TCW Podcast Episode 257 - Nine Atari Games

The Atari VCS launched with nine games to entice consumers into the new gaming medium, and Combat set the trend of packing multiple "games" into a single cartridge. Featuring a wide array of game modes, Combat holds its own even today and served as the console's official tie-in title. Atari's partnership with Sears, however, rebranded all but one of the launch titles under different names, including Target Fun, released elsewhere as Air-Sea Battle. Many of the launch games carried multiple modes to stretch their value, and even these early titles pulled clever tricks to push past the VCS's five sprite limit. To justify the console's cost to families, Atari aimed squarely at adults with Blackjack while also including the educational game Basic Math. While many of these early titles were forgotten as more advanced games arrived over the course of the Atari VCS's life, their influence on a foundational system cannot be disputed.

TCW 201 - Advanced Balls and Paddles Part 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW201

TCW 202 - Advanced Balls and Paddles Part 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW202

TCW 009 - History of Mediagenic Part 1: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW009

TCW 010 - History of Mediagenic Part 2: https://www.theycreateworlds.com/episodes/TCW010

New episodes are on the 1st and 15th of every month!

TCW Email: feedback@theycreateworlds.com

BlueSky: @theycreateworlds.bsky.social

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theycreateworlds

Alex's Video Game History Blog: http://videogamehistorian.wordpress.com

Alex's book: http://bit.ly/TCWBOOK1

Intro Music: Josh Woodward - Airplane Mode - Music - "Airplane Mode" by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/song/AirplaneMode

Outro Music: RoleMusic - Bacterial Love: http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Rolemusic/Pop_Singles_Compilation_2014/01_rolemusic_-_bacterial_love