Don't let me get started talking about the endless virtues of that mother of all home video game systems, the Atari 2600. I've made entire rooms full of insurance salesmen hang themselves with their brown ties with that particular tirade. Remember, without the Atari 2600, there would be no Super Nintendo, no Sega Genesis, and no Frunobulax 40,000 Turbo or whatever the next home system rage turns out to be. The Atari 2600 may not have opened the home video game market, but it sure as hell popularized it beyond anyone's expectations. Remember kiddies, before there was Mario there was Pac-Man, and before Donkey Kong Country there was Donkey Kong. History cannot be ignored.
But it can be repeated. And imitated. How many games being produced today are descendants of old 2600 mainstays? Pac-Man, Defender, Frogger, and the like have made an indelible impression on the video game market. Sometimes imitations can live up to the game they replicate (and once in a while can even surpass it), but most times they end up being tired clones that make you wish you were playing the real thing, the original. Well, thanks to Activision, you can. Thanks to Windows 3.1 (Sarcastic laughter has been edited. All hail the High Master Bill Gates. Klatu Verata Necktie.) and the miracles of modern technology, it is now possible to get your $3000 Pentium to perform like a decade-old system that sold for $150 at its peak. That's not a bad thing; it's a good thing. Activision can provide you with the means to play some of your favorite 2600 games again, same as they ever were.
The second Atari 2600 Action Pack from Activision carries on the tradition started with the first Atari 2600 Action Pack from Activision. No big surprise there. Were you expecting a graphics overhaul? A revolutionary new interface? If so, please seek professional help, you loony person. You open a program group. All the cool old games are there. You pick one. Just about as simple as slapping a cartridge into a slot and flipping the power switch. (Actually, I used to know kids who had chronic problems with that particular procedure. Years later, many of them are still in junior high.)
The games selection in this second 2600 Action Pack is not as star-studded as the first package. That collection brought Pitfall, River Raid, and Kaboom home to your Windows desktop, along with a host of other Activision titles from the 1.25-bit era. (The previous figure was computed on a Pentium.) This second collection of fifteen games has only one title that comes close to the notoriety of those other classics: Megamania. Practically anyone who has ever owned a 2600 can remember blasting away at endless hordes of bow ties, tires, irons, and other miscellaneous items we all take for granted until they take up arms and come after us. (Personally, I've always thought the dice look like gobs of chocolate chip cookie dough. Chocolate chip cookie dough with a serious attitude.) Like most 2600 games, Megamania extolled simplicity as a virtue. Not that they had much choice.
Part of the fun of these Action Packs is that they give us a chance to discover cartridges that we passed up the first time around, and sometimes this discovery can yield some gems. I've never been a big sports fan (the only sports carts I owned way back when were Pele's Soccer and Trick Shot), so I never even looked twice at Activision's sports lineup. Big mistake on my part. Three sports games are included in the second Action Pack: Ice Hockey, Skiing, and Tennis. I was surprised to find how much I like these games. Sure, the stats are a little weak, but you have to expect that sort of thing. In fact, I'm hard pressed to find a modern tennis game that's as much fun as Activision's old 2K title.
Of course, in any collection there's bound to be a few dogs, and this one is no exception. Barnstorming never won any popularity contests, but I'll bet that anyone who picks up this collection will have no trouble singing its praises once they compare it to Dragster. Dragster is a racing game with no track. That says something right there. As far as racing games go, it's certainly no Enduro. Fortunately, Enduro is included in the Pack, so you can play it instead of Dragster. You will be eternally grateful.
If you've ever thought back to the heyday of the 2600 and thought, "Those were the days," the second Atari 2600 Action Pack is a collection you simply can't do without. If you don't remember the 2600's heyday, you're far too young to read this and should stop now before you become hopelessly confused. Oops, too late; I'm done. To sum up:
Atari 2600 Action Pack 2 from Activision. Like cool old games? Here they are. Get it. Groovy.
