pocketmego

Now, admittedly, i only have the ROm for this game. But, is it just a harder, faster version of Atlantis? Where did it come from? Also is Ocean City Defender just an Atlantis Hack? -Ray

Glad to be of service, my friend. -Ray

You make an EXTREMELY interesting point, Mos. I often bemoan the loss of the single coder games, replaced by these high end big budget monsters. But, it never occured to me that it most certainly affected the coders themselves ina variety of ways. In many ways warshaw was a made genius when it came to his Atari games, especially his original ideas. Where, in the world, does a guy like that go when his industry falls apart and gets completely re-structured? The sae with Tim Skelly and the brilliant single coders at Ocean and Palace software. Those poor guys must have suddenly found themselves in very strange circumstances, especially the ones that never saw things like the crash or evolution of team created games coming. -Ray

Aparently, from what I've gathered, you people that have been posting here for the last 150 years think that everyone that posts here needs to apologize everytime they post something, in case it was already discussed. But, ya know, I'm really not going to do that. I've witnessed several new people join this list even since I've been here. Chances are very good some of them haven't seen this and I am just NOT going to do a search on this forum everytime I want to post something. That, about answer your question? I hope so. -Ray

Your parcel was shipped on 2006-07-25. The games were shipped immediately as soon as I received the complete payment... A few people failed to pay by now. I give them some more days, but afterwards I may offer these copies for sale to the interested people on my reserve list again. Thanks, Simon *cough* want one *cough* -Ray

Well its effectively advertising a 2600 jr. and as I recall it aired in 1986, just before we got a new Nintendo that following Christmas. This was Jack Tramiel's double edged marketing ploy to not only launch the 7800, but also to offer the 2600 in a new attractive package as a budget system in the US. Atari commercials are funny things though. I can't for the life of me recall seeing any Atari commericals featuring that funky "Have You played Atari today..." jingle. I didn't even know Atari HAD a jingle before I came to this site. Yet the commercials on You Tube, clearly prove that i was mistaken. -Ray

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRCvkuFJE9A...pace%20Invaders This homage to Video Games in general and Atari in almost specific is one of the reasons I'll never understand Futurama getting cancelled. -Ray

Please, excuse the title intentional music pun. I've noticed we have quite a few UK Atari fans on these forums. I've seen the commercials from there, so i know the system was sold in the UK and seems to have been successful. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQ02T9w8bLc...pace%20Invaders However, I was lead to believe from various gaming history web sites and books that people in that part of the world mostly came into video games by way of Home computers like the ZX, Beeb, Amstrad, and the C-64. Versus consoles which is where most Americans were intorduced to video games. How big was Atari, especially the 2600, in the UK? I'm very curious. -Ray

Actually, in response to another person in the other thread, this one was supposed to be a POLL. But, I screwed up and didn't make the poll work right. By the time I tried to fix it (it actually posted twice and with no poll), people had already started responding to it. So I do apologize if it seems like I over posted this topic, which is not un-true. Not usually the way I do things. promise. -Ray

Youtube is great, I love all the old Atari commercials, but man does the Pitfall commercial look in bad shape. It looks a LITTLE better on the PS2 Activision compilation disc, but not much. The only existing copy of the master must be looking like it was put through a cheeze grader. I am happy that it still exists at least. I am also thrilled that so many of those Atari commercials available on You Tube. P.S. That Zelda Rap commercials is scary. -Ray

I had heard the song then and I have most recently heard it as well. I'm sorry dude, I don't hear it. But, I do respect the attempt, music in videogames from that era was not easy. Witnes Pac-man. Are you sure you're referring to the right bit of music, pocketmego? Like Crazy Climber said, Journey Escape actually has two songs (not counting the musical riffs heard when getting the roadies or the band manager). The one that plays on the title screen (with graphics based on the album's original artwork) is very obviously "Don't Stop Believin'"; the bass line is a perfect match, and the "melody" does a serviceable job imitating the original piano intro. The tune that actually plays during the game, however, is something else entirely. The instruction manual claims it to be "Don't Stop Believin'", but it's pretty obvious that it isn't. Hmm. You know I might be mixing them up at that. Let me grab a quick listen here.... Ah I see what I was making my mistake on. Right before they play the very recognizable "Don't Stop Believin'" they play a few bars of that goofy in game song. I was mistaking the two. I never really stopped and watched the animation either. This has to be the best title screen the Atari had. WWish the game had been better. -Ray

I totally agree with you on Popeye. I also think graphically it sure looked a lot nicer than Donkey Kong. The problem with Congo Bongo is that the game in the arcade was famous because it had better than average graphics at the time and a lot of color. But, it played like crap, even in the arcade, because Sega was riding the big monkey wave started by Nintendo. So it looked great, but wasn't oo good. So by porting it on to the 2600, you took away the only thing that made it worth playing, which of course were the graphics. -Ray

Some great Homebrews lead me to wonder why they couldn't have done one just as good in 1982? People say all the time that they didn't have the tech understanding that would come later with Ms. Pac-Man and Jr. Uh, tech is FAR from the only problems the original version had. That game plays like the guy had never seen a Pac-Man machine in his life. Where in FREAKIN' 1982 could you have POSSIBLY lived where there wasn't an available Pac-Man arcade game? -Ray

Amazing! If you were very young in 1982, I guess I could understand that. Every teen and near-teen I knew saw the connection. Back then Indiana Jones was adventure guy no matter what happened in the movie, especially since many of us never even got to see the movie until years later. All we had were commercials and hype to go on. In September of 1982, the Indiana Jones buzz was still strong and it looked to most kids like Activision was trying to cash in on that buzz just like everybody else. Could it be that Activision didn't want to get sued? As I said above, back then Indiana Jones was adventure guy no matter what happened in the movie, especially since many of us never even got to see the movie until years later. All we had were commercials and hype to go on. The Yar was in at least three games: Yars' Revenge, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. You've never seen or heard of that before? It's been on the Internet for years and there was an article about it in Atari Age magazine that you might want to check out: http://www.atariage.com/magazines/magazine...;CurrentPage=20 http://www.atariage.com/magazines/magazine...;CurrentPage=21 http://www.atariage.com/magazines/magazine...;CurrentPage=22 I saw the article back in 1983, but I never got to see that movie theater commercial until I got Internet access. You're in danger of getting your Atari nerd license revoked. That's Yars' Revenge not Yar's Revenge. I was fortunate to see the spot when it ran in Movie Theaters. When I saw it again on the Internet I was just as impressed. I assumed my me mory was giving it more oomph then it actually had all these years. but, no, it is a tremendously impressive piece of work. I was very young when Raiders came out (the first movie my parents let my brother and I see alone in the theater). So that is why I never made the connection. All of you are of course right in that being an Activision character Pitfall harry can never be a true Atari Mascot, so yes, Yar would win by default. Also, until you pointed it out, I never noticed itwas Yars' Revenge. Yar did appear in any game made by HSW, however he differs from mario who starred in the games he appeared in (more or less) prior to SMB. I also want to mention that I like Flap Ping. Even though its hard as hell and makes me want to throw my machine out the window. But, there are those who believe this is the sign of a GREAT game. -Ray

Electronic Games magazine had a whole article about this that I can scan in if I absolutely have to. Some video game characters do have a personality in the game. They have a certain attitude which can include things such as tapping a foot if you make them stand in place too long. Gex certainly had a personality in his game back in the mid 1990s. Activision didn't even seem like they invented a consistent personality for Pitfall Harry. I didn't watch the cartoon, so I don't know what he was like there, but I didn't see any evidence anywhere else of him having any kind of personality of his own that you could apply to the game. We didn't? Does this we include me and other kids I knew? Raiders of the Lost Ark was still on all of our minds, even years past 1982, so we were aware of the direct connection. We all knew that Pitfall was just a ripoff of Raiders of the Lost Ark with a dash of Tarzan thrown in. It seemed everyone was trying to ride the coattails of Raiders of the Lost Ark, just like everyone tried to ride the coattails of Star Wars. Pitfall! was released in September of 1982 and do you know what else came out that month on TV? That's right TV junkies, Tales Of The Gold Monkey and Bring 'Em Back Alive. Two shows that constantly reminded us of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Then it wasn't too long before Africa by Toto was constantly played on the radio and that reminded of us of Raiders of the Lost Ark which got fed back into Pitfall! and the official Raiders of the Lost Ark game that was soon to be released. I think you lost track of what this thread is about. It's not asking if Pitfall Harry was original, it's asking if he was the closest thing the Atari 2600 had to a Mario. Was Pitfall Harry a Mickey Mouse? There didn't seem to be any advertising that gave Pitfall Harry a personality of his own. He was just whatever you wanted him to be and if that was Indiana Jones, so be it. Activision didn't mind riding those lucrative coattails. I'd be more likely to vote for the Yar since it seemed everyone loved that game, both girls and guys equally. The Yar comes with a built-in personality, just in the way he moves and it seems everyone instantly recognizes the Yar. Even though Atari never had a chance to push it, the Yar still manages to tower over Pitfall Harry as a video game icon in my mind. Pitfall Harry's personality was created in the write-ups in the game manuels, the pictures of him on the patches, the TV Show, and in Activision's various other resources. Resources not as...shall we say, copius as Nintendo's would be by 1988. But, you're right we should get back on topic. I think my mind is made up that the Yar fly would definately be the closest thing Atari had to a Mickey Mouse, Mario, Spider-Man, etc. Besides it's personality, the Yar had the comic to back it up. Yar's Revenge is also one of the few non-core Atari games made for a later system (core games being Asteroids, Pong, Defender etc). Yar got a re-make on the Gameboy color not too long ago. New Atari (ick) should use the character's recognition as an asset if they are going to conti nue to market to us old farts. -Ray

Yeah, until I heard 2600land's midi, I never realized that was supposed to be "Don't Stop Believing." -Ray Alright, I have to arguee this one. Although Journey escape is not the best 2600 game out there I think the version of "Dont stop Believing"was a damn good version considering what the 2600 was limited to as far as music. If you can't tell it's that song then you must have never heard it before because it's pretty clear. There are 2 songs that play in that game, maybe you have them mixed up. I had heard the song then and I have most recently heard it as well. I'm sorry dude, I don't hear it. But, I do respect the attempt, music in videogames from that era was not easy. Witnes Pac-man. -Ray

I can't here the word Atari without this commerical runningn through my head. Tramiel didn't spend much on his products, but he paid well to have this add run ENDLESSLY back in the mid-late 80's. An Atari rap song...Yeesh!! -Ray

You know somebody out there bought a copy of Video Olympics and was really upset that the Pong Net was missing. -Ray

The only problem I have with the Coleco Vision is that it has fantastic graphics, but its game play seems weak. 2600 games look like crap. Although, the right people could do magic with that sytem (Imagic). But, despite its graphical weakness very few of its arcade ports played anythign but GREAT. The 2600 DK may look awful, but when you play it, it feels like DK is supposed to feel when yopu play it. It also sounds pretty decent. The Coleco DK feels and sounds very awkward. Yes, it moves the same, but its level design is bad, its got everything mixed up and the sounds throw you right out of the game. DKjr is worse. This game just flat out plays and feels completely wrong. DKjr, the character mostly comes off looking like he's doing something he shouldn't be doing. He doesn't have the expression of fear or concern he has for his dad, like he does in the arcade game. No, here he looks like he just peed on the rug and is waiting for someone to scold him for doing so. And what is with Mario's weird bush hat? Plus, it is hard for DK to grab vines, I've jumped and had him not grab a vine he was right under a bunch of times. Coleco knew they had game play issues, otherwise why make an add-on for their system that used "inferior" graphics? -Ray

I just found this, it HAS GOT to be the oldest Video Commerical there is. Although its strange that they would have filmed a black and white commercial in the 70's. -Ray

This is a GREAT music video using a montage of many terrific and iconic classic games... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9644DaAup8...20Game%20system -Ray

King's Quest right? Good choice. As for me, there are quite a few. Tim Skelly and all his glorius Vector Games. he could join up with the Vectrex Homebrew guys and make a fortune. Paul Norman - Aztec Challenge and Forbidden Forest were both WAY ahead of their time and the guy has no clue he really was a genius. Palace Software - Caulron 1 and 2, Barbarians 1 and 2, Evil Dead...etc etc... These guys made some of the top C64 games EVER. Their games kept me busy for hours and hours at a time. Infocom - In the end they were so right, The Human Mind is the greatest graphic processor and it always will be. Even the most highly advanced 3-D games put out now, don't ever seem to have the addictive, rich, story telling power of a good Infocom game. Imagic - For the same reasons everyone else mentioned. Had they made the jump to computers they would be a modern force to be reckoned with. Atari - Because the new one sucks. of course, in the case of all these people, I'd prefer they work on the same types of games they produiced back in the day and strictly serviced the ever growing and profitable retro-market. -Ray

Beautifully stated. The problem with David Crane, as I see it, is that he was a superstar in the 2600 era who either couldn't adapt to the NES age, or ran out of gas before it arrived. The only noteworthy game he released after 1987 was A Boy And His Blob. Some people liked the game, but it lacked the polish players had come to expect from the NES, with characters and backgrounds that looked like they would be more at home on the Atari 7800. It's clear from this game that Crane's style of design just couldn't evolve along with the industry. Not to add too much fuel to the fire, but by the original poster's logic, you could also say that Will Wright owes all his success to David Crane as well, since David created Little Computer People (the predecessor to The Sims as well as countless other virtual pet sims). JR Actually, yes i do believe that Will Wright owes his career to Crane. The first thing I thought when I saw the SIMS was Little Computer People. Now, please don't get me wrong, I should more accurately say Will Wright owes his current status and celebrity partially to Crane. The other part is all him, because Sim City was and always will be brilliant. I admit, i was being exagerated a little mean towards Myamoto, but only to make the point that I am really tired of this particular marketing ploy by Nintendo. Yes, the man was utterly brilliant and deserves every iota of credit he gets. But, Nintendo has had thousands of brilliant creators over the years and not one of them recieve the recognition of this one man. Hell, there biggest success story right now is the DS which is based on the Gameboy and game and Watches before it, all created by the same man. Do we hear much about him? NO. Getting back on topic, the fact is that most of the concepts still used in gamming today were engineered by Crane first and people seem willing to let his name fade into history while Myamoto, talented though he may be, is immortalized for simply improving that which already existed. -Ray

Though I put both down, lately I've been leaning towards on-line more than anything else. The problem is that the last two purchases I've made from local flea markets haven't yielded the best results and I've gotten quite a few non-working games and glitchy hardware. The worst being a Pitfall 2 that was a major dissapointment when it didn't work. -Ray

I started this to finally settle this once and for all. My choice is easy. Crane made a system incapable of much, do things its creators never dreamed were possible. He created the first true Video Game character and the first multi-screened side scroller. Myamato created the first platformer game. Then he took Pitfall, made it easier and added defensive weapons to it and called it Super Mario Brothers. Then he took Adventure added characters and ideas from the Tom Cruise movie legend and created Zelda. Obviously the most important creator between these two can only be David Crane. Incidently, was Myamato a programmer or did he just design game ideas and get other people to program them? I always here he designed games and drew for them, but I never hear of him as a programmer. -Ray