early version of a Super Sprint type of driving game and it even came with
its very own custom Roller controllers for better handling so hopefully you can still find one complete in box, eh? The game itself
is too bare bones to be taken seriously though but maybe it was a big deal
back then?
*Roller controllers required
For 2 players only
graphics: 1
sound: 1
gameplay: 1
Find Indy 500 on eBay here!
62 INTERNATIONAL SOCCER (Mattel, 1983)
Definitely one of the better looking and one of the better playing soccer games for
the Atari 2600 here thanks to the character animation and decent controls too. If you're a Soccer nut and you're looking for some retro action
as well then this is a great choice and this far superior to Atari's Pele
Soccer.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 5
sound: 4
gameplay: 5
Find International Soccer on eBay here!
74 JOUST (Atari/Williams, 1983)
Sure, it looks a little
plain here compared to the arcade original and all the characters are just
one solid colour now but it's still true to the Williams arcade game and if
you have a friend around then the two of you could have a lot of fun here.
If you don't know Joust is a test to try out last an onslaught of rival warriors on killer birds plus the game even has the Egg and Survival rounds here too.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 4
sound: 4
gameplay: 5
Find Joust on eBay here!
72 JR. PAC MAN (Atari/Namco, 1987)
Never heard of Jr.
Pac Man before? Well if you haven't, then you're not the only one. Jr. Pac
Man was actually one of Atari's late releases in 1987-8 era and most of the
public all but ignored Atari's attempt to come back from the dead especially
with the popular NES out there. If you're at all curious this forgotten
title then you'll find a impressive fast paced action game with nice graphics,
cool sound effects, plus the classic game play that's the hardest of the series.
Also this kid is only on the Atari 2600 and I don't see too many translations out there unless you consider canceled ROM's from the internet. Not only is the skill level there
but the graphics and the sounds are the best of the three 2600 made Pac Man
games and it's also the rarest one too. Recommend to any hard-core Pac
Man fans too and it's a must for the Atari 2600 collector.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 7
sound: 7
gameplay: 5
Find Jr. Pac Man on eBay here!
79 JUNGLE HUNT (Atari/Taito, 1983)
The renamed Jungle King arcade game comes to the 2600 complete
with all the vine jumping, swimming, and head hunter avoiding action the title
was known for. The story line here is your girlfriend has been captured by
cannibals and it's up to your explorer butt to save her before they eat her but in a bad way. The graphics do flicker
now and again but this action platformer game plays very well on the old system and I even noticed some rare parallax scrolling here as well. Jungle Hunt has a lot of depth.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 8
sound: 6
gameplay: 8
Find Jungle Hunt on eBay here!
57 KABOOM (Activision, 1982)
In this unusual game you guide your water bucket (or buckets) back or
forth to catch the falling explosives from the rotten Mad Bomber at the top of the screen to score points. Kaboom is
a very simple and yet very addictive game of catch that's one of the better
games used with the paddles but be warned it's also one of the hardest as well.
*paddles required
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 3
sound: 3
gameplay: 3
Find Kaboom on eBay here!
75 KANGAROO (Atari/Centuri, 1983)
Kangaroo is a fun action that is very similar to Nintendo's Donkey Kong but at least your Kangaroo has a offensive punch attack as well as a jump. In this title you journey
across three levels to rescue you're baby kangaroo from rotten monkeys. It's
a tough and short game and there is some lost of detail from the arcade edition of course but I also feel it was a bit underrated as well.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 5
sound: 5
gameplay: 6
Find Kangaroo on eBay here!
71 KEYSTONE KAPERS (Activision, 1982)
Double K here is a unique cops and robbers game in a hectic shopping mall.
You play the role a traditional keystone cop who is on a continuous mission
to catch the thief in a mall. You only have 45 seconds to get the crook and you
have to avoid the many hazards like shopping carts, bouncing balls, radios
and toy airplanes in the process. Keystone Kapers is your basic run and jump
game but it's fast, it's has variety, and most importantly it's fun. This kaper won't raper you in the wallet either.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 4
sound: 2
gameplay: 5
Find Keystone Kapers on eBay here!
24 LASER BLAST (Activision, 1982)
Whoa, what the flying fudge
is this game suppose to be about?! This shooter isn't a blast at all, it really blows! In this game you use
your star ship to destroy three ground battle guns and after that you repeat and repeat and
repeat............... You can suicide dive the enmey after you're shot down but I'm really reaching for things to talk about here. Yeah, Laser Blast sucks big time!
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 2
sound: 2
gameplay: 1
Find Laser Blast on eBay here!
62 LOCK N' CHASE (Mattel, 1983)
This is a Pac-Man clone that uses a strange and sometimes awkward door
management system for the game's maze. In Lock N' Chase your a criminal looking
to get rich by stealing all the goodies on the board plus you risk getting
caught by getting the big money in the center of the maze but be careful of
the four security officers looking to stop you. It's not perfect since you can't attack the cops but it is still way better then Atari Pac Man for the 2600 of course.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 3
sound: 2
gameplay: 5
Find Lock N' Chase on eBay here!
60 MARIO BROS. (Atari/Nintendo, 1984)
This simple looking
2 player action platformer game is actually the prequel to the popular Super
Mario Brothers. Although it is simple in design, it's quite
impressive that its on the Atari 2600 and if you don't know the deal two plumbers are trying to rid the sewers of different critters. Sadly, this version features very rough controls
compared to the NES edition and it only has basic beeps for sound effects
as well. Still Mario Bros. is playable on here and it's fun to see Atari and Nintendo were friends at one point before they became bitter rivals.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 4
sound: 4
gameplay: 5
Find Mario Bros. on eBay here!
65 M.A.S.H. (20th Century Fox, 1982)
In this popular but
kind of grim comedy movie and TV franchise you help to rescue your injured
soldiers with your helicopter in the deadly Korean country side. "They'll
make a game about anything, eh?" Oh well, the graphics are decent at least with a good use of colour in the background and the game even has a bit of the theme music here too but the basic moving around the injured and operation style game play gets old quick.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 6
sound: 6
gameplay: 4
Find MASH on eBay here!
52 MAZE CRAZE: A Game of Cops and Robbers
(Atari, 1978)
Remember those little maze games in the back of children's books, well Atari made a cart about them. Maze Craze is a unique
game of cops and robbers (so the story goes) in giant single screen mazes.
This game as a lot to offer for options in terms of difficulty but you have to put up with extremely
simple looks and overly confusing structures as well. I hope you like looking at tiny blocks too because that all you get here? If you know what you're getting into Maze Craze can still be fun even if going in the wrong direction is super annoying.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 2
sound: 1
gameplay: 2
Find Maze Craze on eBay here!
75 MEGA MANIA (Activision, 1983)
No, it's not Mega Man. Mega Mania is a cool shooter where you have to attack 8 levels of different
enemies like typewriters, blocks of killer cheese, evil hamburgers and other
strange stuff. What makes this game so original (well, it's still just another shooter so it's not that original) is that each stage has a
new enemy and different pattern to learn if you want to survive. Your ship even looks a
lot like the Star Ship Enterprise from the original Star Trek. I recommend
Mega Mania if you love simple but fun shoot em ups.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 5
sound: 4
gameplay: 5
Find Mega Mania on eBay here!
71
Midnight Magic is
a fun pinball game that's more realistic than the earlier Atari game: Video
Pinball. There are four flippers to work with, lots of different bumpers to get in your way, and many unique targets to hit that adds a ton of variety here. It's even possible to change the colour of the board if you are
good enough, of course. This is the kind of game that's perfect for the Atari
2600 but I have could use a score keeper here to makes things more competitive. This game is easily one of the best pinball games for the system I can play this to midnight but I'm also a dork.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 6
sound: 3
gameplay: 6
Find Midnight Magic on eBay here!
82 MISSILE COMMAND (Atari, 1981)
"If you don't know what Missile Command is all about then ask your
dad about this one!" This is a very challenging mission to stop ballistic
missiles from raining down and destroying 6 of your cities. If all the cities
are destroyed then it's game over. The game looks OK I guess but it still
has a really basic detail to it. You also have to shoot down planes, aliens,
and smart bombs too to add to your worries but with all of it hectic action
it is a always a fun game because of its challenging game play. Sure there
is no way you can win and you're pretty much doomed to failure but at least
you can always go for the high score of course.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 3
sound: 3
gameplay: 5
Find Missile Command on eBay here!
85 MS. PAC MAN (Atari/Namco, 1983)
Ms. Pac Man was not
only one of the biggest video games of all time but Atari was way more serious
this time in their arcade creation and they address many of complaints of
the disappointing Atari Pac
Man and thankfully we get a way better game because of it.
Atari's Ms. Pac Man still looks kind of blocky, the sounds is not quite arcade
perfect, and there are tons of flickers on screen, but you still get four
completely different mazes and all new different difficulty settings too thanks
to that upgraded 8K ROM cartridge. Just like the arcade game you move around Ms Pac Man through a maze to collect all the dots while avoiding 4 pesky ghosts. Like I said before this is way superior
to Atari Pac Man, this translation of the arcade classic is actually
pretty good and it's definitely worth a purchase. The best part about that is
the game is going pretty cheap too.
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 7
sound: 7
gameplay: 7
Find Ms Pac Man on eBay here!
65 MOUSE TRAP (Coleco/Atari, 1981, 1988)
In this Pac Man
clone (one of many) you help a lone mouse on a mission to eat a entire board of cheese while
avoiding 3 wild cats. It sounds simple enough and your mouse can open and close doors to help avoid them
plus you can even turn the tables on these cats if you have dog biscuits.
The dog attack can be used at your leisure but the mutt's time is limited
of course so it's good to act fast. Sadly you do both the door opening and dog mode with a single button and how it's pressed. Mouse Trap would have even rated higher if
it wasn't so confusing to control because the graphics are decent and the game play is frantic. This is one of the games re-released in 1988 by Atari and it's easy to see why since this is a way better port then that lousy Atari Pac Man.
For 1 or 2 player’s
graphics: 6
sound: 4
gameplay: 6
Find Mouse Trap on eBay here!
BEST ATARI 2600 GAME!
GAME OF THE MONTH COLLECTION!
90 MOON PATROL (Atari/Irem, 1983)
One of the joys
of starting up my old Atari 2600 up again is popping in Moon Patrol for another
go. This is a impressive yet quite challenging action/shooter game where you shoot aliens and avoid pits on the moon. You have a short range forward gun and even a cool anti-air blaster so there's tons of way to defend yourself here. I first got this game way back
in 1984, a time when the whole video game industry was considered dead to
many but if there were more games like Moon Patrol out there than I'm sure the
big crash wouldn't had happened to begin with. It's one of the few Atari games
that has the complete package of great graphics, music, and game play.
Model #2692
For 1 or 2 players
graphics: 7
sound: 7
gameplay: 7
Find Moon Patrol on eBay here!
ATARI
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