When people reflect on the legacy ofAtari, most either talk about the revolutionary Atari 2600 and its impact on in-the-house video games and game development prior to a majortech market crash, or the poorly planned and horribly timed Atari Jaguar and its equally confusing video game library. What many often overlook is the console wedged between these two, the Atari 7800.
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Released during the competition of the Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Master System, the 7800 was a direct upgrade to the 2600, even being backwards compatible with 2600 cartridges — a rare concept at the time. With arcade ports and creative new concepts aplenty, the Atari 7800’s library is rich in games that history has overlooked.
10Choplifter!
An excellent port of a simple yet addictive arcade classic. Players take control of a rescue helicopter and have to navigate enemy weapons fire to land, pick up civilians, and bring them back to base to score points.
The graphics are comparable to NES arcade ports of the era, and the sound design is simple yet charming. Choplifter! is a simple game that keeps players coming back for more.
9Ninja Golf
A proper innovation of the sports game genre, Ninja Golf kills the downtime and adds more action! While the golf portion of the game is rather simple and exactly what one would expect, there’s a reason the player character in-game is a literal ninja.
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Between strokes, players will be thrown into combat on their way to hit the golfball again, coming under siege from enemy ninjas and hostile reptiles and amphibians. Simple, charming, and endlessly addicting, Ninja Golf is the kind of absurd dumb fun that more sports games should look to for inspiration.
8Mario Bros
You read that correctly. Even after Nintendo established themselves as the new reining champion of the home console market, ports of the originalMario Brosarcade game were appearing on other consoles and home computers.
With crisp graphics comparable to the NES port, and a significant upgrade to early computer ports and the 2600 version, Mario Bros shows that the 7800 could have stood its ground on the console market had it released sooner with a larger marketing campaign. For non-digital, non-mobile ports of this groundbreaking classic, the 7800 version is one of the finest.
7Dark Chambers
A four-player dungeon crawling action game, over a decade before games likeDiablowould make the genre a household staple. Dark Chamber features a leveling system, inventory management, and puzzle-solving, all rendered brilliantly with simple yet memorable style that’s helped the game age gracefully.
If one of the grandfathers of the modern dungeon crawler seems like a fun time, then Dark Chambers is a must-have.
6Robotron 2084
A forgotten arcade classic that saw action on most home consoles and computers of the era. Set in the year 2084, robotic and cybernetic life are in revolt against humankind, and players find themselves outnumbered but not out-gunned in a screen-by-screen free flow shooter.
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While not significantly overhauled from other ports, the later release on the 7800 allows Robotron to shine with more defined sprites and numbers, giving players better visual information during the hectic, loud, and ear-piercing gameplay the series is known for! Robotron 2084 is early arcade philosophy running at full power, and it delivers in spades.
5Donkey Kong Jr.
While the original Donkey Kong faced downgrades on most home console releases, often dropping one of the four stages from the arcade original, Donkey Kong Jr. comes with the complete package.
Every level is included, rendered beautifully with excellent controls and catchy music. While the game may lay in the shadow of the original, that doesn’t mean players should avoid this ape-tastic romp that helped define some of Nintendo’slongest lived icons.
4Ikari Warriors
Arcade-style vertical run n' gun shooters have been mostly supplanted in history by the horizontal shooter, with games like Commando andMega Manleading the charge. Ikari Warriors comes fromSnKand delivers hectic, fast-paced action with lots of guns, explosions, upgrades, and personal scores to beat.
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Ikari Warriors is far from easy, but it rewards players for learning the gameplay loop and remembering level layouts. Ikari Warriors may be outshone culturally, but it still plays as sharp as ever, and it demands a spot in players' collections.
3BasketBrawl
Playing clean is the norm, and norms are made to be challenged. BasketBrawl encourages players to play ball dirty, kicking and punching the opposition out of the way to score points, making the act of hoop scoring the reward for pushing through the rumble pit of the court.
With the rise of sports titles, some developers tried working outside the box on the base gameplay, and end products like BasketBrawl are memorable and stand-out successes.
2Alien Brigade
A Light Gun game that allows regular controller use, and a fun one at that, Alien Brigade tasks the player with rescuing POWs and evacuating soldiers while shooting infectious aliens that attempt to reanimate the dead and slaughter the living.
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From swamps and remote villages to ancient mines and military bases, aliens and monsters aplenty are gunning for the player, who needs to respond in kind. On top of it all is a surprisingly well-told story with text cutscenes between levels, giving compelling reason for players to push onward to the end!
1Double Dragon
While the NES port has ascended into the stuff of legend, and the computer ports are controversial and inconsistent in quality, the Atari 7800 port hits hard and does an amazing job keeping pace. Using the 7800’s hardware to the fullest potential, Double Dragon delivers side-scrolling,beat ‘em up arcade actionthat does sacrifice some character sprite quality in exchange for smooth gameplay and crisp backgrounds.
This port is the embodiment of the Atari 7800’s existence, coming in later than usual with reduced hardware and market space, but delivering fun and enthralling experiences that defied the odds and held strong longer than many would have expected.
