Apple II vs. TRS-80
The Apple II was clearly the superior machine, but the Trash 80 was a lot cheaper and more hobbyist oriented. The numbers of games and the penetration of the Apples into schools and businesses speak for themselves. The TRS-80 was hampered initially by a lack of graphics, no sound or disk storage.

Apple II/II+ vs. Atari 400/800
The Atari was far better suited to gaming but suffers because of the broader based appeal of the Apple II line. Too many companies ported their games from the Apple to the Atari, rarely making use of its advanced capabilities. Developers who spent time with the Atari showed what it could do, but too much of its software is relegated to obscurity.

Commodore 64 vs. Atari 800XL vs. Apple IIe
Atari brought out the XL line a little too late to compete with the 64, the hotest thing in gaming computers with a very cheap price. Too few games took advantage of the XL's abilities, but the Commodore did not have an especially illustrious life in North America. Few games used the Apple IIe's new graphics mode, but its community kept it alive a lot longer than it should have been.

The time of the console crash sees Tramiel forced out of Commodore, buying Atari in the process. Apple decides to devote their energies to the B/W Macintoshes, losing gaming momentum that has haunted them to this day. Meanwhile, the IBM PC compatibles are decreasing in price and gaining in wide acceptability, but are not yet seen as real gaming machines. 1985 is the last good year for the 8-bit computers in North America.

Atari ST vs. Commodore Amiga vs. PC
The Amiga seems to be more successful than the ST in North America, probably because it has better graphics and sound capabilities. Few games use the power of the STe, but many Amiga games require a 2000 or a 3000 with a CD. The widespread adoption of VGA cards means that the PC no longer has to play second fiddle to the Amiga, although digitized sound and CD-ROMs come a little later. Developers drop everything else to write games for the PC. The 4000's advanced capabilities came too late and could not save Amiga from the ceaseless onslaught of the PC clones.