In praise of 2600 Missile Command

[Laner]

Some things that make it less than perfect to me: the lack of the giant THE END explosion cloud, and the high-score table for entering initials.

931102[/snapback]

 

You can't really single out Missile Command for that. Before 1984, virtually no Atari 2600 games had high score tables or "Game Over" screens. The memory for them just wasn't there.

You're right, but that was probably *the* definitive moment of the arcade version... not just "game over", but "THE END", with the screen being taken over by the explosion

[Laner]

I tried that hack through my Supercharger with my CX-80 trackball. No dice. The cursor just jiggles in place. I've tried it in JS and TB mode. Am I missing something?

There's three separate versions of the MC trackball hack; the CX-80 version didn't work for me (despite having a CX-80); another one did, though I don't remember which.

[supercat]

You're right, but that was probably *the* definitive moment of the arcade version... not just "game over", but "THE END", with the screen being taken over by the explosion

931412[/snapback]

 

The three-base hack of Missile Command shows "THE END" where the cities used to be.

[NE146]

And you can never even really get the background pitch black

931242[/snapback]

Space War Black - you'll need a Krok Cart, Cuttle Cart or a Supercharger.

931328[/snapback]

 

Yeah I know about that hack Haven't played it on my CC though..but then again my CC broke not more than a couple weeks ago.

 

Hopefully when I get that mmc soon, I'll pop it on my newly gotten CC2 (which I avoided for a long time until recently due to having the CC1).

[Emehr]

I tried that hack through my Supercharger with my CX-80 trackball. No dice. The cursor just jiggles in place. I've tried it in JS and TB mode. Am I missing something?

There's three separate versions of the MC trackball hack; the CX-80 version didn't work for me (despite having a CX-80); another one did, though I don't remember which.

931416[/snapback]

 

Didn't even think to try the other hacks. For the record, it's the CX-22 hack that does the trick. Tested it last night. Worked like a charm!

 

- Jason

[Zonie]

You're right, but that was probably *the* definitive moment of the arcade version... not just "game over", but "THE END", with the screen being taken over by the explosion

931412[/snapback]

 

The three-base hack of Missile Command shows "THE END" where the cities used to be.

931496[/snapback]

That Hack Rocks. If only atari could think out of the box then. They made special controllers for some of the dumbest games, IMO, but didn't bother to make a good universal arcade controller, something like a joystick with up to 6 buttons, or a joystick with a spinner (driving controller) and 4 buttons. Tron would have been possible then. They could have used port 2's joystick locations for all the extra buttons or the driving pulse-train.

 

I'm building just such a beast.

[82-T/A]

Yeah, Missile Command is one of my all time favorite games too.

 

I was lucky and bought a fixer-upper (just needed cleaning really) for $200 back in 1997. You can just make it out in the picture on the far left... hahahah..

 

I think I was taking a picture of my lawn mower, I was all excited.. very redneck of me.

 

 

If you need any parts, let me know... I've got a spare coin door, buttons switches, etc...

[Zonie]

Yeah, Missile Command is one of my all time favorite games too.

 

I was lucky and bought a fixer-upper (just needed cleaning really) for $200 back in 1997. You can just make it out in the picture on the far left... hahahah..

 

I think I was taking a picture of my lawn mower, I was all excited.. very redneck of me.

 

 

If you need any parts, let me know... I've got a spare coin door, buttons switches, etc...

933399[/snapback]

I'd be interested in the lighted buttons if you have a set of 3.

 

Oh, hey, that crown vic doesn't fit in with the rest of the cars on that list.

[+FujiSkunk]

933399[/snapback]

 

Fiero?? BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA...

 

(ahem)

 

Sorry.

[Agent X]

It's always been one of my favorites too. The 2600 version is, IMHO, a great example of how an arcade port can be modified to fit within the system's limitations without seriously compromising the gameplay.

930926[/snapback]

 

I agree with this. While the 2600 version doesn't have all of the elements of the arcade game, it manages to bring over the most important elements successfully. There are certain aspects which were likely modified based on hardware limitations, such as having a maximum of three ABM explosions at one time (as opposed to eight), but everything else was tweaked and rebalanced so that it all works out nicely. The colors and sounds are also very nice for the 2600. When all is said and done, it's a really classy conversion, and a fun game that's still worth playing to this day!

[Inky]

Now if someone would try to program MC's sequel "Liberator" for the 2600, I'd be a happy man.

[silverpoodleman]

Do y'all have the same strategy I do?  As in, when the missiles start dropping fast enough and you've lost a few cities, do you start to protect 1 or 2 cities neighboring your missile base?  That's what usually happens to me....then I'll get a bonus city way out in the hinterlands, and I'll say "Sucks to be you!".

930588[/snapback]

It's like you're living in my head!

[Zonie]

933399[/snapback]

 

Fiero?? BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA...

 

(ahem)

 

Sorry.

933624[/snapback]

 

/Off topic on

Fiero's were one of several cars that were "Ahead of their time"

Typical of GM, they killed it the year they actually got it right. Hence he has two of those.

 

Don't laugh. The AMC Pacer is also one of those cars. It had flush door handles, a lot of glass, and hidden gutters.

 

Others:

AMC Eagle - small 4WD wagon preceds all the SUV's soccer mom's now drive

Olds Toronado - American FWD car

GMC Motorhome - Space frame and bonded panels (like fiero, saturn, GM vans) also used Toro's drivetrrain.

Chevy Vega - Aluminum engine, Most are alum today.

Tucker Torpedo - Safety features

Chrysler "K" cars - Mainstream American FWD. These sad cars saved Chrysler.

 

There are others that I just cannot think of right now.

 

These cars all had features that were questioned, but now are widely in use today.

 

/Off topic off

[+FujiSkunk]

Fiero's were one of several cars that were "Ahead of their time"

Typical of GM, they killed it the year they actually got it right. Hence he has two of those.

 

[off topic continued]

Ahead of their time or not, they were extremely unreliable cars. I should know, my mother had one for a couple of years, an '84 model if I remember correctly. By the time we gave it up, the headlight motor was shot, the body was cracking on the driver's side, and the car was on either its second or third transmission.

 

But I do have to say one thing nice: Those speakers in the car seats were a neat idea.

[/off topic continued]

[82-T/A]

/Off topic on

Fiero's were one of several cars that were "Ahead of their time"

Typical of GM, they killed it the year they actually got it right. Hence he has two of those.

 

Don't laugh.  The AMC Pacer is also one of those cars. It had flush door handles, a lot  of glass, and hidden gutters.

 

Others:

AMC Eagle - small 4WD wagon preceds all the SUV's soccer mom's now drive

Olds Toronado - American FWD car

GMC Motorhome - Space frame and bonded panels (like fiero, saturn, GM vans) also used Toro's drivetrrain.

Chevy Vega - Aluminum engine, Most are alum today.

Tucker Torpedo - Safety features

Chrysler "K" cars - Mainstream American FWD. These sad cars saved Chrysler.

 

There are others that I just cannot think of right now.

 

 

 

Yeah, I'm not really sure what the joke is.

 

I know the first year Fieros had fire problems from engine failures, but hey... it is what it is.

 

- 4 wheel disc brakes

- Mid Engine (yes, the engine is behind the seats)

- Rear Wheel Drive (this is NOT a front wheel drive 4 cyl Honda)

- Rack & Pinion steering.

 

 

I've rebuild the engine in my 87 SE / V6 Auto... it was originally a 2.8. I put in a 3.1 crank and set of 3.1 rods. Hyperutectic aluminum pistons, larger valves (1.8 instead of 1.7 intake), bored out the throttle body, hogged out the exhaust manifolds, port-matched everything... I'm running low 14s, and can take a highway on-ramp at 120+ miles an hour if I felt the need to.

 

 

 

 

 

If I still can't get my thrills from it, I've always got the S&B Trans Am.

 

 

 

Ahead of their time or not, they were extremely unreliable cars.  I should know, my mother had one for a couple of years, an '84 model if I remember correctly.  By the time we gave it up, the headlight motor was shot, the body was cracking on the driver's side, and the car was on either its second or third transmission.

 

 

Eh, I wouldn't really say extremely unreliable. The first year cars (84) had a problem with engine fires in the first run of 10,000 or so. I guess the media took it and ran with it. But I wouldn't say that they were any more or less reliable than any other GM car in the 80s. In the 80s, GM and Ford had the most unreliable cars you could buy. Now... GM and Ford have the top 8 positions for most reliable cars in the US.

 

I've had 9 Fieros... I buy them, fix them up, sell them. Same with other Pontiacs... or any rare or unique car I can pick up relatively inexpensively. It gives me something to do on the weekends.

Edited September 19, 2005 by 82-T/A

[Zonie]

I hear a small block with a long water pump housing slips in nicely for a V8 Fiero.

 

I wonder if the heads on the DOHC 3.5 GM V6 are too big to fit. That would be a cool engine swap.

 

As far as the fires, All GM cars in year one of production suck.

 

I wanted a Fiero back in the '80's...along with a Buick GNX. About the time I was playing Missile command in the arcades IIRC.

Edited September 19, 2005 by Zonie

[sandmountainslim]

Hurray for Missile Command!

As good if not better than the arcade original!

WP

[jaybird3rd]

Such a good job, IIRC, that Atari gave him a gift certificate for a free turkey. Ungrateful guy never even redeemed the certificate, but instead left Atari.

Ah yes, the infamous turkey certificate ... sitting in a plaque on Rob Fulop's office wall to this day!

 

Missile Command is certainly a great arcade translation, and probably the best one done by Atari itself; most of Atari's other top-tier 2600 arcade ports (at least according to this thread) actually came from GCC. Multiple firing bases and trackball control would have been great to have in the original release, but I suppose there's only so much one can do with 4K.

[jdrose]

Yes, I really enjoy Missile Command on the VCS. Very fun and replayable.

 

A few other ports worth looking into are Frogger, Phoenix and Defender II. Impressive renditions of the originals.

[Cynicaster]

Nice threadmining.

 

I did happen to play VCS Missile Command for the first time in ages over the weekend, and it's a very good port, but I still find it markedly second rate to the arcade version. Two main reasons: joystick controls and the 3-explosions-at-once limitation. I also don't care for omission of two missile bases, but that's not nearly as big an issue for me as these others.

[Skylark68]

The majority of my Atari time back in those days was spent on a tiny 13" black-and-white TV. When I lost the game and that explosion lit up the screen, the rapid changes in light made it a little hard for that poor TV to keep the picture steady. As a result, everything on screen would shake, making it seem that much more destructive, that much more "final." As happy as I would be whenever my mother would let me hook the Atari up to the living room's color TV, that part of the game just never had the same effect.

 

Hah that's great.

 

Speaking of old tv's, I remember on ours it had some major brightness control to the point where you could make the background 100% BLACK in games like Space War and thus get rid of the stupid green background. I would then jack up the color and the ships, shot and 'sun' would literally be flourescent againsts the black. Shots would start to have tracers too. It was great

 

Can't seem to do that on today's tv's though. The brightness just seems to lower the the glare of the entire screen.. including the ships. And you can never even really get the background pitch black

 

I remember doing this on our old Zenith back in the early '80s. I'd change the color on Pac Man and make the playing field this awesome purplish color. Pac Man himself would turn a funky orange color. On my old tel star that I had, I'd pump the brightness up and turn the contrast down so much that the puck or ball (whatever you want to call it) and the paddles would be so white that I'm sure it would have burned the screen if I left it on too long.

[Trinity]

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/command

[raskar42]

The majority of my Atari time back in those days was spent on a tiny 13" black-and-white TV. When I lost the game and that explosion lit up the screen, the rapid changes in light made it a little hard for that poor TV to keep the picture steady. As a result, everything on screen would shake, making it seem that much more destructive, that much more "final." As happy as I would be whenever my mother would let me hook the Atari up to the living room's color TV, that part of the game just never had the same effect.

 

Hah that's great.

 

Speaking of old tv's, I remember on ours it had some major brightness control to the point where you could make the background 100% BLACK in games like Space War and thus get rid of the stupid green background. I would then jack up the color and the ships, shot and 'sun' would literally be flourescent againsts the black. Shots would start to have tracers too. It was great

 

Can't seem to do that on today's tv's though. The brightness just seems to lower the the glare of the entire screen.. including the ships. And you can never even really get the background pitch black

 

I remember doing this on our old Zenith back in the early '80s. I'd change the color on Pac Man and make the playing field this awesome purplish color. Pac Man himself would turn a funky orange color. On my old tel star that I had, I'd pump the brightness up and turn the contrast down so much that the puck or ball (whatever you want to call it) and the paddles would be so white that I'm sure it would have burned the screen if I left it on too long.

 

my dad used to get so pissed when i messed with the tv colors. he'd be on his knees in front of the tv fiddling and cursing trying to get jim rockford to look like a human being again.