''Megamania'' is an
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- ...
game by
Steve Cartwright and published by
Activision
Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
in 1982. Versions were released for the
Atari 5200
The Atari 5200 SuperSystem or simply Atari 5200 is a home video game console introduced in 1982 by Atari, Inc. as a higher-end complement for the popular Atari Video Computer System. The VCS was renamed to the Atari 2600 at the time of the 5200' ...
and
Atari 8-bit family
The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers introduced by Atari, Inc. in 1979 as the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The series was successively upgraded to Atari 1200XL , Atari 600XL, Atari 800XL, Atari 65XE, Atari 130XE, Atari 800XE, ...
in 1983. ''Megamania'' is similar to
Sega
is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, r ...
's 1981 arcade title ''
Astro Blaster
''Astro Blaster'' is a space-themed fixed shooter released in arcades by Sega in 1981. It was designed and programmed by Gary Shannon and Barbara Michalec. The game uses speech synthesis and during attract mode a voice says "Fighter pilots n ...
''. Both games have nearly identical patterns of approaching enemies with the player relying on an "energy" meter. The player's ships are remarkably similar in both games.
The game took Cartwright six months to initially develop and another three months to fine-tune.
The band
The Tubes
The Tubes are a San Francisco-based rock band. Their eponymous 1975 debut album included the single "White Punks on Dope," while their 1983 single "She's a Beauty" was a top-10 U.S. hit and its music video was frequently played in the early day ...
performed a ''Megamania''
theme song
Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at so ...
in a 1982 television commercial advertising the Atari 2600 version of the game.
Gameplay
''Megamania'' gameplay resembles that of ''
Astro Blaster
''Astro Blaster'' is a space-themed fixed shooter released in arcades by Sega in 1981. It was designed and programmed by Gary Shannon and Barbara Michalec. The game uses speech synthesis and during attract mode a voice says "Fighter pilots n ...
'', but rather than being
aliens
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrate ...
or
spaceships the enemies are various objects such as
hamburger
A hamburger, or simply burger, is a food consisting of fillings—usually a patty of ground meat, typically Ground beef, beef—placed inside a sliced bun or bread roll. Hamburgers are often served with cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles ...
s,
bow tie
The bow tie is a type of necktie. A modern bow tie is tied using a common shoelace knot, which is also called the bow knot for that reason. It consists of a ribbon of fabric tied around the collar of a shirt in a symmetrical manner so that th ...
s, and
steam irons. The object is to shoot them down before the energy bar at the bottom of screen is depleted, all while avoiding the oncoming enemies and their own projectile attacks. Each of the enemies fly in select patterns and as soon as they hit the bottom of the screen, they re-appear at the top until shot by the player. The player's spacecraft depicted in the game is a cross between the
U.S.S. ''Enterprise'' and
Klingon battlecruiser from the ''
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
'' universe.
Scoring
The first cycle scores 20 to 90 points in 10 point increments each round for each object defeated; after the first cycle, every object destroyed scores 90 points. Once a wave is cleared, the player scores bonus points equal to the value of the object times the number of energy units remaining.
Every 10,000 points gives the player an extra life; the player can have no more than six extra lives in stock at a time.
If a player exceeds a score of 999,999 the game ends.
Patch
Anyone who scored above 45,000 points could send Activision a picture of their screen receive an "Official Megamaniac" emblem.
Ports
''Megamania'' was ported to the
Atari 8-bit family
The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers introduced by Atari, Inc. in 1979 as the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The series was successively upgraded to Atari 1200XL , Atari 600XL, Atari 800XL, Atari 65XE, Atari 130XE, Atari 800XE, ...
and
Atari 5200
The Atari 5200 SuperSystem or simply Atari 5200 is a home video game console introduced in 1982 by Atari, Inc. as a higher-end complement for the popular Atari Video Computer System. The VCS was renamed to the Atari 2600 at the time of the 5200' ...
by
Glyn Anderson
Glyn Anderson has designed, programmed, and managed the production of video games starting with the Intellivision console. A musician as well as a programmer, he wrote the cross-platform sound and music driver used on many Activision games betwe ...
. The ports add a title screen and more detailed enemies, plus the names of the enemies listed in the manual have changed. There are "
ice cream sandwich
An ice cream sandwich is a frozen dessert consisting of ice cream between two biscuits, skins, wafers, or cookies. The ingredients are different around the world, with Ireland and Israel using wafers, and North America using chocolate cookies.
...
es" instead of "cookies," "
refrigerator magnet
A refrigerator magnet or fridge magnet is a small magnet, often attached to an artistic or whimsical ornament, which may be used to post items such as shopping lists, Christmas cards, child art or reminders on a refrigerator door, or which sim ...
s" instead of "bugs," and "diamond rings" instead of "diamonds."
Reception
The original Atari 2600 version of ''Megamania'' received an award for "Most Humorous Home Arcade Game" at the 4th annual
Arkie Awards
An electronic game is a game
A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as pro ...
.
''Video'' magazine reviewed the Atari 8-bit version in 1984, describing it "hardly different" in terms of gameplay from the original Atari 2600 version, but emphasizing its "visually enhanced" graphics that allow players "to clearly distinguish what each wave of attacking objects is supposed to represent".
''
Computer and Video Games
''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website ...
'' rated it 80% in 1989.
Legacy
The Atari 2600 version is included with ''
Activision Anthology
''Activision Anthology'' is a compilation of most of the Atari 2600 games by Activision for various game systems. It also includes games that were originally released by Absolute Entertainment and Imagic, as well as various Homebrew (video games), ...
'' (2002). A visually updated version is part of ''Arcade Zone'' for the
Wii
The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
(2009).
See also
*''
Spider Fighter
''Spider Fighter'' is a fixed shooter designed by Larry Miller for the Atari 2600 and published by Activision in 1982. According to the manual, Miller was "the newest addition to the Activision design team." He went on to create the Atari 2600 ra ...
''
*''
Threshold'', another game inspired by ''Astro Blaster''
*
List of Atari 2600 games
This is a list of games for the Atari Video Computer System, a console renamed to the Atari 2600 in November 1982. Sears licensed the console and many games from Atari, Inc., selling them under different names. A few cartridges were Sears exclu ...
*
List of Activision games: 1980–1999
References
External links
''Megamania''for the Atari 2600 at Atari Mania
*{{IAg, atari_2600_megamania_-_a_space_nightmare_1982_activision_steve_cartwright_ax-017_, platform=Atari 2600
1982 video games
Atari 8-bit family games
Activision games
Atari 2600 games
Atari 5200 games
Fixed shooters
Video games designed by Steve Cartwright
Video games developed in the United States