WolfAmongWolves
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Posts posted by WolfAmongWolves
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I liked Star Ship on so many levels it’s just crazy. Star Ship was the first time I felt I was flying through deep space fighting battles to save the Earth. It was the first first-person out-of-the-cockpit view for home systems if I recall correctly. It also exhibited a good number of firsts in the programming department, none of which I can authoritatively comment on since I am not a VCS programmer by any stretch of the imagination. But stretch the imagination with Star Ship we did. Yessir!
Star Ship brings back lots of memories. I remember setting it up inside the family wagon and putting blankets over the windows. My VCS rigged to a 9” B/W JC Penny television provided the visuals for my makeshift deep-space craft. We seemingly had all the amenities of the Starship Enterprise. Catered food from mom & dad, a bathroom right outside, an entertainment system. Just too cool for school!
On a more personal note, I was still innocent and didn’t know a damned thing on how cartridges and the VCS really worked. I knew there were black things called integrated circuits and stuff. But that was about it. And I was happy. I would learn when I grew up.
The first sets of games where you simply had to blow up the oncoming ships was considered training. While fun in and of itself, the game taught us to pull up (push down on the joystick) just like a real aircraft! It took time for a 5 year old to get used to that idea, but it quickly became natural. And when you played the 2-player variants you really learned about spatial orientation.
The second set of games where you have to speed through space and avoid the asteroids was the precursor to having to guide your ship in hyperspace in Star Raiders. While there was nothing to blow up, it sure made use of your maneuvering skills - that’s for sure.
The last set of games where you had to land on the moon was a load of fun too. We added excitement to it by letting the winner play Lunar Lander on my programmable calculator.
We all know graphics were simplistic, much like everything else of the era. But the sound effects were spot on. They were just like the deep space scenes in some sci-fi films, eerie, clean, seemingly intermittent. And when we were done with our hardcore simming, we’d read astronomy books and study Rand McNally’s Map of the Moon. All the while having Star Ship running in the background, for it added a sense of being in mission control.
The tie-in factor was high with Star Ship. It was the cornerstone where many of our space adventures congregated. Later on we'd incorporate Space War, Asteroids, Missile Command, and others. Gameplay flowing from one cartridge to next - much like how you have different levels in a modern-day FPS. Building our stories and carrying out orders. We fabricated epic galactic tales to rival even Star Wars. And some of these games were even part of a training regimen you had to complete if you were to join our makeshift "Space Program". If you were really elite and the best of the best with these games you could earn points that would score time on Star Raiders.
Just like real astronauts on a moon mission, we had many tasks to perform. Launch was as different from trans-lunar-injection, as actually landing on the moon was as different from splashdown on Earth. Each phase of our space program challenge required you to complete various tasks scattered over many different cartridges and their game variations. Furthermore, some of us were good at one task but sucked at another and we formed teams and each of built a reputation for being an expert in some aspect. And that is how we linked games together, for any one single game just begged for its background storyline to be expanded and become part of something more than itself. And it all started with Star Ship.
People that criticize early games like Star Ship are pretty much clueless in knowing how to have fun with the very first classics. But ignorance can be forgiven and alleviated if a genuine effort is put forth to learn and see the light.
Star Ship - one of the best early immersive games ever made for any system at the time. Do yourself a favor and play it today!
Wow. Atari should have hired you as marketing director back in the day. I've never played Starship before. Now I have the uncontrollable urge to go on Ebay and spend any amount of money on it.
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Mine came with Combat and PacMan, probably 1983. The PacMan bundle really saved the day, since no other member of my family could be persuaded to play Combat with me, and it took several weeks until I had saved enough allowance to buy a new game.
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Overrated: Space Invaders. I know and appreciate that it's the granddaddy of all shooters, but I've always found it repetitive and not very exciting.
Underrated: Popeye and Space Cavern. Popeye is just a really great and varied platformer, and one of the only ones that isn't centered around jumping. Space Cavern is really exciting when you choose the variation with four electrosauri and random shots. Love the fact that the electrosauri turn into ghosts when shot instead of just exploding.
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Very impressive! Do you still play all of your games every now and then, or do you collect mostly for display purposes?
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Stampede! 30 years later, I still don't get the strategy required to beat this game.
That game killed me at the beginning too, but this is actually one of the rare instances where the old series "How to Beat Home Video Games" provided some useful information:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-s8d4m-ZPw
I was instantly able to quadruple my score after following the strategy described there. Have you tried it?
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You're overseas right now, in Berlin. So you're not german, I take it? Or are you and I am just misunderstanding something? Because I see some german-only games in your collection (top left).
No, you're not misunderstanding. I'm German, but my family moved to the US when I was a little kid, and I've lived in the US pretty much ever since. Because of my background my company usually sends me whenever we have a project in Germany. I always enjoy the stints in Germany, and it gives me the chance to pick up some PAL games as well
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Out of curiosity, do you have any pics of the game room itself? We like pics
I'd love to post some more pics, but your request came a day too late. I posted the pic of my collection on the last day before I left for an overseas assignment for my job. Right now I'm in an extended stay hotel in Berlin, and I won't be back home for three months. AA will hopefully help alleviate my Atari withdrawal symptoms while I'm here. If you're still interested in three months, I can post more pics then.
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very nice stuff,VCS has the best boxes, also nice to see the Coleco games in Coleco boxes, unlike mine in European CBS boxes
Interesting, I didn't know that Coleco games were sold in CBS boxes in Europe. I knew that they were also sold here in the Atari red boxes; I have Venture in the red box version as well. I just took a look at your collection pics, and I think the CBS boxes look great too, very different design from the CBS boxes sold in the US.
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Can't believe it's been over three years since anybody has vented their frustration about difficult games here. The game that's currently bringing my blood pressure to a boil is Mega Force. I find those flying saucers nearly impossible to beat. If I try to take them all out they destroy me; if I fly past them in an attempt to quickly reach the enemy headquarters they destroy Sardoun before I get there. I can usually do okay in almost all games after a few tries, but Mega Force is consistently getting the better of me. If anyone has any tips, let me know.
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Well, here's my collection so far. It's very focused, I collect only 2600 CIBs. I had about 20 games as a kid in the early 80s, before I got a C64 and my 2600 got relegated to a box in the attic. I rediscovered it and started collecting anew about three years ago. Right now my entire collection still fits neatly and recognizably in one picture, but I hope that will change in the future. The only thing is I'm running out of space already; I figure I can fit about 10 more games on those shelves, then I'm going to have to think about redesigning the game room.
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:grin: :grin: :grin:Love the South Park mouth animations.
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Discovering as a kid that you could simply jump over the seahorses in Dolphin instead of navigating through them, and get maximum points each time. I got the "Secret Society of Dolphins"patch shortly thereafter.
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And let's not forget the old classic: Next time your car is low on fuel, blow up the next gas station. You may find yourself with a full tank.
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Specifically with respect to RPGs:
- The armor you take from the dead dwarf will fit you perfectly. So will the one taken from the dead ogre ten minutes later.
- No, you can't pick up that magic dagger you found in the dragon's horde unless you drop something else first. However, the 567,876,421 gold pieces will always fit into your backpack, no problem.
- A king will not hesitate to entrust you with the survival of his kingdom, especially if you are part of a bunch of 1st level misfits who are new in town.
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The first release of the game came with the comic. The box has a little corner marker indicating the comic inside. Later Atari Corp. releases did not include the comic.
Thanks for the tip! I'll keep a lookout for the little corner marker then.
I was just looking through my collection and another great one is Warlords. Atari basically took a four-way Breakout and, with the help of the manual, turned it into the tale of four feuding brothers, banished by their kindly and peace-loving father King Frederick to a "forbidden land". In naming their four sons, I always thought that King Frederick and Queen Christina must have run out of traditional royal names by the time they got to their fourth son, whom they gave the rather unorthodox name of "Restivo". Now I just saw that Restivo is actually an old Sicilian name meaning "wayward", "contrary", or "obstinate". And "Frederick" is Germanic and means "peaceful ruler". That's just awesome. It looks like Atari put even more thought into this manual than I gave them credit for.
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Also, Atari got quite elaborate when they even included comic books (ala Centipede).
Thanks for mentioning that, I didn't know that Centipede came with a comic. That'll definitely bump Centipede up on my wanted list. Is the comic included in every game or was it a limited run?
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I've seen a number of threads here about favorite games, and as I was thinking about which game is my favorite, I realized how much a game's manual contributes to my overall enjoyment of the game itself. If you are a loose cart collector you may disagree, but I always feel a profound sense of disappointment when I crack open a new CIB game and find that the manual consists of a two-page leaflet, which, after explaining to me how to switch on my Atari and how to hold the joystick (duh) proceeds to describe the game along the lines of "Push the joystick left to move your spaceship left, push your joystick right to move it to the right, push the fire button to fire, destroy as
many aliens as you can before you lose your three lives" and then ends abruptly with the 90-day limited warranty. The game itself would need to be pretty damn good to make up for that letdown, and most of the games that are among my favorites have quality mauals.
What makes Adventure not just a good game, but a great game? In my opinion it's the fact that you're not just being chased by three generic duck-dragons, those are actually Yorgle, Grundle and Rhindle, and they have individual characters as well. In Haunted House you're not just traipsing through some blocky maze, it's Zachary Graves' mansion in the town of Spirit Bay, and you're looking for the magic urn that broke apart during the great earthquake of 1890. The manuals add fun details that the 2600's limited capabilities could not express in the game itself, and that really help define the game and give the player a sense of purpose.
My collection of Atari games is very far from complete, but of the games I own, my favorite manual is Riddle of the Sphinx. Here are a few highlights: "These are dark times. Death's long shadow rests across the Valley of the Kings." "The Son of Pharaoh girds his loins. He prepares to confront his fate on the timeless sands that are Egypt." "Who are they, who wound, heal, barter, and sometimes betray the persistent Son of Pharaoh? Proceed and be enlightened. Ancient Egypt's ways will yet be known to you." It's the pure poetry of the manual that makes Riddle of the Sphinx my favorite Imagic game, and I remember how excited I was when I read those instructions for the first time 30 years ago.
In your opinion, what other 2600 games benefit most from their manuals, and what are your favorite manuals and quotes?
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Yeah, the load times can really add up. I remember playing Pool of Radiance for about two months on the C64 and only finishing about 10% to 15% of the game. I then upgraded to an Amiga, and bought the game again because I had loved it on the C64 and wanted to finish it. On the Amiga it only took me a little over two months to finish the entire game. If you have a fastloader it will make it much more palatable.
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Another really interesting action RPG is Master of Magic. It features a split screen with a map at the top, a list of actions you can choose from in the middle, and a view of items and opponents at the bottom. It's much shorter than the other RPGs mentioned here and focuses less on character development and more on exploring and hack'n'slash. One of the highlights is the great music by Ron Hubbard that plays throughout the game. Definitely worth checking out.
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I bought several games from Dave, and I can only confirm what other members have written here before me. Fair price, prompt and friendly communication, thoughtful packaging, and quick shipping. In addition he is just an overall nice guy. I highly recommend him as a seller.
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I agree. I also just saw his reply to your follow-up question, calling Imagic sprites "multi-colored blotches", that "weren't recognizably anything". It is obvious that this guy has never seen those little critters on the planet surface in Cosmic Ark. Or the rock munchers, byte bats, and homing missiles in Laser Gates. Or the surface destroyers in Moonsweeper. All of those are highly detailed, animated, often multicolored, instantly recognizable sprites. You can safely ignore his opinion.
If you're looking for some constructive criticism, I think your Link sprite looks great and is very recognizable. The dinosaur is not as clear to me though - I can't really make out the head/face. The two white lines at the top look like horns, and due to their positions they give the impression that its head is turned backwards, i.e.looking over its shoulder. Is that the intent? Perhaps the animation will help clarify this.
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These are some great cartoons. Given the Activision theme, I'm just surprised to find Cosmic Ark in the lineup.
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Basement renovation
in Show Us Your Collection!
Posted
Very nice! It's like a big blank canvas with endless possibilities. Let us know how it turns out. You're hopefully not planning on getting rid of those lightstrings leading down the stairs, are you?