Episode Details

TCW Podcast Episode 257 - Nine Atari Games

The Atari VCS launched with nine games to entice consumers into the new gaming medium, and Combat set the trend of packing multiple "games" into a single cartridge. Featuring a wide array of game modes, Combat holds its own even today and served as the console's official tie-in title. Atari's partnership with Sears, however, rebranded all but one of the launch titles under different names, including Target Fun, released elsewhere as Air-Sea Battle. Many of the launch games carried multiple modes to stretch their value, and even these early titles pulled clever tricks to push past the VCS's five sprite limit. To justify the console's cost to families, Atari aimed squarely at adults with Blackjack while also including the educational game Basic Math. While many of these early titles were forgotten as more advanced games arrived over the course of the Atari VCS's life, their influence on a foundational system cannot be disputed.

Atari Archive: https://www.atariarchives.org/

Atari Archive (Youtube): https://www.youtube.com/c/AtariArchive

Combat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNtI90yiOOU

Air-Sea Battle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0l0AQ5LuvQM

Video Olympics: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rie4hsUeDuA

Indy 500: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_POr4OdHhiI

Street Racer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCSYY1kK9so

Star Ship: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4zySJ96a4U

Blackjack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nvWBin7_Rc

Basic Math: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lv7T4ya9hcg

Surround: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhZ1wfGLq1w

How to do long form Square Roots: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6evC4klO_lI

TCW 051 - Sons of Pong: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW051

TCW 201 - Advanced Balls and Paddles Part 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW201