Player/Missile - An Atari 8-bit Retrospective: Recent Episodes
Player/Missile
A retrospective of the Atari 8-bit home computer systems, the magazines that covered them, and a somewhat chronological review of games as they arrived on the platform.
5200 coverage in magazines from January through March 1983. Plus a special bonus look at a NY Times article about Warner's stunning December 1982 earnings shortfall caused by Atari's massive financial loss.
1983 * Q1 1983 First Quarter P.O.P. (Point Of Purchase) Support * Jan 1983 Video Games Vol 1, #4 * Jan 1983 ANALOG Computing #9 * Jan 1983 Joystik Magazine * Jan 1983 Electronic Games Vol 1, #11 * Jan/Feb 1983 Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #5 * Feb 1983 Video Games Vol 1, #5 * Feb 1983 Creative Computing Vol 9, #2 * Feb 1983 Electronic Games * Mar 1983 ANALOG Computing #10 + 12/19/82 NY Times article “The Game Turns Serious at Atari” * Mar 1983 Video Games + Worm War 1 TV commercial * Mar/Apr 1983 Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #6
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 34 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
Coverage of a few magazines I missed last time. Live plays of two games, tips to speed up disk drive I/O, and articles on how automation has changed TV and film production.
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
Softalk * Softalk Vol 3, #4 * Assembly Lines book * Total Replay harddisk image * Axlon RAMDISK 320k * Passport auto-cracking tool
Nibble * Nibble Vol 3, #8 * Nibble disk
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 33 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
Coverage of Atari Connection, APX, Byte, C&VG, Micro, Softside, Page 6 & Atari I/O for Dec 1982. Another Chris Crawford article on game design, a review of Steve Wozniak’s US Festival, and will Forth become the official language of the podcast?
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
Atari Connection * Atari Connection Vol 2, #4 * Mastering Rubik's Cube by Don Taylor * Josh Malone’s USB CX-85 numeric keypad mod
APX Catalog * APX Catalog Winter 1982
Byte * Byte Vol 7, #12 * Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock * Byte Magazine Atari articles only by Kay Savetz * TRON soundtrack composer Wendy Carlos * Women in Electronic Music * Sisters with Transistors documentary film
Computer & Video Games * C&VG Issue #14
Micro 6502/6809 Journal * Micro #55
SoftSide * Softside #36 * Starting Forth online edition * Edsger W Dijkstra * Dijkstra’s rant on languages * History of Forth language * Forth cross compiler * History of Computing Podcast episode on Pascal
Page 6 * Page #1 * History of Page 6 magazine
Atari Input/Output * Atari Input/Output #1
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 32 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
Coverage of Antic, Compute!, Creative Computing, Dec 1982. Chris Crawford on Legionnaire, first rumors of the IBM PCjr, and two articles predicting the future: Compute! does OK while Creative Computing gets a bunch of whammies. Also: Bullwinkle’s restaurant, sexism and mansplaining about whether educational software should ask kids their gender, and Bahrain doctors, video games & epilepsy.
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
Antic * Antic Vol 1, #5 * Stratos by Neil Larimer * ANTIC Podcast interview with Linda Schreiber * Legionnaire by Chris Crawford
Compute! * Compute #31 * IBM PCjr * HP 85 Computer * Xanadu, the Home of the Future * Monrobot desk computer
Creative Computing * Creative Computing Vol 8, #12 * CIA World Factbook on Bahrain
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 31 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
In a special multi-part series comparing the 8-bit computers to the 5200 console, this first episode focuses on 1982. Scanning the regular magazines for mentions of the 5200, I also scour other magazines for both 8-bit and 5200 coverage. Only in this special series will you hear article summaries from these periodicals: Electronic Games, JoyStik, Video Games, Video Games Player and Atari Age Magazine.
Introduction * Atari 5200 Super Community Podcast * The Atari 5200 Podcast * Atari 3200 prototype * Gremlins: last official release for the 5200
Technical References * Business is Fun by Marty Goldberg and Curt Vendel * Jan 1984 ANALOG Computing #15 article Transporting programs to the 5200 * Feb 1984 ANALOG Computing #16 update for 2-port 5200
Magazine Chronology * Jan 8, 1982: Atari Press Release Announcing the 5200 * Winter 1981/1982 Electronic Games * Mar 1982 Electronic Games + Command Line Heroes podcast about Jerry Lawson * May 1982 Electronic Games * May/Jun 1982: Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #1 * Jun 1982 Electronic Games * Jul/Aug 1982: Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #2 * Aug 1982 Video Games Vol 1, #1 + Billy Mitchell & Perfect Pac-Man + Historical overview of fake Pac-Man high scores & Billy Mitchell’s Fraud + Background research for the above * Sep 1982: Video Games Player * Sept 1982: Joystik Magazine * Sep/Oct 1982: Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #3 * Nov 1982 The Video Game Update Vol 1, #8 * Nov 1982 Joystik Magazine * Nov 1982 Electronic Games * Nov/Dec 1982: Atari Age Magazine Vol 1, #4 * Creative Computing Vol 8, #12 * Dec 1982 Joystik Magazine * Dec 1982 Video Games Vol 1, #3 * Dec 1982 Electronic Games + Arcadia 2001 overview * Late 1982 Atari P.O.P. (Point Of Purchase) and Advertising Support
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 30 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
Coverage of the remaining magazines for Nov 1982.
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
Byte * Byte Vol 7, #11
Computer & Video Games * C&VG Issue #13
Computer Gaming World * CGW Vol 2, #6 * AtariAge forum post on cheat codes * Legionnaire gameplay video
Micro 6502/6809 Journal * Micro #54
Softline * Softline #2.2 * Kay Savetz interview with Jerry White * Jerry White’s software * Bill Williams Atari Sounds, part 3
SoftSide * Softside #35
Feedback * Dennis Debro’s Atari 2600 disassemblies * Free ringtones from Stef Animal * Stef Animal creates a track in one day
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 29 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
Format experiment: splitting magazine coverage across two episodes and separating game reviews to their own episodes.
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
ANALOG * ANALOG Computing #8 * Inverse ATASCII S4E07: Money Manager
Compute! * Compute #30 * Atari 1000 project info from Atari Museum * Jeepers Creepers at Atarimania * VisiCalc @ Inverse ATASCII * Effectus, modern cross compiler for Action!
Creative Computing * Creative Computing Vol 8, #11 * Video Invaders book by Steve Bloom at the Internet Archive
Feedback * SortViz sorting algorithm visualization on the Atari * Bill Kendrick tested plotting in GR.0 and it uses ATASCII values, not ANTIC
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 28 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
A friend gets his first game published in Computers & Video Games! 6 other magazines this episode, and I try to dissect my first kernel game, Worm War I. Or is it 1? It’s a super important distinction.
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
Antic * Antic Vol 1, #4
Compute! * Compute #29 * Paperclip by Batteries Included, reviewed by Wade on Inverse ATASCII
Creative Computing * Creative Computing Vol 8, #10 * Ted Nelson Mail Project
Byte * Byte Vol 7, #10
Computer & Video Games * C&VG Issue #12 * Wild Strawberries
Micro 6502/6809 Journal * Micro #53
SoftSide * Softside #34
Game Review: Worm War I * Worm War I at Atarimania * Tom McWilliams sold his first game for $60,000 * Home page of David Lubar, author of the 2600 version * Worm War 1 on Ferg’s Atari 2600 Game by Game Podcast * Sirius Software’s Atari titles at Atarimania
Feedback * Dog Daze Deluxe with 1 player mode
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 27 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
Strap yourselves in for coverage of 11 magazine issues including a tiny bit on the large magazine Byte -- there’s an article on Star Raiders strategies that I can’t pass up. Game review is of Deluxe Invaders, which is a high quality Space Invaders clone. Oh, and there’s a discussion of a game called Hazard Run and its ties to a bad TV show and a worse flag.
Introduction * Bally Astrocade website * Bally Astrocade podcast: Bally Alley Astrocast * Source of Bally Artillery game * Demo of Bally Artillery game from last month’s Creative Computing * Twitter review of Rear Guard by RetroAnalyst * Retrogame Deconstruction Zone
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
ANALOG * ANALOG Computing #7 * Star Raiders on the 2600
Compute! * Compute #28 * Speed Reading comprehension
Creative Computing ... For 36 more links, see the show notes
Adding a new magazine to the coverage: Softline, a games-focused magazine published by the people responsible for Softalk. Also a review of Rear Guard, a game that’s appeared in full-page color ads for many months in magazines.
Introduction * AtariAge discussion on the term IRG
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
Antic * Antic Vol 1, #3
Compute! * Compute #27 * Atari Jaguar injection molded cases used for dental equipment
Creative Computing * Creative Computing Vol 8, #8 * 57 games by SSI for the Atari * Full page ad for Rear Guard on Pg 50 * Full page ad for Crush, Crumble & Chomp * Khan Academy explanation of elastic collisions
... For 34 more links, see the show notes
Just a regular ol’ episode talking about magazines, learning typing during the pandemic, and if we’ve finally seen the end of creepy William Shatner ads for the VIC-20.
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
iCompute! * Compute #26 * Fred D’Ignazio interview on the ANTIC Podcast * Inverse ATASCII review of LJK’s Data Perfect
Creative Computing * Creative Computing Vol 8, #7
APX Catalog * APX Summer 1982 * Carol Shaw’s Calculator source code hardcopy * OCR text of calculator source * ANTIC, the Atari 8-bit podcast * Eaten by a Grue
Byte ... For 18 more links, see the show notes
Phase 2 begins with the usual magazine coverage and a review of Quarxon, a two-player shoot-each-other game with prominent use of Display List Interrupts. In the tech section, I use Omnivore to discover how these DLIs work.
Introduction * Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Stef Animal's Pico-8 game: The Spooky House * Pico-8 virtual machine (a "fantasy video game console") * XLXE Podcast
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
ANTIC * Antic Vol 1, #2
Atari Connection * Atari Connection Vol 2, #2
Byte * Byte Vol 7, #6 * Full text of De Re Atari
... For 14 more links, see the show notes
Introducing Phase 2 of the Player/Missile extended podcastimatic universe. The magazine coverage will stay the same, but instead of a typical game review, I will focus on reverse engineering to discover interesting game programming techniques used by the authors of these classic games. I intend it to be a tutorial on the use of Omnivore, the desktop application I've designed that includes many reverse engineering tools, including a built-in emulator and debugger.
Tech Section * Omnivore, my 8-bit reverse engineering platform
The hiatus is over. With my new slimmed-down post-production, I now plan to get back to regular episodes. For this one, it's the usual magazine coverage and some talk about the retro-computing projects I've been doing in the last year.
Introduction * KansasFest!
Richard Broadhurst's Programs * Astroblaster * Carnival * Frogger * Phoenix * Emulated hardware arcade port of Circus
Tech Section * Omnivore, the Atari 8-bit Binary Editor
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
ANALOG * Analog #6 * Antic Podcast Interview #214: Ron Hartman of K-Byte Software
... For 13 more links, see the show notes
The culmination of the first "season" of the Player/Missile podcast is a review of my favorite game and the announcement of the project undertaken by Kevin Savetz and myself to reverse engineer the game. We're sponsoring a level design contest, and there's still time to enter! Oh, and I'm taking a hiatus until I can collect the physical magazines. You can help out with your contributions!
Introduction * KansasFest! * Chris Torrence's Softalk Apple (video) Podcast * I'm a guest on Antic Episode 33! * Atari 8 bit ads * Intellivisionaries * Addison-Wesley Book of Atari Software 1984 * Article and photo of Mark Reid winning the 1983 Atari Star Award
Listener Written Programs * Wade's windowing system in Action!
MAME Cabinet * MAME cabinet progress (AtariAge forum thread) * More details on MAME cabinet
Tech Section * Omnivore, the Atari 8-bit Binary Editor * AtariAge forum post announcing Omnivore * Jumpman Level Editor for C64
... For 19 more links, see the show notes
Game review of Getaway! and interview with the author Mark Reid. The program won the Atari Star Award and the $25,000 prize in 1983. I also introduce Omnivore, the 8-bit binary editor that I've been working on during the hiatus. Kevin Savetz has a guest review of the APX Spring Catalog, and we add a new section to the podcast, the countdown to the Tramiel takeover.
Introduction * Omnivore, the Atari 8-bit Binary Editor * Player/Missile Blog * AtariAge forum post announcing Omnivore * AtariAge forum post with Wade's new Getaway! level * Dan Boris's Atari Disk Explorer * Atari Disk Explorer on github
Feedback * San Leandro Computer Club * SLCC home page * AtariAge forum post: 1200XL Owners Club (serial tracker) * Atari Party 2016! Saturday, Jul 30, 2016 * Vintage Computer Festival West, Aug 6-7, 2016
Listener Written Programs * Tom Raidna's Windows IDE & code builder for his TUI (Text User Interface)
MAME Cabinet
... For 48 more links, see the show notes
Part 2b of the flight simulator roundup with Chris Olson, reviewing helicopter sims and the all-time classic F-15 Strike Eagle. Plus: an update on speeding up Star Raiders.
Introduction * Dan Carlin's Hardcore History * Pictures from the AtariAge booth at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo * XEGS Cart-by-Cart Podcast * They Create Worlds Podcast * They Create Worlds Blog
Feedback * Interview with Dona Bailey, Centipede co-creator * Hidden Maze from Compute!'s First Book of Atari Games * Wikipedia article on maze generation * Bill Kendrick's maze generator web game * Bill Kendrick's printable mazes * Bill Kendrick's 10-line BASIC maze generator * San Leandro Computer Club * SLCC home page
Listener Written Programs * RetroChallenge in January!
MAME Cabinet ... For 33 more links, see the show notes
The universe of games really begins to expand in 1982. From here on out we'll have a huge selection of choices to talk about, and Shamus by Cathryn Mataga leads us off. Also, an interview with Michael Portuesi who is both a published author in Compute!'s books and a listener to the podcast.
Introduction * Ten Pence Arcade podcast * San Leandro Computer Club
Feedback * Interview with Dona Bailey, Centipede co-creator
MAME Cabinet * MAME cabinet progress (AtariAge forum thread) * More details on MAME cabinet
Tech Section * Python program to split ATR/XFD images * My half-finished game Air Defense * Source code to Air Defense * ATasm, a Mac/65 cross assembler * 2015 ABBUC Software Contest
Magazines ... For 16 more links, see the show notes
The first half of the military flight simulator roundup with Chris Olson. I've included a bonus tech section at the end discussing a clever display list technique used by the MicroProse sims. Guest reviews: Michael Glaser of the XEGS Cart-by-Cart podcast covers SoftSide and Kevin Savetz summarizes the APX Winter 1981 Catalog.
Introduction * Thanks to Wade from Inverse ATASCII for the ANALOGs & Flight Simulator II * AtariAge forum thread: 2 worthy video game podcasts * Internet History Podcast By Brian McCullough * Dan Carlin's Hardcore History * XEGS Cart-by-Cart Podcast * ANTIC Podcast
Feedback * The History of 8-bit Computer Games in The USA #1 : CGW Nov/Dec 1981 * Sprite Castle, the C64 game review podcast with Rob O'Hara * No Quarter episode 89: Arcade Draft #1 * No Quarter episode 123: Arcade Draft #2
Listener Written Programs * The Space Invaders TRS-80 'Bootleg' Project
MAME Cabinet * MAME cabinet progress (AtariAge forum thread) * More details on MAME cabinet
... For 35 more links, see the show notes
Two new magazines for the coverage: Computer Gaming World and my first magazine from the UK: Computer & Video Games, and two guest reviewers of magazines. An overview of KansasFest from the Atari point of view, and a review of the APX game Reversi II.
Introduction * California Extreme Arcade/Pinball show July 18 & 19 2015 * CA Extreme twitter * Pictures from CA Extreme
KansasFest * KansasFest * More from Rebecca Heineman: Antic Interview #64 * Steve Mayer: Antic Interview #65 * Mark Pilgrim's Dive Into Python * Ringtones from Atari 8-bit games * HackFest
Podcasters Summit * Retro Computing Roundtable Ep #105 * Carrington Vanston from Retro Computing Roundtable * John Leake from RetroMacCast * John Linville from The CoCo Crew * Ken Gagne from Polygamer * ... and also from Indiesider * Kevin Savetz from ANTIC The Atari 8-bit Podcast * Michael Mulhurn from Retro Computing Roundtable * Mike Whalen from Electric Dreams BBS Podcast
... For 43 more links, see the show notes
Jack Nutting of the Retro Computing Roundtable, Victor Marland of Ten Pence Arcade, Wade Ripkowski of Inverse Atascii and Kevin Savetz of ANTIC join me for a 5 round draft of Atari 8-bit games.
Participants * Jack Nutting of Retro Computing Roundtable * Victor Marland of Ten Pence Arcade * Wade Ripkowski of Inverse Atascii * Kevin Savetz of ANTIC
Jack's Picks * Star Raiders + my Star Raiders speedup hack (in progress) * M.U.L.E. * Realm of Impossibility * Wizard of Wor * Dog Daze Deluxe
Victor's Picks * Alley Cat * Mr. Dig * Donkey Kong + Donkey Kong Jr. * Kangaroo * Arkanoid
Wade's Picks
... For 20 more links, see the show notes
Summary of Bill Kendrick's Atari Party 2015 and review of the excellent port of Missile Command. In magazine coverage, I've added MICRO: The 6502/6809 Journal, and new contributor Michael Glaser takes over SoftSide Magazine.
Introduction * Atari Party in Davis, CA, May 2, 2015 * Atari Party photos! * California Extreme Arcade/Pinball show July 18 & 19 2015
Feedback * ANTIC Podcast Interview #40: Doug Carlston of Br0derdund Software * BBC Micro magazine: Acorn User * ANTIC Magazine preview of the ATR8000 * Kevin Savetz's site with full text to 21 flight simulator books * Intellivisionaries Podcast * Pictures of some of the Atari 'silver box' kits * UER Podcast * CoCo Crew Podcast
Listener Written Programs * Bill Kendrick's Combat-like game & tutorial in Action * HSC12r8 Ramp Rage by TRBB (Jason Kendall)
MAME Cabinet * MAME cabinet progress (AtariAge forum thread)
... For 37 more links, see the show notes
Flight simulator roundup where Chris Olson and I review 5 noteworthy civilian aircraft sims on the 8-bits (military sims will be the subject of part 2). Also added Byte to the magazine to the coverage due to the serializiaton of De Re Atari.
Introduction * Atari Party in Davis, CA, May 2, 2015 * RetroPie Raspberry Pi game emulation distro * Stella, the 2600 emulator * Atari800 emulator * Atari podcast interviews thread * Interview with David Fox * Floppy Days Episode 36 with all the Atari 8-bit podcasters
Listener Written Programs * Sudoku Solver in 6502 assembly
MAME Cabinet * MAME cabinet progress (AtariAge forum thread) * More details on MAME cabinet
Hacking Ms. Pac-Man * Pac-Man Dossier * Don Hodges: the Pac-Man kill screen * Commented Ms. Pac-Man source * Ms. Pac-Man annotated hex dump
... For 31 more links, see the show notes
Interview episode with game developer James Hague who was published in ANALOG and Antic magazines, is the author of Halcyon Days & maintainer of the Giant List of Classic Video Game Programmers. Atari Party 2015 is just around the corner!
Introduction * Atari Party in Davis, CA, May 2, 2015 * No Quarter is back with new co-host Rob O'Hara! * WICO Joystick review
Feedback * Inverse ATASCII Podcast * Rescue on Fractalis writeup by Trevor Briscoe
Listener Written Programs * Paul Nurminen's BASIC games and demos * The Intellivisionaries Podcast
Tech Section * My Star Raiders fork * example 16 bit division routine * 4am * Algernon crack documentation * Open Apple Podcast * 6502.org * 6502 reference
... For 27 more links, see the show notes
Interview episode with Chuck Bueche, tech section on Star Raiders and the Atari 8-bit executable format, guest magazine coverage of Softalk, and the Atari Party: Davis CA, May 2, 2015!
Introduction * The Atari 5200 Super Podcast * Atari Party in Davis, CA, May 2, 2015 * KansasFest July 14-19 2015 * California Extreme classic arcade games expo July 18-19 2015 * AtariAge 8-bit High Score Club Season 12
Feedback * Computer Gaming World
MAME Cabinet * MAME cabinet progress (AtariAge forum thread) * More details on MAME cabinet * Let's Hack Arcade Games
Tech Section * my fork of the Star Raiders disassembly * CC65 * CC65 source * AtariAge userdevwebcl's example CC65 files * AtariAge forum thread: Star Raiders - was it ever fixed?
... For 28 more links, see the show notes
Interview episode with Michael Current, maintainer of the Atari 8-bit FAQ and the Atari History Timeline; also covering the magazines from June 1981. Tech section on building Star Raiders, MAME cabinet update, and the Atari Party: Davis CA, May 2, 2015!
Introduction * Atari Party in Davis, CA, May 2, 2015 * RetroLink DB9 Joystick to USB cables * My original linux driver * Improved linux driver * Raspberry Pi Model B * KansasFest July 14-19 2015 * California Extreme classic arcade games expo * AtariAge 8-bit High Score Club Season 12
Feedback * Experiment in Forced Nostalgia * Inverse ATASCII episode guide
MAME Cabinet * MAME cabinet progress (AtariAge forum thread) * More details on MAME cabinet * Cabaret cabinets in Tipperary, Ireland
Tech Section * Reverse engineering the classic 1979 game Star Raiders
... For 24 more links, see the show notes
Magazines from May 1981 and a review of Eastern Front (1941) by Chris Crawford, and the triumphant reinstatement of the tech section of the podcast because I've found a manageable topic. Also, info about the Atari Party 2015 which I will attend and give away a Raspberry Pi.
Introduction * Ringtones and notifications from Atari 8-bit games * Thread about building my MAME cabinet * Comparing the RPi to the Cray X-MP * Raspberry Pi 2 announcement * Raspberry Pi 2 specs * Atari Party in Davis, CA, May 2, 2015 * RetroLink DB9 Joystick to USB cables * My original linux driver * Improved linux driver * Raspberry Pi Model B * AtariAge 8-bit High Score Club * AtariAge forum thread: 2 worthy video game podcasts * S1500's Classic Console Gamernews
Tech Section * Reverse engineering the classic 1979 game Star Raiders * 6502 math operations * Simple 8bit division routine * Software - Math - Integer Division
ANALOG * ANALOG #3, May/Jun 1981
... For 29 more links, see the show notes
Magazine coverage for April 1981 but jump ahead in time to cover our first homebrew game, Gem Drop by Bill Kendrick. Bill also invented one of the first software-driven graphics modes, called Super IRG, and we have an interview with him to talk about it.
Introduction * Ferg's review of BASIC Programming * River Raid * Linear Feedback Shift Registers * Elite II: 100 billion solar systems on 2 floppy disks * Ten Pence Arcade podcast, Episode 25: Space Invaders
Feedback * Cross-platform Apple ][ emulator * You Don't Know Flack Ep. 155: Cassettes * KansasFest * Inverse ATASCII * Vintage Computer Festival
Compute #11, Apr 1981 * Sholes (QWERTY) vs Dvorak keyboard * Does the Dvorak keyboard increase typing speed? * VIC-20: First Look * The Mysterious and Unpredictable RND * The Atari Gazette * Unlease the Power of your Atari CPU * Weird Al's Word Crimes
... For 22 more links, see the show notes
In addition to the usual magazine coverage for March 1981, we look at the Apple ][ game Sabotage, converted to run on the Atari. I talk with Paul Hagstrom to get background knowledge on the Apple hardware, and get the inside story on the Sabotage conversion by the guy who did it, AtariAge user Shamus.
Introduction * Sound explained in De Re Atari, Chapter 7 * cc65 started on the Atari 8-bits!
Feedback * Christmas Vacation sled scene
ANALOG 400/800 Magazine #2, Mar/Apr 1981 * Atari News * Atari word processor review at Inverse ATASCII * New Products * Using Note & Point * Type-in: Balance your Checkbook * Type-in: Player/Missile graphics * DMA timings * Atari Graphics and Arcade Game Design, Chapter 6 * ANTIC Techincal * Video timing diagram * Type-in: Cannon Duel * Listen: Music Composer Column * VCS update * Graphics clipping routine in BASIC by Tom Hudson * The Game Room by Tom Repstad
... For 32 more links, see the show notes
This episode reviews the game Jawbreaker by John Harris and covers the February 1981 magazines Compute #9, Creative Computing Vol 7 #2, and introduces coverage of SoftSide Magazine. Anacronisticly included is coverage of my trip to the Portland Retro Gaming Expo 2014.
Feedback * Sound Finder
Special Section: Portland Retro Gaming Expo 2014 * Walkthrough of the arcade * Ms. Pac-Man FAQ * Howard Scott Warshaw's panel * David Crane, Gary Kitchen, Bob Smith from 2013 PRGE * Intellivision Producitons * Joe DeCuir from the 2013 PRGE * DubiousGamingOnline PRGE Experiences, part 1 * DubiousGamingOnline PRGE Experiences, part 2
Compute #9, Feb 1981 * History of Personal Computing podcast * MOS Technology KIM-1 single board computer * OSI Superboard * Editor's * Review of the Atari 825 printer * ad for daisywheen printer and typewriter combo * More on the mysterious and unpredictable RND function * Type-in: Ticker Tape Messages * Type-in: colors and sounds with paddles
... For 34 more links, see the show notes
Welcome to January, 1981! Finally going month-by-month, Episode 4 includes the first ANALOG issue, Compute #8 and Creative Computing Vol 7 #1 and a review the game Caverns of Mars published first by APX then by Atari itself. And in my first interview, I talk with with Mike DesChenes, the co-founder of ANALOG Computing!
Introduction * Ten Pence Arcade * McCoyCast episode on Real Genius
Feedback * Intellivisionaries Ep. #13 * Atari Bit Byter User Club * cc65 cross compiler
Interview with Mike DesChenes * Master Hobbies, Cherry Valley, MA * Newspaper scans of interviews with Lee Pappas and Mike DesChenes * OCR versions at The Digital ANALOG Project * ANALOG scans at archive.org * ANALOG scans at atarimania * ANALOG scans at atarimagazines.com
Magazines * Atari 8-bit magazines
ANALOG * ANALOG 400/800 #1, Jan/Feb 1981
Compute * Compute #8, Jan 1981 * John von Neumann
Creative Computing * Creative Computing Vol 7 #1, Jan 1981 * De Re Atari, Chapter 7: Sound
Game Review: Caverns of Mars * Caverns of Mars at AtariMania (APX version) * Caverns of Mars at AtariMania (Atari version) * Caverns of Mars at Atari 8-bit Forever * http://www.digitpress.com/eastereggs/a48cavernsofmars.htm * http://www.mobygames.com/game/atari-8-bit/caverns-of-mars/mobyrank * How John Carter was Doomed by Its First Trailer * The Martian (2015) * The Martian by Andy Weir * Andy Weir's writings * Planetary Defense 2012 built in to Colleen emulator for Android * Instructions for Colleen
Author: Greg Christensen * Chris Crawford's Journal: The Atari years * Dec 82 issue of Video Games magazine
Company * http://www.atariarchives.org/APX/ * Dale Yocum interview in ANTIC podcast #14 * Fred Thorlin interview in ANTIC podcast #12 * Fernando Herrera interview in ANTIC podcast #13
Modern Updates * Caverns of Mars II * Mars Mission II * Phobos
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 4 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
Finishing off 1980, Episode 3 includes coverage of the remaining 6 months of Creative Computing and Compute magazines, and a review of the game Space Invaders published by Atari.
Introduction * Martin Gardiner
Corrections * Digital Press Interview with Larry Kaplan * 2600 Game by Game Podcast #3: Ferg's review of Air-Sea Battle * Source code for all operating system revisions * 2600 Game by Game Podcast #41: Ferg's review of Kaboom
Feedback * Manual for 400/800 version of the Super Breakout * Intellivisionaries Podcast * XKCD * What if? * FiveThirtyEight interview with Randall Munroe about "What if?" * New 8-bit podcast! Inverse ATASCII, the Atari 8-bit Productivity Podcast
Magazines * Creative Computing v6, #6 Jun 1980 * Compute #5, July/Aug 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #7 Jul 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #8 Aug 1980 * Compute #6, Sep/Oct 1980 + 2600 Game-By-Game review of Video Life + Conway's Game of Life * Creative Computing v6, #9 Sep 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #10 Oct 1980 * Compute #7, Nov/Dec 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #11 Nov 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #12 Dec 1980
Game Review: Space Invaders * Atari Mania's Space Invaders page * Atari 8-bit Forever's Space Invaders page * Ferg's review of Space Invaders for the 2600
Arcade version * Space Invaders Targets Coins * The Myth of the 100 Yen Coin Shortage * AtariAge Forum Post by the author
Author: Rob Fulop * Ferg talks about Rob Fulop on 2600 Game by Game Podcast, Episode #7 * Digital Press Interview * Gamasutra: Playing Catch Up with Rob Fulop * 1994 Wired interview * Gamasutra: The Replay Interviews: Rob Fulop * Replay: The History of Video Games by Tristan Donovan
Manual * Space Invaders manual PDF and desktop wallpaper * Coin Connection Atari Newsletter, Vol 2, #6 June 1978 * Howald Delman interview with photo of Bob Flemate
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 3 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
Welcome to 1980! Episode 2 includes coverage of the Creative Computing and Compute! magazines through the first half of 1980 and a review of the game Super Breakout by Atari.
Introduction * Racing the Beam * Drawing kernels for the Atari 8-bits * Check out Ferg's 2600 Game-by-Game podcast for the contest I'm sponsoring!
Feedback * Rick Keene's artwork * Superplot by Michael Portuesi * blubalu's Star Raiders unboxing!
Magazines * Compute #2, Jan/Feb 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #1 Jan 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #2 Feb 1980 * Compute #3, Mar/Apr 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #3 Mar 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #4 Apr 1980 (the famous April Fool's issue) * Compute #4, May/Jun 1980 + C64 vs Apple 2 chess match * Creative Computing v6, #5 May 1980 * Creative Computing v6, #6 Jun 1980
Game Review: Super Breakout * Atarimania Page * Atari 8-bit Forever Page
Author: Larry Kaplan * Ferg's review of Breakout for the 2600 * Super Breakout at the Arcade Museum * Ferg's review of Super Breakout for the 2600 * Steve Wozniak recalls designing Breakout * Breakout at Arcade History * Woz addresses Breakout payment from Woz.org
Manual * 5200 Breakout Manual
Technical Details * Mapping the Atari: Display Lists * De Re Atari: ANTIC and the Display List * De Re Atari: Display List Interrupts * Non-Maskable Interrupt
My High Score * July 2013: HSC10, Round 12
SAP * ASMA: Atari SAP Music Archive * A Nice Morning Drive * Neil Peart & Richard S. Foster's Road Trip
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 2 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
Welcome to 1979! Episode 1 includes a brief summary of the technical specifications of the Atari 400 & 800 that were first released at the end of the year, discussion of Creative Computing issues starting from April and the very first Compute! magazine, and a review of a game original to the Atari 8- bits and destined to become an all-time classic game: Star Raiders.
Introduction * Douglas Adams Collected Works
Feedback * Drop /// Inches with Mike Maginnis and Paul Hagstrom, a fairly technical podcast about the Apple /// * Rick Keene's cover for STLog Issue 18
Technical details * http://atariage.com/forums/topic/183619-total-number-of-a8-units-sold-worldwide/
Creative Computing Overview * David H. Ahl and the History of Creative Computing * Creative Computing Vol 5, #4, April 1979 + Vector 1 + Sexism in Computer Science + No Quarter #94: Mike and Carrington talk about gender stereotypes and games * Creative Computing Vol 5, #5, May 1979 + More Basic Computer Games + White & Nerdy * Creative Computing Vol 5, #7, July 1979 + The Code Book * Creative Computing Vol 5, #8, August 1979 + The Intellivisionaries Podcast + GET LAMP by Jason Scott (of archive.org) * Creative Computing Vol 5, #9, September 1979 + human-computer chess matches * Creative Computing Vol 5, #10, October 1979 * Creative Computing Vol 5, #11, November 1979 * Creative Computing Vol 5, #12, December 1979
COMPUTE! Overview * Compute! #1, Fall 1979 + http://atariage.com/forums/topic/123010-first-atari-8-bit-vaporware/
Game Review: STAR RAIDERS * NY Times article on 10 most important video games of all time
Modern Updates * New version with less slowdown * More modern Star Raiders-like game XTAL * XTAL at AtariMania
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 1 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames
In the inaugural episode of Player/Missile, I introduce myself, talk about my background with the Atari 8-bit systems, what the podcast will be about and what it won't be about, and describe the format of the subsequent episodes.
Podcasts * ANTIC, The Atari 8-bit Podcast with Randy Kindig, Kevin Savetz and Brad Arnold, all about Atari 8-bit computers * No Quarter with Carrington Vanston and Mike Maginnes, the classic arcade podcast * You Don't Know Flack with Rob O'Hara, a retro-technology themed podcast * Rob O'Hara's podcast about podcasting that inspired me to start this podcast * Sprite Castle, his C64 games review podcast * The Atari 2600 Game-by-Game Podcast with Ferg, the review of all 2600 carts in parts-number order * Retro Computing Roundtable with a rotating cast of several, talking about retro computing news and collecting * Floppy Days with Randy Kindig, a survey of vintage computer hardware * Drop /// Inches with Mike Maginnis and Paul Hagstrom, a fairly technical podcast about the Apple ///
References * Atari, Inc: Business is Fun * Full text of Atari 8-bit books * More Basic Computer Games * Kevin Savetz' Atari magazines * Archive.org's Computer Magazine Archives
Atari 8-bit Emulators * Atari800 emulator (multi-platform) * Altirra emulator (windows only) * MESS (multi-platform)
Links * FC 5025 5.25 floppy disk interface * The classic arcade emulator MAME * Toastmasters * Theme song: Odin's Atari
Production Notes * Music: Stef Animal's Bandcamp page * Episode page: Episode 0 * Twitter: @atari8bitgames