Jump to content
IGNORED

M-Network Games which are better on Atari...


keithbk

Recommended Posts

M-Network was owned by Mattel, the creators of the Intellivision game system. The M-Network brand created games for the Atari 2600, many of which were ports of games released on the Intellivision.

 

Interestingly, I find some of the M-Network games far better than the Intellivision versions, even though that was a "superior" game system.

 

One that comes to mind is Frogs and Flies, the port of the Intellivision game "Frog Bog."

 

Frogs and Flies holds a special place in my heart because of all the games I had for my Atari, this was one I would play with my mother. She thought it was cute. When both difficulty switches are at A, Frogs and Flies is really fun, because you have far more control of the frog and you can jump in the water. I find playing with an Atari joystick far more enjoyable than attempting to play with the uncomfortable Intellivision controller.

 

When this came out, the day to night sequence was fun, the firefly pulling out "The End" when the game was over was hilarious, and it felt different than most other games I owned at the time. Plus, you could play this solo because the other frog would become computer-controlled if left alone too long.

 

Which games from M-Network did you like better on the Atari than the Intellivision?

 

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've always thought MNetwork did a good job of porting Intellivision games to the 2600. But I don't know that I'd say I like any of them better on 2600 than the original Intellivision version.  Certainly I prefer the feel of a joystick in my hand while playing Astroblast, Space Attack/Battle, Dark Cavern/Night Stalker, Star Strike or yes,  Frog Bog/Flies. But for games like Sea Battle or Baseball, the directional pad on Intellivision worked better.... And the keypad with overlays certainly made Baseball,  Space Attack & Sea Battle work nicer on Intellivision. 

 

I guess if pressed,  I'd say given the choice on any of the games,  the two that I'd maybe choose to play 2600 version over Intellivision would be Astroblast and Dark Cavern.  For the rest I'd probably take the Intellision version just because of the improved graphics/sound (including Frog Bog - it just looks and sounds better on Intellivision, even if I did used to fall off the lilly pad way too often with the directional pad). 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

32 minutes ago, eegad said:

I've always thought MNetwork did a good job of porting Intellivision games to the 2600. But I don't know that I'd say I like any of them better on 2600 than the original Intellivision version.  Certainly I prefer the feel of a joystick in my hand while playing Astroblast, Space Attack/Battle, Dark Cavern/Night Stalker, Star Strike or yes,  Frog Bog/Flies. But for games like Sea Battle or Baseball, the directional pad on Intellivision worked better.... And the keypad with overlays certainly made Baseball,  Space Attack & Sea Battle work nicer on Intellivision. 

 

I guess if pressed,  I'd say given the choice on any of the games,  the two that I'd maybe choose to play 2600 version over Intellivision would be Astroblast and Dark Cavern.  For the rest I'd probably take the Intellision version just because of the improved graphics/sound (including Frog Bog - it just looks and sounds better on Intellivision, even if I did used to fall off the lilly pad way too often with the directional pad). 

Space Attack is definitely a good game, and the joystick works well for the battle part of it, but much less well than the INTV controllers with the number pad and overlay for deploying your squadrons.

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I also always enjoyed Adventures of Tron on the Atari 2600.

 

The game really had no equivalent on the Intellivision, and I found the game very fun as a kid. I still enjoy playing it from time to time.

 

Astroblast is much better on the Atari.

 

Super Challenge Football is a great game on the Atari. It is remarkably easy to "program" your players for each play. I always thought it was the best Football game on the Atari, hands down.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I came here to say Astroblast but I'm glad to see that doing so is highly redundant. 

 

Even though I'm a 2600 guy and am almost certainly biased, Astroblast/Astrosmash is a game where I can't possibly understand how somebody could try to make the argument that the Inty version is the better one. 

 

The fixed-screen space shooter with left/right movement is a classic game style, but when you look at all that was released - especially as arcade games, on pre-crash consoles, and on early home computers - this game style is such a saturated field with lots of rather non-descript and forgettable examples.  Against such a backdrop, the support of paddle/dial controls is a huge novelty, IMO. 

 

     

Edited by Cynicaster
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...