One of the things I got for Christmas was a wall calendar with a different classic Atari game each month. Fits my personality pretty well, I think, and I hung it up at work. It reminded me that a few months ago, they released an Atari Greatest Hits collection on DS. I didn’t buy it right away because it was 30 bucks, but I saw it recently for around 20, so I snagged it. So here’s a rundown on what’s on Atari’s Greatest Hits vol. 1 for DS!

The game is a bit misleading because there are only a few Atari arcade games, and the rest are 2600 games. I have to say that I wasn’t as big into Atari’s arcade games because I was more enthralled with Namco’s offerings like Pac-Man and Dig Dug. And make sure not to get this game mixed up with the other Atari DS collection: Atari Retro Hits. That came out a few years ago and it was horrible. But here are the arcade games on the new Atari collection.

Asteroids

I was never really very good at this game. I was better at the 2600 version because it was easier. Luckily, the 2600 version is on here, too. Maybe in vol. 2 (which is coming out this year), they’ll have the 16-bit update called Blasteroids.

Battlezone

This vector tank game has a varied history behind it. I didn’t play it much in the arcades. The 2600 version is on here, too. And despite it not having vector graphics, the 2600 version is actually a pretty decent simple little tank game. I do like Activision’s tank game better, though.

One of the neat things about Battlezone is that at one point, the US military asked Atari to make a version of it to train troops. I don’t think it ever got off the ground, but the cool thing is you can play the “Army Battlezone” version on this DS collection! It could almost be a sequel to Battlezone, as there are new enemies and controls. It’s a bit more complicated, as you drive by moving the left and right treads (like Namco’s Assault). And you can switch weapons by tapping the touch screen! So yeah, pretty neat addition here.

Centipede

My dad LOVED Centipede back in the day! When we would go to an arcade as a family, I would go to the Pac-Man machine, my mom would hop to Frogger, and my dad would make a beeline for Centipede. This version lets you view the screen sideways or horizontal. And you can use the touch screen like a trackball if you want. It doesn’t work as well, but hey, at least they tried. Some of the other arcade games use alternate controls as well, and some offer more simple controls (like Asteroids) as well as the original buttons. The 2600 version of Centipede is here, too. It’s pretty close to the arcade, considering, although the sound effects sure are annoying.

Gravitar

A bunch of Atari’s games were like different versions of Asteroids, since it was so popular. I never could figure out Gravitar so I didn’t try playing it much on this collection. The 2600 version is also on here.

Lunar Lander

In this vector game you must use your jets and limited fuel to land safely. I never was very good at it.

Missile Command

My dad loved this game, too. Again, you can opt to use the touch screen trackball, but it’s hard to do that and push the buttons. The 2600 version is on here as well. Despite only having one missile base, it’s still a pretty good home version, too.

Pong

I don’t really need to explain this game. You can play 2 player games like this wirelessly with 2 DS systems. Back in the day, my dad built our first TV set and included a home Pong clone in it. So even though that was technically my first video game, I never really realized that’s what it was. I just thought it was something you did on the TV when nothing else was on!

Space Duel

Another version of Asteroids. I can figure this one out better than Gravitar. But I’m still not very good at it.

Tempest

I never really liked Tempest that much, but Jeff Minter’s Tempest 2000 was pretty neat. You can use the touch screen to simulate the rotating controls. Also included is a prototype of a 2600 version, but it’s awful. It looks like the playfield is a blue and black striped Speedo. I can see why it never made it past the prototype level!

OK, the rest of the games are Atari 2600 games. I’ll describe them a little bit, but not very much. Also, the collection splits them into genres, so I decided to do that, too.

Air-Sea Battle

The first category is ‘Action.’ You shoot planes and boats in different modes. I played this game a lot back in the day. Was it a pack-in game at one point? It seemed like everyone had it.

Flag Capture

Just a game of Hot and Cold. Flip over tiles to reveal the flag, and try to avoid mines. Other tiles give you clues as to where the flag is.

Human Cannonball

You know how you aim to fire weapons in Scorched Earth? Well that’s what you do here to try and get a man into a basket via cannon.

Outlaw

I actually enjoyed playing this cowboy shooting game back in the day. But then, I was pretty easily entertained back then. It has lots of game modes. I guess it’s better with two players.

Sky Diver

Jump out of a plane to land safely on your spot. It didn’t look fun enough for me to try and figure out more of it.

Submarine Commander

Well, you fire at boats with torpedoes with a periscope view. I don’t know if there are enemy boats and innocent boats or if you’re just a maniac and shoot all boats.

Adventure

The next category is “Adventure.” So Adventure is a good fit for this category I guess. Adventure is famous for the dragon that looks like a duck. And your character is a square and uses an arrow for a sword. As big of a Zelda fan as I am, I never could get into Adventure.

Haunted House

It looks like you’re controlling a ghost that has already been eaten by Pac-Man. You can light matches so you can see parts of an urn you must collect in the maze, and you must avoid ghosts and other blocky things that are supposed to be scary. I think Atari released an updated version of this game last year on Xbox LIVE.

Swordquest Earthworld, Fireworld, Waterworld

I just combined these three games together. They seem like Adventure sequels. Wasn’t there a contest related with these games or something? Guess they never finished Airworld. Earthworld seems the most basic. Fireworld added a Kaboom-like mini-game, and Waterworld had a few Frogger-ish mini-challenges. I didn’t take the time to figure them out any further than that.

Slot Machine

This is the only game in the “Gambling” category. Couldn’t they put this in another category instead? I played slot machines when I went to Vegas and wasn’t very impressed, and it’s a lot less fun to play them on the 2600.

3-D Tic-Tac-Toe

Next category is “Mind Games.” In Middle School I had this nerdy friend who had a Star Trek 3-D chess set. He always tried to get me to play it, and I was always like, “Dude, I can barely figure out checkers. What makes you think I’d play that?” 3-D Tic-Tac-Toe reminds me of that game, except this one is a lot simpler so I can understand it. It’s kind of fun in a Connect 4 kind of way.

Atari Video Cube

I bet this came out during the Rubix’s Cube craze. When it was popular in the 80’s, they even had a Rubix Cube cartoon! I kid you not! This isn’t exactly a Rubix Cube puzzle, but a clever take on it. You can pick up a colored tile with your character and move it anywhere you want, but you can’t walk on tiles of the same color you’re carrying. You can play a timed game or a game based on your moves. Again, pretty clever for a 2600 game.

Fun With Numbers

Yeah it’s about as much fun as math flash cards, which this is basically what it is. I never liked math, not even in elementary school. At least you can say that Atari’s Greatest Hits vol. 1 on DS is educational!

Hangman

It’s what you would expect it to be. You against the computer. The Hangman looks like a monkey, though.

Math Gran Prix

It’s a little better than Fun With Numbers. Solve equations to make your race car move ahead of the other players.

Surround

It’s like the TRON light cycle game. Or the snake game on the Intellivision.

Video Checkers

No explanation necessary. I like Activision’s 2600 checkers game better.

Dodge ‘Em

Next category is racing. This one kind of reminds me of Pac-Man as you must collect dots while avoiding the other car. I would probably really like this one if it wasn’t so hard to change lanes.

Slot Racers

This is a two-player exclusive game only, so I couldn’t really figure it out very well.

Sprintmaster

It’s a 2600 version of Atari’s popular Sprint overhead racers. These are pretty fun, but also kind of hard, too.

Star Ship

Next is the “Space” category. In this 3-D first person shooter, you shoot blue UFOs, pink aliens, and green things that look like bicycle horns. It’s fun because it’s simple.

Stellar Track

Well you stare at numbers on a green screen. I didn’t feel like trying to figure it out. It’s as fun as it sounds. Not sure what it has to do with “Space” either.

Basketball

Last category is Sports. Since I’m not into sports games, it’s going to sound like I’m glossing over these. Which I am. Seeing the basketball players jump to shoot and block is pretty humorous here.

Bowling

Kind of reminds me of the bowling mini-games on WarioWare. One of the more playable 2600 sports games on here.

Championship Soccer

Your players look like little fuzzballs. Like germs or dust bunnies playing soccer.

Football

You have two football games on this collection. “Football” came first and “Realsports Football” was later. The later one looks more advanced, but I didn’t really mess with any of them as I’m not a big fan of football video games.

Home Run

Like Football, Home Run came first and “Realsports Baseball” came later. I remember having fun playing a 2600 baseball game with my uncle, but these two don’t look like the one I remember playing.

Miniature Golf

It looks like they took the Adventure graphics and tried to make a golf game out of it.

Realsports Boxing

I like Activision’s boxing game better. It may not be as realistic, but at least the gameplay’s better.

Realsports Tennis

I’ve always felt that most tennis video games are just glorified Pong clones. Especially the old ones.

Realsports Volleyball

One of my favorite sports game is actually a volleyball game. It was called Beach Spikers and was on the GameCube. It was made by Sega and you could have Space Channel 5’s Ulala as a player, so it couldn’t have been TOO bad, right?

And that’s all the games on here. There’s also an Atari trivia game and a gallery where you can view arcade posters and 2600 manuals. It’s a decent collection at only 20 bucks. And at least it’s better than buying them all separately on the 360 Game Room! I think as a whole, I enjoy Activision’s 2600 games more. I imagine games like Millipede and Breakout will be on vol. 2. I’d also like to see some of Atari’s more modern arcade games on there, like Marble Madness, Blasteroids, and Road Blasters. In the comments section, let me know what YOUR favorite Atari games are, and what you’d like to see in vol. 2. Later! –Cary

Tags: Game Reviews