Tennis on the Atari 2600 !!

Anyone for Tennis? Have recently reviewed it on the Atari 2600. Hooray!

What can we say about this one then? Well it's as retro as they come. Published by Activision back in 1981.

Before this, all that was really available in terms of computer Tennis was the classic Pong. Tennis on the Atari 2600 is light years ahead. Well a few years anyway. Technology was moving quickly and still is really.

You take charge of a pink stick man. I can assure you he is not naked as the colour suggests. They wouldn't allow that at Wimbledon. You must beat the blue computer stick man at the opposite end of the grass court.

It's impossible to knock the ball out of bounds or into the net, but somehow this doesn't really matter. There are no serving or court lines either so it is just about hitting the ball back each time. Anywhere will do. The net appears as a solid white line. Come on, this is 1981 folks.

Takes a while to get used to, but all and all this game is a fun affair. There are two difficulty levels of play. You can pull off backhands, forehands and rush to the net when you feel it appropriate. But be mindful though, rushing in may leave you prone to a devilish passing shot from the computer.

Although there are no court markings, the game does stick to the rules and point scoring system of Tennis. First to 6 games wins. You can have some great rallies with this. Although archaic by today standards, those into retro gaming and the history of it will love this as I did.

Tennis with stick men form 1981? You cannot be serious. Well yes... we can... kind of.

Check out the review to see if I managed to win a single game. It was my mission! 

Nick :o) -  (From Youtube Channel njenkin)