Atari XEGS Reviews A-E

With the recent success of the Lord of the Rings movies, gamers would be wise to revisit this classic fantasy title. Originally released by EA on a floppy disk in 1983, Atari wisely re-released Archon years later on cartridge format for their new XE game system. A potent combination of strategy and action, you position your characters carefully on a checkered board, and when one encroaches on an opponent's space, a "battlefield" screen appears and lets the two characters have it out. The Light side, led by a wizard, includes unicorns, archers, rock golems, valkyries, knights, a djinni, and the flaming bird Phoenix. The Dark side, led by an evil sorceress, features basilisks, manticores, trolls, goblins, banshees, a dragon, and a shapeshifter that takes the form of any character it faces. Despite the limited resolution, the characters are thoughtfully drawn and superbly animated. Weaker characters like knights and goblins swing swords and clubs, but more powerful creatures can fire projectiles clear across the battlefield. Every now and then a weak creature will triumph over a more powerful one, which is very extremely satisfying if you're on the winning end. It's possible for both creatures to die simultaneously in battle. The wizards have the ability to cast spells like teleport, heal, imprison, revive, shift time, and summon elemental. Another strategic element is a dynamic game board with spaces that slowly alternate between light and dark shades, giving the respective side an advantage for short periods of time. Archon is won by wiping out the other army or by occupying five strategic "power point" squares. The game is designed for two players, but the computer is a worthy opponent, boasting some remarkable AI for 1983. Just when you think you have the upper hand, he'll cast a strategic spell and knock you back on your heels. Archon is a genuine classic - one of the greatest video games ever conceived. © Copyright 2004 The Video Game Critic.

I have reviewed so many versions of Asteroids it just recently dawned on me I had never played the Atari 800 computer original. So I ordered a brand new copy (!) from Best Electronics and it came in the biggest box I've ever seen, measuring 11" x 8" x 1.5". That's pretty ridiculous considering the cartridge itself is a small brown 2" x 3" brick. As if to justify the size, it comes with an expansive 20-page manual with plenty of blank space on the pages. Big boxes mean big expectations but Asteroids let me down. I was instantly turned off by its use of color. Your ship and score are rendered in a deep green that doesn't exactly stand out against the black background. The asteroids are light blue and there's a lot of them. During advanced waves it's alarming as a wall of rocks encroaches on your little ship. Fear not, because these asteroids are slow and your cannon can unleash five shots at a time! The collision detection is heavily tilted in your favor so you can pulzerize even a huge rock bearing down on you. I normally expect the computer edition of a game to be the definitive version, but this Asteroids is surprisingly clunky! The animation is kind of choppy and my shots don't always seem to go straight. Various options let you toggle between several "defense" mechanisms triggered by pulling back on the joystick. Your choices are shield, hyperspace, flip, or none. The shield default is odd considering the arcade featured hyperspace. Even more bizarre is how this shield lasts indefinitely! Heck, even on the Atari 2600 you were limited to three seconds! The game seemed a little boring until I discovered "fast mode". This is more like it! Perhaps most remarkable are the four-player simultanous variations. Sadly, unless you own an Atari 400 or 800 you only have two ports to work with. Still, the two-player coop mode is a lot of fun. Being an older title Asteroids isn't as tight as it could be, but I do appreciate its wide range of variations. Now I just need to figure out where to shove this huge box. Please keep your suggestions to yourself. © Copyright 2019 The Video Game Critic.

I am so fed up with this game! Aztec Challenge looks deceptively simple as you jump your way through a side-scrolling obstacle course. My friends and I spent a good chunk of the summer trying to beat this! Your warrior runs at a steady pace as you press the fire button in conjunction with the joystick to leap high, low, or medium. Height is critical, because banging your head on a stalactite or high platform costs you a life. Each stage has a unique set of colorful platforms, and it's always fun to see what the next level has in store. The layout of each stage is randomly generated, which was probably pretty mind-blowing in 1983! Also innovative for its time (but somewhat annoying today) is the instant replay feature that kicks in every so often. It's great how two players can play this game at the same time - one running right behind the other! That's probably worth a letter grade in of itself! The scoring system awards points for each jump, so it's possible to rack up hundreds of extra points by jumping like crazy when you don't really need to. My only real issue with Aztec Challenge is its difficulty. Even after my friend Brendan discovered the unlimited continue feature, we could never reach the grand finale, which is a mythical pyramid stage. According to legend, this pseudo-3D stage has your warrior running towards a looming pyramid while avoiding spears thrown from both sides! We never got there, but Aztec Challenge certainly lived up to its name. © Copyright 2009 The Video Game Critic.

Here's an oldie that never got the credit it deserved. Boulder Dash is an old favorite of mine, and seeing its mesmerizing title screen instantly transports my state of mind back to 1984. That catchy title screen music loops and interweaves melodies in the most infectious way. If attractive graphics are eye candy, this tune is pure ear candy. The gameplay is similar to Dig Dug (Atari 5200, 1983) in that you burrow through dirt to collect gems and drop rocks on baddies. Boulder Dash however has a very unique look and feel. Your character resembles a little alien who quickly scoots around the screen in search of gems. The expansive stages scroll in all directions, and there are so many boulders that it's hard to move without knocking a few loose. And it's best to keep moving as explosive chain reactions occur in your wake. Sometime you'll need to purposely trigger an avalanche to access buried gems or destroy pursuing enemies. The animation is a little choppy, but that contributes to the frenzied pace. As the stages progress they tend to get a little less arcade-like and a little more puzzle-oriented. It is possible to become "stuck" between rocks, at which time you'll need to hit the escape key on the keyboard. A level select is available via the main menu. This is a game more people need to discover. Far more than the sum of its parts, Boulder Dash is a rare combination of strategy and frantic arcade fun. © Copyright 2014 The Video Game Critic.

Groundbreaking for its time, Bruce Lee kicks as much ass today as it did in 1984. Upon booting up the game you're immediately presented with an excellent illustration of the legendary martial artist himself, accompanied by a nice Asian theme song. Bruce Lee is an ideal combination of fighting action and platform jumping. Our hero is relentlessly pursued by two foes, which are rendered with chunky but nicely animated sprites. The "black ninja" wields a sword, and the "Green Yamo" is an aggressive sumo wrestler. Bruce can jump, climb, punch, duck, and perform devastating jump kicks. The first few screens feature attractive traditional Chinese architecture with scenic mountains in the background. Once the action moves underground, you're faced with perilous traps and moving vines. It's always satisfying to lure your unsuspecting enemies into the traps. Should you reach the final screen, you'll face off against a mysterious wizard in an epic battle. Bruce Lee's attention to detail is exceptional and often surprisingly so. The scenery is remarkably rich, with elaborate structures and statues that appear to have depth. You might expect that jumping onto a ladder would allow for an easy escape from foes, but those crazy SOB's will try to kick you off of it! I also love how dropping down on enemies knocks them on their butts. The game has no serious flaws, although the controls can be tricky when navigating moving vines. Long appreciated by 8-bit computer users but virtually unknown to console gamers, Bruce Lee is fun to play even after you've mastered it. © Copyright 2006 The Video Game Critic.

If you're a classic gamer that revels in cutthroat multiplayer action, this is the game you've been waiting for all your life (whether you knew it or not). Castle Crisis takes the time-honored gameplay of Warlords and ratchets up the graphics, speed, and overall excitement level. Gamers around the globe owe a debt of gratitude to Bryan Edewaard for programming this gem - from scratch no less! Castle Crisis looks just like the Warlords arcade game, with a walled castle in each corner and a single shield defending it. A dragon kicks off each contest by flying to the center of the screen and unleashing the first fireball. In addition to deflecting it, you can also catch a fireball with your shield and throw it in a new direction. I love how holding a fireball gradually burns away your own wall, discouraging players from holding it for too long. As each match progresses, additional fireballs are added to the mix, and by the time only two castles remain, the action is crazy. The graphics are colorful, well defined, and show no hint of slowdown. But the best part of all is the fact that Castle Crisis uses paddle controllers. Have you even tried to play Warlords with a control pad or joystick? It doesn't work very well. For games like this, nothing but a good paddle will do. Castle Crisis supports one to four players, and you can also select the number of rounds. If there's a flaw with this game, it may be the funky rules that apply to CPU-controlled players in the two and three-player modes. In the two-player mode, when the CPU wins a round, the whole game ends. In the three-player mode, CPU wins simply don't count. I would have preferred the CPU players to be treated like normal players. Of course, these issues don't apply to the enjoyable one-player mode or the outstanding four-player mode. Castle Crisis is a must-have title. If you don't have an Atari XEGS or Atari 8-bit computer, get one. If you do, pick up a copy of Castle Crisis at www.atariage.com. © Copyright 2004 The Video Game Critic.

Most video game players are familiar with Wolfenstein 3D - the precursor to Doom. But how many can say they've played the original Wolfenstein? This 8-bit computer classic is admittedly weak in the graphics department, but excels in terms of pure gameplay. You assume the role of an Allied soldier trying to infiltrate a Nazi fortress. At first glance, the game looks terribly sloppy. The rooms are simple mazes, and the soldiers are poorly rendered in only 4 colors. Some of them actually look like clowns! The animation is choppy and when you run into a wall, it appears as if you're getting electrocuted. But the gameplay is no joke. You can stick up guards a take their belongings. You can search chests for ammunition and supplies, and you'll often stumble upon German food and drink. Just don't drink the alcohol because it will screw up your aim. One thing I hate is how it takes real time to open a chest, although shooting the lock expedites the process. In addition to bullets, you can also find grenades and bulletproof vests. And once you find a Nazi uniform, the dynamics of the game change completely, as you can now walk around freely. Castle Wolfenstein requires a great deal of stealth and technique. German soldiers "shout" when they see something suspicious. Despite the 1983 technology, the game makes an admirable attempt at voice synthesis. The control scheme uses both a joystick and keyboard, which is awkward to say the least. You're better off with a second player manning the keyboard. Despite its primitive nature, Wolfenstein's attention to detail is commendable. For example, if you steal a guard's bullets, he can chase you - but can't shoot. And I appreciate how when you kill guards, they remain dead even when you re-enter the same room. But what really impressed me was the ability to save my place. Even using the 20-year-old 5 ¼ inch floppy, my game saved without a hitch. Castle Wolfenstein is a landmark video game, and if you can stomach the minimal graphics and awkward control, you're in for a good time. © Copyright 2003 The Video Game Critic.

During the 1970's everybody was kung fu fighting. During the 1980's everybody was kung fu fighting in video games, which proved to be much safer. When my friends and I first discovered Chop Suey in 1985 we were amazed. This was a dream come true: a one-on-one fighter with large, fluidly animated martial artists! The fighters even assume cool combat poses. The controls seem a bit non-intuitive until you remember that the controller only has one button. In that light they are remarkably well designed. Pressing the button while pressing the joystick lets you perform a jab, jump, low kick, body kick, and flying kick. Pressing the button alone makes you change directions. You don't automatically face your opponent and that's confusing - especially since both fighters look exactly the same! The game is playable once you grasp the controls, and it's cool when you kick your opponent in the chest and watch him double over in defeat. Sometimes you can take him down with a single flying kick! Adding intrigue is an "oriental scorpion" that occasionally scampers across the floor, forcing both players to jump. You can battle a CPU or a human opponent, and there are two speeds. The CPU is a challenge and having a score adds replay value. Until Street Fighter II (SNES, 1991) came along Chop Suey was one of the better fighters out there. It's particularly impressive coming from a tiny publisher. The instructions actually inquire if you can write good machine code and provides contact information to get a job. I'm thinking about giving them a call! Not really. © Copyright 2019 The Video Game Critic.

In the early 80's Choplifter made quite an impression on me. The country had just gone through a harrowing Iran hostage ordeal, so the idea of flying a helicopter into enemy territory to rescue hostages was a heroic challenge. Choplifter delivered realism with high resolution graphics, lifelike animation, and a sense of physics. Your chopper is not easy to pilot because it has heft and is subject to momentum. I like how it bounces slightly when you set it down. You begin on a miniature army base with a waving American flag. Stars twinkle in the sky to indicate your mission takes place under the cover of night. Once you lift off and fly over enemy lines you're greeted by tanks. It's easy to stay out of their range, but fast movement will attract the attention of deadly green fighter jets. You see these planes approach from the background, and you'll need to be ready because they unleash a pair of missiles. When hit, your copter goes down in a flaming heap. To avoid the planes I sometimes use a stop-and-go strategy to avoid detection. Some hostages are kept in houses you must blow open. I like how they run out and wave for you to pick them up. Your chopper has a fixed capacity and you can only set it down briefly before enemies converge. Unfortunately when there's a lot of activity the action slows to a crawl. This hinders your ability to maneuver, as the controls become terribly laggy. Even if you manage to load up with hostages the flight back is perilous and you only score for those you safely return. Once all the hostages are accounted for the game comes to an abrupt end. There's only one variation so the replay value is limited. Choplifter shows its age but it's still fascinating to look back on this highly influential title. © Copyright 2019 The Video Game Critic.

A gamer's dream in 1983, Conan delivers multi-screen platform adventure with beautiful, high-resolution graphics. It's still strangely compelling today, thanks mainly to its well-designed screens. Although rendered in a mere four colors, the visuals look more aesthetically pleasing than many modern games. It's the attention to detail that makes all the difference - the developers obviously put a lot of TLC into each screen. The castle interiors feature flickering candles, each tree is meticulously detailed down to individual leaves. Even the cave screens contain all sorts of subtle nooks and crannies. Although adversaries like bats, scorpions, and dragons tend to be small, they are nicely animated and easy to discern. In addition to its terrific graphics, Conan features an absolutely killer soundtrack. The upbeat, harmonized tunes are catchy as hell, and I never got tired of hearing them. The main character is chunky but agile, able to perform jump-flips and fling swords at enemies. The control lags slightly and collision detection could be tighter, but overall the game plays very well. The screens are progressively more difficult and most require some degree of strategy. Conan does possess one major flaw however, and that would be the heinous slowdown that occurs in later screens (notable screen five). When too many objects are moving at once, the action becomes painfully slow, and even old school junkies will find it hard to tolerate. Other than that, Conan is a good-looking and thoroughly engaging adventure. © Copyright 2005 The Video Game Critic.

I enjoy light gun games because they usually provide a more immediate sense of control. And then there's Crime Buster, one of the most bizarre light gun titles ever conceived. The game alternates between overhead car driving and first-person shooting stages. In the car stages the driving is automatic as gangsters pull up alongside and start shooting at your police cruiser. You can fire back, but not in a way you would expect. You fire at arrow symbols on the bottom of the screen which determine the trajectory of your bullets. There's another pair of arrows that cause your car to abruptly scoot (not shoot) forward or backward. These indirect controls are just plain weird. The only saving grace is the way shot-up mobster cars roll and explode in spectacular fashion. The first-person stages are more conventional as you shoot thugs that appear in uninteresting scenery, like a building or boat. I like how you can shoot the hats off their heads. Just make sure you don't hit the occasional babe who wanders into view. Sometimes you'll whiz a bullet past her head and breathe a sign of relief. I'm really impressed by the accuracy of the gun in this game. In many light gun titles I need to crank up the TV brightness for my shots to register, but I didn't have to do anything for this game. Crime Buster is mildly fun but when you die it's usually a mystery why. And while the "death" screen may look cool, classic gamers will instantly recognize that skull as being lifted directly from Final Legacy (Atari XEGS, 1987). Crime Buster tried to add a little twist to the light gun genre, but for the most part I think it missed the mark. © Copyright 2013 The Video Game Critic.

Cycle Knight is one impressive piece of work. You're a dude on a motorcycle stuck in a hellish volcanic world crawling with zombies, ghosts, snakes, and dragons. The action is presented isometrically, a la Realm of Impossibility (Electronic Arts, 1984) and the graphics look stunning. Though tiny, the characters are quite colorful and detailed. I love that cool dashboard! I was psyched to play but Cycle Knight turned out different than I expected. The first chamber places you on a small elevated platform crawling with creeps. Instead of racing all over you're perpetually facing northeast so that's the only direction you can drive. In order to clear out enemies I found myself awkwardly walking my bike backwards and shuffling sideways. The zombies die instantly when I touch them. Is this really the game?! You can fire shots in any direction, lobbing them up into the air. It's easy to kill flying creatures but really hard to hit what's right in front of you. Upon clearing the initial area I didn't know what to do. It turns out that holding in the fire button brings up a "talk" interface. You need to have a conversation with a face on the wall (who looks like a Lego guy) to proceed. Not only that, but you need to piece together some very specific sequences of words for him to allow passage! Was this part really necessary? I have to do this every time I play? Even when the face lets you pass, getting through the exit gate is tricky because it continuously moves up and down. Why does everything need to be so complicated?! In stage two I was pleased to see a ramp in front of me. I immediately took off it, crashed into a wall, and burst into flames. Game over. Eventually I would progress several screens into the game but each stage is claustrophobic and you never know what you can safely touch. You need to talk to that face to exit every chamber, and say the wrong thing and he might kill you. You rarely gain much momentum on your bike without crashing or plunging to your death. In chamber four I made a pretty massive jump over a pool of lava, only to be eviscerated in a sea of enemies. This game is brutal! Still, there's a rich, immersive quality as you scratch and claw to survive this captivating hellish world. Cycle Knight pushed my patience to the brink, but I don't think I've ever played anything quite like it and that's saying something. © Copyright 2020 The Video Game Critic.

In the early 80's I remember drooling over a picture of this game in an Atari computer Magazine called Analog. Dimension X is a shooter that lets you glide over a 3D checkerbox surface - a visual treat that was absolutely stunning for its time. I'm sure that effect alone sold a ton of copies. Well after 30+ years I've finally secured my own copy of Dimension X. So what's the verdict? Well, the 3D effect is still terrific. The animation is silky smooth. You can effortlessly glide around and build up a head of steam. The thing is, when pushing the joystick to the side you appear to be strafing, even though you're actually turning. That's confusing. A map on top of the screen indicates the number of enemies in surrounding sectors, and the flashing sector is the one you're headed towards. Why is there not a compass in this game? Before entering the next sector you're forced to travel through a passageway, and this is the worst part. Maneuvering these passages is like navigating the trenches in Star Wars: The Arcade Game (Atari 5200, 1983), only without the fun! You need to keep a cursor situated between two converging lines (why?!) while flying over and under approaching barriers. The 3D illusion is so dirt poor so you really can't tell if the barriers are high or low until the last second. Once you arrive in an occupied sector, enemies resemble flickering flying saucers hopping around the screen. The shooting action is shallow and imprecise. And once your ship is damaged, you might as well shut the game off because it becomes impossible to maneuver and/or locate enemies. In the final analysis it's clear that Dimension X is a marginal game constructed around a single programming trick - albeit a good one. © Copyright 2014 The Video Game Critic.

It will always exist in the shadow of its infamous Atari 2600 cousin, but this overlooked Atari computer edition of E.T. is far more playable. If you're the type of guy who can appreciate vintage 8-bit graphics (in all their blocky goodness), you'll find Phone Home very appealing. Playing the role of a pixelated Elliott, you roam freely around a scrolling suburban neighborhood with houses and cars that look great despite their low resolution and limited color palette. On the fringes of the neighborhood you'll find swamps with storm drains and forests comprised of scenic evergreen trees. The object of the game is to collect a series of phone parts, and as you wander around audio clues indicate if you're "warm". You can only return one piece at a time to your house, and that's tricky because the area is crawling with scientists and agents that scurry around like bugs. You can run by holding in the fire button, but that causes you to drop your piece, so forget that. Instead you'll want to take a stealth approach, waiting for agents to clear out before making your move. They'll be some close calls, but that's what makes the game exciting. Even so, gathering pieces gets monotonous after a while, particularly in advanced levels where you have to collect ten of the freakin' things. Once gathered up, you're treated to a close-up of E.T. who actually speaks to you. Granted, his voice sounds more like a chain-smoking demon speaking to you on a really bad cell phone from underwater. You'll complete the game if you can guide E.T. to his ship in the woods. I always thought E.T. was slow, but he scurries around like a little brown monkey in this game. At the landing pad you're treated to a nifty landing sequence before your final score is revealed. E.T. Phone Home is only moderately fun, but as a fan of classic gaming, I found this to be absolutely fascinating. © Copyright 2007 The Video Game Critic.

During the early 80's LucasArts was cranking out groundbreaking computer games on a yearly basis, pushing the limits of the 64K hardware. To understand the appeal of The Eidolon you need to realize that a real-time first-person maze adventure had never really been done before. This game let you freely navigate an underground labyrinth with realistic granular archways. Not only is the framerate and scaling relatively smooth, the creatures you encounter are large and nicely detailed. The goal of each level is to defeat the dragon, and these creatures look both majestic and ominous. Each level offers a unique dragon which come in some imaginative designs. While wandering the caves you'll collect fireballs and jewels by approaching them and pressing the spacebar. Sorry - you'll need the keyboard for this one. There are four different fireballs: red (destructive), blue (freeze), gold (power), and green which can turn one creature into another. You'll need to strategically juggle these to defeat each dragon. The problem is, you expend energy whenever you use a fireball, and you'll need to battle lesser creatures along the way like wasps, goblins, and one-eyed aliens. I feel bad about killing those cute baby dragons. Defeating monsters provides color jewels required to gain access to the dragon. One obvious issue with The Eidolon is how the gray passageways all look the same. I really got tired of craning my wrist while wandering in circles and stumbling upon dead ends. Shooting fireballs at enemies is not particularly satisfying. Monsters simply disappear when defeated, and if you accidentally fire an extra fireball it will bounce right back at you! That's a problem because the trick to beating each level is to conserve as much energy as possible so you're at full strength when facing the dragon. Between levels there's some good time-travel music but in general the audio is pretty quiet, save for the electromagnetic buzzing that gets louder as you approach the dragon. The manual is an old-looking piece of parchment with diary entries that provide a background story and clues. After beating the first few stages my attention began to wane. There's no password or stage select. The Eidolon was an impressive technical achievement but less of a game. © Copyright 2020 The Video Game Critic.

Back in 1983 this first-person shooter was nothing short of amazing. The whole first-person concept was still pretty new at the time and Encounter was slick. It felt like a turbocharged version of Battlezone (Atari 2600, 1983). The controls are really tight and the objects scale so smoothly! You freely maneuver your tank around a flat landscape with scattered pylons, trading shots a flying saucer. You can fire several shots at a time, so feel free to spray them around. Shots fired in this game look like giant ping pong balls. Since the Atari joystick only has one button (to shoot) there's no strafe control. The game's physics engine works well however, so if you turn quickly and hit reverse you can watch approaching balls pass harmlessly in front on you. In theory you can hide behind the pylons for cover, but they just get in the way. You only face one enemy at a time, but sometimes it takes the form of a drone that will home in on you in an alarming manner. They tend to zig-zag so it pays to hold your fire until the last possible moment. When you get hit the screen goes into a state of chaos that's pretty remarkable. Clearing a level reveals a square portal which takes you to the bonus stage where you're forced to dodge a extended barrage of ping pong balls. It becomes more nerve-racking as you near the end, because you know you're on the verge of earning a sweet bonus. Subsequent stages feature alternate color schemes and faster action, but your adversaries remain the same. That's the problem: the repetitive game of cat and mouse game gets old. Encounter may a glorified tech demo, but it's definitely fun for a while. NOTE: This would not work load on my Atari XEGS, and I reviewed it on an Atari 800XL. © Copyright 2016 The Video Game Critic.