PrinceWatercress plays Pac-Man (Atari 2600) - Part 3 of 8

Game Mode 3 is one of the easier game modes to play. How easy? You're about to find out.

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In Game Mode 3, Pac-Man moves at a fast speed rather than a slow speed, but the ghosts start at a crawling speed. Because of this, the game's manual considers this one of two game modes (the other being Game Mode 7) suitable for play for young children.

This is also a useful mode for someone who wants to move quickly but start at the easiest difficulty setting possible. I can get through five, six, and maybe seven screen easily on the easiest settings.

PrinceWatercress plays Pac-Man (Atari 2600) - Part 2 of 8

In this entry, we play Game Mode 2 and we read up on the development of the Atari 2600 version of the game.

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By using the game select switch, you'll switch between one- and two-player modes as you switch through the game variations. If you see just the green bar with the number, it's the one-player mode; if you see the green bar and the orange bar and both have the same number, it's the two-player mode.

On Game Mode 2, Pac-Man moves slowly, while the ghosts start at a running speed, which is even faster than the jogging speed. The four speeds in the manual are - from slowest to fastest - crawl, walking, jogging and running.

Also, here's the stuff I read from the Wikipedia article for this version of the game:

After Pac-Man proved to be a success in the United States, Atari decided to license the game and produce it for its Atari 2600 console.

Programming was assigned to Tod Frye, who was not provided with any arcade design specifications to work from and had to figure out how the game worked by playing it. He spent 80-hour weeks over six months developing it. The finished game uses a 4KB ROM cartridge, chosen for its lower manufacturing costs compared to 8KB bank-switched cartridges which had recently become available. As with any contemporary arcade port, the simple Atari 2600 hardware was a considerable limitation. The arcade PAC-MAN system board contained 2KB of main RAM (random-access memory) in which to run the program, 2KB of video RAM to store the screen state, and 16KB of ROM (read-only memory) to store the game code, whereas the Atari 2600 featured only 128 bytes of RAM memory and none dedicated to video: effectively 32 times less RAM. The Zilog Z80 CPU microprocessor used by the Namco Pac-Man arcade system is clocked at three times the speed of the MOS 6507 CPU in the Atari 2600 - though the Z80 typically does less work per clock cycle.

To deal with these limitations, Frye simplified the maze's intricate pattern of corridors to a more repetitive pattern. The small tan pellets in the arcade original were changed to rectangular "wafers" that shared the wall color on 2600; a change necessitated because both the pellets and walls were drawn with the 2600's Playfield graphics, which have a fixed width. To achieve the visual effect of wafers disappearing as Pac-Man eats them, the actual map of the maze was updated as the data was written into the Playfield registers, excluding those pellets that had been eaten. The 2600's Player-Missile graphics system (sprites) was used for the remaining objects; the one-bit-wide Missiles were used to render the flashing power pills and the center of the vitamin. Pac-Man and ghost characters were implemented using the 2600's two Player objects, with one being used for Pac-Man and the other being used for all four ghosts, with the result that each ghost only appears once out of every four frames, which creates a flickering effect. This effect takes advantage of the slow phosphorescent fade of CRT monitors and the concept of persistence of vision, resulting in the image appearing to linger on screen longer, but the flickering remains noticeable, and makes each individual ghost's color nearly impossible to discern. Frye chose to abandon plans for a flicker-management system to minimize the flashing in part because Atari didn't seem to care about that issue in its zeal to have the game released. According to Frye, his game also did not conform to the arcade game's color scheme in order to comply with Atari's official home product policy that only space-type games should feature black backgrounds. Another quality impact was his decision that two-player gameplay was important, which meant that the 23 bytes required to store the current difficulty, state of the dots on the current maze, remaining lives, and the score had to be doubled for a second player, consuming 46 of the 2600's meager 128-byte memory, which precluded its use for additional game data and features.

Oft-repeated stories claim that the company wanted to or did release a prototype in order to capitalize on the 1981 holiday season; however, the retail release was a final product. Frye states that there were no negative comments within Atari about these elements, but, after seeing the game, Coin Division marketing manager Frank Ballouz reportedly informed Ray Kassar, Atari's president and CEO, that he felt enthusiasts would not want to play it. His opinion, however, was dismissed. The company ran newspaper ads and promoted the product in catalogs, describing it as differing "slightly from the original".

To help sales, Atari promoted and protected its exclusive licensing of Pac-Man. It took legal action against companies that released clones similar to Pac-Man. Atari sued Philips for its 1981 Magnavox Odyssey² game K.C. Munchkin! alleging copyright infringement. In the landmark case Atari, Inc. v. North American Philips Consumer Electronics Corp., the Court of Appeals allowed a preliminary injunction against Philips to prevent the sale of Munchkin cartridges. However, Atari failed to stop other games, such as On-Line Systems' Jawbreaker and Gobbler.

Several retailers assisted Atari with the release of the game. JCPenney was the first retailer to launch a nationwide advertising campaign on television for a software title. Continuing a long-standing relationship between it and Sears, Atari also produced Pac-Man cartridges under the department store's label.

Anticipation for the game was high. Atari stated in 1981 that it had preorders for "three or four million" copies of the Atari 2600 version. Goldman Sachs analyst Richard Simon predicted the sale of 9 million units during 1982, which would yield a profit of $200 million. Pac-Man met with initial commercial success; more than one million cartridges had been shipped in less than one month, helped by Atari's $1.5 million publicity campaign. It became the best-selling home video game of 1982, with over 7.2 million cartridges sold that year and over $200 million ($560 million adjusted for inflation) in gross revenue. It surpassed Space Invaders to become the best-selling Atari 2600 title and the overall best-selling video game up until then. Pac-Man also propelled Atari VCS sales to 12 million units by 1982. Frye reportedly received $0.10 in royalties per copy.

Purchases had slowed by the summer of 1982, with unsold copies available in large quantities. Atari went on to sell over 684,000 cartridges in 1983. It had sold a cumulative 7,956,413 cartridges by 1983, and a further 139,173 units for $706,967 (equivalent to $1,700,000 in 2021) between 1986 and 1990, for a total of over 8 million cartridges sold by 1990. By 2004, the cartridges were still very common among collectors and enthusiasts— though the Sears versions were rarer — and priced lower.

PrinceWatercress plays Pac-Man (Atari 2600) - Part 1 of 8

It's now time for one of the most infamous Atari 2600 games ever made. 

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It's Pac-Man...almost. This game is not quite like the arcade game, and while the gist of the gameplay is the same, the experience is a bit different. The ghosts flash in order for all four of them to be seen at any time, and they also act a little differently. They even leave their box from the right side, not the top. The tunnel that takes you from one side of the screen to the other is only at the top and bottom center. The sounds in the game are nothing like those in the original arcade hit. Instead of dots, you have "digital wafers," and instead of fruits, you have Vitamins. (Yes, the game calls those things by those names.) The dots aren't even dots, they're lines, hence why they're called digital wafers. The scoring system is different and everything only gives you a tenth of the amount of points it would give you in the arcade. The screen is much wider than in the arcade mode. The game itself was also made with extreme memory limitations due to Atari skimping on the manufacturing costs in order to ensure they make the most money, and while Atari did just that, the game is infamous for being the way that it is. Even the commercial for the Atari 2600 port is infamous for being Atari's famous jingle as well as having no gameplay, and was more Atari blowing their own horn than anything else. (Subsequent and international commercials have gameplay, however.)

The joystick allows you to move Pac-Man, while the fire button does nothing. You have to eat all of the digital wafers as well as the Power Pills, which weaken the ghosts and allow you to eat them as long as they are blue, to continue to the next screen. Whenever you complete a level, you also get an extra life. The game select switch allows you to switch between sixteen different game modes. While there are eight, you switch between the one- and two-player variations of a game mode before going to the next one. With the difficulty switches, A/Expert makes the Power Pills last half as long as they would on B/Novice.

For Game Mode 1, Pac-Man moves fast, while the ghosts start at a jogging speed. As you clear levels, the ghosts will slowly get faster and faster, even on the easiest game modes. Different game modes have Pac-Man moving either slowly or quickly, while there are four starting speed variations for the ghosts.

When playing, watch the ghosts closely, and be ready to eat a Power Pill if you move into a corner, as the ghosts can trap you in the circle-like corridors that make up the maze easily and can easily get around. Also, eating all of the digital wafers around the ghosts' lair is essential, as they can be the hardest ones to get.

PrinceWatercress plays ESWAT: City Under Siege - Part 8 of 8

In this entry, we finally meet the mastermind behind E.V.E. and take him down only to unveil a startling revelation...

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Final Mission: Break E.V.E.'s Plan!

You'll have the maximum twelve hit points for this final mission.

Keep walking to the right and firing to take out the human enemies. As for the flying green droids, take them out from a distance. They will fire at you if they see you, and will drop bombs if they are above you.

You'll soon take an elevator platform downwards. Shoot down the human enemies with the rocket launcher, and be ready to avoid the shots from the green droids. When you start seeing nothing but droids, use the burner attack to defeat them all. You'll be able to refill your health at the bottom.

You'll then face the boss: a yellow clone of you! This person has an ICE Combat Suit and the same weapons you have. Equip the Plasma Cannon and keep your distance as you follow the boss around and fire the plasma cannon at it, and don't be directly across from him or he will definitely hit you. When you do enough damage, the boss will also do the burner attack. If you're too close when he fires this off, you're losing a lot of health and possibly dying, forcing you to do this whole level over. Once he uses this attack and you survive, however, it's over. Both of you lose your armor, and the one in charge of E.V.E. was a cyborg this whole time. Thankfully, our hero destroys the cyborg.

You'll also find out that E.V.E. was trying to copy the ICE Combat Suits, but thanks to you, their efforts have failed. You just saved the city and you just beat ESWAT: City Under Siege!

PrinceWatercress plays ESWAT: City Under Siege - Part 7 of 8

You'll be fighting for your life now that you're in E.V.E.'s territory. There will be two minibosses - one that you've faced before - before you face the main boss.

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Mission 7: Destroy Tactical Complex!

Make your way to the right and duck-walk and shoot to take out the human enemies. If any human enemies are above you, they will drop down when you are far enough away from them.

You'll face a few mini-bosses here. The first one is a machine with a spike arm with spiral bits that you don't want to touch any part of as you shoot the five red lights with the plasma cannon. The horizontal cylinder of the arm is safe; it's the swirly drill bit parts and the spikes themselves that you don't want to come in contact with.

After you beat this mini-boss, head left. You'll eventually have to go up. Follow the path and get whatever power-ups you can get your hands on along the way. Keep shooting to the right to push the giant moving wall back. Once you're able to go up near the wall, do that, head left and don't stop. 

Duck walk on the elevator to avoid the lasers. Shot down the enemies on your way down (be careful). At the bottom, shoot down the three turrets to get the boxes out of the way.

Avoid the black balls as you make your way up. Jump on the yellow platform to the left and follow it, then shoot upwards with the plasma cannon to take out the enemy waiting for you. Go left, and when you drop down, watch out for the lasers and use the jetpack to not only avoid them, but to get some health and a 1-Up.

Head left for health and a full burner, and watch out for the spikes that drop down. If you went straight for the health, they didn't hurt you. Otherwise...

Duck walk back to the right and take the right path. Duck walk and shoot the enemies, then use the jetpack to go up. Avoid the moving walls as you get to the teleporter at the top. There is a teleporter below it, but you can jump over it to get the nearby health and then jump over it again to get back to the top. Walking straight into a teleporter will activate it.

Ride the teleporter up, then go right. Shoot the turret above with the plasma cannon, then jump over the gap in the moving wall. 

At the end, keep facing right. You'll face the Round 2 boss again. Same strategies apply, but you have better guns now. Use the Super Shot.

You'll then drop down to face the real boss. Shoot at the laser cannons with the plasma cannon while staying all the way to the side and ducking, and you'll soon face the second phase. The dome at the top will be the weak spot now. Stay close to the boss, and when it leaps into the air, walk under it, then shoot the dome at the top after it lands. As long as you can get two shots per pass, you shouldn't have much of a problem.

PrinceWatercress plays ESWAT: City Under Siege - Part 6 of 8

This level will really, really trip you up if you're not careful.

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There is a top path and a bottom path. You'll want to watch out for missile silos that shoot out missiles on either of them. The bottom path is a little bit safer, but not always. Move slowly as you go through this level so you can see stuff coming.

The missile turrets that pop out of the bottom path shoot the top missile first, followed by the bottom missile. Shoot down the missiles, then shoot down the turret.

The robots on the bottom path will leap towards, but their hops are low and you can easily shoot them down.

Watch the sewer openings in the background for slimes on the lower path; they will bounce around and follow you. It is best to take them down as they drop onto the lower path. If they latch on, you'll need to move the D-Pad back and forth to shake them loose.

The red droid that pops up and constantly fires is easy to take out with the plasma cannon. Just charge it up while ducking down to avoid being shot, then fire away.

The turrets on the upper path that fire downwards at the lower path are indestructible; just walk past them while avoiding their projectiles.

As always, watch out for human enemies. At least you can duck their bullets.

The boss here is some sort of robotic work with a drill bit for a head and a bunch of eyes on its body. Equip the Plasma Cannon and shoot fully-charged shots at the eyes. Keep to the left at first, then jetpack to the upper-right corner and drop to the lower-right. Face left, duck down and shoot with the Shot or the Super Shot. After the worm shows up again, get to the upper-left corner, then drop down and get under the boss, and watch out for those blue ring projectiles. You'll then have to repeat the movement pattern to keep this thing from touching you, but you should be fine. Once you destroy all the eyes, this one's over.

PrinceWatercress plays ESWAT: City Under Siege - Part 5 of 8

It's now time to take on the hardest level in the game...so far.

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Mission 5: Destroy Dark Base!

You now have ten hit points.

Shortly after the beginning, you'll see a dark shadow of a large robot. It will move away, and if you get too close to it, you will take damage.

There will be a maze-like path after that, and there will be others like it throughout the level. In these paths, you'll also have to use your jetpack to fly around and get to where you need to go, and you'll also need to shoot down some walls. There are two types of flashing lights throughout these paths; one is light blue and green and will refill your burner when you stand on them, while the other is red and will damage you as you touch it. (Interestingly, the red ones also refill your burner; thanks beneaththetrees0.)

After the first maze-like path, charge up the plasma cannon and head right. You'll meet the dark shadow again. You'll need to aim upwards and shoot at the shadow as it moves around, and you'll also have to avoid and shoot down the other robots. If you're quick, you won't have to deal with those other robots at all. Once you get that shot in, the shadow retreats and the background will light up, and you can continue.

After the second maze-like path, you'll have to jump on moving platforms to get further down. The platforms with the down arrow do not have the lights on the top; you'll want to keep leaping on those to slowly descend. Use your jetpack to make this easier. After this, you can refill your health and burner and go down another maze-like path, this time with moving walls.

To take out the one wall in the ceiling, you'll have to run into it repeatedly. Firing the rocket launcher may also help, assuming you have it. From here, keep heading left to get your health and burner energy back, then drop down and avoid the guys that are flying back and forth. 

The dark shadow will soon show up once again. You'll need to use the jetpacks to get by and destroy the blocks that fly in from the right side of the screen to avoid the death floor below. If any blocks have a solid red core, you can shoot them down to fully refill the burner meter so you can keep using the jetpack.

From here, you'll need to drop down and jump on the platform to ride it. You'll need to use the jetpack to get past some walls, and you'll also need to be ready to shoot down some brown guys that fly around and shoot at you. Some of them drop weapons, but they will be hard to get your hands on.

At the end, you'll enter a chamber where your ICE Combat Suit will turn red, giving you infinite energy for the burner. To beat the dark shadow, which finally reveals itself, equip the plasma cannon and stay in the lower-right corner. Watch the top of the screen for lasers so they don't hit you, and shoot at the gray-colored core that looks like an idea in the middle of the large robot. If you're patient and paying attention, you can defeat the boss.