Task: Play Seven Forgotten Atari 8-Bit Computer Gaming Classics
Needed: Web Browser, Emulator
Time: 30-60 mins
Introduction
One of my favorite things to do is to play an Atari 8-bit game I have never played before. Benj Edwards reviews seven classics in this PC Magazine article from 2018 which might not have received as much attention as more popular games. This is a great list because I didn’t play any of these back in the day and have only played several more recently. These were really fun to explore and become familiar with. I highly recommend giving them a try!
Instructions
You can read the article here which provides a summary of each game. I have listed each game and its download link below. These can played using the Altirra emulator. You could also put these on an SD card device like FujiNet to play on original hardware.
Salmon Run – ATR and XEX files available.
Dandy – ATR available
The Dreadnaught Factor – COM file available
Juice! – ATR available
Necromancer – ATR file available
The Halley Project – ATR file available
Mr. Robot and his Robot Factory – ATR file available
Comments
The most interesting games for me are Dandy and Necromancer. Dandy was published by the Atari Program Exchange (APX) in 1983 and was the inspiration for the Gauntlet coin-op from Atari. Not sure how I missed this one as a kid. I would have loved it! Necromancer is just a crazy cool game with great graphics and challenging gameplay. The others are fun too!