The Worst Atari 2600 Video Games

*tk102* · 06-19-2007, 12:45 AM

I'm going to have to say
Kool Aid Man -- you could get this by sending in some proofs of purchase of Kool Aid. What a joke.
Congo Bongo -- utterly atrocious graphics and colors, I couldn't even play this game because I had no idea what I was looking at
Pac Man -- there was soo much hype before this game came out... I remember it was freaking $40 and the graphics were bad but the sounds were absolutely horrible. My friend had an Atari 5200 that was practically arcade quality, which he liked to rub in my face.

**Jae Onasi** · 06-19-2007, 12:55 AM

I don't care for centipedes in real life, so I wasn't too excited about the game, either.

Favorites:

spoiler:
Raiders of the Lost Ark, Empire Strikes Back, Asteroids, Space Invaders, and Circus Atari.

milo · 06-19-2007, 01:41 AM

Kool-Aid boi gets my vote.

OH YEAH

***Boba Rhett*** · 06-19-2007, 02:09 AM

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial for the win.

I'm going to go with Jedi Arena which may only be because I could never figure out how to play it.

Samnmax221 · 06-19-2007, 02:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tk102

Kool Aid Man -- you could get this by sending in some proofs of purchase of Kool Aid. What a joke.

But the Comic was a work of art.

**Jae Onasi** · 06-19-2007, 03:59 PM

How 'bout that "Custer's Revenge"? 'Politically incorrect' is the most understated description I've ever read....

*tk102* · 06-19-2007, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boba Rhett

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial for the win.

Aww, I liked E.T. At least it had recognizable theme music. It was kind of a hard game and yeah you spend a lot of time falling into wells, but I think it gets a bad rap.

If you're looking for E.T. cartridges...they've been found!

spinkle · 06-19-2007, 07:37 PM

Yeah, ET was actually a pretty badass game once you knew what you were doing. Not that learning the ropes didn't take a long while... >_>

One of the most disappointing games for me was Yars (possessive? not possessive? too lazy to check, too old to remember) Revenge...there was a lot of hype, but it turned out to be an extraordinarily lame game even by Atari 2600 standards.

Jae...as usual, you have excellent taste =)

...and I have to admit, sadly, that one of my favorite 2600 games was (and still is >_>) Adventure. Yes, I've beaten it. YES THE DRAGONS LOOK LIKE DUCKS, CAN WE GET PAST THAT?

The worst games, however, have to be the SwordQuest series...absolutely pointless without the companion comic books, and prizes for the "competition" part were ridiculous. (a jewel-encrusted sword? IRL? WTF? A CROWN? FOR GOD'S SAKE!) The last game never even came out =(

*tk102* · 06-19-2007, 07:52 PM

Oh spinkle, amen. I forgot all about the SwordQuest series. I remember getting one of those without the comic. I think I threw the thing away because it was so pointless. Didn't it give you "clues" like a page number or something in the game? Better left forgotten.

True also, Adventure was cool. It had the first 'easter egg' in a video game that I know of. The magic dot!

**Jae Onasi** · 06-19-2007, 08:38 PM

Oh, I totally forgot about Adventure!! I loved that game! We found the magic dot and unlocked the Easter egg, too.

spinkle · 06-19-2007, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tk102

Oh spinkle, amen. I forgot all about the SwordQuest series. I remember getting one of those without the comic. I think I threw the thing away because it was so pointless. Didn't it give you "clues" like a page number or something in the game? Better left forgotten.

True also, Adventure was cool. It had the first 'easter egg' in a video game that I know of. The magic dot!

The "clues" were to specific words and phrases in the comic book. If you got all the correct words/phrases, you could submit them to Atari for a chance at the prize. However, THERE WERE ALSO FAKE CLUES IN THE GAME! To make matters worse...there were, as far as I am aware, no actual endings to the games themselves. No end boss, no final room, no in-game prize.
The Wikipedia article for Swordquest is probably a better reference for anyone who wants more (or more accurate) info...and sadly, I know exactly which room the clue in the picture on the Wiki is from >_>

I always forget about the magic dot, tk...I may need to bust Adventure back out, I haven't played it in a couple month...I MEAN YEARS >_>

Fine, I admit it, I beat it again back in January. Hey, I was bored =(

***Darth333*** · 06-19-2007, 10:24 PM

never played Kool-Aid man so I can't say

Pole position was the most frustrating though...not that it was a bad game...the problem was that I was bad at it lol (I always disliked racing games since then

). I used to always crash with Night driver too

**ChAiNz.2da** · 06-20-2007, 12:20 PM

Freeway. Talk about monotonous. It was a less inspiring Frogger-ish knock-off that you could only move up & down.

Received it as a gift back in the day, played it a few times.. then it became a prop for my G.I Joes or something.. never to be played again, hehehe..

***Boba Rhett*** · 06-20-2007, 03:46 PM

Pole Position? Wasn't that on the Commodore 64 too? I don't think I played it after the age of ten but I seem to recall loving that game.

I'll come out and say it - I hated Pitfall. Do with me what you will.

spinkle · 06-20-2007, 08:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boba Rhett

I'll come out and say it - I hated Pitfall. Do with me what you will.

As much as I played it (a lot, a lot. the kind of a lot that inspires either awe or pity, usually the latter) I really did hate that goddamned game. My goal was to beat it without a) dying or b) hearing that awful grinding sound that accompanied lost points. I wanted a maxed out, megahighscore game; of course, I never got it. Why? Because that's practically in-f-ing-possible. Damn scorpions in the caves.

Here's the best part. When you get to the last board, what happens? You start over at the first board and there are no more treasures to gather. Um...yay?

Now...Jungle Hunt, on the other hand...