At the same time Alan Miller was working on Activision’s Checkers cartridge in late 1979, at Atari, Carol Shaw had started work on her own translation of the board game, with both designers oblivious to each others’ efforts. While not as visually striking as Miller’s game, Video Checkers has more options and a stronger computer opponent, making this a better challenge for those who are pretty decent players already. Continue reading “Video Checkers (Checkers) – September 1980”

Atari has once again returned to the pool of arcade conversions for its second of three fall 1980 releases, Dodge ‘Em. Like Circus Atari or Space Invaders, it’s an excellent home version of a fairly popular game from the 1970s, Head-On, meaning that just like those two, it’s a classic home version of a classic game… albeit not an official one. Much as was the case with Circus Atari, Dodge ‘Em – or Dodger Cars, under the Sears branding – is another unlicensed clone of someone else’s game.