#TurnsOutImStillCrapAt "Astroblast / Astrosmash" - #Atari2600 and #Intellivision.
The original Intellivision version is graphically more interesting, but the Atari's paddle controllers make the game a lot easier to play. That - and the composite video mod that someone competent fit to this Atari being a LOT clearer than the one I bodged myself on the Intellivision - make this a flukey away win for Team Sunnyvale.
Well now, isn't THAT more like it? Amazing the difference actually reading the instructions can make...
@sourdust I had no idea that they were the same game. Also, I am still jealous of you Tele-Games 2600.
@admiralobvious It's arguably NOT the same game, although it's clearly supposed to be.
On the INTV, once I found the autofire - allowing me to use both thumbs on the controller disc - I grasped it. It's much faster / harder on Atari though.
@sourdust Gotcha, what are the differences? Autofire would make things easier. One advantage to having an Intellivision II, I can use any controller.
@admiralobvious
The most striking one is the starfield background - it's entirely missing on the Atari version. The Atari graphics are blockier overall, and there's no text display at the end. The pace of the game is much quicker from the start, although that's offset by the speed of the paddle controls.
@sourdust Is the graphical differences common for 2600 and INTV games? I seem to remember Demon Attack having better graphics on the INTV as well.
@admiralobvious Funnily enough I was JUST playing that one as your message arrived! Again it's swings and roundabouts. The INTV version is definitely a better game - more variety, lots more going on - but it doesn't have those gorgeous rainbow sprites that the Atari does, which is a real downer.
@admiralobvious Incidentally my favourite version (well, clone!) of "Demon Attack" is "Devil Assault" (different, see?) by Ken Kalish for the Dragon 32 - or Tandy CoCo for you, I'd imagine. It has more stages and is very loud and brash. I'm also biased because I was actually playing that one in 1984... ;-)
@sourdust Getting there! Six digits is right around the corner.
@Zotmeister Well at this rate of improvement, I should be scoring 1 million by tomorrow evening... ;-)