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ATARI BYTES

Remember those great Atari 2600 games? I have fond memories of playing classics like Pitfall or Yar's Revenge or River Raid. In this podcast, I take another look at the games, but as a writer, not a gamer. When I think of these games now, I see writing prompts; taking inspiration from the game plots or maybe even the titles to create original short stories. But this isn't simply fan fiction. The stories, more often than not, spin-off into some weird places in all kinds of genres. Sometimes funny, occasionally serious, always unique.
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Now displaying: April, 2017

Remember those great Atari 2600 games? Sure, they were fun to play, but didn't you ever wonder why they sent a plumber to take out Donkey Kong? What Yar was seeking revenge against? What the Defender was defending or why those robots went Berserk? Me too! ATARI BYTES is a game review podcast like no other. We review not just the game play, but the STORY within these classic games. We take a BYTE out of the story (get it?) and see if that story BYTES us back (now do you get it?).

Apr 23, 2017

On episode 66 of ATARI BYTES, we're gonna BREAK...OUT. Mighty mighty. Gonna let it all hang out...

And by IT, we mean the 1978 Atari original BREAKOUT. It's a game about smashing bricks and...well, smashing more bricks.

And providing the ying to our gaming yang, we also have a Lego correspondent in the studio giving a play-by-play of his assembly of a stack of Lego bricks into...well, you'll just have to listen to find out.

Thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons use of his songs "Reformat", "Pinball Spring" and "Take  Chance".

Atari Bytes show notes, links and more.

It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown

Check out cool Atari Bytes stuff you can own at Zazzle.com

Consider supporting the show financially at our Patreon page.

Apr 16, 2017

Join us for episode 65 featuring the debut of what we expect will become a recurring segment on the show: Conversation Bytes!

Our guinea pig guest for this new interview segment is Scott Rhoades, fiction author and longtime writer of technical manuals - including manuals for games like BasketBrawl and Shanghai on the Atari 7800 and the Lynx during a stint with Atari in the 1980s and '90s. Thanks for chatting with me, Scott!

My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons use of his songs "Pinball Spring", "Reformat" and "Take a Chance".

Atari Bytes links, show notes and more can be found here!

It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown show notes, episodes and more are here.

Consider helping the show out financially on our Patreon here.

Check out cool mugs, shirts and more in our Zazzle.com store AB_Pod_Store.

Apr 9, 2017

See the flag. Capture the flag. It's all in the name.

Our subject this week is: FLAG CAPTURE, a flag-ship game (see what I did there?) for Atari, being one of the first eleven games released in 1978. You and an opponent race across the field of play, striving to be the first to "capture" the "flag" and which point...well, not much happens.

Is this a pirate game? I don't know, but it sure feels like a pirate game. Jolly Roger and all that? Mostly, I just want an excuse to wear an eye patch and say "arr" a lot. As if anyone needs an excuse for that sexy and totally not annoying behavior.

My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons use of his songs "Reformat", "Pinball Spring" and "Take a Chance."

Atari Bytes episodes and show notes

It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown

Check out mugs and shirts and more at Zazzle.com

Consider supporting the show financially at Patreon.com...Thanks in advance!

Apr 2, 2017

Ahh! Baseball! The smell of the grassy outfield and the dusty infield. Does Atari's 1978 appeal to the Louisville Slugger in all of us score a HOME RUN or is it the sporting equivalent of AMIDAR? (We're never going to forgive that game for wasting our time.) Head down to your digital ballpark and find out!

My thanks to Kevin McLeod at Incompetech.com for creative commons use of his songs "Reformat", "Pinball Spring" and "Take a Chance".

Atari Bytes show notes and episodes

It's a Podcast, Charlie Brown

Check out cool Atari Bytes mugs, shirts and more at Zazzle.com

Consider supporting the show financially at Patreon.com

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