Atari Bytes

I'm strong to the finish, 'cause I eats me spinach*, I'm Bill the Podcaster Man! *Seriously, I do. Raw even. This week's game is the 1983 Parker Brothers adventure POPEYE. While Olive Oil wears her hearts on her sleeve - and mostly just throws them at her beloved, Popeye is busy running from deck to deck on a ship trying to beat up Bluto/Brutus (which name you refer to Popeye's nemesis by really depends on your age) because...reasons. Sure, the message that disagreements can be solved with your fists is probably troubling, but, the game is a decent romp. Grab a can of the green stuff (We mean spinach. We're old school. No kale for us.) and climb aboard. Adventure, ahoy! Atari Bytes It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown Atari Bytes Patreon Zazzle.com store at AB_Pod_Store My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incopetech.com for creative commons use of his songs "Reformat", "Pinball Spring" and "Take a Chance".  9fkvdj4v

This week, Sir Dudley Dashly swings from vine to vine across the jungle, colliding violently with Pitfall Harry and sending both of them to the hospital with concussions. If only! That's just my dream premise for Pitfall III. Instead, we're taking a look at the 1983 game from Atari, JUNGLE HUNT. Vicious vines. Cruel crocs. Belligerent boulders. Savage, uh, savages. Will Sir Dudley Dashly ever see Lady Penelope again? Well, we don't want to spoil anything, but we'd like to point out they never made Jungle Hunt II. Thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons use of his songs "Take a Chance", "Reformat" and "Pinball Spring". Atari Bytes show notes It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown Atari Bytes Patreon The Atari Bytes Zazzle.com store AB_Pod_Store

This week, we go above and beyond by going under the sea to defend the lost city of Atlantis from annihilation by the Gorgons. Make your old high school Greek mythology teacher stop regretting her life choices and actually use some of that stuff she taught you. Who knew the Loch Ness Monster could kick butt so righteously? * And Not-Dead Elvis is deadly on the sentry post.** *The Loch Ness Monster does not actually appear in this game. **Him either.*** ***OR DO THEY?   Atari Bytes It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown Thanks to Kevin McLeod at Inompetech.com for creative commons use of his songs "Reformat", "Pinball Spring" and "Take a Chance". The Atari Bytes Patreon page. Get cool Atari Bytes stuff at Zazzle.com - AB_Pod_Store  

This week on the podcast, we boldly bravely cluelessly go where no one has gone before! That's right, in honor of the new Trek film out this summer, Star Trek: Beyond, we slingshot around the sun to go back in time to 1983 and check out the Sega game STAR TREK: STRATEGIC OPERATIONS SIMULATOR. So beam yourself up to this episode and enjoy it at warp factor 10.* *I'm stopping here to avoid any more Trek references. It's the logical thing to do. (Darn it!) Bill Kendrick's XEGS Podcast Atari Party The Atari Bytes Patreon Page The Atari Bytes store on Zazzle.com Thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons use of his songs "Reformat", "Pinball Spring" and "Take a Chance". Atari Bytes show notes It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown   9fkvdj4v

We came. We saw. We kicked its...Well, you know. In 1984, GHOSTBUSTERS left an indelible, Mr. Stay Pufft-sized, footprint on comedy/adventure movies. With the new 2016 Ghostbusters finally out, this seemed like a good time to revisit the 1985 Activision take on the Ghostbusters universe. Does the game live up to the film? To find out, who you gonna call? PODCASTERS! (The management requests that you please don't slime the podcasters) My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons use of his songs "Reformat", "Pinball Spring" and "Take a Chance". The Atari Party is happening July 30! Book your trip now. Atari Bytes It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown The AB_Pod_Store at Zazzle.com The Atari Bytes Patreon page  

BURGERTIME was one of my favorite video games as a kid...when it was on the Intellivision. But no matter! Atari Burgertime is cool too! Homicidal human-sized hot dogs, massive walking eggs and severely erect breadsticks want to kill our man Chef Peter Pepper, apparently, because he keeps walking all over the giant hamburgers this restaurant serves. As the chef, armed only with a pepper shaker and, we're guessing, clogged arteries, you have to dodge the junk food and stay alive long enough to finish building your hamburgers. It's DELICIOUS fun! Bill Kendrick's Atari Party Atari Bytes website It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons license to his songs "Reformat", "Pinball Spring" and "Take a Chance". The Atari Bytes Patreon page Get cool Atari Bytes stuff at Zazzle.com

If the ark is a-rockin', don't bother knockin'... On episode 24, the 1982 iMagic game COSMIC ARK is our focus. You pilot your ship, the Cosmic Ark, into a solar system where the sun is about to go nova, blast away bombarding meteors and then deploy shuttleships equipped with tractor beams to scoop up the creatures below and whisk them off to safety. It's like poor man's Star Trek, only not, because that would be trademark infringement. Bill Kendrick's Atari Party Thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons license to his songs "Reformat", "Pinball Spring" and "Take a Chance". Atari Bytes It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown The Atari Bytes Zazzle.com store The Atari Bytes Patreon page

This week we look at Atari's 1978 game SURROUND. Yep, there it is. This...strategy game, I guess? pits you against the computer or your opponent to see which one of you can paint lines on the screen faster to box the other player in. The graphics are rudimentary; the gameplay simple (though addictive). There are no characters, dialogue, back story or even stakes. PERFECT for a story-based, game review podcast. I must have been crazy to pick this one. Clearly I'm unwell. Have pity and give it a listen. Thanks! The Atari Party sponsored by the XEGS Podcast. Thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons license to his songs "Reformat", "Take a Chance" and "Pinball Spring". Atari Bytes It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown Our Zazzle.com AB_Pod_Store for cool Atari Bytes merchandise The Atari Bytes Patreon page  

SUMMERTIME! AND THE LIVING IS EASY!  The gameplay, on the other hand...not so much. KOOL-AID MAN, 1983 from Mattel Electronics, is our focus this week. This game is basically the video equivalent of my six-year-old after a Tootsie Roll. The Thirsties are running around ruining your pool party by drinking all the water. Kool-Aid Man is running around like a maniac trying to stop them. It's like you and your kid at your kid's birthday party. The sugar rush keeps the game going until all at once it's over and you just feel a little light-headed and tired. Drink up! My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons license to his songs "Reformat", "Take a Chance" and "Pinball Spring." Bill Kendrick at the XEGS Podcast told us about the Atari Party. Atari Bytes Support the show on our Patreon Page. Find cool Atari Bytes merchandise at Zazzle.com. Type in "Atari Bytes" or go to our store AB_Pod_Store It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown!

This week on the podcast, we're MAD!  No, we're not angry. That's MAD as in Mutually Assured Destruction - the Cold War thory that no country would fire nuclear missiles at another country because that would bring about a counter attack and no one on the planet would survive. In the game, on Zardon, the planet in question, you control a small arsenal of missiles to fend off of an interplanetary air attack. Will you be able to defend your planet's right to exist? LINKS: Atari Bytes It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown The Atari Party Thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for the creative commons use of his songs "Reformat", "Take a Chance" and "Pinball Spring". The Zazzle.com store AB_Pod_Store The Atari Bytes Patreon page

Maybe you can't yell "FIRE!" in a crowded theater, but you can yell it all you want in Imagic's 1982 game FIRE FIGHTER, which is our focus on this week's episode. You can stop yelling now. This is an intense (ish) game of man against the elements (well, one element - namely FIRE) battling against time to rescue a desperate victim. Okay, seriously, you can stop yelling now. Sheesh. More info about the Atari Party here. The Atari Bytes website. It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown The Atari Bytes Patreon Page Our Zazzle.com store AB_Pod_Store

This game is so crazy, it needed to employ a "z" in the name, instead of the ordinary "s". Emotionless robots and maniacal, smiling evil-doers seek to destroy you. It's much like American politics. But unlike in politics where only the third rail is a dangerous place to be., in this game, the very walls that imprison you are electrified. And fighting to get out will make you...well, you know. Bill Kendrick's Atari Party The Wallpaper Cave has some cool Atari wallpapers. Like my words, but can't stand my voice. I blog too! (Occasionally) Check out a new post here. Like my words and my voice, but not so darn often. Then check out my monthly podcast It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown. Support us at our Patreon page or by shopping at our Zazzle Store.

The exclamation point in the game title is well deserved! This week on the podcast, we look at Pitfall!, a 1982 game from legendary game designer Activision!  Awesome! (I just can't stop with the exclamation points!) This game is all about quicksand and alligators and swinging from tree to tree like Tarzan. Grab your pith helmet, loin cloth and joystick and jump into this high-flying jungle adventure. The treasure is just waiting for you! Here's the interview with Pitfall! game designer David Crane at Arcade Attack. Bill Kendrick's (XEGS Podcast) Atari Party info. Show music - "Take a Chance", "Reformat", and "Pinball Spring" - was provided courtesy of creative commons license from Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com Support the show at our Patreon page. Get cool stuff at our Zazzle.com AB_Pod_Store Not sick of my voice yet? Check out my other show. It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown.  

Good grief! This week's episode is Atari's 1983 game SNOOPY & THE RED BARON! High flying adventure with Snoopy AND seemingly endless machine gun fire? I'll drink (root beer) to that! My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for the creative commons use of his songs "Reformat", "Take a Chance" and "Pinball Spring." You can support the show at Patreon and Zazzle. Check out my other show: It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown  

This week's game is Atari's 1981 classic: WARLORDS. And this week's theme is ...family. Parents, man. You and your brothers are goofing around, innocently catapaulting fireballs at each other when your dad, ruler of the land, gets in your face being all kingly and banishes you to the forbidden lands. But you guys get bored easy so you each pick a corner to barricade yourselves in and fling lightning balls at each other. King Dad always warned if you didn't stop you'd end up imprisoned in endless battle for all eternity inside an Atari game cartridge. But what do parents know? The 'rents are so stupid. Or ARE they? Bill Kendrick's Atari Party. The Atari Bytes Zazzle store AB_Pod_Store The Atari Bytes Patreon page. My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for Creative Commons use of his songs "Take a Chance", "Reformat", and "Pinball Spring".    

If you think a "barnstormer" is what a stormtrooper becomes after leaving the Empire to work a moisture farm on Tatooine, you need to listen to this episode. This week's game is BARNSTORMING. Activision goes down on the farm and up in the air all at once in this 1982 plane-flying adventure. Test your reflexes and your nerves as you maneuver your bi-plane over windmills and through barns, all the while asking yourself: "Why am I doing this?" And then you smash into the south end of a north-flying goose. It's kind of like life, really. Want to know more about the Atari Party? Go here. The Atari Bytes Patreon page. Get AB stuff at Zazzle.  

On EPISODE 14 of ATARI BYTES, we down some of the leftover 'shrooms from the Centipede episode, indulge in some peyote and wash it all down with a bottle of Jack and...Oh, wait. No actually, we just played AMIDAR. But that does even weirder things to your brain. Gorillas that want to paint while being chased by WILD warriors that really just look like boogers. Gorillas that turn INTO PAINT ROLLERS and are pursued by pigs. That's the game. No, we're not kidding. We couldn't make this up. But there's some OTHER stuff we could...listen to find out what sort of story we can possibly cobble together from this madness. Here's where you go to find out about Atari Party. Here's the Atari Bytes Patreon page. Here's the Atari Bytes Zazzle store.  

This game is TURMOIL-ISH! TURMOIL-SOME! TURMOIL-U-TUOUS! Lookit, there's lots of turmoil in this 1982 20th Century Fox game. With weird creatures that look like tanks, UFO's, pink tie-fighters and Andes candies, we're not sure if this game is a space alien shooting gallery or the weird office cubicle fever dream you might experience after inhaling copier toner all day. Find out more about the Atari Party in California here. If you can, donate to the show on Patreon. My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for the creative commons license to his songs "Take a Chance", "Reformat", and "Pinball Spring". Atari Bytes is a Carnival of Glee Creation.

DRIVERS, START YOUR ENGINES! Seriously, you can't drive if you don't start the car, doofus. Atari's 1983 POLE POSITION, a formula one Grand Prix racing game, is our focus this week. How can we make a story out of little more than a race car on a track? Listen and find out! The finest twenty-two minutes of a man alphabetizing his toothpaste collection you'll ever hear. My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons license to use his songs "Take a Chance", "Reformat" and "Pinball Spring". Go here to get more info about this summer's Atari Party. Here's our Patreon page

PASS THE 'SHROOMS, MAN! Atari goes down on the farm in this episode. Atari's CENTIPEDE from 1982 is our topic.  While other elves are out fighting wars and hanging with Hobbits on epic quests, your poor little elf Oliver is stuck tending a mushroom farm. If that isn't bad enough, you're being pummeled by giant centipedes, scorpions, spiders and FLEAS. No one would blame you if you used that magic wand to teleport yourself out of here. But no! That's not the Atari way. On this farm, we beat our swords into plowshares...then use those plowshares to beat the holy crap out of anyone who messes with our 'shrooms. Nobody messes with our 'shrooms. NOBODY. Does the story hold up? Are the steaks, er stakes, er mushrooms clearly defined? Pull up a toadstool and we'll figure it out. My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for the creative commons use of his songs "Pinball Spring", "Reformat" and "Take a Chance". Here's a link to Bill Kendrick's Atari Party info.