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Many firsts -- Star Raiders on the Atari 400 was the first computer game I ever saw. It was also the first, first-person space shooter to grace a PC. Please feel free to be the first person to dispute either fact. Atari didn't produce the first home video game system (that credit goes to Magnavox), but Atari did produce the first home video game mass market. From 1977 - 1982, Atari ruled the game console market but never duplicated the feat with their home computers. In the late 70's to early 80's, Apple (co-founded by X-Atari engineer, Steve Wozniak) was the dominant PC. The mid-80's belonged to the C-64, and the late 80's saw the Atari ST eventually lose out to the Amiga and IBM-compatible PCs. Yet Atari computers were a force during all of these periods in PC gaming history with a strong grass-roots following that survived longer than the company itself. I was one of those grass-roots supporters during the 16-bit ST days, and although Atari partisans (myself included) will be quick to point out the technological benefits of their brand, now I can impartially look back on history and say that Atari was never the king of computer gaming. However, all computer gamers owe Atari a debt of gratitude. Without Atari's rise and fall in the console market, the PC gaming market may never have taken off. Atari 8-bit computers hosted many landmark titles including Star Raiders from Atari (see picture above) and COMMBAT from Adventure International (the first game to network two PCs via modem). Nearly every publisher supported the 8-bit line during its time, including Lucasfilm Games, who was a big proponent of Atari in general. Lucasfilm designated the Atari 8-bit as a target platform for its early hits, including Ballblazer and Rescue on Fractalus, and stood by the aging platform even when it was re-released as the XE game system in 1987. Hardware Resources:The Machine Room's Atari 8-bit Pages: 400, 800, 1200, 600XL, 800XL, 1200XL Cartridge rarity lists:http://www.io.com/~vga2000/vgadkslc/vga-a8bt.lst http://www.execpc.com/~krieg/links/8bit.carts http://lonestar.texas.net/~btomlin/ftp/lists/800.bdt The Museum
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