Electronic Games Issue 22

PRIMARY SYSTEMS COVERAGE THIS ISSUE

• Atari VCS - Atari 2600
• Atari computers
• Intellivision (news coverage)
• Commodore VIC-20
• Commodore 64
• Coleco ADAM
• Vectrex (news coverage)
• Apple II - IIe
• PC
• TRS-80
• ColecoVision
• stand-alones
• arcade

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(TOC excerpts follow, with (notes) and bullet lists added for clarity)

(This issue, Electronic Games' news section receives a visual makeover and abbreviated name change. Also, Stand-Alone Scene adopts the 'How It Plays' sidebars already found in Insert Coin Here)

Switch On! - Some Dreams Really Do Come True (editorial by Arnie Katz; discussing advancements in videogaming from a personal perspective)

Hotline (news section)

• Vectrex Adds To Its Peripherals (keyboard/computer add-on, light pen, 3-D Imager)
• Disney Gets Sued For "Tron" Movie (copyright infringement)
• Gamers Cash In On "Fax" videogame (Exidy's Fax game contest)
• Atari Brings "Mario Bros." Home (Atari licenses Nintendo video and computer games)
• Reprogrammable Cartridges (Romox reprogrammable carts, retailer network plans)
• All Systems Go At Infocom (text adventure games planned for multiple computers)
• Q*Bert Cartoons A Comin'
• Amiga Makes Three-Game Cartridges (Power Play Arcade carts planned for 2600)
• Japan's Latest Coin-Op Set To Hit America (Champion Baseball)
• Infocom Plans Fantasy Trilogy (Enchanter named as first title in series)
• Mattel Cuts Staff Again (400 worker reduction)
• E.G. Readers Pick Their Favorite Games (top lists)
• Supergraphics For The Intellivision (new programming technique to improve Intellivision graphics; Mattel software plans for other systems; drops plan for Intellivision III)
• Arcade Express Gets New Name (EG's bi-weekly newsletter renamed to Electronic Games Hotline)
• Mattel Taps New President (William Mack Morris)
• Coleco Buys 'Dragon's Lair' (home rights licensed)
• Tremendous Industry Layoffs (Atari, Texas Instruments, Mattel)

Readers Replay (letters column)

Inside Gaming ('John Bayes: Under Weigh At A Good Clip!' by Vincent Puglia; developer profile)

Programmable Parade ('Train for the Summer Olympics with Decathlon!;' console video game reviews)

• Decathlon (2600; includes 'Decathlon: Joystick Destroyer Deluxe?' sidebar)
• Spike's Peak, Ghost Manor (2600; combo review)
• Tutankham (2600)
• Solar Fox (2600)
• Seahawk (2600)

Articles Of War ('Warfare Roars Across the Burning Sands' by Neil Shapiro; Knights of the Desert (Apple II disk) overview / strategy / review)

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FEATURES

Gifts For Gamers

It's holiday gift-giving time again, and EG's editors have combed the electronic gaming world to find gifts ranging in price from a few dollars to a few hundred. ('Our Third Annual Shopping List for Serious Minded Gamers')

Letters To Pac-Man

All TV celebrities get fan mail, and the galiant gobbler is no exception. Here are the sometimes funny, sometimes sweet missives kids write to America's favorite pouncer on power pills. ('Dear Pac-Man - Chatting with the Master Gobbler' by Gabe Essoe; Pac-Man cartoon fan letters delivered to Hanna-Barbera Productions)

Players Guide To Gaming Computers

So many brands, so many conflicting claims... it's hard to know which microcomputer is best. Our magazine-within-a-magazine will take a lot of the mystery out of shopping. (sections:)

• The Home Computer: Tops In Home Arcading
   
  • The Ultimate Fun Machines
  • What About Programming?
  • Glossary

• The Atari Computers: Four XLent Machines

  • The XL Systems
  • Meet The Machines
  • Peripherals And Accessories

• Commodore Computers: Popularly Priced Power

  • Hit After Hit
  • The VIC-20
  • The Commodore 64
  • Peripherals And Accessories
  • The Software Situation

• Coleco's Adam: Computer In A Box

  • Before The Adam
  • The System
  • Peripherals And Accessories
  • Software For Adam

• Apple IIe: Facelift For A Favorite

  • Enter The "e"
  • New Features
  • Peripherals And Accessories

• Radio Shack: Shows Its True Colors

  • The TRS-80

• The IBM: New Innovations

  • IBM-PC: The Personal Touch At Home
  • Your Next Step

Eye On Monitors

Until recently, everyone ran home fun machines through TV sets. Now the computer gaming age has brought special video display terminals. Read this article to get a clear picture. ('What You See Is What You Get' by Henry B. Cohen)

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Computer Gaming ('Loaded with Danger and Excitement, Lode Runner Has Struck Gold!;' computer game reviews)

• Lode Runner (Apple II disk)
• Jump Jet (Apple II disk)
• Fast Eddie (VIC20 cart)
• Blue Max (Atari disk)
• Evolution (Apple II disk)
• Trashman (VIC20 cart)
• Super Amok (VIC20 cart)

In Control ('A Pocket-Sized Powerhouse at Your Fingertips' by Tracie Forman; controller reviews)

• The Power-Stick (Amiga; Atari compatible)
• The Boss (Wico; Atari compatible)
• Fire Command II Video Arcade Console (GIM; Atari,ColecoVision compatible)

Insert Coin Here ('Tron: Disks of Destruction' by Tracie Forman; arcade game reviews, each with 'How It Plays' control section)

• Disks (sic) Of Tron (Discs Of Tron)
• Pop Flamer

Q&A ('The Programmable Practitioner Tells All' by the Game Doctor)

Stand-Alone Scene ('It's He-Man Against the Masters of the Universe!' by Joyce Worley; stand-alone reviews)

• Masters of the Universe (Mattel Electronics; handheld (shown))
• Monster Maze (Tiger Electronic Toys; handheld (shown); includes 'How It Plays' control section)
• Donkey Kong Junior (Coleco; tabletop; includes 'How It Plays' control section)

Reader Poll