My 100 Most Favorite Video Games of All Time #95: Activision Hits Remixed

Many of the reasons why I like Activision Hits Remixed are similar to why I enjoy Atari Classics Evolved.  There is something pure about playing the classics from a time when the only storyline that really existed was in a manual and where it was wave after wave of things to shoot.  The games were simple and addictive and no company was better at that than Activision.  It always aimed high … and often succeeded.

I’m not sure what makes these classic games like Demon Attack, Pitfall, Barnstorming and Stampede “remixed,” but it could be the fact that the soundtrack is all ‘80s music.  Of course, there are a few different modes you can play them in, too, but the best way to enjoy them is not in black and white, but in their original color scheme. 

Activision not only gives us the games here (over 40 of them, actually), but also the manuals (usually kind of interesting to read) and the boxes, many of which were enticing, solid works of art.  As all Activision fans of that era know, the box art never lived up to the games inside, but you always held out hope.  Frankly, it rarely mattered because the games were just plain fun to play.

Some of the games collected here have individually made it onto my list for one reason or another.  Putting collections like this on my list almost seems like a cheat, too, but I stand by it.  Having all these games in one place in a handheld is like being a kid in a candy store.  It is overload of the best sort.  And you get to hear Wall of Voodoo while roping cattle.  How cool is that?

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: I paid for this game.  Clicking on a link may earn me a commission.

My 100 Most Favorite Video Games of All Time # 97: Robot Tank

What wasn’t there to love about Activision’s 1983 Battlezone “homage” Robot Tank?  You commanded (remotely) a tank and your mission was to seek out enemy tanks and blow them to bits before they could reach … Santa Clara, California!  Of course, they shot back at you, and if they hit you lost some control of your tank or if it were a direct hit, totally lost the tank.  As if that weren’t enough (and in those days, that was often all you got), this game came with changing weather conditions and a transition from day to night.  That innovation is what caused me to purchase the game in the first place.  I figured it would make tank destroying fun, and it did, but what I didn’t realize is that it would also make me very, very nervous. 


Shooting tanks is great, but when your video screen and radar goes out at night and the screen goes black periodically, you can’t help but feel a bit tense when you hear another unseen tank unleash some hell in your direction.  You could try backpedalling or turning, but you didn’t know if you are turning into or away from the shot.  You also had to take whatever shot you could in those rare moments when you could see what was on your screen and hope for the best.  Today’s military has it so much easier.

Graphically, the game was fairly minimalist.  It was Atari back in the early ‘80s, so that is a given.  The graphics, however, still served the game well, though the outskirts of Santa Clara could have been the outskirts of any town anywhere.  Since you were supposed to be remotely controlling a tank, the graphics actually made a bit of sense as you could imagine that what you saw on your television is what you would have seen if you were really commanding a robot tank back in the early ‘80s. 

I’ve played this game again recently, just to revisit it.  I have to say that while it seems less intense these days (or perhaps my nerves are deadened from years of Candoor Root abuse), it still holds up fairly well.  Granted, there are better combat games that have come along, but back then this was about as good as it got for your home console when it came to tanks blasting the snot out of each other.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer:  I paid for this freakin' game.  Clicking on a link may earn me a commission.

My 100 Most Favorite Video Games of All Time #98: Kaboom!

Kaboom! was one of those games that played better than it led you to believe.  It had lackluster box cover art of a stereotypical criminal type dropping bombs off the roof of a building.  There was truth in advertising there, too, as that is what the game consisted of – a criminal dropping bombs that you had to catch in one of your three buckets.  As the game progressives the bombs drop faster and more erratically.  It was a scenario lifted directly from real life … or a cartoon.

My neighbor had this game, and I avoided playing it for quite some time despite his insistence that I would “love” it.  The game’s box turned me off that much, and even the act of watching him play it made me want to avert my eyes.  Finally, after much convincing, I gave it a reluctant whirl.  I sucked horribly at it, as to be expected, but I soon found my skill progressing.  Catching bombs became, like the activities of most Activision games of that time period (early 1980s), strangely addictive. 

The game also had a bit of subtlety which caught my attention:  When you missed a bomb, the criminal’s face changed.  That is a standard type of touch in today’s games, but back then it was not, and it was that little thing that made this game stick out in my mind.  Well, that and the fact that you weren’t doing anything to the criminal, as you would in most games.  You weren’t shooting at him.  You weren’t trying to catch him.  You were merely trying to survive the onslaught of bombs, and he had personality.

Kaboom! was a simple game with simple graphics, a simple title and a simple idea.  Sometimes simplicity is all you need to make a fun game, though.  Compare this to Desert Falcon and you’ll know what I mean.

Mandatory FTC Disclaimer: I may earn a commission if you click on a link.

Pixelated Rawhide

First, you may have noticed the new masthead.  It is courtesy of Felix Vasquez, Jr., who does the Cinema Crazed site.  I thank him.  Gotta love Missile Command.  Speaking of other Atari 2600 classics ... Stampede.  1981.  Activision.  Oh yeah, it didn't get better than Activision in those days.

Stampede was an underrated game in its day.  In 1981 nobody wanted to play a game where you were a cowboy.  That was "old."  You had to be fighting aliens or something at least current, like communists.  Now, however, you can see the genius behind the game.

The premise is simple: lasso various cattle (the different colors were different points).  Your horse moved and so did the cattle.  You would direct your horse and rider up or down and try your best not to bypass any cows.  When you first start out you can bypass three cows before the game is over.  There are obstacles set in your way, too, like skulls and cows that don't move.  These things serve to slow you up.

As with all the most addictive games, simple is better.  The cows move at various speeds, but there is a pattern to it, so if you memorize the pattern, you can rack up some impressive points (and get those patches Activision gave out). 

I've been playing the game on my PSP with Activision Hits Remixed (and have been very tempted to turn off that '80s soundtrack).  As far as I can tell, it holds up well to the original, though I never owned the game and only played it at a friend's house. 

If this game were to be remade today it would be needlessly complicated.  I believe it could be easily translated to an iPhone, however, if it hasn't been so already.  Its very nature makes it a great game for passing time while waiting for the cable guy to show up or something.

Robot Tank, Mofos!

I have been playing Robot Tank like mad on my PSP.  Originally released on the Atari 2600, this Activision game actually kind of kicks ass.

Activision was my favorite video game company back in the day.  I don't remember if I had this game back in the 1980s, but I'm glad I have it now courtesy of Activision Hits Remixed.  As far as those old video games go, this one is kind of advanced.

First, you have to ignore that your journey to Santa Clara, California takes you through rain, fog and snow all in the course of a few days.  It just isn't likely, but it does show that Activision was dedicated to throwing in different environments in which to destroy tanks.  Fog cut visibility.  Rain and snow affected your movement.

Another interesting and rare feature was damage.  In early video games, a hit destroyed you.  That can happen here, too, but an indirect hit can affect your visuals (screen goes black at random), your cannon (it only works sometimes), radar (essential in the dark and in fog and if your visuals go out), or treads (which lets you move only at a snail's pace).  It leads to some fairly intense action ... for an old video game.

I could see this game being remade today with updated graphics and the like, but quite honestly, this one still presents a challenge as you traverse the elements and go from day to night.  For an Atari 2600 game it is fairly advanced.  By today's standards it is something to do while waiting in line somewhere.  That said, I'm having a hard time putting down, as I'm trying to reach the goal of 60 tanks destroyed.  I've made it to 58.  I will hit 60 and probably unlock a patch or something (Activision used to award them as prizes).  Then I'll move onto the other games in the package and probably go through some nostalgia.  I doubt many will hold up as well as this one, though.