Top 10 Lists : The Top 10 Fixed Shooters On The Atari 2600

MAD had you in control of a cannon that has to fire away at various kinds of kamimkaze planes that try to destroy your buildings. Instead of having two dimensional movement like other fixed shooters, MAD had the cannon completely static, and you only aim its turret and fire away. The challenge and fun is there, and MAD features some strategy and thinking considering the fact that planes change colour just before they fall down on you, giving you a heads up beforehand so you could prepare. The "scary" music also contributes to putting MAD on the list, even if at 10th place.

Another shooter with a unique design. Instead of moving left or right, Wall Defender has you moving in rectangular paths. You take control of a jet fighter inside a wall that you need to defend against kamikaze aliens that attempt to hit it from all sides. If your wall is destroyed you can go into the one inside it, which gives you more speed as it is quicker to navigate. This makes it easier to defeat your enemies whenever they get tougher, giving it a nice balance of difficulty (until everything goes crazy near the end). This unique design places Wall Defender on the list as one of the best fixed shooters on the VCS.

Bad graphics don't make a game bad, especially if it's an Atari 2600 game, as apparent with Assault. In Assault you control a small ship going right and left at the bottom of the screen while shooting at, guess what, aliens above you. Typical shooter? Well think again, as it has a lot of interesting features that make it stand above the crowd. Assault gives you the ability to also shoot at the sides, giving you even more enemies to think of. Also your cannon overheats if you keep shooting with it, so make sure you don't waste much fire. These along with the impressive number of different enemies and enemy fire types puts Assault with the best of the best.

That game that "inspired" Assault, Demon Attack is an Assault but without the two features and instead has much better control and fluidity of movement and firing. It has a much bigger arcade game feeling in it with its fun factor and challenge (the fun kind). And its superb graphics and excellent sound puts it above Assault. Not to mention it has even more enemy types than Assault which in itself is very impressive for an Atari 2600 game this old. The list just wouldn't be complete without it.

Hahaha, yeah, Space Invaders isn't the number one spot. This Arcade classic was one of, if not the first fixed space shooter ever. It was the base for all other shooters and is easily one of the most popular games in history.You controlled a tank at the bottom and shoot alien types aligned in a grid above you, while mothership appears at times above them. You also had three shields right above you that can damage in place of your tank. The VCS port had some downgrading like watered down graphics, but just like with uhhh, Tekken 3 for example, the extra features were more than enough to make it better than its arcade counterpart. A staple of fixed shooters and by far the most popular of them all.

I'll probably face some strife for this position and the one after it. Not because of whether or not the games are considered "good enough", but moreso if they are considered fixed shooters in the first place. In Atlantis you control three cannons protecting Atlantis from evil aircrafts that hover above them. The cannon at the middle shoots straight up, while two, one on each side, shoot at the two far upper corners, making sure you organize which cannon fires and when. Atlantis is a very difficult game once you start playing, but in time and as you become more accustomed to its mechanics you'll find one of the best shooting experiences on the VCS. Even if the game can be a bit frustrating at times.

This is the most different of fixed shooters but in my view one of the best on the Atari 2600. You take control of a fixed static spaceship with the ability to fire in all four directions at speedy asteroids headed your way. It's very much a quick reflex game more than anything where you have to quickly press the direction before you are destroyed by the asteroid coming from it. There's a part also where you pick people up from other planets and this serves as a breather from all the intense and quick shooting you do in the main part of the game. The quick reflexes needed in the adrenaline pumping action of Cosmic Ark, along with the thrills found in this great game make it a top five place holder in the list. Very innovative, despite being such a simple premise. And because of excellent execution on Imagic's (one of the best Atari 2600 developers) part this makes for a very impressive game to spend your time with.

One of the best Arcade games ever is now an Atari 2600 game! Sure it has worse graphics (duh) but the fun is still there, and explosions still look and sound super cool. Missile Command places you in control of a static anti missile cannon that shoots these explosive anti missile batteries capable of destroying any missiles that fall within their blast radius. As the many missiles fall down to your position (and at the American cities) and the screen is filled with many anti missile explosions the screen will look and sound like it's showing a fireworks display. The fun, challenging and very addictive gameplay however is what puts it in third place. It is so good that it had been ported to at least a dozen consoles. This is one of the undeniable shooter classics.

There aren't many flaws in Megamania. Control is very precise and if you ever lose, then it's most definitely only your fault. It's so easy and accessible yet challenging and fun, and at the same time strategic and fast, all mished together in one of Activision's finest moments. Enemies change in a nice progression and the difficulty never becomes ridiculously hard and you can make sure a fired shot goes exactly where you want it to go. Very simple and many would consider it crazy of me to put it in second place, but it's accessibility to all and simple addictiveness plays a big role. Megamania is another shooter classic. Bravo.

Another Activision classic. Spider Fighter is the best space fixed shooter on the VCS, and one of the best ever. It's Megamania but with only space alien creatures as enemies, with a much faster pace and impossible graphics and sound for the Atari 2600. Its mad pace and flawless control and responsiveness blends with the crazy number of colours everywhere and fast sounds to be something of an early fixed static screen Ikuragu. And the awe inspiring crazy pace and satisfaction it provides makes for one heck of a game. Excellent and fun to play even today. Now go play it, I know I will!

That's it. With the shooter genre being something of the reminiscent, give these games a try if you're looking for some classic alien destroying fun on the good ol' Atari. Sure they're old, but who cares? They're fun and entertaining, nothing else is needed. Since fixed shooters have been dead for a long long time, these games serve as a historic lesson of what used to be the rage back in the day. Kind of like sandbox games in our times. Oh how the times change.

List by red soul (08/25/2006)

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