''Medieval Mayhem'' is a 2006 game developed for the

Atari 2600 The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) from its release until November 1982, is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocessor- ...

console as an updated version of the 1980

Atari, Inc. Atari, Inc. was an American video game developer and home computer company founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. Atari was a key player in the formation of the video arcade and video game industry. Based primarily around the Sunny ...

arcade video game ''

Warlords A warlord is a person who exercises military, economic, and political control over a region in a country without a strong national government; largely because of coercive control over the armed forces. Warlords have existed throughout much of h ...

''. It was written by American developer Darrell Spice Jr. and released under his SpiceWare label. David Vazquez and Erik Ehrling provided graphics and music for the game, respectively. ''Warlords'' was first ported to the Atari 2600 in 1981 by game designer

Carla Meninsky Carla Meninsky is a former video game designer and programmer active during the early years of the Atari VCS. Along with Carol Shaw (creator of ''3-D Tic-Tac-Toe'' and ''River Raid''), Meninsky was one of three female engineers at Atari, Inc. to ...

. Spice's version includes elements of the arcade version that were not included in the official 2600 port.

Gameplay

''Medieval Mayhem'' is an action game that features a king in each of the four corners of the screen. Each king is protected by a brick castle. The object of the game is to destroy the opponents' kings by breaking through the walls of the castle with a fireball. Up to four players can play simultaneously; each controls a shield in front of the castle. If there are fewer than four players, the remaining shields are controlled by the computer. At the start of the game (and each round), a "launch dragon" appears and releases a fireball. As the game progresses, additional fireballs appear. A round is complete when three kings have been destroyed, leaving one remaining. The player with the surviving king wins the round, and a knight marches across the screen, carrying the banner of the winning player.

Reception

In a review giving it a 90% rating, ''

Retro Gamer ''Retro Gamer'' is a British magazine, published worldwide, covering retro video games. It was the first commercial magazine to be devoted entirely to the subject. Launched in January 2004 as a quarterly publication, ''Retro Gamer'' soon became ...

'' wrote, "As simple a game as ''Medieval Mayhem'' is in concept, it provides a hugely entertaining multiplayer experience of immense longevity. The colourful graphics and chunky sound are mere icing on the cake of this excellent game, one that deserves to be a part of your collection."

References

External links

Official site
{{Homebrew 2006 video games Action games Atari 2600 homebrew games Atari 2600-only games Atari 2600 games Video games developed in the United States