Video Olympics

"Imagine Pong split into professional sports."

The big Pong craze never hit my home during childhood. For most people, Pong can be considered the most primitive (and first) video game of all-time. The game was based around bouncing a simple ping pong ball back and forth between a paddle on one side, and the other. If you missed the ball, your opponent was scored a point. Simplicity and the overall feeling of the game let most people play it with joy. When Pong hit the Atari, it was almost as if it was taken to the ''100th'' degree. Video Olympics is a Pong-based game that splits traditional Pong into different sports, allowing for plenty of game options and scenarios. While it may lack the single-player value of other games, it makes up for it by providing some of the most thrilling multiplayer experiences available on the Atari. Basically, the storyline revolves around players competing in several different sports (Basketball, Volleyball, and even Foozpong) to see who the ''true'' Pong master is. Do you have the edge to use ultra-light reflexes, or a lead finger that dooms you forever? Find out in one of the better multiplayer games for the Atari.

Graphics [7/10]
When you first boot up Video Olympics, you're presented with a simple interface. Unlike other Atari games, which attempted to provide flashy effects, Video Olympics keeps it simple and painless. Since this is primarily a Pong-based game, your visuals are somewhat limited. Most of your actual gameplay will consist of two bars on opposite sides, a basic playing arena, and usually your ping pong ball. Unfortunately, this is just about as complex as most of the games get. You aren't provided with top-notch graphics the Atari has to offer, or breathtaking special effects. The game was designed to be clear and precise just enough to give the player an edge on the playing field. Game action is usually played from either a side view (for certain games), or a top-down view for the traditional Pong battle. Your paddles move smoothly in the distance, allowing for good animations and realistic physics. As you try to play more of the games, Video Olympics distinguishes different player's paddles by putting dashes and stripes through them. This is a great feature since it let's you distinguish between others. For the most part, Video Olympics does enough to make it a fairly good presentation on the Atari.

Sound/Music [8/10]
While most of us understand that the audio department plays a huge part in how games are developed, it wasn't as important on the Atari. The same goes with Video Olympics. Unlike epic RPGs which feature amazing soundtracks, or voice clips in newer games, Video Olympics gets about as simplistic as you can get. First off, there is no music in the game at all. All of your pings, dings, and dongs come from the sound effects. Serving the ball causes a pleasant tone to ring, and bouncing the ping pong ball off of your paddle will cause an appropriate sound to follow. However, what makes the audio so great is the fact that VO changes tones quickly. If you cause the ball to speed up when it hits your paddle, a lighter ding sound will play. It let's the player know that the speed of the ball has been increased. Whenever the served projectile hits a border, it bounces off in a ringing tone. As simplistic as the sound effects are, they do just enough to get by in most people's mind. Plus, if you score consecutive points, the effects will get considerably higher and higher each serve. It's almost like Video Olympics keeps track of the momentum in a match.

Gameplay [10/10]
Pong is the ultimatum of simplistic games. With a simple system of bouncing a ping pong ball back and forth, Pong was sort of like an initiator in arcade games. When Video Olympics came out, it truly took Pong to the next depth level. First off, Video Olympics is not some perplexed sports game where you take an athlete and have him compete in several events. Instead, the game is basically Pong, but split into several ''sports'', or modes that the gamer can play with. Every aspect of the Pong game that made it a huge success is included in Video Olympics. The game is actually split into these categories - Pong, Super Pong, Soccer, Foozpong, Hockey, Quadrapong, Handball, Volleyball, and Basketball. Most of these individual modes follow the real-life sports, but without all the complex rules. Video Olympics is very fast paced. The game utilizes the Paddle controllers for the Atari system, which means you control the game by twisting a knob. Your playing field fits perfectly with the pace of the gameplay, since you can use the paddle sensitivity to move your bar back and forth. Hitting a ball near the edge of the paddle will cause it to repel at an angle.

Of course, Video Olympics enhanced Pong like no other game. If you press the action button on the controller as it hits your paddle, you will cause the Pong ball to speed up. It's almost like spiking the ball on a Ping Pong table. Since it speeds it up, this makes it harder for your opponent to catch up. Besides traditional Pong, games such as Soccer, Volleyball, Hockey, and Basketball each contain elements of the respective sports. For example, in hockey, the playing arena is split with two goals on each side, and goalies in front of them. The actual environments change with each game, allowing for complex shots, goofy angles, and expansion in what you can perform. Other times, you're forced to shoot at specific targets (like during Basketball), or Foozpong where you have multiple players lined up on field. The physics are so realistic that you sometimes ponder if you're playing the real sport (Pong style, of course). This is by far one of the definitive games you can play on the Atari. Every aspect is balanced to let both players decide who the true winner is.

Fun [10/10]
Bouncing a ball back and forth doesn't sound too exciting. Fortunately, Video Olympics is a solid reason why the Pong series has gained more respect. Rather than being some linear based game, the programmers managed to transform the sport of Pong into several exciting modes. One of the bigger factors as to why Video Olympics is such a fun game is based around its gameplay system. Over 97% of the various games on the cartridge are all multiplayer. Each game has support ranging from 2-4 players. This is perfect if you have friends over, and want to prove who the ''true'' Pong champion is. Games such as volleyball force players to hit a pong ball in parabolic patterns over a net in the middle. The actual physics of the ball are so realistic that you truly feel like you're playing the game. With support for up to 4 players, and over 50 variations of games, this is surely one of the best multiplayer games out there.

Replayability [7/10]
The Atari has been well known for producing time lasting classics that nearly anyone can relate to. Whether you're playing a simple arcade game, or detailed adventure on a foreign island, each of these experiences provided a refreshing experience. Despite featuring impressive gameplay modes, and great quality, Video Olympics comes up short in specific elements of replay value. The biggest fault in the game's design is that it's basically a multiplayer game. If you don't have a companion to play Video Olympics with, you're pretty much screwed since only two out of fifty game variations actually allow for single-play. Because of this, the single player experience is hugely dented, to an extent where Video Olympics is strictly a multiplayer game. Regardless, some of the best 2-4 player games you'll ever play come from this tiny little cartridge. Pong is expanded to nearly every sport in the universe, allowing you to compete between friends. Stages will change with multiple paddles (usually 2 to 4 lined up in a row), or groovy designs. Strategy becomes a factor since each player can use defenders and attackers for trying to score in goals. In all cases, Video Olympics provides a hugely replayable multiplayer experience, but suffers when you're going in alone.

Difficulty [4/10]
Even your traditional Pong games can be fairly challenging. Video Olympics features a solid gameplay system that is capable of challenging the players, while providing a sense of balance. First off, the computer AI isn't too advanced. Both single player modes prove this. The CPU scrolls its own paddle at a set rate, meaning all you have to do is put some spin on the ball, and the computer is going to miss. Because of this, you'll hardly find any challenge out of the default computer. While it's capable of calculating correct bounces, it just doesn't move fast enough to be competitive with a human player. On the other hand, most of the in-game challenge of Video Olympics revolves around your opponent. Since most of the game is made of multiplayer games, the skill of your opposing player decides everything. Certain games are more difficult than others, usually allowing one player to control 2 paddles at once. Other games let you easily win by simply spiking the ball, or putting some speed on it. For the most part, Video Olympics is merely n mediocre game in challenge, because of the lack of CPU AI.

Final Factor [9/10]
If you've ever wanted to play in-depth Pong, then Video Olympics is your chance. For once, programmers took the simple idea of Pong, and enhanced it into new gameplay modes and features. Being able to compete in sports such as basketball and volleyball using simple Pong mechanics is just the beginning of how innovative developers were becoming. Despite Video Olympics being primarily a multiplayer game, it's a pretty darn good one. With the ability of 2-4 players being able to play at once, and multiple paddles/goals/strategies, Video Olympics is certainly one of the best multiplayer games out there. Even if it's not the best available title for the Atari, this certainly ranks up there as one of the excellent ones. If you're looking for an exciting thriller to play against a group of friends, get Video Olympics. If you're looking for a single player Pong game, look elsewhere. But do not fear, this is definitely one of the Pongly-maniac games out there.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/27/03