Sports

SKIING

Activision, Inc.
for Atari VCS
$22.95/$17.50-19.50
1 player
Rating: G
Graphics: 7
Game Play: 7
Longevity: 5

To tell you the truth, we’re not that fond of winter. So we were pleased to find Skiing’s snowy format simple enough for younger players, yet challenging enough to keep our most experienced gamers inside and out of the cold.

Activision’s Skiing gives you the option of racing down either a slalom or downhill course. We chose the former — game 3, switch B. This is the 30-gate “expert” run. You control your skiier’s direction (diagonally or straight down) with the joystick. You must ski through all the gates in the fastest time possible. For each gate your skiier fails to clear, you will be penalized five seconds. If you crash into one of the gate markers or trees, rather than retiring to the lodge for hot chocolate, you rest for one second, then it’s on with the race. (The course is also lined with gray moguls, but they only affect the downhill racing variation.)

The most difficult stretches in the course occur when you have to shift diagonally. The two spots where this is most evident are at gates 19 and 20 — where you have to execute a sharp left and sharp right in succession — and gates 7 and 8 where you must take a long sharp right. Make your turns earlier than you would expect to in these areas of the course — you have to compensate for Atari’s slow joystick response. Making these turns is the only time you should move laterally. Keep your Skier pointed straight down at all other times. This will give you maximum speed and minimize your time.

The graphics of Skiing are typical of Atari sports cartridges. Skiers, gates, and trees are very boxy, though adequately represented for this type of game. And the sound effects are also limited, but we like the “whooshing” sound of passing through Gates. If you break 28.2 seconds, you’re eligible for the Activision Ski Team — not an impossible goal.

VOLLEYBALL

Atari, Inc.
for Atari VCS
$26.95/$20.00-23.00
1 or 2 players
Rating: G
Graphics: 8
Game Play: 8
Longevity: 7

Atari’s designers, tired of taking a beating from George Plimpton in those Mattel ads, went back to the drawing board and this time came up with a winner. Volleyball is indeed superior to Atari’s older sports cartridges in terms of graphics and realism. It’s also easy and fun to play (and no complicated keyboard controls to contend with, George).

The contest takes place on the beach at sunset. The waves pound the coast in the background as the ball casts its shadow on the sand. The rules of play are similar to real-life volleyball: You serve off the wrist from behind the real boundary line; you lose the serve if you knock the ball out of bounds; your players can pass to each other up to three times per turn; you are awarded points only when it’s your serve; and so on. The first player to reach 15 points (and beat the other by at least two points) is the winner.

Whether you’re playing a friend or the computer, your biggest challenge will be positioning your players accurately. Remember: The players need only contact the ball with any part of their bodies to hit it. Pressing the action button on your joystick controller adds velocity to your return, but will send the ball deep out of bounds if you’re close to the net when you hit it. We found that aiming for the shadow of the ball and not the ball itself will give you a more accurate indication of the direction the ball is headed, especially with cross-court shots. And always use your passing ability to “set-up” your shot before slamming it over the net.

Although it will probably never outsell Defender or Pac-Man, Atari’s new Volleyball is certainly a good, basic sports cartridge (with an attractive price) that will appeal to armchair athletes of all skill levels.

GRAND PRIX

Activision, Inc.
for Atari VCS
$31.95/$26.00-29.00
1 player
Rating: G
Graphics: 7
Game Play: 4
Longevity: 4

We advise video race drivers to pass up Activision’s Grand Prix. We like the graphics, but that won’t offset this game’s tedious game play and simple course. Spend the extra few bucks on Atari’s Indy 500.

HOME RUN

Atari, Inc.
for Atari VCS
$19.95/$9.00-13.00
1 or 2 players
Rating: PG
Graphics: 3
Game Play: 3
Longevity: 3

We found Home Run to be nothing like real baseball. You only have three men on your team and you must always run with the ball to tag out a runner — no throwing allowed. The graphics are equally primitive; the players are small and boxy. We’ll pass on this cartridge.

INDY 500

Atari, Inc.
for Atari VCS
$39.95/$30.00-34.00
1 or 2 players
Rating: G
Graphics: 4
Game Play: 6
Longevity: 5

Indy 500 is our driving game choice for the Atari system. We like the inclusion of 14 game variations, representing different courses under varying road and weather conditions. Our favorite is Game 6 — “Crash ‘n Score” — a motorized game of “kick the can.”

NFL FOOTBALL

Mattel, Inc.
for Mattel Intellivision
NA/$25.00-30.00
2 players
Rating: R
Graphics: 8
Game Play: 7
Longevity: 7

The full-color graphics, and intense game strategies of NFL Football are superior to any football cartridge currently available. Each player coaches a five-man team with an arsenal of 160 offensive and ten defensive sets. Reading your playbook is a must.

PBA BOWLING

Mattel, Inc.
for Mattel Intellivision
NA/$25.00-30.00
1 to 4 players
Rating: G
Graphics: 8
Game Play: 3
Longevity: 3

PBA Bowling offers very realistic graphics. And we like the options of lane slickness and ball weight. But when it comes to challenging game play, PBA Bowling throws a gutter ball. If you really like bowling, we suggest that you go to a real bowling alley.

RACQUETBALL

Games by Apollo, Inc.
for Atari VCS
$31.95/$26.00-29.00
1 or 2 players
Rating: PG
Graphics: 6
Game Play: 4
Longevity: 4

The problem with Apollo’s “three-dimensional” Racquetball is that it isn’t completely 3-D. Judging the level of your player and the ball is difficult. And the ball itself casts an odd shadow on the court, making it overly hard to hit. We found Atari’s Volleyball more enjoyable.

TRICK SHOT

Imagic, Inc.
for Atari VCS
$24.95/$19.00-22.00
1 or 2 players
Rating: PG
Graphics: 7
Game Play: 8
Longevity: 7

Don’t pass up Trick Shot — a collection of nine programmed billiards situations. Using your joystick and action button, you can apply “English” to the cue ball for special “trick shots.” And the second game variation contains a complete billiards game.

TURBO

Coleco, Inc.
for ColecoVision
NA/$60.00-70.00
1 player
Rating: R
Graphics: 10
Game Play: 10
Longevity: 8

Turbo, the current “winner” in the video racing circuit, is included in Coleco’s Expansion Module #2 — a plug-in steering wheel and foot-operated accelerator pedal. This is a fast-paced driving test that allows you 99 seconds to pass as many cars as possible.