Atari, Inc. was an American video game developer and video game console and home computer development company which operated between 1972 and 1984. During its years of operation, it developed and produced over 350 arcade, console, and computer games for its own systems, and almost 100 ports of games for home computers such as the Commodore 64. Atari began its operations by developing and producing some of the first arcade video games; the first commercial arcade video game, Computer Space , was released in November 1971 by Atari founders Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney in partnership as Syzygy Engineering. [1] The game in part marked the end of the early history of video games and the start of the rise of the commercial video game industry. After its founding in 1972, Atari released Pong , believed to be the third arcade video game after Computer Space and a clone game and the first commercially successful arcade video game machine, [2] and thereafter produced numerous arcade games, including video games and pinball machines.
The arcade game market is split into manufacturers, distributors, and operators; manufacturers like Atari sell game machines to distributors—who handle several types of electronic machines—who in turn sell them to the operators of locations. In the early 1970s, distributors bought games on an exclusive basis, meaning that only one distributor in each distribution region would carry products from a given arcade game manufacturer, restricting the manufacturer to only the operators that distributor sold to. In 1973 Atari set up a secret subsidiary company, Kee Games, which was intended to sell clones of Atari's games in order to reach more distributors; Kee was merged with Atari the following year. [3] Atari itself was sold to Warner Communications in 1976 and merged with Warner's WCI Games division, keeping the name Atari, Inc. [4]
In 1975 Atari released Home Pong, its first of several Pong-based dedicated video game consoles, and in 1977 released its first home video game console, the Atari Video Computer System (later renamed the Atari 2600). From that point onward Atari developed both arcade games and console games, and in 1979 added games for their first home computers, the Atari 400 and 800. Atari produced a second home video game console in 1982, the Atari 5200, and four more home computer versions. Beginning in Summer 1981, Atari published the Atari Program Exchange, a quarterly mail-order catalog of software written for Atari computers by external developers which Atari then distributed to customers. In May 1983, Atari started the Atarisoft division, which produced ports of games by Atari and others for non-Atari home computers. In July 1984, as a result of falling sales due to the video game crash of 1983, Atari, Inc. was split apart by Warner Communications; the arcade division continued as a subsidiary of Warner under the name Atari Games, while the console and computer games divisions were sold off as Atari Corporation. [5]
Atari's dedicated consoles and many of their early console games were licensed for sale through Sears, which often sold them under a different name, on some occasions months prior to the Atari-branded version. When different, these variant names are listed in the table below. When the same arcade game was released with minor variations by Atari and Kee Games, the two games are listed together.
Title | System | Release date | Developer(s) [lower-alpha 1] | Ref(s). |
---|---|---|---|---|
Pong | Arcade | November 29, 1972 | Atari | |
Dedicated console [lower-alpha 2] [lower-alpha 3] | October 1, 1975 | Atari | ||
Space Race | Arcade | July 16, 1973 | Atari | [6] |
Pong Doubles | Arcade | September 10, 1973 | Atari | |
Dedicated console (as Pong IV ) | September 1976 | Atari | ||
Gotcha | Arcade | October 1973 | Atari | |
Elimination | Arcade | October 1973 | Kee Games | |
Arcade (as Quadrapong ) | March 1974 | Atari | [7] | |
Rebound | Arcade | February 1974 | Atari | |
Arcade (as Spike ) | March 1974 | Kee Games | ||
Super Pong | Arcade | February 1974 | Atari | |
Dedicated console | July 1976 | Atari | ||
World Cup | Arcade | April 1974 [lower-alpha 4] | Atari | |
Gran Trak 10 | Arcade | May 1974 | Atari | |
Arcade (as Formula K ) | July 1974 | Kee Games | ||
Twin Racer | Arcade | July 1974 | Kee Games | |
Arcade (as Gran Trak 20 ) | August 1974 | Atari | ||
Touch Me | Arcade (electronic) | October 1974 | Atari | |
Handheld electronic game | Fall 1979 | Atari | ||
Pin-Pong | Arcade | October 1974 | Atari | |
Qwak! | Arcade | November 1974 | Atari | |
Tank | Arcade | November 5, 1974 | Kee Games | |
Pursuit | Arcade | January 1975 | Kee Games [lower-alpha 5] | |
Hi-way | Arcade | April 1975 | Atari | |
Indy 800 | Arcade | April 1975 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
Atari 2600 (as Indy 500 (Sears: Race)) [lower-alpha 7] | September 11, 1977 | Atari | ||
Tank II | Arcade | May 1975 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
Tank III | Arcade | May 1975 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
Anti-Aircraft | Arcade | June 1975 | Atari | |
Goal 4 | Arcade | July 1975 | Atari | |
Shark Jaws | Arcade | September 1975 | Atari [lower-alpha 8] | |
Crash 'N Score | Arcade | October 17, 1975 | Atari | |
Jet Fighter | Arcade | October 17, 1975 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
Steeplechase | Arcade | October 17, 1975 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | Fall 1981 | Atari | ||
Stunt Cycle | Arcade | January 1976 | Atari | |
Outlaw | Arcade | March 1976 | Atari | |
Quiz Show | Arcade | April 1976 | Atari | |
Tank 8 | Arcade | April 1976 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
Indy 4 | Arcade | May 1976 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
Breakout | Arcade | May 13, 1976 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 (Sears: Breakaway IV) | November 1978 | Atari | ||
Cops n' Robbers | Arcade | July 1976 | Atari | |
Flyball | Arcade | July 1976 | Atari | |
LeMans | Arcade | August 1976 | Atari | |
Hockey Pong [lower-alpha 3] | Dedicated console | September 1976 | Atari | |
Super Pong Doubles [lower-alpha 3] | Dedicated console (Sears: Super Pong IV) | September 1976 | Atari | |
Night Driver | Arcade | October 1976 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | Summer 1980 | Atari | ||
Sprint 2 | Arcade | November 12, 1976 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
F-1 [lower-alpha 9] | Arcade | November 12, 1976 | Namco | |
Dominos | Arcade | January 1977 | Atari | |
Super Pong 10 | Dedicated console | February 1977 | Atari | |
Dominos/4 | Arcade | February 6, 1977 | Atari | |
The Atarians | Pinball | February 18, 1977 | Atari | [8] |
Triple Hunt | Arcade | April 1977 | Atari | |
Sprint 8 | Arcade | May 1977 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
Drag Race | Arcade | June 1977 | Atari | |
Pool Shark | Arcade | June 1977 | Atari | |
Time 2000 | Pinball | June 1977 | Atari | |
Starship 1 | Arcade | July 1977 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 (as Star Ship (Sears: Outer Space)) | September 11, 1977 | Atari | ||
Video Pinball | Dedicated console (Sears: Pinball Breakaway) | September 1977 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | March 1981 | Atari | ||
Airborne Avenger | Pinball | September 1977 | Atari | |
Super Bug | Arcade | September 1977 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
Air-Sea Battle | Atari 2600 (Sears: Target Fun) | September 11, 1977 | Atari | |
Video Olympics | Atari 2600 (Sears: Pong Sports) | September 11, 1977 | Atari | |
Street Racer | Atari 2600 (Sears: Speedway II) | September 11, 1977 | Atari | |
Blackjack | Atari 2600 | September 11, 1977 | Atari | |
Surround | Atari 2600 (Sears: Chase) | September 11, 1977 | Atari | |
Basic Math | Atari 2600 (Sears: Math) | September 11, 1977 | Atari | |
Combat | Atari 2600 (Sears: Tank-Plus) | September 11, 1977 | Atari | |
Ultra Pong | Dedicated console | October 1977 | Atari | |
Canyon Bomber | Arcade | November 1977 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | Fall 1979 | Atari | ||
Destroyer | Arcade | November 1977 | Atari | |
Ultra Pong Doubles | Dedicated console | November 1977 | Atari | |
Stunt Cycle | Dedicated console (Sears: Motocross Sports Center IV) | November 1977 | Atari | |
Sprint 4 | Arcade | December 1977 | Atari | |
Sprint 1 | Arcade | January 1978 | Atari | |
Middle Earth | Pinball | February 1978 | Atari | |
Ultra Tank | Arcade | February 1978 | Atari [lower-alpha 6] | |
Sky Raider | Arcade | March 1978 | Atari | |
Tournament Table | Arcade | March 1978 | Atari | |
Space War | Atari 2600 (Sears: Space Combat) | May 1978 | Atari | |
Hangman | Atari 2600 (Sears: Spelling) | May 1978 | Atari | |
Avalanche | Arcade | June 1978 | Atari | |
Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Dennis Koble | ||
Fire Truck | Arcade | June 1978 | Atari | |
Sky Diver | Arcade | June 1978 | Atari | |
Home Run | Atari 2600 (Sears: Baseball) | June 1978 | Atari | |
Code Breaker | Atari 2600 (Sears: Codebreaker) | June 1978 | Atari | |
Hunt & Score | Atari 2600 (Sears: Memory Match) | June 1978 | Atari | |
Smokey Joe | Arcade | July 1978 | Atari | |
Slot Racers | Atari 2600 (Sears: Maze) | July 1978 | Atari | |
Brain Games | Atari 2600 | August 1978 | Atari | |
Flag Capture | Atari 2600 (Sears: Capture) | August 1978 | Atari | |
Super Breakout | Arcade | August 1978 | Atari | |
Atari 8-bit | November 1979 | Atari | ||
Atari 2600 | January 1982 | Atari | ||
Atari 5200 | October 1982 | Atari | ||
Space Riders | Pinball | September 1978 | Atari | |
Atari Football | Arcade | October 1978 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 (as Football) | Winter 1979 | Atari | ||
Outlaw | Atari 2600 (Sears: Gunslinger) | October 1978 | Atari | [9] |
Orbit | Arcade | November 1978 | Atari | |
Basketball | Atari 2600 | December 1978 | Atari | |
Sky Diver | Atari 2600 (Sears: Dare Diver) | Winter 1979 | Atari | |
Superman | Pinball | March 5, 1979 | Atari | |
Hercules | Pinball | April 1979 | Atari | |
Atari 4-Player Football | Arcade | April 1979 | Atari | |
Basketball | Arcade | May 1979 | Atari | |
Subs | Arcade | May 1979 | Atari | |
Atari Baseball | Arcade | June 1979 | Atari | |
Superman | Atari 2600 | June 1979 | Atari | |
BASIC Programming | Atari 2600 | July 1979 | Atari | |
Video Chess | Atari 2600 | Summer 1979 | Atari | |
Backgammon | Atari 2600 | Summer 1979 | Atari | |
Lunar Lander | Arcade | August 1979 | Atari | |
Bowling | Atari 2600 | Fall 1979 | Atari | |
Casino | Atari 2600 (Sears: Poker Plus) | Fall 1979 | Atari | |
Human Cannonball | Atari 2600 (Sears: Cannon Man) | Fall 1979 | Atari | |
Miniature Golf | Atari 2600 (Sears: Arcade Golf) | Fall 1979 | Atari | |
Slot Machine | Atari 2600 (Sears: Slots) | Fall 1979 | Atari | |
Asteroids | Arcade | November 1979 | Atari | |
Atari 8-bit | Summer 1981 | Atari | ||
Atari 2600 | July 1981 | Atari | ||
Basketball | Atari 8-bit | November 1979 | Atari | |
Adventure | Atari 2600 | 1980 | Atari | [10] |
3-D Tic-Tac-Toe | Atari 8-bit | January 1980 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | Summer 1980 | Atari | ||
Star Raiders | Atari 8-bit | March 1980 | Atari | [11] |
Atari 2600 | September 1982 | Atari | [12] | |
Atari 5200 | January 1983 | Atari | [13] | |
Space Invaders [lower-alpha 11] | Atari 2600 | February 1980 | Taito | |
Atari 8-bit | Summer 1980 | Taito | ||
Atari 5200 | October 1982 | Taito | ||
Atari Soccer | Arcade | April 1980 | Atari | |
Monte Carlo | Arcade | April 1980 | Atari | |
Hangman | Atari 8-bit | Spring 1980 | Atari | |
Kingdom | Atari 8-bit | Spring 1980 | Atari | |
Blackjack | Atari 8-bit | Spring 1980 | Atari | |
Missile Command | Arcade | June 1980 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | April 1981 | Atari | ||
Atari 8-bit | Summer 1981 | Atari | ||
Atari 5200 | October 1982 | Atari | ||
Circus Atari [lower-alpha 12] | Atari 2600 (Sears: Circus) | Summer 1980 | Exidy | |
Golf | Atari 2600 | Summer 1980 | Atari | |
Maze Craze | Atari 2600 | Fall 1980 | Atari | |
Video Checkers | Atari 2600 | Fall 1980 | Atari | |
Dodge 'Em | Atari 2600 | Fall 1980 | Atari | |
Battlezone | Arcade | November 1980 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | August 1983 | Atari | ||
Apple II | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
IBM PC | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
Commodore 64 | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
VIC-20 | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
Pelé's Soccer | Atari 2600 (Sears: Soccer) | Winter 1981 | Atari | |
Asteroids Deluxe | Arcade | April 1981 | Atari | |
Warlords | Arcade | April 1981 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | June 1981 | Atari | ||
Red Baron | Arcade | May 1981 | Atari | |
Lemonade | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Bob Polaro | [14] |
Mugwump | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Bob Polaro | [14] |
Outlaw/Howitzer [lower-alpha 13] | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Hofacker / Elcomp Publishing | [14] |
Preschool Games | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Bob Polaro | [14] |
Roman Checkers | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Bob Polaro | [14] |
Space Trek | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Bob Polaro | [14] |
Centurion | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Robert Zdybel | [14] |
Castle | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Robert Zdybel | [14] |
Wizard's Gold | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | [14] | |
Sleazy Adventure | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Bob Smith | [14] |
Alien Egg | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Robert Zdybel | [14] |
Chinese Puzzle | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Dennis Koble | [14] |
Sultan's Palace | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Dennis Koble | [14] |
Anthill | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Steve Bittrolff | [14] |
Tact Trek | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1981 | Robert Zdybel | [14] |
Centipede | Arcade | June 1981 | Atari | |
Atari 8-bit | June 1982 | Atari | ||
Atari 5200 | February 1983 | Atari | ||
Apple II | June 1983 | Atari | ||
IBM PC | June 1983 | Atari | ||
Commodore 64 | June 1983 | Atari | ||
VIC-20 | June 1983 | Atari | ||
TI-99/4A | June 1983 | Atari | ||
ColecoVision | October 26, 1983 | Atari | ||
Intellivision | October 26, 1983 | Atari | ||
Stellar Track | Atari 2600 | Fall 1981 | Atari | |
Dice Poker | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Bob Polaro | [15] |
747 Landing Simulator | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | William J. Graham | [15] |
Eastern Front (1941) | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Chris Crawford | [15] |
CodeCracker | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Jose R. Suarez | [15] |
Domination | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Alan M. Newman | [15] |
Terry | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Ingrid Langevin Solem | [15] |
Bumper Pool | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Steve Smith | [15] |
Minotaur | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Steve Cavin | [15] |
Lookahead | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Dave Johnson / Johnson Software | [15] |
Babel | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Joel Gluck | [15] |
Wizard's Revenge | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1981 | Max Manowski | [15] |
Tempest | Arcade | October 29, 1981 | Atari | |
Letterman | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Ed Stewart / Ray Lyons | [16] |
Mathematic-Tac-Toe | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Nadav Caine | [16] |
Number Blast | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Richard Wiitala | [16] |
Attank! | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Joel Gluck | [16] |
Blackjack Casino | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Bill Zimmerman | [16] |
Block 'Em | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Jose R. Suarez | [16] |
Caverns of Mars | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Greg Christensen | [16] |
Dog Daze | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Gray Chang | [16] |
Downhill | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Mark Reid | [16] |
Memory Match | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Bruce Frumker | [16] |
Pro Bowling | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Wesley B. Newell | [16] |
Reversi II | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Russel Segal | [16] |
Solitaire | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Mark Reid | [16] |
Space Chase | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1982 | Fernando Herrera | [16] |
Haunted House | Atari 2600 | February 1982 | Atari | |
Space Duel | Arcade | February 16, 1982 | Atari | |
Pac-Man [lower-alpha 14] | Atari 2600 | March 16, 1982 | Namco | |
Atari 8-bit | May 1982 | Namco | ||
Atari 5200 | October 1982 | Namco | ||
Apple II | June 1983 | Namco | ||
IBM PC | June 1983 | Namco | ||
Commodore 64 | June 1983 | Namco | ||
VIC-20 | June 1983 | Namco | ||
TI-99/4A | June 1983 | Namco | ||
Intellivision | October 26, 1983 | Namco | ||
ZX Spectrum | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
Block Buster | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Spring 1982 | Alan Griesemer / Stephen Bradshaw | [17] |
Dig Dug [lower-alpha 14] | Arcade [lower-alpha 9] | April 1982 | Namco | |
Apple II | June 1983 | Namco | ||
IBM PC | June 1983 | Namco | ||
Commodore 64 | June 1983 | Namco | ||
VIC-20 | June 1983 | Namco | ||
TI-99/4A | June 1983 | Namco | ||
Atari 2600 | October 1983 | Namco | ||
Atari 5200 | October 1983 | Namco | ||
Atari 8-bit | January 1984 | Namco | ||
Yars' Revenge | Atari 2600 | May 1982 | Atari | |
Kangaroo | Arcade | June 1982 | Sun Electronics | |
Atari 2600 | June 1983 | Sun Electronics | ||
Atari 5200 | August 1983 | Sun Electronics | ||
Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1983 | Sun Electronics | [18] | |
Gravitar | Arcade | June 1982 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | October 1983 | Atari | ||
Defender [lower-alpha 15] | Atari 2600 | June 1982 | Williams Electronics | |
Atari 5200 | December 1982 | Williams Electronics | ||
Atari 8-bit | December 1982 | Williams Electronics | ||
Apple II | June 1983 | Williams Electronics | ||
IBM PC | June 1983 | Williams Electronics | ||
Commodore 64 | June 1983 | Williams Electronics | ||
VIC-20 | June 1983 | Williams Electronics | ||
TI-99/4A | June 1983 | Williams Electronics | ||
ColecoVision | October 26, 1983 | Williams Electronics | ||
Intellivision | October 26, 1983 | Williams Electronics | ||
Math Gran Prix | Atari 2600 | July 1982 | Atari; Suki Lee | |
Demons to Diamonds | Atari 2600 | July 1982 | Atari | |
Frogmaster | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1982 | Michael Crick | [19] |
Checker King | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1982 | William H. Northrup | [19] |
Galahad and the Holy Grail | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1982 | Douglas Crockford | [19] |
Jax-O | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1982 | John Oritz | [19] |
Pushover | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1982 | Joel Gluck | [19] |
Rabbotz | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1982 | Jeff Johannigman | [19] |
Salmon Run | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1982 | Bill Williams | [19] |
Seven Card Stud | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1982 | Monty Webb | [19] |
Berzerk [lower-alpha 16] | Atari 2600 | August 1982 | Stern Electronics | |
Atari 5200 | November 1983 | Stern Electronics | ||
Fast Freddie | Atari 2600 [lower-alpha 17] | October 1982 | Kaneko | |
Galaxian [lower-alpha 14] | Atari 5200 | October 1982 | Namco | |
Atari 8-bit | December 1982 | Namco | ||
Atari 2600 | April 1983 | Namco | ||
ColecoVision | October 26, 1983 | Namco | ||
ZX Spectrum | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
Apple II | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
IBM PC | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
Commodore 64 | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
VIC-20 | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
RealSports Soccer | Atari 5200 | October 1982 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | April 1983 | General Computer Corporation | ||
RealSports Baseball | Atari 2600 | October 1982 | Atari | |
Atari 5200 | October 1983 | Atari | ||
RealSports Volleyball | Atari 2600 | October 1982 | Atari | |
SwordQuest: EarthWorld | Atari 2600 | October 1982 | Atari | |
Cribbage | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1982 | Jose R. Suarez | [20] |
Mankala | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1982 | Elizabeth Chase MacRae | [20] |
Snark Hunt | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1982 | Jeff Johannigman | [20] |
Submarine Commander | Atari 2600 | Fall 1982 | Atari | |
Raiders of the Lost Ark | Atari 2600 | November 1982 | Atari | |
Millipede | Arcade | November 18, 1982 | Atari | |
Atari 2600 | March 1984 | Atari | ||
Pole Position [lower-alpha 9] | Arcade | November 18, 1982 | Namco | |
Atari 2600 | July 1983 | Namco | ||
Atari 5200 | August 1983 | Namco | ||
Atari 8-bit | January 1984 | Namco | ||
Apple II | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
IBM PC | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
Commodore 64 | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
VIC-20 | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
TI-99/4A | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
Liberator | Arcade | November 18, 1982 | Atari | |
Quantum | Arcade | November 18, 1982 | General Computer Corporation; Elizabeth Betty Ryan | |
RealSports Football | Atari 2600 | December 1982 | Atari | |
Atari 5200 | December 1982 | Atari | ||
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial | Atari 2600 | December 1982 | Atari | |
Vanguard | Atari 2600 | January 1983 | Tose | |
Atari 5200 | October 1983 | Tose | ||
Phoenix | Atari 2600 | January 1983 | ||
Typo Attack | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1983 | David Buehler | [21] |
Air-Raid! | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1983 | Chuck Gibke | [21] |
Game Show | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1983 | Hung A. Pham | [21] |
Gridiron Glory | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1983 | Mike Drury / Bob Graves | [21] |
Melt-Down | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1983 | Stephen Romejko | [21] |
Phobos | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1983 | Greg Christensen | [21] |
Pushky | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1983 | Yakov Epelboim | [21] |
Quarxon | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1983 | Scott Ludwig | [21] |
Yahtman | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1983 | Dan Reinhart | [21] |
Xevious [lower-alpha 9] | Arcade | February 1983 | Namco | |
Black Widow | Arcade | February 1983 | Atari | |
Ms. Pac-Man [lower-alpha 14] | Atari 2600 | February 1983 | Namco | |
Atari 5200 | September 1983 | Namco | ||
ZX Spectrum | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
Apple II | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
IBM PC | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
Commodore 64 | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
VIC-20 | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
TI-99/4A | Winter 1984 | Namco | ||
SwordQuest: FireWorld | Atari 2600 | February 1983 | Atari | |
Countermeasure | Atari 5200 | February 1983 | Atari | |
Popeye [lower-alpha 18] | Arcade | February 1983 | Nintendo | |
Donkey Kong [lower-alpha 19] | Atari 8-bit | March 1983 | Nintendo | |
Apple II | June 1983 | Nintendo | ||
IBM PC | June 1983 | Nintendo | ||
Commodore 64 | June 1983 | Nintendo | ||
VIC-20 | June 1983 | Nintendo | ||
TI-99/4A | June 1983 | Nintendo | ||
Food Fight | Arcade | March 1983 | General Computer Corporation | |
Catterpiggle | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Spring 1983 | Scott Ludwig | [22] |
Diggerbonk | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Spring 1983 | Steve Robinson | [22] |
Getaway! | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Spring 1983 | Mark Reid | [22] |
Impact | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Spring 1983 | David Buehler | [22] |
Microsailing | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Spring 1983 | Glenn Faden | [22] |
RealSports Tennis | Atari 2600 | April 1983 | General Computer Corporation | |
Atari 5200 | April 1983 | Atari | ||
Arabian | Arcade | May 1983 | Sun Electronics | |
Star Wars | Arcade | May 1983 | Atari | |
Jungle Hunt [lower-alpha 11] | Atari 2600 | June 1983 | Taito | |
Atari 5200 | August 1983 | Taito | ||
Atari 8-bit | January 1984 | Taito | ||
Apple II | Winter 1984 | Taito | ||
IBM PC | Winter 1984 | Taito | ||
Commodore 64 | Winter 1984 | Taito | ||
VIC-20 | Winter 1984 | Taito | ||
TI-99/4A | Winter 1984 | Taito | ||
The Bean Machine | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1983 | Steve Robinson | [23] |
Bootleg | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1983 | Eric Freeman | [23] |
Can't Quit | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1983 | John M. Harris | [23] |
Dandy | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1983 | John H. Palevich | [23] |
Ennumereight | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1983 | Philip J. Baker | [23] |
Smasher | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Summer 1983 | Chris Goodman / John Goodman | [23] |
Crystal Castles | Arcade | July 8, 1983 | Atari | [24] |
Atari 2600 | March 1984 | Atari | [25] | |
Atari Video Cube | Atari 2600 | July 1983 | Atari | |
Krull | Atari 2600 | September 1983 | Atari | |
Cookie Monster Munch | Atari 2600 | September 1983 | Atari / Children's Computer Workshop | |
Alpha Beam with Ernie | Atari 2600 | September 1983 | Atari | |
Space Dungeon [lower-alpha 11] | Atari 5200 | September 1983 | Atari | |
The Lone Raider | Atari 8-bit | September 1983 | Atari | |
Ion Roadway | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1983 | Jim Sommers | [18] |
Space War | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1983 | Jay R. Jaeger | [18] |
Saratoga | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1983 | Paul Wehner | [18] |
Moon Marauder | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1983 | Jim Sommers | [18] |
Excalibur | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1983 | Chris Crawford / Larry Summers / Valerie Atkinson | [18] |
Musical Pilot | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1983 | Charlie Kulas | [18] |
Puzzler | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1983 | Paul Lewandowski | [18] |
Ringmaster | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Fall 1983 | Gregor Nowak | [18] |
Joust [lower-alpha 15] | Atari 2600 | October 1983 | Atari | |
Atari 5200 | October 1983 | Atari | ||
Atari 8-bit | January 1984 | Atari | ||
Apple II | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
IBM PC | Winter 1984 | Atari | ||
Moon Patrol [lower-alpha 20] | Atari 2600 | October 1983 | Irem | |
Atari 5200 | November 1983 | Irem | ||
Apple II | Winter 1984 | Irem | ||
IBM PC | Winter 1984 | Irem | ||
Commodore 64 | Winter 1984 | Irem | ||
VIC-20 | Winter 1984 | Irem | ||
TI-99/4A | Winter 1984 | Irem | ||
SwordQuest: WaterWorld | Atari 2600 | October 1983 | Atari | |
Sorcerer's Apprentice | Atari 2600 | October 1983 | Atari | |
Major Havoc | Arcade | November 1983 | Atari | |
Pole Position II [lower-alpha 9] | Arcade | November 1983 | Atari | |
Pigs in Space | Atari 2600 | November 1983 | Atari | |
Quadrun | Atari 2600 | November 1983 | Atari | |
Snoopy and the Red Baron | Atari 2600 | November 1983 | Atari | |
Big Bird's Egg Catch | Atari 2600 | November 1983 | Atari / Children's Computer Workshop | |
Mario Bros. [lower-alpha 19] | Atari 2600 | November 1983 | Nintendo | |
Atari 5200 | December 1983 | Nintendo | ||
Pengo [lower-alpha 21] | Atari 5200 | November 1983 | Coreland | |
Atari 8-bit | January 1984 | Coreland | ||
Atari 2600 | May 1984 | Coreland | ||
Robotron: 2084 [lower-alpha 22] | Commodore 64 | June 1983 | Vid Kidz | |
VIC-20 | June 1983 | Vid Kidz | ||
Atari 5200 | November 1983 | Vid Kidz | ||
Apple II | October 26, 1983 | Vid Kidz | ||
IBM PC | October 26, 1983 | Vid Kidz | ||
Atari 8-bit | January 1984 | Vid Kidz | ||
Firefox | Arcade | January 1984 | Atari | |
Donkey Kong Jr. [lower-alpha 19] | Atari 8-bit | January 1984 | Nintendo | |
Bellum | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1984 | Adam Michael Billyard | [26] |
Burgers! | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1984 | Douglas Crockford | [26] |
Chambers of Zorp | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1984 | Karl Gardner / Tom Konchan | [26] |
Dragon Quest or A Twist in the Tail | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1984 | Ed Churnside | [26] |
Numberland Nightwatch | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1984 | Kendall Brown | [26] |
Raid on Gravitron | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1984 | Jim Sommers | [26] |
Rush Hour | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1984 | Mark Odendahl / Suzy Odendahl | [26] |
Weakon | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1984 | Eric Freeman | [26] |
Dog Daze Deluze | Atari 8-bit [lower-alpha 10] | Winter 1984 | Gray Chang | [26] |
Cloak & Dagger | Arcade | February 1984 | Atari | |
Oscar's Trash Race | Atari 2600 | March 1984 | Atari / Children's Computer Workshop | |
Bumpomov's Dogs | Atari 8-bit | March 22, 1984 | Atari | |
Taz | Atari 2600 | April 1984 | Atari | |
Asterix | Atari 2600 | April 1984 | Atari | |
Obélix | Atari 2600 | April 1984 | Atari; Suki Lee | |
Choplifter [lower-alpha 23] | Atari 2600 | May 1984 | Dan Gorlin | |
I, Robot | Arcade | June 1984 | Atari | |
Stargate [lower-alpha 15] | Apple II | June 1984 | Williams Electronics | |
IBM PC | June 1984 | Williams Electronics | ||
Atari 2600 | June 1984 | Williams Electronics | ||
Gremlins | Atari 2600 | June 1984 | Atari | |
Apple II | June 1984 | Atari | ||
IBM PC | June 1984 | Atari | ||
Commodore 64 | June 1984 | Atari |
Atari is a brand name that has been owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by French company Atari SA through a subsidiary named Atari Interactive. The original Atari, Inc., founded in Sunnyvale, California, United States in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney, was a pioneer in arcade games, home video game consoles, and home computers. The company's products, such as Pong and the Atari 2600, helped define the electronic entertainment industry from the 1970s to the mid-1980s.
The Atari 2600 is a discontinued home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System, it popularized microprocessor-based hardware and games stored on swappable ROM cartridges, a format first used with the Fairchild Channel F in 1976. The VCS was bundled with two joystick controllers, a conjoined pair of paddle controllers, and a game cartridge—initially Combat and later Pac-Man. Sears sold the system as the Tele-Games Video Arcade. Atari rebranded the VCS as the Atari 2600 in November 1982 alongside the release of the Atari 5200.
ColecoVision is a second-generation home video-game console developed by Coleco and launched in North America in August 1982. It was released a year later in Europe by CBS Electronics as the CBS ColecoVision.
The video game crash of 1983 was a large-scale recession in the video game industry that occurred from 1983 to 1985 in the United States. The crash was attributed to several factors, including market saturation in the number of video game consoles and available games, many of which were of poor quality. Waning interest in console games in favor of personal computers also played a role. Home video game revenue peaked at around $3.2 billion in 1983, then fell to around $100 million by 1985. The crash abruptly ended what is retrospectively considered the second generation of console video gaming in North America. To a lesser extent, the arcade video game market also weakened as the golden age of arcade video games came to an end.
Nolan Kay Bushnell is an American businessman and electrical engineer. He established Atari, Inc. and the Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre chain. He has been inducted into the Video Game Hall of Fame and the Consumer Electronics Association Hall of Fame, received the BAFTA Fellowship and the Nations Restaurant News "Innovator of the Year" award, and was named one of Newsweek's "50 Men Who Changed America". He has started more than 20 companies and is one of the founding fathers of the video game industry. He is on the board of Anti-Aging Games. In 2012, he founded an educational software company called Brainrush, that is using video game technology in educational software.
Zaxxon is a scrolling shooter developed and released by Sega as an arcade video game in 1982. The player pilots a ship through heavily defended space fortresses. Japanese electronics company Ikegami Tsushinki was also involved in the game's development.
Centipede is a 1981 fixed shooter arcade video game developed and published by Atari, Inc. Designed by Dona Bailey and Ed Logg, it was one of the most commercially successful games from the golden age of arcade video games and one of the first with a significant female player base. The primary objective is to shoot all the segments of a centipede that winds down the playing field. An arcade sequel, Millipede, followed in 1982.
Frogger is a 1981 arcade action game developed by Konami and published by Sega. In North America, it was distributed by Sega/Gremlin. The object of the game is to direct five frogs to their homes by dodging traffic on a busy road, then crossing a river by jumping on floating logs and alligators.
Exidy, Inc. was a developer and manufacturer of coin-operated electro-mechanical and video games which operated from 1973 to 1999. They manufactured many notable titles including Death Race (1976), Circus (1978), Star Fire (1978), Venture (1981), Mouse Trap (1981), Crossbow (1983), and Chiller (1986). They were also the creators of the Exidy Sorcerer (1978) home computer platform.
1980 saw the release of a number of games with influential concepts, including Pac-Man, Battlezone, Crazy Climber, Mystery House, Missile Command, Phoenix, Rally-X, Space Panic, Stratovox, Zork, Adventure, and Olympic Decathlon. The year's highest-grossing video game was Namco's arcade game Pac-Man, while the best-selling home system was Nintendo's Game & Watch. The Atari VCS also grew in popularity with a port of Space Invaders and support from new third-party developer Activision.
1973 saw a substantial increase in the amount of video games created and distributed in multiple sectors. In coin-operated games, a craze for Pong-style games ignited the first fad for video games both in the United States and other countries such as Japan and the United Kingdom. Time-sharing networks saw greater proliferation of popular programs through type-in listings. The PLATO network played host to some of the earliest massively multiplayer games.
Caverns of Mars is a vertically scrolling shooter for Atari 8-bit computers. It was written by Greg Christensen, with some features later added by Richard Watts, and published by the Atari Program Exchange (APX) in 1981. Caverns of Mars became the best selling APX software of all-time and was moved into Atari, Inc.'s official product line, first on diskette, then on cartridge.
Tank is an arcade game developed by Kee Games, a subsidiary of Atari, and released in November 1974. It was one of the few original titles not based on an existing Atari property developed by Kee Games, which was founded to sell clones of Atari games to distributors as a fake competitor prior to the merger of the two companies. In the game, two players drive tanks through a maze viewed from above while attempting to shoot each other and avoid mines, represented by X marks, in a central minefield. Each player controls their tank with a pair of joysticks, moving them forwards and back to drive, reverse, and steer, and firing shells with a button to attempt to destroy the other tank. The destruction of a tank from a mine or shell earns the opposing player a point, and tanks reappear after being destroyed. The winner is the player with more points when time runs out, with each game typically one or two minutes long.
In the history of video games, the second-generation era refers to computer and video games, video game consoles, and handheld video game consoles available from 1976 to 1992. Notable platforms of the second generation include the Fairchild Channel F, Atari 2600, Intellivision, Odyssey 2, and ColecoVision. The generation began in November 1976 with the release of the Fairchild Channel F. This was followed by the Atari 2600 in 1977, Magnavox Odyssey² in 1978, Intellivision in 1980 and then the Emerson Arcadia 2001, ColecoVision, Atari 5200, and Vectrex, all in 1982. By the end of the era, there were over 15 different consoles. It coincided with, and was partly fuelled by, the golden age of arcade video games. This peak era of popularity and innovation for the medium resulted in many games for second generation home consoles being ports of arcade games. Space Invaders, the first "killer app" arcade game to be ported, was released in 1980 for the Atari 2600, though earlier Atari-published arcade games were ported to the 2600 previously. Coleco packaged Nintendo's Donkey Kong with the ColecoVision when it was released in August 1982.
In video gaming parlance, a conversion is the production of a game on one computer or console that was originally written for another system. Over the years, video game conversion has taken form in a number of different ways, both in their style and the method in which they were converted.
Synapse Software Corporation was an American software developer and publisher founded in 1981 by Ihor Wolosenko and Ken Grant. Synapse published application software and developer tools and was primarily known for video games. It initially focused on the Atari 8-bit computers, then later developed for the Commodore 64 and other systems. Synapse was purchased by Broderbund in late 1984 and the Synapse label retired in 1985.
Atari Program Exchange (APX) was a division of Atari, Inc. that sold software via mail-order for Atari 8-bit computers from 1981 until 1984. Quarterly APX catalogs were sent to all registered Atari 8-bit owners. APX encouraged any programmer, not just professionals, to submit video games, educational software, applications, and utilities. A few internally developed Atari products were sold through APX, such as Atari Pascal, the developer handbook De Re Atari, and a port of the arcade video game Kangaroo.
Atari, Inc. was an American video game developer and home computer company founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. Atari was a key player in the formation of the video arcade and video game industry.
The 1980s was the second decade in the industry's history. It was a decade of highs and lows for video games. The decade began amidst a boom in the arcade video game business with the golden age of arcade video games, the Atari 2600's dominance of the home console market during the second generation of video game consoles, and the rising influence of home computers. However, an oversatuation of low quality games led to an implosion of the video game market that nearly destroyed the industry in North America. Most investors believed video games to be a fad that had since passed, up until Nintendo's success with its Nintendo Entertainment System revived interest in game consoles and led to a recovery of the home video game industry. In the remaining years of the decade, Sega ignites a console war with Nintendo, developers that had been affected by the crash experimented with PC games, and Nintendo released the Game Boy, which would become the best-selling handheld gaming device for the next two decades. Other consoles released in the decade included the Intellivision, ColecoVision, TurboGrafx-16 and Sega Genesis.
Space Invaders is a 1980 video game based on Taito's arcade game Space Invaders (1978) for the Atari 2600. It was developed and released by Atari, Inc. and designed and developed by Rick Maurer. The game is based on the arcade game in which a player operates a laser cannon to shoot at incoming enemies from outer space. Maurer's version has unique graphics and offers some gameplay variations. These include a two-player mode and variations that allow for invisible enemies and moving shields, and for enemies shots to zig zag and potentially hit players.