Mat Mania Challenge		Grade: D-
	Publisher: Atari (1990) Reviewed: 1999/8/2

It's almost unfair to rate this game, considering how far fighting games have come since the Street Fighter revolution. But I have to rate this based on how fun it is now, and certain games just don't age well. Mat Mania is an ambitious wrestling game with complicated controls. The primary moves involve kicking and punching, but kicks never seem to work. Once you stun your opponent with a series of punches, you can pull off more complicated moves like a pile driver or knee drop. You can also do running attacks, climb the post, or fight outside the ring. Considering the limited number of buttons (two), there are an impressive list of moves. The graphics are good and there's even a referee who does absolutely nothing, just like real wrestling! Although there are plenty of moves, the fights tend to dissolve into boring punching contests. A huge problem is the lack of a health meter; it's impossible to tell who's winning at any given time. Mat Mania may have been worth playing in 1990, but it sure doesn't have much going for it now. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.

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1 or 2 players

Meltdown		Grade: C-
	Publisher: Atari (1990) Reviewed: 1999/7/25

Meltdown is an average light gun game that reminds me of Reactor for the 2600. You try to shoot particles bouncing around the screen before they hit your core blocks in the middle. It's kind of like a reverse breakout game. Initially the game seems pretty bad, especially with its boring graphics. But after playing for a while, I discovered some cool features. Missed shots form a temporary blockade, adding some strategy. There are several useful power-ups, including continuous fire. When you complete a level, you are given a passcode so you don't have to start over next time. This is critical because the early levels are too easy. The later levels are more hectic and fun, although the screen flashes brightly every time you fire, which could induce headaches (or epilleptic seizures). © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.

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1 player

Midnight Mutants		Grade: B
	Publisher: Atari (1990) Reviewed: 1999/8/1

This highly original game lets you to roam freely around a haunted town full of hideous monsters. Your goal? To save Grandpa Munster! Along the way you'll find weapons like a knife, axe, cross, and gun. As you gather objects, new areas to explore open up, some containing large bosses to defeat. The graphics and sound are outstanding. Nicely detailed scenery includes a forest, pumpkin patch, mansion, and graveyard. An ominous refrain plays in the background. By pressing the right button you can communicate with Grandpa, who will offer directions and advice. Midnight Mutants offers a nice mix of exploration, strategy, and action. The manual contains a map and a guide which most people will need to get started. There are a few flaws. Control is a bit awkward because there's no diagonal movement. You can easily get lost in certain areas which "wrap around" on themselves. And since there's no way to save the game, you'll need to finish it in one sitting (although there are shortcuts). There's a lot to see and do in this one. It's one of the few old games that caters to the horror crowd. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.

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1 player

Motopsycho		Grade: D
	Publisher: Atari (1990) Reviewed: 2001/8/5

With a name like Motopsycho, I was expecting some intense motorcycle combat with drivers beating the hell out of each other with crowbars. But Atari forgot to put the "psycho" into this game. It's just a normal motorcycle racer! It actually has more in common with Pole Position than Road Rash. You just change gears from low to high and try to stay on the road. The turns are extremely difficult to navigate without reducing your speed. You'll crash into a lot of arrow signs, resulting in goofy-looking explosions that look like cats fighting in a bag. After an excruciating pause, you're back on the road. There's no sense of place or rank, and the other motorcyclists seem to appear randomly. Holding down the left accelerate button made my thumb tired. The right button is for jumps, which let you catch big air before landing on a sign and exploding. It's too bad the jump feature wasn't fully realized - it was a good idea. The graphics are pretty mediocre, although the rolling hills don't look too bad. There are four boring tracks, differentiated mainly by color scheme. Besides arrow signs, there's no scenery on either side of the road. There are some glitches in the sound effects, making the game unpleasant to listen to at times. It's not particularly fun to play either. © Copyright 2001 The Video Game Critic.

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1 player

Ms. Pac-Man		Grade: A-
	Publisher: Atari (1986) Reviewed: 2006/12/19

What's not to love about Ms. Pac-Man? It's one of the best arcade games ever, and this Atari 7800 version is surprisingly faithful. In terms of looks, this is a dead ringer, complete with the animated title screen, colorful mazes, and cute intermissions. The bonus items, which include a pretzel and various fruits, look especially appetizing. One thing I'm not crazy about are the ghosts' eyes, rendered in an indistinct, light blue. That color may have looked fine on a sharp arcade monitor, but on the TV they're hard to make out. In general though, the colors appear more vibrant than most Atari 7800 titles. This version of Ms. Pac-Man is faster than most, and even in the very first stage she moves at a brisk pace. The controls are responsive but could be more forgiving; it's possible to get hung-up on turns if you're not exact with the controls. But the biggest flaw is the fact that you begin with five lives instead of three. If Atari was trying to emulate the original arcade game, why water down the difficulty with excessive lives? Even so, this game is a true classic, and it's as fun to play now as it ever was. © Copyright 2006 The Video Game Critic.

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1 or 2 players

Ninja Golf		Grade: C+
	Publisher: Atari (1990) Reviewed: 1999/8/23

I wonder what the people at Atari were smoking when they came up with this one? Ninja Golf actually combines three different types of video game action: fighting, shooting, and golf. And believe it or not, it's not half bad! The graphics are very good. There's really not much to the golf aspect; you just need to aim your shot and time the distance. After you hit the ball, you run after it and fight other ninja along the way. You also need to avoid mud-throwing gophers. The two buttons on your controller allow you to attack and jump. Attacking mainly consists of kicking, unless you have some throwing stars. Depending on where your ball lands, you may have to travel through various environments like sand pits, trees, or water hazards, which introduce new adversaries like snakes and sharks. When you finally make it to the green, you throw stars to defeat a dragon and finish the hole. There are a few problems. First, fighting can be frustratingly difficult when multiple ninja are attacking from both sides. When fighters overlap, it's hard to tell what's going on. The limited number of moves make the action somewhat repetitive. Occassionally enemies seem to disappear from the screen for no apparent reason. Overall, Ninja Golf is no classic, but it gets by on its wicked originality. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.

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1 or 2 players

One-On-One Basketball		Grade: C+
	Publisher: Atari (1987) Reviewed: 1999/9/9

Here's a neat little one-on-one basketball game featuring Dr. J and Larry Bird. The guys look cartoonish, but they can still exhibit their patented fade away jumpers and slam dunks. I love these graphics. The half-court is well detailed, and the wooden floor looks great. The gameplay is simple and fun, although a bit slow. The only offensive moves are spin and shoot, and the defensive moves are limited to steal and jump. There is a nice menu of play modes to choose from, which makes it easy to customize your game. The computer opponent provides a worthy challenge. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.

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1 or 2 players

Pac-Man Collection		Grade: A
	Publisher: Bob DeCrescenzo (2006) Reviewed: 2006/12/19

With Pac-Man Collection, Bob DeCrescenzo took the Atari 7800 Ms. Pac-Man engine and ran wild with it. It wouldn't be fair to call this a simple hack considering all the new material that's been added. First of all, you get an excellent rendition of the original Pac-Man (previously unavailable for the 7800), along with the ever-popular Ms. Pac-Man. Both are remarkably close to their arcade counterparts - minus the "waka-waka" sound effects (which apparently are hard to emulate). There are several variations of each game that tweak the graphics, difficulty, and maze configurations in various ways. These include Puck-Man, Hangly-Man, Ultra Pac-Man, Random Mazes, and Ms. Pac-Attack. An extensive options menu lets you toggle a "fast mode" for a turbo-charged Pac-Man, and there's a "plus mode" that wreaks havoc on the general rules. In plus mode, ghosts will not necessarily become "scared" when you eat a power pill, and special beverage-shaped power pills render the ghosts temporarily invisible. Other menu options let you adjust the number of players, starting level, and number of lives. Atari 7800 owners looking to take their Pac-Man game to the next level will find this well-conceived cartridge a nice addition to their collection. Pac-Man Collection is available at Atari Age. © Copyright 2006 The Video Game Critic.

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1 or 2 players

Pete Rose Baseball		Grade: C
	Publisher: Absolute (1989) Reviewed: 2001/4/14

Pete Rose Baseball looks a little better than the Atari 2600 version, but plays exactly the same. Okay, I did rave about the 2600 version, but this is a third generation system for Pete's sake! I was expecting much more. You do get a nice TV-style pitcher/batter view, but the back of the pitcher's head is solid white. He looks like a mummy! I didn't even know Egypt had a team. The control scheme that lets you select your fielder is awkward, but you'll get the hang of it. Unfortunately, the fielder who's closest to the ball often can't reach it because the ball isn't in his "zone". Funny how they can't get the fielding right but still have an infield fly rule. The annoying "charge" music plays constantly, so you'll want to turn down the sound. In the end, Pete Rose is just another average baseball game. © Copyright 2001 The Video Game Critic.

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1 or 2 players

Planet Smashers		Grade: D+
	Publisher: Atari (1990) Reviewed: 2004/5/2

Boy, did I have a hard time tracking this one down - it took me years to obtain a copy. Unfortunately, it wasn't worth the effort. Planet Smashers is a shooter with a few interesting features, but as a whole it comes off rather flat. You move a cannon around the bottom of the screen (up and down as well as side to side) as alien ships, asteroids, and capsules rain down upon you. The geometrically-shaped enemies are boring, with the possible exception of those sperm-looking things. In order to clear a stage, you must collect three colored capsules in the correct sequence. At first I thought this was a novel twist, but it turned out to be a major turn-off. It's a nuisance to have to remember colors in the heat of the shooting action. Special capsules contain power-ups that recharge your shield or equip your "cloaking" device (initiated by the right-side button). Clearing a stage triggers an encounter with a boss which bombards you as it moves side to side. Planet Smashers is pretty tame, but the worst part is dealing with the poorly designed Atari 7800 controller. Tapping the side button to shoot is very awkward and eventually pain-inducing. Although certain power-ups allow you to hold down the button for continuous fire, your thumb will still ache like hell. All in all, Planet Smashers is simply not very fun to play. If you're busting your tail to track this one down, save yourself the aggravation. © Copyright 2004 The Video Game Critic.

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1 or 2 players

Pole Position II		Grade: D-
	Publisher: Atari (1987) Reviewed: 2005/3/6

Man, talk about LAME! As the official "pack-in" game for the 7800 system, this is not the least bit impressive. I suppose the race cars look okay with their rounded, shiny exteriors, but Pole Position II's gameplay is no different from the original, antiquated arcade game. What's the "II" supposed to be all about? Heck, this isn't even as good as the original Pole Position, because you don't have that lady's voice announcing the start of each race! Before each contest, you're forced to complete one of those obligatory qualifying laps, and that sucks big time. The races themselves are fair, but the animation is pretty choppy, and the handling is not what I'd call precise. Even the audio sounds messed up, with your engine sounds cutting out whenever you roll over the shoulder. The scenery is minimal, except for those annoying Atari signs that appear every 50 feet or so. Although the instructions recommend using the standard two-button 7800 controller to allow for accelerating and braking, you'll want to ditch that thing like a bad habit and use your favorite 2600 joystick instead. Who needs a brake in a racing game for Pete's sake?! Isn't the idea to go fast? Duh! For a game this basic, Atari screwed it up as only they could have. That company's incompetence always amazed me. Was this expected to compete with the NES and Super Mario Bros? Give me a [expletive] break! © Copyright 2005 The Video Game Critic.

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1 player

Realsports Baseball		Grade: C
	Publisher: Atari (1988) Reviewed: 2001/4/14

This game is a huge step DOWN from the remarkable Atari 5200 version. First the good news. The graphics are attractive, detailed, and smoothly animated. A big scoreboard at the top of the screen displays the line score. The controls are well-designed and easy to learn. You can play a one or two player game. But the problems are many. It's tough to judge fly balls. Hits travel so quickly that there's virtually no time to react with your fielder. The base runners are too fast, and the cpu is too tough. The crowd sounds like a strong wind. Can't one team come onto the field at the same time the other team is coming off the field? Do we really have to wait for both? On top of everything, this game has been known to freeze up well into a contest. Yikes. This game has much more in common with the Atari 2600 version than the 5200 one. © Copyright 2001 The Video Game Critic.

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1 or 2 players

Robotron 2084		Grade: C-
	Publisher: Atari (1986) Reviewed: 1999/7/23

Robotron 2084 is one of my favorite arcade games of all time, but this version doesn't measure up. If you're not familiar with this frantic shooter, you control a little guy who begins each level in the middle of the screen, surrounded by hostile robots that begin to close immediately. You run around blasting everything in sight and save (touch) humans for big bonus points. Gameplay is fast and furious, demanding good control. Unfortunately the only way to get this type of control on the 7800 is to use two joysticks, which is problematic unless they can be secured somehow. Another problem is that the animation tends to get choppy when things get hectic, making it difficult to tell what the heck's going on. Overall this is just a fair adaption of the arcade classic. © Copyright 1999 The Video Game Critic.

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1 or 2 players