Atari 2600 was my first experience with video games. My father had the wood paneled original when I was a kid in the 80s. The Nintendo Entertainment System blew the Atari away in my eyes, but looking back the 1977 original it’s a treasure trove of classic videogames.
Getting into Atari 2600 can overwhelm new comers. 500+ games released for the system, a ton of them are garbage shovelware titles. Everybody knows the story the New Mexico landfill where ET was disposed of. Yet to dismiss the console’s library entirely is a mistake.
Let’s look at 10 games from the Atari 2600 library. Here are ten games I’m going back to replay. My criteria is whether the game is still fun to play and enjoyable to look at. Atari 2600 can’t compared to a PS4, but the game requires clear visuals that don’t interfere with game play. How do they hold up? Let’s find out.
Space Invaders
Pattern obsessed aliens slowly descend to kill while you duck behind cover and return fire. In a strange way, Space Invaders is an early progenitor of the cover system seen in Gears of War and Uncharted. I doubt the modern designers had Space Invaders in mind, but it’s an interesting thought.
This arcade shooter remains a devilishly clever title. The more aliens you destroy, the faster they descend. Rather than getting easier as you remove obstacles, the game ramps up the difficulty. Tension builds until the cathartic release of killing that final speeding enemy.
Originally designed to eat your quarters, the challenge of Space Invaders becomes an addictive game play loop at home. This is the basis of most Atari 2600 games fun factor. Do you want to play again? Do you want to get better? I do when playing Space Invaders.
Maybe it’s an earlier great-grandfather to Dark Souls too. Git Gud.
Centipede
Dona Bailey is notable for being one of the few female coders at Atari during the boom period. In 1981, she created Centipede with Ed Logg, and its sequel Millipede. Successful in the arcade, the Atari 2600 port released the following year.
Moving from arcade to console lost the smooth trackball controls, but the notoriously rigid joystick of the Atari handled the transition surprisingly well. Dying is a common occurrence in old arcade shooters, but with Centipede it’s always do to human error. There’s no blaming the controller here.
Phoenix
I like the previous two shooters, but I love Phoenix. It’s the pinnacle of Atari 2600 vertical shooters. The game changes up the challenge between levels with new enemies and a boss. Beat the boss, and the levels loop back with increased difficulty.
The game starts with the basic Phoenix enemies crossing the screen. Challenge increases when the Phoenix’s show up and only die when struck in the center. Last, you face the alien mothership and slowly chip away at the craft until you destroy the alien pilot.
The game play variety of Phoenix blows away other vertical shooters on the Atari 2600. The game play loop changes enough to keep you engaged. Space Invaders is fun for 15 minutes. Phoenix is fun for hours.
Frogs & Flies
Frogs & Flies came back into vogue after appearing in the film Grandma’s Boy. This barely remembered comedy about video game testers sees the characters engage in a Frogs & Flies competition. This actually got me to try the game for the first time in the 2000s.
Two frogs in the swamp leap between two lily pads to snatch flies from the air before the sun goes down. That’s the entire game summed up. There are two modes of play, one where the leap is on a set path and one where the leap is controllable.
The set path is the way to play. Much more fun, less frustrating. Focus on being better than your opponent. Get your timing right and you win. It’s a simple premise executed very well. Plug it in and go kick a friends butt.
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong’s massive success in arcades helped paved the way for the NES, which revived the game industry after Atari nearly killed it. Ironically, this terrible port represents why Atari and the industry nearly failed.
The graphics are a blocky miscoloured mess. The sound effects are tinny replays of the arcade classic’s sound. Only two of the game’s three levels made the home version. Worst of all, the controls are painfully unresponsive.
Playing Donkey Kong now is frustrating. In the 80s, it must have felt like a kick in the ass. A clear cash grab. I don’t blame Nintendo; they licensed the game to Coleco for release and Coleco went cheap…damn you all to hell! (Planet of the Apes reference – apes, get it)
Ms Pac Man
Now we move from a terrible port to a great one. Not Pac Man, that game is absolute trash on the Atari 2600. I’m talking about Ms Pac Man. This is one of the best games on the Atari 2600. Playing it today is just as fun as back in the 80s.
Ms Pac Man’s game design is genius in its simplicity. Navigate the maze, eat pellets and avoid ghosts. Get the power up and you can eat the ghosts. Fruit are worth more points. Easy to pick up, difficult to master.
The Atari 2600 version plays well, with smooth controls and great graphics. It even has the awesome Ms Pac Man theme song. Love the tunes in this game. If you’ve never played Ms Pac Man go play it now…right now. Just do it.
Defender
Defender is one of my Dad’s favorite games. Anytime we bust out the Atari, he mentions old late night play sessions he had with my uncle. I like Defender too, but I’m not very good at it.
Playing it again, I wonder if the graphical issues with the port are the cause of my struggles. Firing your weapon causes your ship to blink out of existence for a moment. It interrupts the flow of the game play. It’s a playable game, but try the arcade version if you can.
Q Bert
Swearing big-nosed monster jumps on cubes while avoiding a living spring out to kill it. This is early 80s weirdness taken to another level. It’s genius. If you find a Q Bert arcade machine at a barcade you need to play it
I could gripe about the game losing the ¾ view of the arcade, or the pyramid not being as tall as the original, but this is Atari 2600. Ports often lose something, but retain the core mechanics. Stiff controls make Q Bert a slog to move around the screen, which is 100% of the game play.
Q Bert fails to execute the main element of the arcade game. I loved this game as a child, but it does not hold up. The Atari port is a slog. The sound effects are amazing though…classic.
Keystone Kapers
Another original game designed for the Atari 2600, Keystone Kapers is weird. You’re a cop chasing a criminal through a building. The goal is to catch him before the timer reaches zero. Each level gets harder and tosses more obstacles at you.
I have no nostalgia for this game. The first time I played it was sometime in the late-2000s. Something about running down long halls grabbed my attention. The controls are simple and responsive. The graphics are clear and simple. It’s everything I need in an Atari game.
Combat
Before Mario Kart ruined friendships, there was the Atari pack-in game Combat! Choose between tanks or planes, and destroy your opponent in a death match. Bonus points for making your friend throw their controller when they realize you’ve been curving your shots to hit their tank.
Once a bullet is fired, moving the joystick alters the bullets path. It’s not complete control of the projectile, but you can curve it enough to hit somebody just tucked behind a corner. That little game play tweak makes Combat so much fun. Go death match your friends.