The Video Game Critic

I did not even realize there was a sequel to the Atari 2600 game Berzerk until about five years ago. I have Berzerk on my 2600 and I have Frenzy on my ColecoVision flashback. Which do you prefer? Frenzy definitely is more complicated and requires more strategy, and I like it. But to me the pure simpleness of the original is still much more enjoyable, with the fast-paced instant gunning. Which do you prefer and why? Berzerk is still one of my top 5 to 6 games on the 2600.

Berzerk. Though I will say that while the 2600 version is pretty good, it just isn’t the same without the robot voices from the arcade version. Thank goodness we have a homebrew version addressing the issue!

I also prefer Berzerk for its simplicity, but I have to admit Frenzy is a worthy sequel. Perfect for when you want to take it up a notch.

They both feel like almost half of a better game. One day, I'd like to play that game.

But in the meantime, I play more Berzerk, just because of the immediacy. And because I'm old enough to remember a time when the sight of a green stick man being electrocuted was the scariest thing I'd ever seen. But still not scary enough to make me ignore the fact that this game allowed me to shoot lasers out of my hands. Spider-man and Superman just couldn't compete.

For brief moments at a time, some of that excitement still remains.

It's a hard call, but I think I prefer Frenzy. I actually like the ColecoVision version better than the arcade version for some reason. Maybe it's the added music on ColecoVision.

An interview with the late Alan McNeil (died December 2017), who designed and programmed both Berzerk and Frenzy coin-ops, as well as Maze Wars for the Mac and the original Macromedia Director, from his now-offline site- https://web.archive.org/web/20180405131536/http://a9k.info/qna.html

FusekiGames wrote:An interview with the late Alan McNeil (died December 2017), who designed and programmed both Berzerk and Frenzy coin-ops, as well as Maze Wars for the Mac and the original Macromedia Director, from his now-offline site- https://web.archive.org/web/20180405131536/http://a9k.info/qna.html

Thanks for the link. I love reading stories about game development. Very interesting.