Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Unknown
Rating : 7
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: Eight years before Battle Command we get the conversion of the popular arcade. A favourite of mine despite the fact I had to stand on tiptoe to see the screen. A reasonable attempt, smoothish vectors and as usual with Atarisoft's conversions, good accuracy to the source material.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Gregg Tavares
Rating : 7
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: A good solid version of the popular arcade machine. Gameplay suffers slightly from having to use the joystick instead of a trackball, and this program is hard enough already without having to worry about that. Basic graphics and sound are no problem to reproduce, and the cartridge is a worthy purchase for someone who wants a challenge.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Joseph Simko
Rating : 6
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: A none too shabby conversion of the classic Williams arcade machine. Not wanting to burden players with all those buttons, the programmer has tried to fit as much as possible into the joystick. Difficulty is nothing like the original either, being a lot easier to shoot and avoid death as it passes you by. Then again, no conversion I played could hope to match the arcade.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Unknown
Rating : 7
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: A semipopular arcade machine translated rather effictively for the C64. Graphics are reasonable, as is the sound, but the game is playable enough to keep you at the joystick for a while. Dig through the tunnels and blow the critters up, always a good concept to me!
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Unknown
Rating : 7
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: Could have been much better sadly. The graphics are reasonably accurate, but Mario is a little fat now as he waddles along the platforms. Sound is pretty much on cue though. Certainly a good cartridge to pick up, but probably not quite as good as the Ocean version a few years later.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1984
Author : Bill Bogenreif
Rating : 6
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: This could have been so much better than it actually was. The first problem is due to the arcade being a vertical monitor, you have to squash it down to fit on a TV screen. Consequently the graphics are flatter and wider than they should be. And secondly that number of enemies will cause some headaches. Still the programmer got around it, but the gameplay suffers as a result and it is easier than arcade to beat.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Bill Bogenreif
Rating : 6
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: Another one of the slightly mediocre conversions courtesy of Atarisoft. Graphics are pretty murky and indistinct and the sound isn't much better than that. Gameplay wasn't that inspiring to begin with, so the whole package is one of averageness all round. For fans of the arcade machine only really.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Unknown
Rating : 8
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: A firm favourite of mine in the arcade, and the official Atari conversion does the real machine proud. Just about everything is here, the aliens, the holes, the boulders and all the attack patterns and 26 waves that make up the jaunt across the Moon. Graphically accurate with some decent sound effects, this is a playable and challenging game in its own right, regardless of the fact it is also one of the best cartridge conversions you can obtain.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Unknown
Rating : 8
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: A much better effort than the first Pac conversion that Atari did. Everything looks and seems a lot more polished and refined. All the elements from the arcade are present, from the correct maze layouts to the intermission screens. Graphics and sound are very faithful to the arcade parent and the game as a whole is rather playable.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Unknown
Rating : 6
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: Could have been better, this conversion of the classic Namco arcade is a disappointment. I think this is the game that US Gold released two years later in the UK. Just too late then. Graphics and sound are pretty faithful to the parent, but the intermission scenes appear to be missing.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Unknown
Rating : 7
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: Slightly different to the game released by Datasoft, though to most purposes they are the same program. One track was switched between them. Not too bad in the graphics, bright but not that well scrolled or animated. Sound is not that much better, but similar to the arcade. The game itself is reasonably challenging especially if the number of laps is put up high.
Company : Atarisoft
Year : 1983
Author : Tom Griner
Rating : 7
Rarity : Uncommon
Comments: Given the technical capabilities of the arcade and the C64, this isn't a bad conversion indeed. They also wisely chose to include a 2 joystick option. Graphics are probably as good as they could be back then, and the speed doesn't suffer too much with all that action on screen. Not quite the same experience as the arcade but a reasonable attempt to recreate it.
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