Which games had the biggest impact on Atari 2600 history?

[Mind Master]

I know at least 3 games that had huge impacts on atari history:

 

Space Invaders - "launched" the system into stratospheric sales.

Pac Man - disillusioned a generation of videogame fans.

E.T. - disgusted a large number of young fans.

 

I think Space Invaders might actually be the all-time biggest "impact" game in atari history, followed by Pac Man. One had positive impact, the other, well, we know how that ended up...

 

MM

[Room 34]

I would say Adventure also had a huge impact. And probably some of the earliest Activision games, just because they were the first third-party commercial software EVER.

 

And of course, Pitfall! had a huge impact not just on the 2600 but on the entire world of video games.

 

Personally, I think it had TOO big of an impact, and games got stuck in a rut for many years after that, maybe still. I think as elaborate as games are now, you just don't see the variety and conceptual creativity that existed back in the early '80s.

[joeybastard]

You're 3 choice are definetely good ones but I would add these:

Pitfall

Kaboom

Demon Attack

 

These were "must haves" that probably sold a whole lot of systems and they were examples of the excellent quality outside houses could produce.

[Room 34]

Yes, Kaboom! as you may guess, is one of my favorites.

 

There was something magical about the really good paddle-based games, like Kaboom! and Circus Atari. There is just no way that a joystick or one of those ridiculous thumbpads on modern game systems could capture the feel of the insane rush of those games.

 

Put as many buttons on the controller as you want... it doesn't matter. Render smooth polygonal 3-D objects with lifelike texture bitmaps and realistic lighting effects, perfect object physics, force feedback, whatever. It's still not as engrossing and mesmerizing and addictive as spinning that little plastic disk back and forth, trying to catch the bombs dropping at incomprehensible speed across a plain green background.

[ATARI TROLL]

ADVENTURE-THE SECRET ROOM WITH WARREN ROBBINETTS INITIALS TOPS THEM ALL!

[sku_u]

I'd have to also say Combat made a huge impact because it was the first game anyone owned when Atari first came out.

 

Pitfall had a tremendous impact as well because it showed people what the Atari was capable of.

 

Enduro and Night Driver also had big impacts because they were trult innovative driving games when they came out.

[Room 34]

You know, I've just never liked Enduro. I hate the way the road is the same color as the ground around it, and I hate the physics of the way your car moves left-to-right... way too fast to be realistic. It IS pretty intense though.

[NE146]

Demon Attack

[tkarner]

Oversimplified answer:

 

Space Invaders made it.

Pac-Man killed it.

 

Ironic since both were translations of the most popular

arcade games ever. Proves that a name is not enough,

the game must be good.

 

You can analyze deeper of course. For example, if it wasn't for

Pong the 2600 would never have been invented.

 

Then you can say games like Adventure and Pitfall introduced

a new genre that had an impact on subsequent systems and

video game history in general.

 

Enduro and Pole Position were precursors to all the 3D driving

games out there now.

 

Activision as a company showed the viability of third party software....

[MegaManFan]

* Pitfall II

 

It really broadened the possibilities and capabilities of the system, and became one of those rare and wonderful cases of an Atari game not only having a sequel but being BETTER than the original.

 

* Edtris/Okie Dokie

 

If they said it couldn't be done, these two homebrew games proved them wrong. These days, homebrew games are so common place we're almost complacent about it, but without the knowledge gleaned from and inspiration gained by these two we wouldn't be here today.

 

* Pac-Man Arcade

 

Sure it's a hack, but it may be the best damn idea for a hack anybody's ever come up with. Finally Atarians got the version of Pac-Man they wanted and had rightfully deserved for the last 20 years.

[Inky]

You know, I've just never liked Enduro.  I hate the way the road is the same color as the ground around it, and I hate the physics of the way your car moves left-to-right... way too fast to be realistic.  It IS pretty intense though.

 

I am NOT alone! I always preferred Night Driver to Enduro. In fact, ND is my FAVORITE 2600 racing title.

[Room 34]

You know, I've just never liked Enduro.  I hate the way the road is the same color as the ground around it, and I hate the physics of the way your car moves left-to-right... way too fast to be realistic.  It IS pretty intense though.

 

I am NOT alone! I always preferred Night Driver to Enduro. In fact, ND is my FAVORITE 2600 racing title.

 

I always liked Night Driver too.

 

I would like Pole Position best, but what's up with using the joystick? I never got that. It was the start of the trend at Atari, I think, to get into using the joystick for all games. I think that's at least part of the reason they bothered with Off the Wall and Sprintmaster. Basically just graphically-updated, joystick-based versions of the same game concepts in Breakout and Indy 500, respectively!

[Christophero Sly]

I am NOT alone!  I always preferred  Night Driver to Enduro.  In fact, ND is my FAVORITE 2600 racing title.

 

Night Driver is my favorite 2600 racing title as well.

 

As for the important games:

 

1. Combat

2. Space Invaders

3. Pitfall!

[birdie3]

NES - Super Mario Bros. definately had the largest impact on the history of the Atari 2600.

[tkarner]

>NES - Super Mario Bros. definately had the largest impact on the history of the Atari 2600.

 

Good one. But more precisely, NES Super Mario had a bigger

impact on the Atari 7800. It killed the 7800. The 2600 was dying

of old age by then without Nintendo's help.

[Rob Mitchell]

Pong .. and Street Racer .. both predate Kaboom!

Combat .. maneuver against an opponent.

Space Invaders .. death from above .. shoot everything in sight.

Space Wars .. spaceship games .. predate Asteroids.

Adventure/ Pitfall .. search .. explore and find.

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

[Goochman]

I'd have to also say Combat made a huge impact because it was the first game anyone owned when Atari first came out.

 

Pitfall had a tremendous impact as well because it showed people what the Atari was capable of.

 

Enduro and Night Driver also had big impacts because they were trult innovative driving games when they came out.

 

Agreed - Combat was what started it all.

 

Other big ones:

Adventure

Pitfall

Space Invaders

Asteroids

Pac Man (love it or hate it)

[AtariDude]

Space Invaders was the first killer app in the video game business. It caused people to buy the VCS just to play the game. Just to put it into perspective, Atari made a gross income of $415 million in 1980, the year that Space Invaders was released. This was twice what they had made in 1979.

 

Thanks to Leonard Herman's book "Phoenix: The Fall and Rise of Videogames" for the information.

[Mind Master]

Adventure is my all-time favorite Atari game, but I don't think it had a big impact on the fortunes of the VCS/2600. People didn't buy a VCS to play Adventure the way they did to play Space Invaders.

 

In fact, I've always been frustrated that there weren't more games like Adventure made afterwards, even up to this day. Even fabulous modern-day games like Legend of Zelda don't give me the feeling that Adventure did - that Rhindle is out there, somewhere, waiting for me...

[Curt Vendel]

Hmmmmm, interesting question, lets see:

 

Adventure: first easter egg to be found in a game

Space Invader: lit fire under Atari's VCS

Pac Man: ugggh! Example of how blind management really was in thinking people would be gullable enough to accept this mess...

 

BTW: Just a note, the exact amount Todd Frye got for Pac Man was an upfront check for $860,000, imagine how much more money (and cocaine he could've bought with it) he would've gotten if the game had actually been done properly.

 

 

 

Curt

[AtariDude]

So Todd is the person that we can blame for the Fall of Atari? Personally I blame the management of Atari.

[Inky]

As much as people hate the game, I think LAser Blast had the single biggest impact on Atari's history, because IIRC, it was the FIRST 3rd party game created for the Atari platform.

 

It was the first I saw at the local Toys R US, anyway.

[Brian R.]

Adjusting for inflation, if he had gotten that $860,000 in 1982, it would be the equivalent of $1,608,677.44 in 2001, according to a handy inflation calculator I found.

 

As bad as 2600 Pac-Man is, I can remember a time when we gladly played it back in the day. Even 2600 Donkey Kong seemed OK. It wasn't until the Colecovision came along and you could compare that I remember noticing a difference.