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Howard Scott Warshaw piece on NPR


phattyboombatty

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Damn liberal media screwing it all up! :P

 

E.T. really isn't bad at all, and given that he only had a little over a month, kind of an achievement in itself.

 

One of the important things that E.T. should be noted for was the necessity for players to read the manual, something of a rarity for those "simple" Atari games.

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I do get tire of the oft repeated claim that ET was the "worst video game ever made." Hell, it's not even the worst game on the 2600; far from it! I guess it's up to us Atari fans to continue to set the record straight whenever possible.

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I do get tire of the oft repeated claim that ET was the "worst video game ever made." Hell, it's not even the worst game on the 2600; far from it! I guess it's up to us Atari fans to continue to set the record straight whenever possible.

I've tried to correct this claim when I see it repeated. But people resist. Why? Well it seems many like the notion that there was once a game so vile that it destroyed the entire game industry. Saying otherwise destroys this fun narrative, and they don't want to hear it. Happens even with gamers who are too young to remember ET.

 

Guess it has become a type of mythology at this point.

Edited by zzip
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The pits in E.T. are just like the pits in Super Mario Bros, you just have to be better at E.T.

 

So what you are really saying is that E.T. was the "Dark Souls" of the Atari 2600, and that everyone just needs to GIT GUD!!!

 

 

Edited by YarsRevengeFan
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I do get tire of the oft repeated claim that ET was the "worst video game ever made." Hell, it's not even the worst game on the 2600; far from it! I guess it's up to us Atari fans to continue to set the record straight whenever possible.

 

Also tired of this one (he claims this in 9 out of 10 interviews):

 

“I actually prefer it when people do identify it as the worst game of all time because I also did Yars Revenge and that’s frequently identified as one of the best of all time. So between the two, I have the greatest range of any designer in history!”

 

Both games are mediocre, so there is no range.

 

8)

 

 

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Also tired of this one (he claims this in 9 out of 10 interviews):

 

I actually prefer it when people do identify it as the worst game of all time because I also did Yars Revenge and thats frequently identified as one of the best of all time. So between the two, I have the greatest range of any designer in history!

 

Both games are mediocre, so there is no range.

 

8)

 

 

Oh I like Yars Revenge!

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Mind you, could've ben worse: Charlie's Angels (Game Cube)

 

Charlie's Angels was universally panned by critics for its extremely poor graphics, uninspired combat, unresponsive controls, sub-par A.I, poor camera system and music, boring and glitchy gameplay, ugly character models, and storyline. Basically one of the worst games ever.

Edited by high voltage
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I do get tire of the oft repeated claim that ET was the "worst video game ever made." Hell, it's not even the worst game on the 2600; far from it! I guess it's up to us Atari fans to continue to set the record straight whenever possible.

 

 

 

wPWBOLY.png?1

 

'Nuff Said...

Edited by MrMaddog
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I thought this piece was interesting because it interviewed Howard, not because it had the bit about one particular video game.

 

The interview was great. I loved hearing Howard talk and discuss what it was like at Atari in the 1980s. I loved hearing about the crash, the failures, and the layoffs (which we all know about), and how he picked up the pieces of his life in order to move on.

 

Such an interesting thing to be part of this wild success, great games and packaging, and then watch it all start to fade... I loved hearing about "what's next".

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I loved both ET and Yars Revenge. I played and played and played ET -- partially because I was an ET nut who wanted to be Elliot. And partially because you actually had the satisfaction of winning the game.

 

Even if it WAS the worst game ever, it gave me countless hours of fun.

 

The interview is a very good one, though. Love the premise.

Edited by whisperingloon
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Also tired of this one (he claims this in 9 out of 10 interviews):

 

“I actually prefer it when people do identify it as the worst game of all time because I also did Yars Revenge and that’s frequently identified as one of the best of all time. So between the two, I have the greatest range of any designer in history!”

 

Both games are mediocre, so there is no range.

 

8)

 

 

Finally, someone who thinks the same as I do on it!

 

But I think I remember him initially being unhappy with the claim so I'm pretty sure he just says it to stop himself from feeling unhappy. Probably one of his ways of being a therapist.

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Say what you want about the game but being given 36 hrs. to come up with the concept, pitching the game to Spielberg and working around the clock for five weeks to complete it, that's pretty amazing.

 

I know... and the bit about Spielberg expecting a Pac-Man clone... I don't think it would have been frowned upon by anyone at Atari either.

But he WAS ambitious enough to essentially, as he asked Spielberg about why didn't he just copy another movie, want and try and make the game a unique, memorable, enjoyable experience like the movie was.

 

But, and you might already know I'm not the biggest fan of him, that goal WAS the problem. He has too much strive, or not enough skill, or a bit of both.

Yar's Revenge came about because he couldn't get Star Castle to run right. But he DID manage to jam a square peg in a round hole.

I have nothing against Yar's Revenge, It's just good in my opinion... now my dad... he doesn't play video games... if you ask him about them, he'll know who Super Mario is, and he'll tell you lots about Yar's Revenge. He loved it circa 86-87.

ET suffered because of it. Even when he talks about himself, he's just too confident about himself, his accomplishments/knowledge/etc.

 

He's his own biggest fan... Whatever word there is for that.

Edited by Torr
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E.T. would have been much less maligned if he had just put E.T. on solid ground after he got out of the pit. Having him still hovering over the pit when the screen changes and having you fall back in if you continue pushing up is what caused 99% of the frustration people had.

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