AtariSphinx

33.750.  @%&*
 

61,850. On a Coleco Gemini with the console's stock controller.  
Tip: Try rotating your controller 45 degrees to the right to match the arcade controls. 

I love, love, love Q*Bert. It's one of my all-time favorite 2600 games. I sure hope I'll get around to it. It's been pretty hectic around here.
Why haven't I had time to play? Well, let me tell you about it all:

I've gotta get in on this! Great scores so far, everyone! 
I think that this and Ms. Pac-Man were my most played 2600 games as a kid. I definitely have a soft spot for the 2600 port of Q*bert. These days I prefer the late Ken Siders' amazing b*nQ for 7800 but the Parker Bros. version on the 2600 really does a fine job of bringing the game home and mostly intact.  

Score: 40,250
I'm finding it very difficult to distinguish the green balls from the red balls (have I mentioned I'm color blind?), so I'm just avoiding all of them. I doubt I'm losing many points that way.

Q*bert (A/A): 40,600
This should be fun playing.

Q*bert (A/A): 40,600
This should be fun playing.

Q*bert (A/A): 40,600
This should be fun playing.

Q*bert (A/A): 40,600
This should be fun playing.

27,300
Fun 2600 game! I’ve only played the arcade game, and this one took a couple of minutes to get used to the control. Very well done IMO. It’s going to be a fun couple of weeks. 

Q*bert (A/A): 40,600
This should be fun playing.

Here's my opinion on these three:
London Blitz is a first person maze game with bombs you have to diffuse.  It's most similar to "Tunnel Runner", but not quite as fun.  It also has a second "bomb diffuse" screen, so it's a little more complex than Tunnel Runner.  The graphics are good, and I like the game.  Shuttle Orbiter is very much like Activision Space Shuttle.  I have no idea how to really play and I have no desire to spend time on the steep learning curve.  Wall Ball is the newest one for me.  So far, it's fun.  I thought it may be another terrible game like Apollo "Racquetball", but this one actually has decent controls.  It's hard though.  Thank you!  I enjoy the organizing.  I really do.  These games have MEANING to me.  That makes it fun. 
I've been spending time getting rid of systems and stuff that I don't like or use. That's been going ok, and I've gotten rid of many things.  But I also have the complication of my children.  They have old systems that I've stored for them.  I feel like the caretaker for them.  Indeed, I've been amazed to see them getting some of the old systems out to play during the COVID pandemic.  It's a nice feeling.  I guess I get stuck sometimes between my stuff and their stuff and keeping track of both.  But I hope that once they get settled in their lives, I can hand all "their" stuff to them.  Kind of like how most of my Atari stuff languished in my parents garage for 20 years after I grew up and moved away.  I'm so glad they kept it all!  Once abandoned, it ended up being pure treasure after the passage of time. 
 
 
 
 

Nice!  How are these games compared to some of the good/great 2600 games?

Nice!  How are these games compared to some of the good/great 2600 games?

A quick look at the 3 "Avalon Hill" games that I have for 2600.  London Blitz, Shuttle Orbiter and Wall Ball.
 

OK, I played this last night and here's my score!
 

Haha it's okay @nosweargamer! I had to check myself about six times to make sure I wasn't posting Q*bert's Cubes in the description, the Rom, the instructions, etc. I once did an entire final project on the Spanish Civil War when I was in college, when the assignment was apparently about the American Civil War. I did a whole thing on Hemingway for nothing. I was distracted by Atari stuff and wasn't paying attention! I promised myself I'd never let that happen again with anything, lol.
Great score! Thanks for kicking things off.

I did post a higher score but doesn't really affect the standings , I'd still be in 7'th place :)
The "format" used for posting a score was off by me in placing it at the end of a post as opposed to the top line of the post is a fault
Great job everybody & welcome to all the new members

So many good scores!!!!! 

Kkk-razy top scores!! Well played!
Yes, it was fun experiencing one of the early releases for the console. It's always fun to take in and appreciate the design and aesthetics from 40(?!) years ago.
Looking forward to Q*Bert!

Ok, here's a real one from a last second live steam I put together! 35,500
 

@nosweargamer has an excellent review of Q*bert for Atari 2600. It's a great place to start if you're new to the game!
 
 

Q*bert
Atari 2600
Controller: JOYSTICK / KEYBOARD / PLAYER'S CHOICE
Difficulty Level: Difficulty A
Play on: Real Hardware / Dedicated Console / Emulation OK! ✔
Squad Challenge ends 11:59 pm PST January 31, 2021
 
 
Objective
Play for the highest possible score using the difficulty settings defined in the challenge. Post a photo or YouTube video of your score in this thread. Scores must be achieved between January 15th through January 31st, 2021. Screen captures are not allowed as they are more easily manipulated for falsified scores. Multiple submissions are permitted. The player with the highest score at the end of the competition is the victor!
 
Eligibility
Anyone can join in. All players are welcome!
 
Play Rules
Games may be played on real hardware, Flashback / Mini console, or emulation, using any controller or keyboard, following all rules and game settings defined in the challenge. Choosing between real hardware or emulation, and choosing which controller to play on is part of formulating your strategy. Enhancements, rewinds and hacked versions of this game are not allowed.
 
Difficulty Level
Difficulty A. This is the most challenging configuration. These settings allow for invincible red balls entering the playfield.
 
Fair Play
Your integrity is everything. Players should play fairly, be honest, and have fun! Falsified scores will result in your immediate removal from the site. It goes without saying that we will not allow cheats, hacks, cartridge frying, enhancements, rewinds, deceitful photo manipulation, subterfuge, or any other unfair advantage. Everybody hates a cheater.
 
More
To review detailed rules on how to play, please visit the High Score Squad page here: 
 
 
Message
Welcome to our 96th Squad Challenge! We had such a tremendous turnout for our last Squad Challenge, I thought we'd double up with another Atari 2600 game. This time we're playing Q*bert! This was an arcade classic that made its way home to the 2600. Q*bert is a fun game that saw an initial release in 1983 from Parker Bros., and a later re-release of the same game by Atari Corp. after Parker Bros. had left the video game industry. ROM and Instructions are provided below. Good luck to everybody participating!
 
NOTE: We have a supreme lineup of games coming your way for High Score Squad in 2021! Here's a look at some upcoming events:
February: A Magnavox Odyssey ² game
March: A TurboGrafx-16 game, and a Golf game to celebrate The Masters coming up!
April: National Pac-Man Day!
June: 2021 Pole Position II Grand Prix, plus our Summer Pizza Party!
July: A Sega Master System game, HSW Day Ultimate Yars' Challenge, plus a game chosen by our Instagram followers!
September: An Atari Lynx game
November: A Sega Genesis game
December: 2021 F-ZERO Championship, plus a game for Atari Jaguar! 
Plus many more great games! (Schedule subject to change)
 
 

 
 
Qbert.pdf Qbert.bin

Hey all!   I'm just in the last days here, but I'm glad to have made it! Thanks for picking such a fun one this time! See you all again soon!   Link: https://youtu.be/U3Oky4ptQGU

Congratulations ZilchSr!
 
A big congratulations and huge welcome to new Atari I/O Member @ZilchSr! ZilchSr takes the top spot in our Final Standings with a mind-blowing score of 10,111,115. Participation in this Squad Challenge was through the roof and we had a number of new Members join the forums to participate. Let's all give a GIANT Atari I/O Welcome to our new friends @ZilchSr @AtariSphinx and @Papa Pete who joined us in High Score Squad this week, it's great to have you guys here! @AtariSphinx showed up with his A-Game, posting a score of 1,734,308 to claim the 2nd Place on our Final Standings. The legend @RickR was hot on AtariSphinx's tail, taking the 3rd spot with a score of 1,455,582. New member @Papa Pete was right behind him with his score of 1,413,706 to take 4th. @Dinobot711 @nosweargamer @chas10e @RadioPoultry @James Campbell Jr. @HDN @Justin @socrates63 @Atari Creep @Marco1019 @Gianna and @LinkYoungPS all shared tremendous scores and gave it their all. 
Congratulations once again to @ZilchSr for the win, and as always I'd like to encourage ZilchSr to post his new high score on the Scoreboard, and let's make sure this Challenge continues on! And a big congratulations to our community for being such a great group, and for the biggest and best participation we've ever seen in a High Score Squad Challenge. I hope everybody had fun with this early 2600 game!
NOTE: Our next High Score Squad Challenge is Q*bert for Atari 2600! Be there!