Justin

AWESOME review, RadioPoultry!

Thanks guys!
Ep 2 is live on iTunes. You can also find it on Youtube.

 
Next ep will cover Hat Trick & Winter Games.
Just for fun, on my fb page I am doing a High Score Challenge to see who can get the most goals in a Novice single player game.
 
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Atari-7800-Game-By-Game-Podcast/428826077271603?ref=hl

Groundhog Day is here, and I can't think of a more appropriate way to observe that revered occasion than to take a look at one of the many games involving hogs on the Atari 2600: "Pigs in Space". By remarkable coincidence, I just happened to win a copy in the trivia contest two weeks ago. Since I do not have a way of capturing quality images from my television, I'll be taking them via emulation.  

 
"Pigs in Space" is based on the sci-fi parody sketch that was featured frequently on the Muppet Show. To summarize, three pigs voyage through the stars aboard the spaceship Swinetrek, boldly doing nothing of particular importance. The game itself is somewhat unusual in that it's effectively three very different games in one, and each game had a different programmer.   After switching on the console, the player is greeted with this screen:     To quote the announcer on the show.... "PIGS... IN... SPAAaace!". I would have been delighted if the Atari generated tones mimicking that introduction, but I guess it was not to be. A copyright of 1983 is given, two years after the show had aired its final episode. Like a number of later Atari games, you don't have to lean over and pull the reset switch to start, you can can just press the joystick button. Being lazy, I appreciate this. Setting the left difficulty switch to 'B' gives the player an extra life every 10,000 points, but I personally find this makes the game too easy, so I leave the switch on 'A'.    
On the next screen we are reminded once again that this is PIGS IN SPACE, and are presented with a set of three disembodied pig heads in profile from which to choose. Each represents a different member of the crew and a different mini-game. They may be played in any order, even the same game multiple times in a row, but each becomes more difficult the more it is played (until a maximum difficulty is achieved, that is).    
Selecting the left pig (Captain Link Hogthrob) starts our first game, "Chickenvaders". This game is the most derivative of the three, but nevertheless probably the most fun. It would be easy to say it's Space Invaders with chickens (a variation I can appreciate), but there are a few subtle differences.   According to the manual, which I found on AtariAge, the chickens are dropping eggs at Link, and Link is throwing link sausages at them. (Oh, "Link" Hogthrob, I get the joke now! Only took me, what, 25 years? Also, I'd rather not know why a pig is carrying sausages around.) All the projectiles look like lines. When struck by an egg, Link is transmogrified into a chicken and flaps away off the screen. When one of the chickens is hit, it is sent to the "bird dimension",  a less disturbing fate to be sure.     Leading the chicken armada is Gonzo (or at least his head) on a flying saucer. (Gonzo, in fact, had appeared as an antagonist in Pigs in Space a couple times. Known as "Dearth Nadir", he once commanded chicken storm troopers.) Pelting him with pork products provides points aplenty. Sorry.   Unlike Space Invaders, there are no shields to take cover from enemy fire, the enemy only fires one shot at you at a time, and only the horizontally nearest enemy fires at you. One detail I like is that, true to the show (with a few exceptions), you don't see the captain's legs. As the hostile hens come closer, he becomes more and more submerged, giving the player a little more room to work with, though eventually you'll lose a life if their approach is not stopped.    
Destroying... I mean, banishing all the chickens completes the level and sends you back to the menu. Each time this game is chosen, the chickens move faster (though Gonzo always seems to plod along at the same speed).   Chickenvaders has some of the best character graphics and animation I've seen on the 2600. Gonzo's spinning head (3 colors!) and the transformation into a chicken are particularly well done. It's reasonably fun to play, though Space Invaders is certainly better in that regard, with faster enemies that fire more unpredictably, and the presence of shields to complicate things.   But wait, there's more! Next up: The health concerns of Italian food.

I subscribed to this and recommend it. Keep up the good work @nosweargamer!

The First Ep is on iTunes covering the system.
Centipede & Asteroids will be next.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-1-atari-7800-pro-system/id958792862?i=332525625&mt=2

Happy to find atari.io. I am an avid collector of all things Atari, and founder of Run PC Inc., which started out as an Atari Dealer. I thought some members may enjoy reading an Atari press release from one of our last ventures with Atari and the Jag. We had lots of success with concept, and big plans for the future.
 
ATARI CORP. AND RUN PC OPEN JAGUAR MALL STORE; SPECTACULAR GRAND OPENING SELLS OUT OF HOT SYSTEM TITLES
 
LONGMONT, Colo. — Nov. 7, 1995 — Run PC, a regional retail leader in computers and next-generation game systems, has opened the first Jaguar Mall Store.
The store is located inside the 550,000 square foot Twin Peaks Mall in Longmont, and is anchored by JC Penney, Sears and Joslins Department Stores. The prototype store exclusively demonstrates and sells the Atari 64-bit Jaguar home entertainment system and the Lynx handheld color gaming system. Atari has provided high-end interactive merchandising materials including arcade-style "hands-on" displays, banners and signage.
"We are proud to have worked with Run PC and to have opened the first ever Jaguar-only mall location," stated Ted Hoff, Atari's president of North American operations. "We support the concept of selling product in locations where customers can see and play the Jaguar system themselves."
In the first two days since opening on Saturday, Nov. 4, Run PC has sold out of the most popular Jaguar-related products. "Everyone who purchased a Jaguar had to have a copy of 'Alien vs. Predator'," said Jon J. Willig, president of Run PC. "It's clear that I have to reexamine my staffing and inventory to prepare for greater sales throughout the holiday season."
Willig added: "As a retailer, we strongly believe in the Jaguar system. For less than $150, we are finding that the system literally flies off the shelves, outselling competing systems sold in other mall stores many times over. Atari has always been responsive to our needs and requests, it's a pleasure to serve our customers with their support."
The Jaguar-only store is open during mall hours and is located in the Twin Peaks Mall on South Hover Road in Longmont. It is the largest shopping mall in Central Boulder County with a trade area population of well over 310,000. The Atari Jaguar is the world's first 64-bit multimedia gaming system and the only game system manufactured in the United States. About 40 powerful game titles are already available for the Jaguar including award-winning hits like "Doom" and "Tempest 2000," as well as new releases such as "Highlander," "Ruiner Pinball," "Pitfall!" and Time Warner Interactive's "Power Drive Rally."
Soon to be released titles include: "NBA Jam Tournament Edition," "Myst," "Primal Rage," and "Zoop."
For more than 20 years, Atari has provided consumers with high quality, value-priced entertainment. Atari markets Jaguar, the only American-made, advanced 64-bit entertainment system and is located in Sunnyvale, Calif.
Note to editors: Atari is a registered trademark of Atari Corp. Jaguar and Lynx are trademarks of Atari Corp. All other products are trademarks or registered trademarks of their owning companies. "Alien" and "Predator" are trademarks and copyrights of Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved. Used under sublicense from Activision.

FANTASTIC news @nosweargamer! Really looking forward to this. Please keep us updated on your progress and we'll certainly help get the news out. Welcome to the forums!  :thumbsup:

FANTASTIC news @nosweargamer! Really looking forward to this. Please keep us updated on your progress and we'll certainly help get the news out. Welcome to the forums!  :thumbsup:

Wow, I didn't know this site existed until I started this project! For those of you who don't know, I run a Youtube show that covers a bunch of retro gaming as The No Swear Gamer. You can find it here:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChtJuo040EOCTVziObIgVcg
 
But I am also working on launching The Atari 7800 Game By Game podcast very soon!
 
It will be similar to Ferg's show (The Atari 2600 GBGP), but not an exact copy, as there is no way I can top what Ferg is doing! But Ferg is great and has been very encouraging as I start this.
 
 
I'm aiming at covering 2 games a week, except for special episodes. For the most part, I will go in part order, sprinkingly in the 3rd party games here and there. I'm also hoping for as many audio and text submissions on the games as possible!
 
 
I'm currently working on episode 1. For the first episode, I wanted to focus on the system itself.  I'm also hoping for lots of stories from anyone who ever owned a 7800.  When did you get it, why did you get, what was your first impresssions of it, that sort of thing,  I will take any text or audio submissions you have. Length doesn't matter, but I do ask that you keep it family friendly.
 
 
You can send either text or mp3 to: atari7800podcast@aol.com
 
 
Thanks guys!!!!
 
I already put in a small Ep 0 that I hope iTunes publishes soon. (PS I hope you don't mind me cut and pasting some of this. Gottta save the hands after years of the proline controller!!!)

I love this game. I grew up with the 2600 version but my favorite version today is for the 7800. I believe that GCC was responsible for all three Atari console versions.

The 7800 version of Joust is easily one of the best out there. Is there anything that GCC couldn't do? It's a shame that this and the other launch titles didn't get to market in '84 when they would've been relevant.