part0010

Released to stores in January of 1978, the Bally Professional Arcade (later known as the Astrocade) never really took off commercially, but it did develop a strong cult following. This cult appeal was due to a number of factors, including the publication of a fanzine/newsletter called the Arcadian and the ability for players to program their own games for the machine using BASIC computer language. Some of the fan-produced, cassette-based games were even released in cartridge form. The system is also noteworthy for its fast and furious take on such arcade classics as Galaxian , Space Invaders (also released as Astro Battle ), and Wizard of Wor (dubbed The Incredible Wizard ).

With its BASIC language capabilities and built-in, 24-button keypad (which was a serviceable substitute for a computer keyboard), the Professional Arcade was seen by some as a more complex alternative to the Atari 2600. Adding to the system’s sophisticate-friendly allure are its unusual controllers, which are grip handles outfitted with a gun-like trigger and a knob that serves as both joystick and rotary controller. The system was packaged with two control devices, but the console has four controller ports, meaning many of the games offer four-player capabilities. A quartet of games was built into the system: Gunfight , Checkmate , Calculator , and Scribbling .

Now commonly referred to as the Astrocade (or the Bally Astrocade), the Bally Professional Arcade went through a number of name changes over the years. A 1977 ad for the system called it the “Bally Home Library Computer.” In 1981, Astrovision bought the rights to the unit, renamed it the Bally Computer System, and included a BASIC programming cartridge with purchase. In 1982, Astrovision became Astrocade, and the company gave the system the name that has caught on and stayed. Regardless of its title, the Astrocade was an underrated system that should have garnered more mainstream consumer support.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Maze/Board Game, 1 or 2 players (simultaneous). 1979.

A nice, colorized port of Bally Midway’s black and white arcade game (1976), Amazing Maze is fun against the computer or a friend. Each player, one positioned on the right side of the screen and the other on the left, moves a square through a randomly generated castle maze, with the objective being to reach the other player’s starting point. The first to do so is treated to a victory song. Tic-Tac-Toe is a video version of the classic pencil-and-paper game, played against the computer or another gamer.

Astrocade system with two cartridges (one in a slot on top of the system) and one controller. Note that the console dust cover is missing. The Astrocade was a powerful, underrated system that should have been more successful commercially.

PUBLISHER: Astrocade. DEVELOPER: Astrocade. Turn-Based Strategy, 2 players (simultaneous). 1982.

Influenced by Artillery (1980) for the Apple II computer, Artillery Duel for the Astrocade is a highly enjoyable game in which each player commands a gun base. The weapons in question are positioned on opposite sides of the screen, facing one another. Gamers take turns firing back and forth, trying to destroy the other player’s gun. Obstacles, such as trees and hills, must frequently be shot through for the missiles to reach their intended target. When planning a shot, players should take into account a number of factors, including wind velocity, powder charge, and barrel angle. The game has much better detail than the Atari 2600 version and even holds up pretty well when compared to its ColecoVision counterpart (though it is lacking the clouds and background mountains found in the ColecoVision game). Fans of Smithereens! for the Odyssey2 should enjoy Artillery Duel .

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Slide-and-Shoot, 1 player. 1979.

This is the same game as Space Invaders , but without the arcade license.

PUBLISHER: Astrovision. DEVELOPER: Bally. Pinball, 1–4 players (alternating). 1981.

This is the Astrovision release of Bally’s Bally Pin . The games are exactly the same.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Computer Programming, 1 player. 1978.

Packaged with a 116-page instruction manual, Bally BASIC lets players write, run, and save simple BASIC computer language programs. The Astrocade’s 24-button keypad does an admirable job of substituting for a complete computer keyboard, thanks to three operating modes (numbers, letters, and words) and the use of shift buttons that allow up to 52 different characters. A second version of Bally BASIC had a built-in 2000 baud interface and was available separately or packaged with the Arcade Plus release of the Astrocade system.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Pinball, 1–4 players (alternating). 1979.

Bally Pin is a fine pinball simulation, despite the absence of a “nudge” button for shoving the table. The game features two tables, each with four flippers and a solid variety of targets, including bumpers, kicker targets, drop targets (which can double and triple point values), and a spinner. The walls and ceiling above the flippers are worth points as well. Unlike Video Pinball for the Atari 2600 (which is a dismal game, despite the inclusion of a nudge button), Bally Pin lets players catch the ball with the flippers for better aiming. Another neat aspect of the game is that players hold both controllers, with the left trigger operating the left flippers and the right trigger moving the right flippers. Bally Pin was the best console pinball game on the market until Mattel released Pinball for the Intellivision.

PUBLISHER: Astrovision. DEVELOPER: Astrovision. Fortune Teller Simulator, 1 or 2 players (simultaneous). 1981.

Similar to TV Mystic Series: Biorhythm for the RCA Studio II, this game asks players to enter their (or someone else’s) birth date and a date for the chart. Then the computer will quickly configure the person’s supposed mental, physical, and emotional state (via color-coded waves) for that particular day (past or present). Unlike the RCA game, which is good until the year 9,999 A.D., this version “only” charts birth dates through December 31, 2100. On the other hand, the Bally game allows two players to compare their results side by side.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Gambling, 1–4 players (simultaneous). 1979.

The best of the three games in this trio of gambling simulators is Blackjack , which lets players double down on any two cards and split identical pairs. The dealer’s cards are in the middle of the screen, and the aces are poorly drawn, but these are petty gripes. A dumbed down version of the classic card game, Poker loses points for letting the players see each other’s hands. Finally, Acey-Deucey , despite its name, is not similar to the backgammon variation found in the Atari 2600 Backgammon cartridge. Rather, it’s a simple game in which players draw two cards and are dealt a third card. The challenge is to bet on whether or not the third card will fall between the first two. For example: 3, 4, 5, or 6 would fall between 2 and 7.

PUBLISHER: Esoterica. DEVELOPER: Esoterica. Non-Scrolling Shooter, 1 player. 1983.

Blast Droids has players flying a ship around a horizontal arena, firing at alien vessels while being careful to avoid shots that ricochet off of the walls. The ship can rotate, fire, and fly in all directions. Sparse, but colorful visuals give the game a tidy, vector-like appearance, and the action is a nice change of pace from the average Astrocade shooter. Fans of Omega Race should enjoy Blast Droids , but it could use a two-player simultaneous mode.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Educational/Math, 1 player. 1978.

As its title indicates, this program, which is built into the Astrocade system and utilizes its 24-button keypad, acts as a functional calculator for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. It can also figure percentages. Calculator can handle numbers up to 10 digits in length and can store up to 92 lines of numbers. When new calculations are entered, the previous lines scroll upward on the screen.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Action, 1–4 players (simultaneous). 1978.

One of four programs built into the Astrocade console, Checkmate is a colorized port of Midway’s 1977 arcade game of the same name and is similar to Surround for the Atari 2600 and Snafu for the Intellivision. Checkmate lacks the options and diagonal movement of the Atari and Intellivision titles, but more than makes up for it with a fun four-player mode. (The manual mistakenly promises diagonal movement.) Gameplay has each contestant guiding a small, ship-like symbol around the screen, with each symbol leaving a trail in its path. The objective is to stay alive long enough to cause the other player(s) to crash into a trail or the sides of the playfield. The computer-controlled symbols are easy to beat, so multi-player action is recommended.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Ball-and-Paddle, 1–4 players (alternating). 1978.

Brickyard is similar to the Atari 2600 version of Breakout . Both games benefit from arcade-like rotary control (unlike most Breakout ports and clones for various other systems), and both games have stripes across the top of the screen representing brick walls (the individual bricks aren’t outlined as they are in the arcade rendition of Breakout ). The game lets four players select from small or large paddles and slow or fast speed. Adapted from the black and white Bally Midway arcade game (1978), Clowns is a colorized, nicely programmed port that also benefits from rotary control. It is similar to Circus Atari for the 2600, but without the humorously animated clown deaths.

PUBLISHER: Astrocade. DEVELOPER: Action Graphics. Side-Scrolling Shooter, 1–4 players (alternating). 1983.

Cosmic Raiders is similar to Defender in that players pilot a ship over a planet, firing away at fighters and kamikaze ships. There’s even a little radar screen to help players track enemies. However, instead of humanoids to rescue and hyperspace to escape to, there are bombs to destroy and shields (called “energy stars”) that grant temporary invincibility. Ten levels of difficulty are available. One of the two or three best games in the Astrocade library, Cosmic Raiders has intense shooting action, colorful graphics, and a nice assortment of enemies.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Non-Scrolling Shooter, 1 or 2 players (simultaneous). 1980.

A colorized port of the 1978 Bally Midway coin-op semi-classic, Dog Patch is a skeet-shooting game that works best in two-player mode. The screen depicts three men along the bottom of the screen, with the one in the middle hollering (via onscreen text) “Get ready boys” and tossing cans into the air. The men on each side, which are controlled by the players, take aim with their shotguns and fire at the cans. The volleyball-like objective is to keep shooting the can so it stays in the air and ends up on the other player’s side of the screen. Knocking the can over the other marksman awards the player extra points. The knob controls the angle of the gun while the trigger fires the shots.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Educational/Math, 1 or 2 players (simultaneous). 1978.

The select screen and instruction manual for this game refers to Elementary Math as “Speed Math.” Regardless of the title, it’s a one-player game in which the budding mathematician adds, subtracts, multiplies, and divides numbers to complete equations as quickly as possible. Bingo Math is a two-player split screen competition in which each player tries to be the first to answer the equation they are given in order to fill out their respective bingo cards. Both games are simplistic in design, but are useful in helping younger players learn their math facts.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Sports/ Football, 2–4 players (simultaneous). 1978.

Bolstered by a nice musical soundtrack and serviceable graphics, Football for the Astrocade is one of the best gridiron games of the golden age. Players are given 10 offensive plays to select from, and defensive units can choose to cover the receivers or blitz the quarterback. A touchdown is worth seven points, meaning there are no extra points (and no field goals), but there are punts, punt returns, and safeties. In the four-player mode, one player controls the quarterback (the knob aims passes) and a receiver while another player controls a different receiver. On defense, each player controls a cornerback. One interesting feature is the play selection screen, in which a cursor alternates between plays but never stops moving. This lets the gamer select a play without his or her opponent knowing which play has been selected.

PUBLISHER: Astrovision. DEVELOPER: Bally. Slide-and-Shoot, 1–4 players (alternating). 1981.

Although the name was changed due to licensing issues, Galactic Invasion is the same game as Galaxian .

PUBLISHER: Astrovision. DEVELOPER: Bally. Slideand-Shoot, 1–4 players (alternating). 1981.

Galaxian for the Astrocade is faster and more furious than the Namco arcade game (1979) on which it is based, but it has surprisingly few alien invaders per wave. It depicts just 16, as opposed to 48 in the coin-op classic and 35 in the Atari 2600 version. The game is vastly superior to Space Attack , which is the Arcadia 2001’s Galaxian equivalent, and it presents a formidable challenge to even the most seasoned of shooter fans. Best of all, it retains one of the most important, most strategic elements of the original Galaxian , that of diving enemies accompanied by escorts being worth more points than standard enemies.

PUBLISHER: Astrovision. DEVELOPER: Astrovision. Formula-1/Indy Racing/Combat/Demolition Racing, 1–4 players (simultaneous). 1981.

Viewed from an overhead perspective, Grand Prix delivers two types of racing action, the first of which (Grand Prix ) has players cruising around three different tracks (including a figure eight), jockeying for position against three other cars. The game is similar to Sprint 2 (arcade, 1976), but without the oil slicks. Demolition Derby takes place in an arena, and the objective is to ram into other vehicles until a single car remains. Both games offer Atari 2600–like graphics and gameplay.

PUBLISHER: Astrovision. DEVELOPER: Astrovision. Formula-1/Indy Racing/Combat/Demolition Racing, 1–4 players (simultaneous). 1981.

This is the same game as Grand Prix , which also contained Demolition Derby as a selectable title.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Non-Scrolling Shooter, 2 players (simultaneous). 1978.

Similar to Outlaw for the Atari 2600 (but with better graphics), Gunfight has each player guiding an Old West–style gunslinger around the screen, shooting at the other cowboy. The trigger on the controller fires the bullets while the knob aims the gun. Cacti, trees, and a moving covered wagon appear onscreen from time to time, giving the gunslingers something to hide behind, and players should watch out for bullets that bounce off the edges of the playfield. Gunfight , which is one of four programs built into the Astrocade console, is a colorized port of Midway’s 1975 arcade game.

PUBLISHER: Spectre Systems. DEVELOPER: Spectre Systems. Non-Scrolling Shooter, 1–4 players (alternating). 1982.

A clone of the arcade classic Missile Command , I.C.B.M. Attack has players guiding a sight marker around the screen, firing missiles from three bases positioned at the bottom of the screen: one in the middle, one on the right, and one on the left. (In comparison, the Atari 2600 version of Missile Command has just one missile base.) When a missile reaches its destination point, it will explode, destroying nuclear bombs within its range. A Russian bomber, which drops the bombs, can be shot for extra points, and there are six cities along the planet’s surface to protect. The standard control system can be a bit awkward, since the joystick moves the sight marker vertically while the knob moves it horizontally. Spectre did release a special controller along with the cartridge, but both the controller and the game itself are very rare.

PUBLISHER: Astrocade. DEVELOPER: Astrocade. Maze Shooter, 1 or 2 players (simultaneous). 1982.

A marvelous adaptation of Bally Midway’s Wizard of Wor (1981), The Incredible Wizard looks and sounds much better than the Atari 2600 version of the game (which is actually called Wizard of Wor ). The enemy creatures are detailed and don’t blink, they move fast (in harder levels), and the sound effects are highly faithful to their source material (minus the voices, of course). The game even begins with GET READY GO spelled out across the screen. In both home versions, the one-player mode lacks the computer-controlled Worrior found in the coin-op classic. The Incredible Wizard is arguably the best game in the Astrocade library. It’s a blast to run around the different mazes, shooting the oddly shaped creatures. It’s even more fun to shoot the other player.

Four Astrocade game cartridges with accompanying manuals: Seawolf and Missile (containing ports of Sea Wolf and Guided Missile ), Galactic Invasion (a fast take on Galaxian ), The Incred-ible Wizard (an excellent version of Wizard of Wor ), and Astro Battle (a flawed, but fun Space Invaders clone).

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Board Game/Educational/Spelling/Word Puzzle, 1–4 players (simultaneous). 1978.

This trilogy is designed with younger gamers in mind. Letter Match is similar to Hunt & Score for the Atari 2600 in that players take turns trying to match hidden letters that appear behind squares on a numbered grid. Spell ’N Score has players creating as many words as possible using nine letters selected by the computer. In Crosswords , players create words from a list of nine letters and then place those words on a grid. Visually, each game is merely functional (letters, numbers, and squares are about it), but they do achieve their intended goal of making learning fun.

PUBLISHER: Bit Fiddlers. DEVELOPER: Bit Fiddlers. Computer Programming, 1 player. 1982.

This cartridge enables users to program machine language easier and faster (when compared to BASIC), but only within the parameters of the built-in RAM of the Astrocade system.

PUBLISHER: L&M Software. DEVELOPER: Bit Fiddlers. Maze, 1 or 2 players (alternating). 1983.

Introduced by an attractive title screen and a perky rendition of “Good Ship Lollipop,” Ms. Candyman has players guiding the title character around a maze, eating “life savers” while avoiding ghosts. From time to time a goblin, which jumps up and down in a cage, will enter the fray. Up to six enemies can appear onscreen at once. After every second level, players can turn the tables on the ghosts in a bonus round. The cartoon-like characters in this delightful game are colorful and nicely animated. When Ms. Candyman gets nabbed by an enemy, she plummets to the bottom of the screen and gets hauled off by a wrecker or an ambulance. This game was the sequel to the cassette-based Candyman and was obviously influenced by Ms. Pac-Man , but nevertheless offers its own brand of fun.

PUBLISHER: Esoterica. DEVELOPER: Action Graphics. Maze, 1 or 2 players (alternating). 1983.

Originally titled “Pac-Man” but never released under that name (thanks to litigation by Atari), Muncher is indeed a very nice port of Midway’s 1980 arcade game. The graphics are a little blocky, and the maze is a lighter shade of blue, but these things can easily be overlooked. Players guide the famous yellow gobbler around a maze, munching dots while avoiding four ghosts. Eating one of four energizers found in each corner of the screen lets players turn the tables on the ghosts for a short time. Not surprisingly, the animated intermissions from the Pac-Man arcade game are absent. Due to its limited release, Muncher is a highly sought after game by collectors, who should take note that a “Muncher” label was never made for the game. Cartridges containing the Muncher program are marked “Test Programme” or “Demo.”

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Tank Shooter/Non-Scrolling Shooter, 2–4 players (simultaneous). 1978.

This two-game cartridge is similar to Combat for the Atari 2600, but with a four-player mode and fewer options overall. Panzer Attack has two to four players piloting their tanks within an arena, maneuvering around walls while trying to shoot the other tanks. Red Baron , the better looking of the two games (it has clouds and detailed vehicles), is a World War I dogfight, with two players (seen from a side-view perspective) trying to shoot each other’s biplane out of the sky.

PUBLISHER: Astrocade. DEVELOPER: Astrocade. Maze, 1 or 2 players (simultaneous). 1982.

Played on a 9 by 17 grid (which is called “Pirate’s Island”), Pirate’s Chase has the player guiding his or her character (represented by a plus symbol) around the screen, picking up gold doubloons. Each level also has a single treasure found in the center of the playfield. Treasures include: a gold ring, an engraved sword, a priceless gem, a chalice of pure silver, and a treasure chest. Making the job difficult is the spirit of Long John Silver (represented by a skull and crossbones), which chases the player around the island, paying special attention to the treasure in the middle. In the two-player mode, gamers compete for the highest point total. The second player’s character is represented by an X.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Art, 1–4 players (simultaneous). 1978.

Built into the Astrocade console, Scribbling is a simple art program that lets up to four players draw pictures, letters, numbers, designs, and other images on the screen. The joystick moves the cursor in eight directions while the knob increases the size of the cursor and changes its color from white (which is basically an eraser, since the playfield is white) to green to red to blue. Scribbling is similar to Doodle for the RCA Studio II.

PUBLISHER: L&M Software. DEVELOPER: Bit Fiddlers. Side-Scrolling Shooter, 1 player. 1983.

Sea Devil , which is basically Cosmic Raiders underwater, has players piloting a ship back and forth under the deep blue sea, protecting food stores (which lie along the bottom of the ocean) while shooting multicolored divers, submarines, octopi, jellyfish, and other nicely animated denizens of the deep. Players must also contend with mines dropped by poachers. Radar at the top of the playfield helps gamers keep track of off-screen enemies. Nice graphics and solid gameplay make this third-party release a nice pickup for shooter fans.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Slide-and-Shoot, 1 or 2 players (simultaneous). 1979.

Seawolf and Bombardier is the re-release of Seawolf and Missile , but is much harder to find.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Slide-and-Shoot, 1 or 2 players (simultaneous). 1978.

Based on Midway’s Sea Wolf arcade game (1976), which was equipped with a periscope for viewing the action and aiming the torpedoes, Seawolf gets by using the Astrocade’s standard knob controller. In this game, each player moves a submarine along the bottom of the screen, firing torpedoes at tankers, battleships, and P.T. boats that pass by near the top of the playfield. Mines floating about can be destroyed, but aren’t worth any points. Missile has a similar concept, but each player can only move on their half of the screen, and missiles can be guided with the joystick (toward cargo planes, bombers, and fighters). Missile is based on Midway’s Guided Missile (1977), but is missing a number of elements, including trucks to shoot and descending missiles to guide. Both Seawolf and Missile allow players to set the game timer (up to 9 minutes and 99 seconds), and both are far superior in two-player mode as gamers compete to shoot down the most targets. Fans of Air-Sea Battle for the Atari 2600 will enjoy this cartridge.

PUBLISHER: New Image. DEVELOPER: New Image. Non-Scrolling Shooter, 1 or 2 players (alternating). 1983.

This Centipede clone has players guiding a gun around the bottom portion of the screen, firing upward at segmented centipedes (despite the title, the creatures don’t look like snakes) that crawl down through a forest of mushrooms (which can also be shot). A spider hopping around should also be destroyed and/or avoided. What the programmers forgot to include was the other important elements of Centipede : fleas, poison mushrooms, and scorpions. At least the mushrooms are mushroom-shaped (as opposed to rectangular, like in the Atari 2600 version of Centipede ).

PUBLISHER: Astrocade. DEVELOPER: Astrocade. Non-Scrolling Shooter, 1–4 players (alternating). 1983.

One of the best games in the Astrocade library, Solar Conqueror has players piloting an Asteroids -like ship around the screen, shooting at kamikaze combat ships, ground-based missile launchers (which can rebuild themselves), space rocks, and killer satellites. The object is to destroy the defenses of the planet (effectively destroying the planet itself), which is partially depicted on the right side of the screen. When players advance to the next solar system, the ship jumps to light speed, producing a visual effect similar to that found in the Star Wars movies. Excellent controls, rapid-fire shooting action, and colorful graphics add up to sheer gaming goodness.

PUBLISHER: Astrovision. DEVELOPER: Astrovision. Non-Scrolling Shooter, 1–4 players (alternating). 1981.

A nice port of Midway’s Space Zap arcade game (1980), Space Fortress puts players in command of a lonely outpost in a distant galaxy. As fireballs, alien ships, and kamikaze ships approach the centrally located fortress from all sides, players must fire lasers from the fortress to destroy the incoming invasion. The graphics in Space Zap are sleeker and less blocky than those found in Space Fortress , but the game nevertheless looks colorful and cool. The four-way firing system is similar to the first screen in Cosmic Ark for the Atari 2600, but Space Fortress is more enjoyable and has better explosions.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Slide-and-Shoot, 1 player. 1979.

Space Invaders for the Astrocade is a fun, but incomplete port of Taito’s 1978 coin-op classic. There are just 32 aliens per wave (as opposed to 55), but that’s somewhat excusable given the limited nature of a classic console when compared to an actual arcade game. Where the problem lies is in the game’s ending. Naturally, the game is over if one or more invaders reach the bottom of the screen or if all the missile bases are destroyed. However, the game will also end if the player defeats a mere six waves of enemies. (This is reminiscent of Alien InvadersPlus! for the Odyssey2, which is beatable, but shouldn’t be.) In addition, the enemies are less distinctive than their arcade cousins, and the missile bases are narrower, making it easier to dodge enemy fire. On a more positive note, Space Invaders for the Astrocade does redeem itself somewhat by including a professional mode of play, which is virtually impossible to beat.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Non-Scrolling Shooter, 1 or 2 players (simultaneous). 1979.

Star Battle looks and plays like a Star Wars game, but without the licensing arrangement. The action takes place down a pseudo–3D, Death Star–like tunnel, with one player piloting an X-Wing wannabe while the other player commandeers a TIE Fighter look-alike. The objective is a simple one: to shoot each other down. In the one-player mode, the computer controls the “TIE Fighter.” Unlike Star Strike for the Intellivision (and unlike the famous scene at the end of Star Wars ), there are no ground-based targets to worry about. Star Battle is something of a challenge, but the action is limited in both scope and entertainment value.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Sports/ Baseball/Ball-and-Paddle, 2–4 players (simultaneous). 1978.

The Tornado Baseball portion of this cartridge is a colorized port of Midway’s 1976 arcade game of the same name. The action is simplistic in nature overall, but players can swing the bat, control the speed and curve of pitches, and move the outfielders right and left to try and catch the ball. The computer controls the infielders, and where the ball is hit automatically determines how far the runners advance. Tennis , Hockey , and Handball are simple Pong variations.

PUBLISHER: Esoterica. DEVELOPER: Spectre Systems. Action/Adventure, 1 player. 1983.

An audio/visual extravaganza with a three-part soundtrack and a colorful, beneath-the-sea view, Treasure Cove puts players in the role of a diver, collecting treasure from the bottom of the ocean and taking it to a ship floating along the surface. Turtles, poisonous fish, octopi, and other nicely drawn sea creatures must be avoided, and players must also contend with a limited oxygen supply. Treasure Cove is a good example of why the Astrocade should have been home to more third-party releases.

PUBLISHER: Bally. DEVELOPER: Bally. Sports Car Racing, 1 player. 1978.

Based on Midway’s Datsun 280 Zzzap arcade game (1976), 280 Zzzap is similar to Night Driver for the Atari 2600, but without the oncoming cars and roadside scenery. Players speed down twisting, turning roads, which are marked by posts. Hitting a post results in a full-screen “POW!” or “ZORK!” or other exclamation. The coin-op version of Zzzap had a steering wheel and black and white graphics, but in this port, a standard joystick is used, and the hood of the car (which is all players see of the vehicle) is in color. Dodgem , not to be confused with the maze-like Atari 2600 game of the same name, is a decent top-down view racer in which players drive up the screen, moving their car back and forth to avoid hitting slower cars. In both games, the objective is to travel as many miles as possible within the allotted period of time (up to 10 minutes).