Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

1977-1983 were some of the best years ever, and brought us the 2600, 5200, Intellivision, Colecovision, Vectrex, and many others

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TwinChargers
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Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by TwinChargers »

Nearly everyone has played some at some point in there lives, especially if your into retro gaming. Give us your top 10. :atari2600:

10.Ms.Pac-Man
9.Galaxian
8.Moon Patrol
7.Demon Attack
6.Stampede
5.Frogger
4.Berzerk
3.Tapper
2.California Games
1.Pitfall
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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Zap! »

In no order, here's 13:

Pitfall!
Keystone Kapers
River Raid
Adventure
Circus Atari
Raiders of the Lost Ark (call me crazy, I loved it)
Millipede
Vanguard
Super Cobra
Tutankham
Congo Bongo
Phoenix
Berzerk :berzerk:
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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Zap! »

TwinChargers wrote:Nearly everyone has played some at some point in there lives, especially if your into retro gaming. Give us your top 10. :atari2600:

10.Ms.Pac-Man
9.Galaxian
8.Moon Patrol
7.Demon Attack
6.Stampede
5.Frogger
4.Berzerk
3.Tapper
2.California Games
1.Pitfall
No love for River Raid, Adventure, or Keystone Kapers? No paddle games? :)
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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by TwinChargers »

If I had to include a paddle game it would be Super Breakout. When I was a kid, my paddles always were a little wonky and didn't exactly work all that great.

Adventure, although enjoyable and revolutionary, never really peaked my interest other than the fact I didn't have it as a kid and I liked borrowing it from a friend. As for those other Activision classics, they too were great games, but I had to limit the list somehow. Heck, one could make a top ten Activision Games list for the 2600 and it would be an easy chore (but also difficult cause there are so many great ones to chose from).
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Rob
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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Rob »

In no particular order:

Missile Command
Berzerk
Pitfall
Demons to Diamonds
Donkey Kong
Frogger
Space Invaders
He-Man/Masters of the Universe
Frankenstein's Revenge
Activision Decathalon

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by megasdkirby »

I really can't think of a top 10 right about now, but I can talk about two games in particular that I always loved:

Towering Inferno
Fantastic Voyage

Yup, two movie based games. I loved Towering Inferno because, at the time, it offered a goal, which I felt had an ending. I saw it as a kind of RPG, where I get to examine every room and rescue as many people as possible. Clearing a level gave me such a sense of accomplishment, but I loved playing it over and over again. I had some wonderful times playing it...

Fantastic Voyage was, and still is for me an excellent shooter. I never quite understood how the mechanics played out, as I sometimes thought hitting certain enemies would cause the pulse/rate to increase, but sometimes it did nothing. I do recall trying to finish each section as quickly as possible, specially at the end when Ihad to remove the clot (was it a clot?). I would play this game over and over again, nearly nonstop.

Other games I liked were California Games MASH, Tutankhamen, and Ghostbusters! Also, spending hours on Earthworld (which btw I DESPISE) also brings back memories...although in that case, memories of despair :)

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by TwinChargers »

I think that if I went with a movie based game, I'd go with Mega Force. Sure, its a ripoff of Defender and Chopper Command, but in my opinion a pretty good one. One of the games on the 2600 where you had a good sense of speed.
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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Zap! »

TwinChargers wrote:I think that if I went with a movie based game, I'd go with Mega Force. Sure, its a ripoff of Defender and Chopper Command, but in my opinion a pretty good one. One of the games on the 2600 where you had a good sense of speed.
Speaking of movie games, was Cloak & Dagger ever released? If not was there a prototype?
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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by megasdkirby »

I know it's weird, but I also liked Halloween for the 2600.

I consider it the first "survival horror" game, or at least the first one I played. I loved how the game created ambiance while rescuing the kids...you never know where Michael will appear, specially when the game goes insanely fast!

I would always avoid the knife, though. The short range made it basically useless, specially when you are being attacked at one million miles per hour (later in the game). Also, the 675 points per child never made sense. Why not 100 points? And why does Michael become so "super human" after just a couple of children saved?

Still, I loved the game. I remember I played the game for around 5 hours once...got a massive score and showed Dom, which shocked him.

Great times... :)

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Kevins89notch5.0 »

My neighbor had an atari with Pitfall. Oh man the number of hours we logged on that game.

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Darryl B. »

These are hard to do, but I'll try...

Not one single Supercharger game here, though? Humph!

(in no particular order, aside from probably the first one...SUPERB game)

1. Escape from the MindMaster
2. Pitfall 2
3. Ram It
4. Tunnel Runner
5. Kaboom!
6. H. E. R. O.
7. Midnight Magic
8. Adventure
9. Junior Pac-Man
10. Warlords
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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by triverse »

I played a bunch back in the day but the only ones that still stick out in my mind are Maze Craze (first game I ever had for Atari and my earliest memory of a gift from my dad-still have it here). Um, was it Space Caverns that you were at the bottom of the screen shooting up at creatures flying and sometimes a creature would come out of these little caves on the side of the screen?
There was also the Raiders of the Lost Ark, I am still determined to beat that game (what is the point of the parachute section?)
There are plenty of others like Jr. Pac-Man and Lock n Chase (I think I played it on Atari, may be mistaken).

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Darryl B. »

The parachute is how you end up winning the game, you have to parachute into a hole in a cliff (or whatever it is) in order to dig for the Ark.

Complete write-up of how to win the game is at Atari Protos.

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by triverse »

So that was the point of that parachute huh? My brother used to walk through that game unless he hit a certain spot I think in the game version of the lounge or something and then he would reset. Been years since I played it so please forgive me if I am off on the names of the areas. I just remember him going into one room and something coming out and attacking him, if it got him then he would reset.
Thanks for the welcome comment and link Darryl B.

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Rob »

Raiders caused me no end of grief when I was a kid. That game just got harder and harder, and then finally I would give up and play Paperboy.

Like I said on another thread, it's a good game but the two controller thing never sat well with me. In a way it was too ahead of its time. Had it come out on the SMS or the NES it would have been perfect.

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by triverse »

I believe it was Tengen but someone did release an Indiana Jones game on the NES, it was completely different than the one in discussion though (I agree, it would have benefitted immensely from the newer systems capabilities-and oh I don't know, maybe if it was a little closer to the movie it was named after couldn't hurt).

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Darryl B. »

triverse wrote:So that was the point of that parachute huh? My brother used to walk through that game unless he hit a certain spot I think in the game version of the lounge or something and then he would reset. Been years since I played it so please forgive me if I am off on the names of the areas.
Yeah it's a complicated game, I don't remember that much from it either, but then the last time I ever played it was like 20 years ago anyway :P
triverse wrote: Thanks for the welcome comment and link Darryl B.
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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Zap! »

triverse wrote:I believe it was Tengen but someone did release an Indiana Jones game on the NES, it was completely different than the one in discussion though (I agree, it would have benefitted immensely from the newer systems capabilities-and oh I don't know, maybe if it was a little closer to the movie it was named after couldn't hurt).
Yeah, completely different but also insanely hard. The 2600 one was Raiders of the Lost Ark, while the NES one was Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. I always enjoyed the 2600 one as a kid. I can't say I didn't try my best.
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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by triverse »

Definitely one thing is for sure, you couldn't level a blanket comment at Raider of the Lost Ark on 2600 as being just like every other Atari game (like a shooter game, or a maze game).

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Re: Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

Post by Rob »

Yep, it was pretty groundbreaking stuff compared to the rest of the ilk that the 2600 was getting "known" for.

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