Atari Catalog 1981 Scans

Front Cover

Front Cover: Alright, we have an astronaut, wizard, cowboy, policeman, and soccer player all lined up to play some Atari.


Introduction

Introduction: Apparently consumers were wary of video game consoles in 1981. So much so that Atari had to include the explanation "It does not interfere with normal television viewing" in the introduction.


Asteroids

Asteroids: I thought Asteroids was one of the better arcade translations on the 2600. They did a good job keeping the game play in line with the arcade version.


Missile Command

Missile Command: No game is such a reminder of the cold war as Missile Command is. Yeah, I know it says you're fighting aliens but everyone who played it thought it was about the Soviet Union.


ALT

Space Invaders: If the Earth is ever invaded by aliens let's hope they fly in a predictable, repetitive pattern.


Breakout, Casino, Concentration

Breakout, Casino, Concentration: Hmm.. why did the change the title of "Hunt & Score" to "A game of Concentration"? I personally prefer the former name.


Bowling, Football, Human Cannonball

Bowling, Football, Human Cannonball: When I started this I swore I wouldn't bash any of the games. I grew up on these games and still enjoy them today. However, these three games are all indeed terrible. I thought they were bad then and I think they're even worse now.


Chess, Checkers, Night Driver

Chess, Checkers, Night Driver: Alright, on to some better games. Night Driver was fun, albeit with a soundtrack that makes dupstep sound pleasant. I also admire how well they pulled off the AI in Chess with limited memory resources.


Othello

Othello: I have an Othello clone on my cell phone that's called something else. I wondered why it wasn't called "Othello" until I saw on this page that "Othello" is a trademark of CBS. How'd they pull that off?


Air-Sea Battle, Sky Diver, Surround

Air-Sea Battle, Sky Diver, Surround: Quick! Fred from Scooby Doo is trapped in a box with really short walls, I hope he can get out in time!


Blackjack, Brain Games, Circus Atari

Blackjack, Brain Games, Circus Atari: Yeah, you read right.. Brain Games contains a game called "Touch Me". Samantha Foxx could not be reached for comment.


Pele's Soccer

Pele's Soccer: Pele is the most famous soccer player of all time and I still have no idea who he is..


Adventure, Indy 500, Hangman

Adventure, Indy 500, Hangman: Adventure is easily my favorite Atari 2600 game. Not only was it the first console adventure game, but it also introduced the Easter Egg to millions of gamers.


Video Pinball

Video Pinball: For those of you that didn't live in the 80's, the bomber jacket was oddly popular then.


Baseball, Codebreaker, BASIC Programming

Baseball, Codebreaker, BASIC Programming: Here's my guide to using Atari BASIC Programming.


Street Racer, Dodge 'Em

Street Racer, Dodge 'Em: Dodge 'Em was a fairly addictive game.


Flag Capture, Fun with Numbers, Video Olympics

Flag Capture, Fun with Numbers, Video Olympics: When oh when will Foozpong get the respect it deserves in the Olympics?


Slot Racer, Canyon Bomber, Basketball

Slot Racer, Canyon Bomber, Basketball: There is no way you could use that drawing of the basketball player today. We have people deeply offended by a Mr. Potato Head Statue, imagine what they'd think about that drawing.


Warlords

Warlords: In this picture we have a Viking battling the Huns. I don't know where to begin on the historical inaccuracies.


Maze Craze

Maze Craze: I never played Maze Craze but from this page it appears to be a mix of Lock 'N Chase and the snail maze game that's built into the Sega Master System ROM.


Atari Game Club

Atari Game Club: You have no idea how tempted I am to send in that form.I did a Google search for "George Dakota" but couldn't find him, I hope everything's alright.


Back Cover

Back Cover: This is tagged CO16725 Rev. C. From what I understand there were several different revisions of these catalogs. I can't tell you the difference though.



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