Top 10 Worst Atari 2600 Titles List

[kainemaxwell]

You asked for it, now let's put one together.

Pac-Man and E.T. definitly go on the list, as well as Custer's Revenge.

[NE146]

*sigh* Once again.. E.T., the fashionable "worst 2600" game of the hip videogame world gets on the list indiscriminately. x_x :roll:

E.T. wasn't so bad especially when you consider there were so many more 2600 games that were far faaaar worse! My vote for the WORST high profile game DEFINITELY goes to the entire Swordquest series. I'd gladly play a round of E.T. anyday (game 3) than those absolute stinkers.:bad-words:

Then of course there's the "real" worst 2600 game. Skeet Shoot. Play that for 10 minutes and I guarantee E.T. will suddenly seem like an epic adventure LOL

[ManekiNeko]

I'd put Star Ship on this list. Sure, it's an early 2600 game, but it still stinks.

JR

[Chunky]

SSSnake

[Keir]

Stellar Track

I'll second Star Ship and all three Swordquest games.

I know some people seem to like it, but Boxing by Activision is one of the worst I've ever played.

[Arcade Antics]

You asked for it, now let's put one together.

Pac-Man and E.T. definitly go on the list, as well as Custer's Revenge.

Not even close. These three games are shining examples of fun on the 2600 compared to REAL crap like Sssnake (worst game ever).

I happen to think Double Dragon is far worse on the 2600 than Pac-Man. :-D

NE1 knows the score. That Skeet Shooting game blows. Let's add Racquetball to the list while we're dissing Apollo.

And Spiderdroid. Honestly, this game was developed on a bet that there was no way to make the PB version of Amidar even *worse*. Guess the naysayers were wrong.

[ventrra]

These three games are shining examples of fun on the 2600 compared to REAL crap like Sssnake (worst game ever).
:P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P :P

[opcode]

I must agree. I don't find either ET or Pac-Man the worst games ever. Maybe they were big disappointments, but still there are worst games. Ssssnake, Swordquest, Skeet Shoot, Basic Math....

[digitalpress]

Anything done by Mythicon belongs on the list. And Telesys' Stargunner... and lots more. Actually we did this list way way back in Digital Press 1-3 which I'm finally getting online:

http://www.digitpress.com/archives/arc00135.htm

It's not complete yet - I only have the first 2 of 3 parts entered in there now.

[game_trek]

Every data age game is on that list.

[game_trek]

Every data age game is on that list.

And Mythicon!

[digitalpress]

Every data age game is on that list.

I would classify Data Age's Frankenstein's Monster as a TOP 10! I LOVE that game. I didn't think Bermuda Triangle was too bad either. And I even kinda like Journey Escape (a little).

[Arcade Antics]

Every data age game is on that list.

I'm guessing you haven't played Frankenstein's Monster. And other than Sssnake, there are MUCH worse games than those Data Age carts that could fill in the top 10. :-D

[o2william]

Data Age games aren't ALL bad. Frankenstein's Monster is Top 10 caliber, and Journey Escape is kinda fun (though repetitive). Encounter at L-5, while not really good, probably doesn't deserve to be in the "Bottom 10" either.

I say Star Ship, the Myticon games, Sssnake, maybe even Football. Stargunner looks cool, but it sucks.

How about Sea Hunt? I've heard so much bad about this game that I've never played either of my carts. :)

[digitalpress]

How about Sea Hunt? I've heard so much bad about this game that I've never played either of my carts. :)

How ABOUT Sea Hunt?

http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/seahunt.htm

Read.

[Keir]

*stands up in defense of Mythicon's Sorcerer*

Well, it's not that bad... really... umm... uh... OK, you can have Sorcerer on your list, but not Journey Escape damnit!

[Buyatari]

Custers Revenge is one of my favorites.

GREAT for parties with people who are just seeing an Atari for the first time since 1985.

Swordquest series is another which I played for hours. How can you even speak of those here.

I'll have to think this one over for a full list. But Pac Man and River Patrol are two of my worst ones.

Adam

[congobongo]

Boxing is on my worst list.

[Daniel Thomas]

The question, of course, is in how you define "worst game." Do you count those late-era games, like Sea Hunt, which were obviously the product of inexperienced programmers, or do you count the high-profile Pac-Man and ET? Personally, I think aniticpation of an upcoming game (or movie or CD) is almost as important as the actual experience of playing. In that regard, I think Frye's Pac-Man and Warshaw's ET are among the worst moments of the classic era. Games like Sea Hunt or Sneak-n-Peek are terrible, but I expect those efforts to be poor; true to form, they don't disappoint me.

But Pac-Man and ET (and Custer's Revenge, to an extent) are more than just poor games. They reveal an Atari almost drunk on its own hubris, cocky enough to believe the consumers will gleefully accept anything they hand out. Pac-Man Day, a defacto pop culture holiday, is met with the laziest arcade port of all time. Atari then pays $30 million (?) for the rights to ET, giving Warshaw virtually no time to create something of value. And as a final arrogant grace, Atari makes more cartridges than there are consoles.

This corporate arrogance led to far more than poor games; such short-sightedness brought about the collapse of the American videogames industry. From this point on, Atari's death was all but inevitable.

That is why Pac-Man and ET are the worst games of the classic era; these were the lynchpins that led to the tragic fall.

[omnedon]

.......^^

That is beautiful.
/sniff

[robot717]

ET is far from the worst game ever.Maybe I wasn't as hard to please back then as I am now when it comes to games,but I enjoyed ET.
It is not nearly as difficult and undecipherable as many of it's detractors make it sound.I was able to beat it.Repeatedly.On the hardest setting.And I was only seven years old at the time.

[digitalpress]

The mere fact that there are ALWAYS people willing to stick up for ET or Pac-Man should exclude it from a "worst of" list. I mean... who's coming to the rescue of SSsnake or Sea Hunt?!

History or not, these are the WORST GAMES. Not the biggest disappointments, not the most overhyped or overblown disgraces of an era. The WORST GAMES.

Now then. Think it over. And if you really still believe Pac-Man or ET are among the WORST GAMES then fine. But I don't see it. They're both playable, and to many (I'm not including myself in this group), enjoyable. The WORST GAMES should be neither.

[Arqueologia_Digital]

I think that ET is pathetic, but i play Pac-man usually and i don´t hate it. Also i think that some worst games are: Pac kong and Quest for Quintana roo
:/

[GENESISNES]

I heard springer sucked ass

[digitalpress]

I heard springer sucked ass

It's a good thing you're not one of those people who would claim a game is bad just because someone ELSE said it "sucked ass", though! Because people like that aggravate me. Everyone has different opinions on what's good and what's bad. If we all followed what the majority thought we'd never get games like... oh say, "Frequency" or "Mister Mosquito". All you'd get are lots of sports games, fighting games, and driving games. YAWN.

[slapdash]

How about Sea Hunt? I've heard so much bad about this game that I've never played either of my carts. :)

How ABOUT Sea Hunt?

http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/seahunt.htm

Read.

And if that's not enough to keep you away, read my review (a ways down the page) (http://grblitz.overclocked.org/26hunter.htm).

[vintagegamecrazy]

Shame on everone who posted on this thread. You guys committed the cardinal sin by leaving out COCONUTS by Telesys. That game is pathetic. Also MATH is about there