A look at Bank Heist from 20th Century Fox Games of the Century (Atari 2600)

20th Century Fox produced a number of interesting titles for the Atari 2600 in their "Games of the Century" line during the early 1980's. And in November of last year, I looked at the fast-paced Beany Bopper, where the objective is to stop those "meany beanies from buzzing the city". This month I'll be discussing their 1983 release Bank Heist, a game that doesn't feel quite as frantic when compared to bopping beanies but nevertheless offers enough of a challenge to keep it interesting. 

Bank Heist is a maze game designed by Bill Aspromonte where you control a getaway car driving through various cities robbing banks for cash. (Why else would a thief rob a bank after all)? Four different cities are represented by mazes of different configurations, with all having two passageways on both the left and right side of the screen. Three of these are wraparound tunnels which simply bring your car to the opposite side of the screen, while the final tunnel (the one on the upper right) is an exit to the next town. When you rob a bank by running over it, you're awarded points, but a cop car also appears and begins pursuit. To disable them, your car can drop a stick of dynamite out of the back tailpipe. And once a police car is disabled, a new bank appears ripe for robbing. Up to three banks can be on screen at a time, as can three pursuing police cars. In addition, your car burns gas as time goes by, and as a result of dropping dynamite. If you run out of gas, are caught, or blow yourself up accidentally you'll lose a getaway car. If you can rob nine banks in a town, you're awarded an extra car upon leaving the town. After the four cities have been cleared, you'll loop back to the first city, but the pace of the game quickens. The objective of the game is to get as high a money score as possible before running out of getaway cars.

Bank Heist is a game where mazes represent cities full of banks to be robbed

Upon first look, Bank Heist is a straightforward maze game that harkens back to the early Atari 2600 release Maze Craze (which was billed as "A Game of Cops 'n Robbers"), as well as having some things in common with Pac-Man and other games like it. However, there are many enjoyable Pac-Man clones, so similarities like the wraparound tunnels aren't necessarily a bad thing. On the contrary, I found Bank Heist to be a lot of fun and noticed the game does have its own unique style. So put on your pin-striped suit, hop in your antique car and read on to learn more...

The first plus is that Bank Heist doesn't have an overly steep learning curve, except for getting the hang of when to drop the dynamite sticks, which makes playing it enjoyable fairly quickly. Basically, in the beginning stages, when the pace is slower (I played on the easier difficulty level), the trick is to let the cop cars get fairly close to you before dropping the explosive. And only in later stages, when things have sped up quite a bit, should they be dropped a bit further ahead of time (but still not way ahead). It also takes a bit of practice to get out of the habit of making any abrupt about-face turns that result in your car running into the dynamite which was just dropped. That factor differs from many other maze games where the only danger in such turns is the possibility of running into a pursuer. And speaking of turns, making them accurately (even with the trusted Atari 2600 joystick) in the somewhat complex mazes can get very challenging as the pace quickens. And the better one is at it, the higher the score. Indeed, my latest high-score run ended primarily from losing getaway cars due to missing crucial turns.

The colorful box and cartridge art for Bank Heist

The graphics and sounds in the game are fine, and what one might expect from an Atari 2600 title of this era, with the siren sound of the cop cars adding to the anxious feeling of being chased. But the real challenge is balancing the quest to rack up points in each maze with eliminating the threat of running out of gas by quickly moving on to the next city. While it's fairly easy to rob the nine banks required for an extra getaway car, it's also desirable (especially in the early stages) to stay as long in each city as possible and rob additional banks which become worth the maximum 90 points each. And doing this to best effect before the gas gauge depletes requires mastering several things, such as the aforementioned skill in making turns, learning to use the tunnels to save time, memorizing where the banks appear (on the right difficulty switch B setting only) and of course being adept at using the explosives. All of this makes for some challenging gameplay.

Another Bank Heist screen (showing my current high-score)

Though not completely original, Bank Heist has just enough going for it to offer some fun, challenging gameplay. This is due mainly to the fact that with each game it's possible to get a little better at one or more of the aforementioned crucial aspects and inch up that high-score. Also, playing a bank robber being chased by the police (as opposed to the reverse) is a neat plot device which adds to the fun. So, while I doubt this title will ever make my top ten list, it's an enjoyable Atari 2600 game which I recommend.

A look at the Atari 2600/7800 visual compendium (book)

As mentioned in my very first For the Love of Atari blog post, Tim Lapetino's book Art of Atari rekindled my interest in the consoles and games from the classic company. His most excellent hardcover tells many stories of the unsung graphic artists who were responsible for some of the most iconic and memorable Atari artwork of years past. And like that book, the Atari 2600/7800 visual compendium (which only recently came back into print) is a must-read for any Atari fan.

The first section in this 528-page volume from Bitmap Books gives an extensive history of the company, detailing its inception all the way through to the "New Atari" of today. Along the way we learn about the many different people involved, from founder Nolan Bushnell to Ray Kassar, to the talented Atari programmers who would leave to form the first-ever third-party competitor Activision. And of course, there is much discussion about the development of two of Atari's most classic consoles, namely the 2600 VCS and the 7800 Pro System. Also discussed are technical and aesthetic details of these systems, release dates, marketing considerations, competitors, sales performance and much, much more. I've always found the story of this company, with its various ups and downs over the decades, to be fascinating. And although this information is available in pieces through many sources, both in print and online, having it here all in one place with such detailed discussion is great. This alone is worth the price of this fact-packed hardcover.

The Atari 2600/7800 visual compendium

The book also spotlights numerous notable games for both the 2600 VCS and the 7800 Pro System. Each title is featured in a colorful two-page layout with a screenshot showing what the game looks like along with information on the platform, release date, genre and publisher. And the folks writing about the various titles include games journalists, designers and programmers. I really liked these short write-ups which provide a nostalgic reminiscing on these classic games from Atari and various third-party companies. And additionally, there is also a section featuring some of the best cover artwork on video game boxes for both systems. These pages show photos of many memorable 2600 and 7800 video game boxes, with the text speaking about the mechanics of each game and the way the impressive cover art relates to it. Indeed, as is pointed out at the beginning of the section, at a time when game visuals were often fairly basic, it fell to the cover art to appeal to prospective players. And the folks who created these designs definitely delivered.

The colorful graphics of Yars' Revenge

The box art for Atari 2600 Space Invaders

Another impressive part of this book is the information provided through interviews with some true retrogaming luminaries including Dan Kitchen, Carol Shaw and Howard Scott Warshaw, among others. These folks give some truly unique perspectives into the state of the burgeoning video game industry at the time, as well as on their own significant contributions to it. And the conversations are all quite good, providing interesting stories and insights into how they started in the industry, their memories of working on early video games, and discussions of where their professional lives took them as the years went on. I found these interviews to be informative and enjoyable, to say the least.

The Atari 2600/7800 visual compendium includes a section on homebrew games

And finally, this compendium also contains sections on prototypes and homebrew games. The prototypes section has a lengthy listing of titles and some nice photos of the game screens, along with platform, genre and developer credits for each. Some titles receive a bit of informative discussion, while others simply get a small photo with the credits, presumably because more details are available about some of these prototypes than others. I have to admit, the only one I've played (as of yet) is Save Mary, which I found to be a lot of fun. But after reading about some of the others, I may seek out more of the ones that are available.

And I'm also still relatively new to homebrews, having collected only a small number of Atari 2600 releases (mostly from Champ Games) over the past few years. (See several of my past posts about some of those homebrews). But some of the titles for that system and the 7800 detailed here look quite impressive and only fueled my interest in perhaps looking into purchasing other games. Like the prototypes section some titles simply get a photo along with basic credits, while others get more coverage. Either way, it's a nice addition to this impressive book.

The Atari 2600/7800 visual compendium is just that - a visual, comprehensive guide that walks the reader through the fascinating history of Atari and their classic games and systems from the inception of the company to modern day. Packed with insightful information and brimming with colorful visuals, it's a must-read for any retrogaming enthusiast. Highly recommended.

A look at Subterranea from Imagic (Atari 2600)

The 1983 space shooter Subterranea is a hidden gem from an Atari 2600 third-party publisher that arguably released several of the most memorable titles during the heyday of the classic console. Imagic of course followed closely behind Activision (the first third-party publisher) in competing against Atari's own games and is best known for classic hits like Demon Attack and Atlantis, among others. Both of these well-known space shooters have solid, addicting gameplay, and the same can be said for Subterranea. So, with that in mind, let's take a look at this lesser-known game.

Subterranea is a horizontally scrolling space shooter similar to the arcade (and Atari 2600) classic defender, where your ship (called a ranger in the instructions) has the freedom of movement to travel and fire in either direction on the screen. And holding the joystick button down produces rapid-fire. The action starts as the monstrous Hexuplex, a spider-looking creature which guards the dark tunnels below, unleashes lethal Aerobots upwards to try and collide with you. As the beastie slides back and forth, the challenge is to anticipate when it will release these tracking projectiles so you're far enough away to maneuver and destroy them before they destroy you. This can get quite tricky considering how relatively close you are to the Hexuplex, and often requires quickly zipping to the opposite side of the screen, turning and blasting away before it's too late. It's engaging gameplay right from the start.

The monstrous Hexuplex releases Aerobots which you must destroy!

After destroying all the Aerobots a sparkling crystal appears on the bottom of the screen, which when picked up increases your point score and opens a tunnel that you descend through to the underworld. You'll then face more flying attackers, some of which (in later levels) can fire at you, that must also be destroyed. These enemies appear on either side of the screen and move horizontally. Destroying all attackers in a wave without being hit earns another ship. I find the best strategy here is to get behind them as they are exiting the screen and then shoot, thereby taking away the risk of a collision or being blasted (since they only fire forward). This gets more important as the skill levels increase, because the enemies often fire immediately as they appear on the screen, leaving little time for reaction. It should also be noted that touching the sides of the tunnels decreases your score more and more the longer the contact continues, while touching a skull costs a life. Conversely, if you're good enough to clear a wave of enemies without being hit, you're awarded a bonus ranger (up to a maximum of seven). Like the opening action, these battles are engaging and require getting a feel for the best way to deal with the different foes. 

After defeating all enemies in a tunnel, you'll encounter the Electro-Gates, which are narrow passageways with flash pulses you must descend through in order to advance to another tunnel. This is a matter of timing, which means waiting for each pulse to appear and disappear, then inching your ship past it to the next pulse, and so on until all are cleared. Unlike the frantic space battles, this requires precise, nuanced movements of the joystick which takes some getting used to. And it's also an exercise in tension, because touching the Electro-Gates or a flash pulse puts you back to the beginning again. And after three failed attempts you're sent back to the previous tunnel which must be replayed with no points awarded for destroying enemies. Conversely, taking too much time to descend through the Electro-Gates costs points. I think the cool thing about this stage is how the game shifts abruptly from fast-paced battle action to concentrated, calculated maneuvers. It's a very nice touch.

Your ranger must descend through the Electro-Gates in order to advance further

Following successful completion of the bottom tunnel, you fly through a transit port and enter another big cavern where... the Hexuplex is back! And now it's unleashing faster and smarter Aerobots at you! And the whole adventure starts all over again at a higher skill level. As the instruction manual says, "try to capture another crystal!"

Subterranea box art, featuring Imagic's distinctive silver and red coloring

Subterranea is a fun space shooter from a company known for some excellent space shooters, such as the titles mentioned above. Those two games put Imagic on the map and are still among my favorite Atari 2600 titles to this day. And this game is arguably even more accomplished, given its multiple screens, varying gameplay and different types of enemies. It's also got decent graphics and sounds, with a gradually increasing difficulty that will leave retro gamers eager to play again to top that current high score. Highly recommended.

A look at Name This Game from U.S. Games (Atari 2600)

In the history of classic video game consoles and what is today called retrogaming, there are certain things that have become the stuff of lore and legends. And of course, because of the internet and modern instant communication, this lore can now be read and learned about very easily. For example, the religious-themed video game Red Sea Crossing, which was sold only via mail order in 1983, is widely regarded as one of the rarest Atari 2600 games. Another rarity from 1983 is Pepsi Invaders, a modified version of Atari 2600 Space Invaders, which the company made exclusively for Coca-Cola to give out to their salespeople at a yearly convention. And a third example, also involving extremely limited production of a game cartridge, was a contest Imagic held in 1982 where top players competed in Bermuda on a modified version of their hit game Atlantis (on specially made "Atlantis II" cartridges).

Another contest, this one planned by Atari 2600 third-party publisher U.S. Games (a subsidiary of the Quaker Oats Company, no less), would have awarded a cash prize to the person who came up with the best name for their title Name This Game and Win $10,000. However, that never happened because the company went out of business first. Compared to the previous examples, this nixed competition probably isn't as legendary in retrogaming history. But the game in question, usually titled Name This Game, is a heck of a lot of fun and what I'll be discussing here.

Print Ad - Name This Game and win $10,000!

In Name This Game you are an intrepid diver who has discovered sunken treasure in the ocean. But instead of celebrating, you find yourself having to fight off a hungry shark and a curious octopus, while at the same time making sure to keep an eye on your air supply. Fortunately, your buddy in a boat on the surface assists with that breathing challenge by dropping you a line to fill up. That is if you can catch it!

First, the graphics in Name This Game look pretty good. Your diver in green with his little spear gun, a toothy gray shark, smiling black octopus, and your buddy in the boat with his hair blowing in the wind are all well-defined. The blips and bleeps sounds are what you'd expect from an Atari 2600 title of this era, but it's the gameplay that really shines. On the average skill level, the challenge starts out manageable enough, allowing new players to ease into the action and get a feel for the game while keeping the dangers at bay. And as the manual hints, a good strategy for racking up points on the early levels is to let the shark get down the screen close to your diver before blasting him. This makes the toothy menace worth more points, as well as allowing you to start to anticipate the increase in speed as it gets nearer. 

Fighting to hold onto undersea treasure in Name This Game from U.S. Games

As the speed of the game picks up, so does the fun. It's satisfying to work at the strategy of staying under your pal's boat as much as possible (for air), while fighting off the undersea menaces. This involves picking off the shark high up on the screen, while constantly blasting back the octopus tentacles. This latter point may well be where the real challenge lies, because as the tentacles start both wiggling around and descending faster, they're harder to hit. I've found myself losing lives quite frequently when the octopus tentacles reach the bottom of the screen and everything goes black. 

A boxed version of Name This Game from U.S. Games

Name This Game is a simple title with a low learning curve which makes it fun and engaging on the first play. It's also a game that encourages players to focus on strategy (for example, the aforementioned staying under the boat) in order to increase high scores. It will prompt you to hit that reset button often and is therefore highly recommended.

The joys of physical media and classic Atari 2600 box art

Having grown up during the heyday of the Atari 2600, I remember fondly the excitement of going to the store to buy a new game cartridge. There were many specialty and department stores that sold them (including Sears, which sold the Tele-Games versions of Atari cartridges), but my favorite retailer was undoubtedly Toys 'R' Us. This toy store had a ticketing system which made the whole experience that much more exciting. The game boxes were on display on a wall, and underneath each were tickets you took to the cashier, who would then get the game from a locked glass case. And finally, you could pay for it. How thrilling that was for a kid!

Buying a new Atari 2600 cartridge was also exciting partially because of the longing to play whatever new title I had my eye on, and partially because the packaging was just so darn cool (visually appealing). Of course, this started with the colored boxes, as well as the amazing artwork which was also duplicated on the cartridge label. Yes, the artists behind this Atari artwork, and those behind some third-party artwork as well, created some truly stunning imagery. (For those interested in reading about some of these amazing graphic artists, I highly recommend Tim Lapetino's excellent coffee table book Art of Atari). And the box art is also part of what makes collecting Complete in Box (CIB) Atari 2600 games fun today as well.

And with that nostalgia fresh in mind, here are just a handful of my favorite Atari 2600 game boxes:

Dodge 'Em from Atari (1980)

In this game you control a race car in a closed maze. The objective is to drive over all the dots to score points and finish the maze, while avoiding an opposing car trying to collide with you. The splendid, highly detailed box artwork portrays a well-dressed man and woman driving in an old-fashioned car at presumably high speed, narrowly avoiding another driver with dust whipping through the air.

Dolphin from Activision (1983)

You control a dolphin pursued by a persistent and nasty squid in this side-scrolling game (see my May 2025 post). Like most early Activision titles, the box art features a variation on the company's signature Rainbow design. Here those colors are part of the dolphin and the water splashing up above the sinister squid lurking below the surface.

Enduro from Activision (1983)

In Activision's fine racing game Enduro (also released in 1983), the goal is to beat the clock to keep on driving. I like how the Rainbow colors on this box art are part of the road, and also part of the folded road going off into the distance. It's quite an impressive and interesting design.

Outlaw from Atari (1978)

Based on the arcade game of the same name, the (appropriately colored) brown box features fine Old West images that nicely portray that long-ago time in history.

Riddle of the Sphinx from Imagic (1982)

There was never any mistaking the signature silver-chrome color scheme of Imagic's box art which definitely made their releases stand out. The art for this vertically scrolling adventure game features the titular title character, pyramids and hieroglyphics, which together make for some appealing imagery.

Space Cavern from Games By Apollo (1982)

You control an intrepid explorer who has landed on a foreign planet inhabited by deadly creatures in this fun space shooter (see my May 2024 post). Simply put, I always loved the cool red beastie featured prominently in this artwork. Watch your back or you'll be zapped and turn into a glowing skeleton!

Super Breakout from Atari (1982 / 1981 Sears Tele-Games)

The box art for Atari's classic Super Breakout is both futuristic and colorful, with one astronaut looking pensively through his space helmet while another swings at colored bricks in deep space. Highly impressive.

Space Invaders from Atari (1980)

Any list of iconic Atari 2600 box art wouldn't be complete without including their "killer app" game Space Invaders. Simple and effective, this artwork perfectly depicts what would immediately come to mind if someone said, "alien invasion".

This is of course not an exhaustive list. There are many incredible box designs for many equally incredible Atari 2600 games. And of course, everyone has their favorites. Hopefully you've enjoyed perusing some of mine.

A look at Planet Patrol from Spectravision (Atari 2600)

In this post I take a look at the 1982 space shooter Planet Patrol from Spectravision (also known as Spectra Video, Inc.), another third-party developer of games for the Atari 2600 during the early 1980's. The company produced eleven Atari 2600 titles in those years, among them some rarities such as the mail-order only game Chase the Chuck Wagon. They also made games for the VIC-20 home computer and later went on to introduce their own line of computers before going defunct in 1988.

Planet Patrol is a horizonal space shooter in the vein of such titles as Defender and Chopper Command. However, unlike those games where there is more freedom of movement around the screen, here your spaceship simply flies (points) right to left, and can only move up and down. The backstory in the instruction manual is a variation on a familiar tale, with you as a pilot being called up from leave to battle enemies who have invaded a planet. In this case it is the planet SPECTRA in SECTOR "S" GALAXY. You must destroy drone missiles being fired at you, avoid indestructible heat seeking torpedoes, rescue stranded pilots, destroy enemy bases, and refuel to keep on flying. All of this takes place above the planet surface, with a skyline and shapes that vaguely resemble buildings seen in the background.

Missiles and torpedoes attack in Planet Patrol from Spectravision!

The graphics and sounds in Planet Patrol are best described as ordinary. The drone missiles (which I think of as spaceships) look okay, as do the torpedoes and enemy bases, but they certainly don't "pop" on screen like in some colorful Atari 2600 space shooters - for example the Imagic classics Demon Attack and Atlantis. And the planet surface is a dull, greenish-yellow color, although this may vary depending on the monitor, given that the instruction manual shows it as orange. Similarly, the scrolling scenic background is reminiscent of Atari 2600 games from Activision, with perhaps a little less detail. And while the blips, bleeps and explosion sounds are alright, they don't really stand out as enemies simply disappear when hit. 

The neat silver box design of Planet Patrol

But while the look and sounds of Planet Patrol are ordinary, I'm happy to say that playing it is still a lot of fun. This game is very challenging, with the difficulty level starting out manageable but accelerating at a deceptively rapid rate. In particular, the enemy drone missiles appear easy to hit, but are actually quite easy to miss, especially as the pace speeds up. And because of this, I've continually found myself beginning to lose ships after a few thousand points, due mainly to collisions from missiles I thought were destroyed (or being forced by said missiles into collisions with nearby torpedoes). 

Destroy those enemy bases in Planet Patrol from Spectravision!

Additionally, although the large enemy bases provide big enough targets, the debris fields they leave behind are not always simple to navigate. This also leads to rapid ship losses and is another reason why I've yet to reach the coveted 10,000 points needed for a bonus life. And these challenges of needing to be very accurate with firing and swift in maneuvering (while also watching the fuel level) provide good replay value. 

In summary, while Planet Patrol is just a straightforward space shooter in terms of visuals and sounds, the solid, addicting gameplay will have you hitting that reset button quite often in the quest to improve. Therefore, I'd recommend this title to fellow fans of this particular genre of old-school space games.

Atari Reminiscences Part 2

In my first For the Love of Atari blog post back in January 2024, I mainly talked about how I rediscovered Atari and retrogaming in general, after not having played those games in over a decade. Now, after having written the blog for a year and a half, I'd like to reflect on my new adventures in both playing and writing about retrogaming, as well as thoughts on how Atari has been successful in reinventing itself and reinvigorating this fun gaming subgenre.

When I began to make retrogaming a part of my life again several years ago, I started by playing a lot of Atari 5200 titles. This was because the 5200 SuperSystem was the last console I owned as a kid, and because I still had a lot of those cartridges. And my general feeling has been that the majority of 5200 games are quite good and still hold up well today, with many of them being either very accurate reproductions of classic arcade titles (such as Galaxian, Centipede, Space Dungeon) or high-quality original titles like Countermeasure. My personal favorites are Space Dungeon, which is an exclusive to the 5200 console, and the Penguin-on-ice game Pengo. The former is incredibly challenging and takes advantage of a special (and somewhat rare) controller holder which allows the 5200 controllers to be utilized in the best way possible. And Pengo, a "cutesy" arcade game I admit to not remember having played at the mall as a kid is just plain fun, with the right level of increasing difficulty. And thus far I'll pick Miner 2049er from Big Five Software as the most difficult game I've played on the console. All in all, I'm thoroughly enjoying the Atari 5200 once again as an adult.

My Atari 5200 SuperSystem with one Wico controller and Pengo cartridge

After firing up and using the 5200 for a while, I decided to purchase an original Atari 7800 console and the newer Atari 2600+. I never owned a 7800 back in the day, but now I really enjoy playing games on this system, which looks essentially like a physically smaller version of the 5200. It has the same sleek look of its bigger cousin and of course does double duty by being compatible with both Atari 7800 and 2600 games and controllers. And with the plethora of 2600 compatible controllers to choose from, this is a big plus. While on the 7800 games front, I had always wanted to play Galaga (my 'go-go" arcade game as a kid) on a console. And Atari's home version for their advanced system is faithful to the Namco classic, while at the same time having some slight differences in gameplay and feel. However, my favorite 7800 title has without a doubt been Food Fight, which is an amazingly addictive game which duplicates the arcade experience perfectly. 

Food Fight for the Atari 7800

And as for the newer Atari 2600+, which also plays most 2600 and 7800 titles, it presents a good example of the main strength in Atari's strategy with its new "+" line of products. That is, their new consoles and games are all designed to be both forward and backwards compatible, which keeps their old product lines relevant and allows retrogamers to seamlessly use whatever hardware and software they like. And this is all in line with their laser focus on nostalgia, while at the same time introducing new products. And of course, the 2600+ has a modern HDMI connection built in (as does the 7800+), a larger cartridge slot, as well as some stylistic bells and whistles like an Atari logo which lights up. I've enjoyed owning this console primarily because of its striking similarity in looks to the original Atari 2600 VCS. Playing my old cartridges on it rekindles great memories of the classic Video Computer System.

The Atari 2600+ console

And finally, I'd like to mention that over the last couple years I've enjoyed the flexibility of also being able to play most classic Atari console games using emulation. Whenever I find time for retrogaming (never as much as I'd like), I try to make a conscious effort to play both my favorite titles and ones I haven't played before. And since I do a lot of work on the computer, sometimes I'll simply plug in a joystick and do some gaming. Emulation is simply another alternative for whenever I might not have time to fire up one of my trusty consoles. And I personally think it's great that many of these games are available this way, because it undoubtedly exposes them to more people.

All in all, I've been thoroughly enjoying my retrogaming experience, in terms of playing, collecting and also writing this blog. It's a great hobby, and I'm delighted that the folks running Atari have so successfully brought the company back into the public consciousness. I'm also looking forward to what Atari has upcoming in this exciting time which represents a true retrogaming renaissance.