ROBERT FERGUSON'S TOP TEN ATARI CONSOLE AND COMPUTER GAMES wombat2@ix.netcom.com 10. Video Pinball/Bumper Bash (2600/Atari & Spectravision, respectively) I love pinball, but I have never been satisfied with any home versions until I discovered these two. Each of these use side buttons for the flippers, which makes them feel like real pinball. Of course, they don't look like real pinball, but that's not the point, is it? 9. Warlords (2600/Atari) My sister and I played this one a lot, but I never played four players until a couple of weeks ago at Video Game Connections. Four players is the way it should be played, if just to watch the two player alliances go down the drain. The "ghosting" effect is really nifty too. 8. Circus Atari (2600/Atari) This is another one I can play over and over. I don't know why, it's just a lot of fun. Especially letting one of the clowns fall on purpose. 7. Kaboom! (2600/Activision) Another great Activision title, but the worst enemy of shaky paddles. The Mad Bomber hooks you in with some nice and easy bombs, but then he gets going and your eyeballs go crazy just trying to keep up with him. I finally got him to open his mouth a few months ago. It's little things like that that make the classic games so much fun to play and play and play..... 6. Frankenstein's Monster (2600/Data Age) I had never heard of this one back in the 80's. I read a lot about it when I started collecting though. It's a very addicting game, and the difficulty increases at a steady pace. And the monster coming at you when you lose is very infuriating! 5. Food Fight (7800/Atari) I had forgotten all about Food Fight in the arcades, which was one of my favorites back then. When I heard it was out for the 7800, I had to have it. It took me a long time to find the system and the game, but it was well worth the wait. It's a perfect port as far as I can tell, and the game is so much fun. It's such a cool feeling to see that your game playing merits an instant replay! 4. Miniature Golf (2600/Atari) I hear you laughing! I don't know what it is about this game, but I always play it for at least a half hour when I fire up the 2600. Great fun (for me, anyway). 3. Superman (2600/Atari) My friend Ken had this cart, but our whole neighborhood would borrow games from each other when we got tired of our own. I had the whole layout memorized when I was a kid, but damned if I can't figure it out now. I still keep coming back to it. 2. Pitfall II: Lost Caverns (2600/Activision) I liked this one better than the first because I could actually beat it. Plus the fact that you weren't just running in one direction; you could go up and down ladders, swim, ride a balloon, and plummet into the river from dizzying heights. I can't include the 5200 version with the extra game until I can play it with the 2600 joystick. 1. Adventure (2600/Atari) This was the first game that I bought for myself, after getting the 2600 for Christmas. I loved getting lost in game 3, and I still do. When my friend Ken and I heard about the secret dot, we spent hours trying to find it. And that was the first thing I did when I reacquired the cart a few years ago. And from reading rgvc, I see I wasn't the only one who tried to put every object in the gold castle. Simply the greatest! Honorable mentions Maze Craze, H.E.R.O., Kool-Aid Man, Pifall, Jr. Pac-Man, Fast Food (2600); Centipede, Joust, Robotron (5200); Asteroids, Galaga, Ms. Pac Man (7800); Super Pac Man (800) Sentimental Favorites Space Invaders, Human Cannonball, Sky Diver, Berzerk, Video Pinball, Missile Command, Bowling, Yar's Revenge (2600)