The History of Joust - arcade console documentary

[@hanniffydinn6019]

That TV advert is off the charts nuts! We don’t see stuff like that anymore ! 🐯🐯🐯

[@rusalexander1757]

It took up 2 minutes of video time and added nothing. Fuck that TV spot

[@dotcomDan]

Yes early days of gaming promo TVC that. Quite bizarre in comparison innit

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

I wasn't sure whether to include it or not because it was two minutes long but it was so bizarre there is no way I could not

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

I guess that's why there's a skip option

[@meatguyf1375]

@@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries You made the right decision, good sir. Just... It felt like an acid flashback and I haven't ever actually taken acid. Good stuff. Weird stuff but good.

[@johnnewcomer1879]

Thanks for making this video on Joust, keeping the game and memories alive! Back when we were making the earlier coin-op games there wasn't much thought paid to history. You did the best you could with the tech and tools available at the time trying to provide some fun entertainment for as many people as possible that might connect with the theme and mechanics. The assumption was the early games may be forgotten as tech would evolve into interactive movies etc. Looking back, it always feels special to be remembered and most importantly to have your baby remembered. It is wonderful to hear how this game and other games of that era touched people. The games of the coin-op era are rapidly disappearing So thanks again PatmanQC for showcasing Joust and Joust2, and any games to preserve our gaming history.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thanks for the nice words. I've always enjoyed joust and from the reaction to my video so did a lot of other people. Any reason why you did not care for the ostrich as the second player?

[@johnnewcomer1879]

@@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries Yes, I thought the stork felt weak and not magestic or powerful by comparison to the ostrich. The ostrich was supposed to be bred for combat and enhanced as Python Anghelo later depicted in the poster he drew. He did the best anyone could to make the Stork look equally as strong. The problem was complicated. We needed a second bird and it could only use the limited colors we had. The first impulse was something like an eagle or condor, but the shapes of those would be more buzzard-like and making the walking work so the lances and collison shape was equal to the ostrich was not possible. Our choices were then to either make a light colored ostrich, or an imaginary bird, or to make the best of a sleeker bird like a stork. In the end I felt a different color ostrich would be too confusing to play especially since you could kill the other player accidentally and I did not want the player to feel cheated. Imaginary would be out of place when the other birds were real and more importantly can be easily named when explaining the game to a friend. So, I went with the stork which pixel artist Jan Hendricks was able to do with the available colors and could make the walking animation work to match the ostrich. So really she did a great job making an impossible task work. If done in today's tech, I would make the birds more imaginary and clearly bred for combat.

[@beedwarf]

Mr. Newcomer... thanks for creating one of the most memorable games at Williams Electronics; hell, perhaps, one of the classic video games of all time! JOUST :)

[@MrM-u3h]

Thank you for Joust! Everyone I knew loved the game. We were playing it in a downtown arcade well into the 90s!

[@johnnewcomer1879]

@@beedwarf Thank you so much! We had a great team working on it, especially Lead Programmer Pfutz (Bill Pfutzenreuter). He did so much to make the flying work with the AI. We went back and forth improving it constantly. And the roadrunner skid stop was his idea. And this game would not have happened without supportive upper management. It was a big risk for them because it wasn't the typical space shooter that put Williams on the map (Defender, Stargate, Robotron). Some industry experts really panned it just prior to first live test, but management let us test it at an arcade anyways. Fans literally voted on the game at the cashbox and without question had a direct impact on the game's success.

[@jeffjunge7663]

I've loved Joust since I was a little kid. So many great memories. Just a timeless classic. Thanks for making this.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@treborironwolfe]

Yes indeed! Great video, and it was one of my favorites as a kid also. I often played Joust for hours while sipping on my virgin Shirley Temple as my parents socialized and played darts at a nearby pub. It is such a fun and challenging game to be so simple.

[@davidwagner6116]

My brother pwned this game at our local arcade when we were in high-school. A few quarters a day, he had the high score table all to himself. Great game!

[@edwardburek1717]

Joust is a true classic, right down to the "Thy Game Is Over" screen.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

I agree 100%

[@rvsb15]

you can give it a try if you want, this game is now available on the app Store, its called JOUST. .

[@aikonmk]

Fun Fact: The NES version was programmed by none other than Satoru Iwata who later went on to become President of Nintendo

[@SumDumGy]

A great port I was hoping to see in the list.

[@goatbone]

Makes sense. I think Balloon Fight was the first game he programmed for the Famicom/NES.

[@Vichedges]

Why do people say "fun fact" before stuff like that? Just say the guy programmed it.

[@bland9876]

@@goatbone balloon fight feels like a rip off like the Great Gianna sisters is to mario.

[@terrybuckley1556]

I flipped Joust many times. Favorite game by far. I found a cheat once, if you can get the troll to grab a Bounder or Hunter the troll can't pull them down. Wait for the dactil. After seven(?) dactils they start coming out in never ending groups of three. (I think this cheat could be turned off or on in the start up menu) Another trick was "flutter", use two fingers tapping real fast. I could fly just like the Shadow Lords. In later stages with only the middle side platforms and only Shadow Lords keep your mount where the center platform should be. I could clear a level in about 15 seconds. Really one of the best games ever. Thank you for the hours of entertainment Mr. Newcomer.

[@starcader9997]

I’ve always ranked that Joust commercial the #1 most insane commercial I’ve ever seen.

[@NewEnglandViews]

starcader99 fairly certain it’s going to give me nightmares tonight 🤣😳🤷‍♂️

[@STR82DVD]

I think this is my third time watching this one young lad. Bloody brilliant.

[@shane1489]

Joust is one of the few vintage age games I could still enjoy.

[@fitfogey]

I’m a grown ass man now and that pterodactyl sound still gives me nightmares.

[@beedwarf]

Only when there's more than one of those pterodactyl sound entering the battlefield.

[@tonymason6686]

Heaow, heaow heaow! Heaow, heaow heaow! Heaow, heaow heaow!

[@atomictraveller]

it makes me think of the time i spent a month going ((x&13) | ((x + 47)%15) to see what would happen

[@OdogRuby77]

@@tonymason6686 Tch! Tch! Tch-tch-tch! (1000 Points!)

[@reagandow850]

Man, I loved this game as a kid. Watching that commercial just brought me back 40 years. Thanks for the memories my friend.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@NewEnglandViews]

Watching that commercial was the last straw… The white truck has just shown up to take me to the loony bin 🦅 😳💥

[@rvsb15]

you can still play this game, it's now on the AppStore under the name JOUST.

[@timf7413]

My favorite old school arcade game ever.

[@curiousottman]

Great video. I played the original Williams upright in the arcade in 1982. In 86 when the arcade closed I bought the game from them. It is still in my basement nearly 35 years later for my 10 year old and I to play! There were a few different versions of the arcade roms. Mostly pterodactyl bug fixes. Early buggy roms are more fun to play!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Yes I should have mentioned that the early versions were patched. It's cool that your machine is still working after all these years

[@SweatShopActual]

That dude's mom is going to be pissed about the living room!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

LOL

[@ArkadiaRetrocade]

Ha, awesome; that shot at 0:58 is our retro arcade in Fayetteville 🤘

[@Dorelaxen]

Hey, you got Slopes to cameo in YOUR video this time! Nice! Also, great vid, as always. This one was a big part of my childhood. The gas station in the little town I grew up in had a cabinet, and I'd take the quarters I'd made from doing odd jobs for the neighbors down there on Saturday mornings and play and play.

[@JustWasted3HoursHere]

I REALLY miss the wonderful sounds that used to come out of an arcade back in the early eighties. I haven't even seen an arcade for decades, but from videos I've seen it looks like they are all fighting and "Dance Dance Revolution" type games. Not my cup of tea. The huge arcade near my house ("The Fun Machine") went out of business 20 years ago. :(

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Yes, it was nice of him to do that. Thanks for sharing your memories

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Him the early 80s was the golden age of the arcade with the sights and sounds and all those wonderful brand-new arcade games.

[@TheSquaredM]

One of the best P simultaneous two player arcade games from the early 1980’s. One of my absolute favorites!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

One of my favorites as well

[@johndd9140]

Joust truly was (and still is) a unique and fun game! Oh, those were the days... Excellent vid, thanks for making and uploading 👍👍👍

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thank you

[@AllTheRageShow]

I played this as a kid on my Atari 5200. One of my favorite games of all time. Great video.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thank you very much

[@Vorpal_Wit]

When I was a kid, I used to bike way across town to a specific 7-Eleven, for the sole purpose of playing Joust.

[@rvsb15]

you can still play this game, it's now on the AppStore under the name JOUST.

[@keenawireheart7238]

That's awesome! I grew up playing it on the Playstation. Too young to have had the arcade experience.

[@rvsb15]

@@keenawireheart7238 same here i started playing on the xbox360, other than that you can't really play it anywhere else and yet its an amazing game

[@gcapeletti]

The commercial is awesome. We need more insanity like that today.

[@AL13NM]

Joust has to be one of my all time favorite arcade games! The sound effects are second to none!

[@rvsb15]

you can still play this game, it's now on the AppStore under the name JOUST.

[@BronzeAgeBryon]

Truly one of the best games of the 80's cabinet games. The William's Arcade Classics disc I have for my PS1 was and still is amazing. Excellent video.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thank you very much

[@cubancigarman2687]

You sir have the best documentary on these games with period piece commercials of days past. I’m glad these things are shared on you tube for educational archives from how much the gaming industry has come along. Thanks again for your dedicated service for historical accuracy.

[@Rando1975]

Never even heard of the pinball machine before or seen a pinball machine in that format. Great video!

[@5HlNOBI]

Get outta my head! LOL! Over the last week, I have been making Joust soundfile clips for my smartphone ringtones and notifications! LOL! I always wanted to know why the sounds of Defender and Joust are so similar. Now I know why! I think the Williams arcade game and pinball sfx are some of the best classic video game sounds. Great video as always.

[@charles2241]

Yup the old pinball game called Firepower was very heavily influenced by Defender. My friend and I would put in a coin apiece and play pinball. If neither of us won a game, but popped one, then we went into what we called Dragon Attack. Dragon Attack involved both of us playing that game at the same time, where he would take a flipper control and I would take the other. I'm not sure we ever won a game playing like that, but it was pretty fun to use up a game nobody won really. Incidentally the voice used on Firepower, was the exact same one used on Black Knight. kzbin.info/www/bejne/pmW0lqGCf7mXptk

[@TheJohno95]

The Atari 5200 port was amazing! Almost perfect! One of the best games for that system.

[@makaveli4205]

The 5200 was a great machine. Just the controllers sucked

[@TheJohno95]

@@makaveli4205 I will not argue that point! I completely agree! The joysticks got loose way too easy. Those number pads were worthless. And the buttons would get stuck at the drop of a hat!

[@gamedoutgamer]

Probably the same as the 800/XL/XE version which is great too!

[@jal051]

I never played it anywhere other than the arcade. Did you destroy the fire button playing it? Cause let me tell you, the arcade's buttons were resilient!

[@TheJohno95]

@@jal051 Arcade buttons were way better than the 5200 buttons. You had to experience those joysticks to see how bad they were. They were on the SIDE of the controller! And were made very firmly. They tended to stick if you were playing for a long time. Which sucked in Joust, since you need those quick button taps to fly just right. Once missed click and you're toast.

[@Cieje3]

One of my top 5 all-time favorites. When I killed the "Unbeatable?" Pterodactyl for the first time, 5-year old me felt like an absolute BADASS for the first time.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

LOL, that's awesome

[@rvsb15]

you can still play this game, it's now on the AppStore under the name JOUST.

[@Cieje3]

@@rvsb15 Much appreciated, but I have it on a couple of console compilations.

[@jna6246]

My life would have been incompetent had I never seen that Joust commercial. Thank you so much for sharing it.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Glad you enjoyed it! :-)

[@Lastjustice]

I'm actually surprised we haven't see a modern revival exploring this world further. It was such a wild concept of people riding giant birds and jousting each other over this land of floating rocks and molten lava. I feel like you could come up with an amazing story campaign play thru if you dived deeper into that. I really enjoyed this game when I was younger I played both the 2600 version at my older cousin's house and the 7800 version at friend's house. The 2600 was definitely playable as it had the speed and feel of the arcade, the 7800 was a treat to play as it was a much more colorful version look at with far more details in the sprites. I had no idea there was a Joust 2, as I'd never seen it in the wild, or heard anyone mention it prior to this video. Between that mindblowing ad for the game you had some deep cuts into gaming history for us Patman. You always manage to delve into some aspect of gaming I've missed despite being fairly knowledgeable on the subject.

[@hunterdavis3003]

Yeah I had never heard of joust 2 electric boogaloo either?!?

[@Vichedges]

@@hunterdavis3003 I'd never heard of it either. It's actually called: Joust 2: Survival Of The Fittest. Surprised there weren't any home ports of it. Or maybe there were and I just missed them.

[@storiedworlds6261]

I never knew about Joust 2. I always learn something on this channel.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thank you, glad I could help :-)

[@beedwarf]

Joust 2 is certainly an acquired taste; saw Joust 2 in Times Square New York arcades & the way I felt abt the game then is exactly the way I feel it now - - - ; too many odd influences; probably play best as it was intended...a commercial, two player, 'pay to play win' design. Unfortunately. Doesn't take anything away f/the original which is a masterpiece.

[@melanatedprose9134]

I was hoping you would do a Joust History video. This game is solidly in my all time top ten 80's arcade games. My dream mancave/gameroom would have an original one in it upright or tabletop. What a wild concept that actually worked. I never had a home console version. I'm thinking about getting it for my gameboy advance sp. I think most of the game designers of that era were rightly bitter for being underpaid. Especially after seeing their ideas/games/concepts make multi millions they never got a slice of. Great work as usual.

[@CreepX]

FUN GAME fun fact: My father was a carpenter, and rebuild a cabinet for joust in our kitchen in the 80s. This is the one that started it all for me!!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

That is awesome, I would love to own and original

[@zachcouch1987]

This was the only thing I asked my mom to buy from QVC for $19.99. It was a joy stick plug and play. My favorite was Joust.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

How many games were on it?

[@townlinetim876]

Great video! I really enjoyed the the inclusion of the original Joust commercial. This game is a true classic.

[@DamonJasso]

7800 version was the go to for me as a child. Thanks for the memories.

[@rvsb15]

you can still play this game, it's now on the AppStore under the name JOUST.

[@billyg8614]

Atari 5200 version was alright. Not as good as arcade version.

[@Asterra2]

The main reason why Joust 2 failed to click was that it presented fairly classic arcade action and frankly still quite a retro look, in what was by then a decidedly post-NES world. It's the same reason why another Defender or another Centipede simply couldn't be expected to repeat their early successes by 1986, and why they'd basically given up on reiterating/cloning traditional Pac-Man. I did see it in an arcade once, in the early 90s, and was quite surprised to learn of its existence. Footnote: The most successful clone of Joust, Balloon Fight, is mistakenly considered by most Japanese gamers to be the originator of the Joust gameplay gimmick, with Joust being a later game that simply ripped the idea off.

[@Knightlore]

I love the style of your videos! I remember playing Joust with a friend on the Atari 2600 a whole afternoon. We had so much fun with it!

[@midnightkitty8172]

Joust was a favourite of mine in the arcade. One of the few games I could play fairly well, too. I often made it to the Shadowlord levels but they're so tough they'd take me out pretty quickly. Thanks so much for this great review, Patman~! Also I never knew there was a pinball game - it looks really cool and I love that head - to - head concept.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

The pinball is really unique so it is a bit rare nowadays. Thanks for watching

[@rvsb15]

you can still play this game, it's now on the AppStore under the name JOUST.

[@midnightkitty8172]

@@rvsb15 You can play thousands of games, including Coin - Op games like Joust at retrouprising; I've been playing games there for years and I think it's excellent.

[@shinigami146]

Great vid as always! Loved this game as a kid in the early 80s. I'm surprised that I never saw or don't remember that crazy Atari commercial. For some reason, it kinda reminded me of the beginning of Time Bandits (movie).

[@rvsb15]

you can still play this game, it's now on the AppStore under the name JOUST.

[@sandal_thong8631]

I was thinking of Time Bandits too, as well as Weird Science when the missile shows up in the house.

[@techreviews6690]

Another great video, and one of my favourite arcade games back in the day. It's now got a special place in my heart as when I go to the excellent Arcade Club in Bury or Leeds here in the UK it's one of the few games that I actually not terrible at playing at these days! I absolutely suck at most of the games I used to be good at playing as a kid but I surprised myself by not being absolutely rubbish at this despite not having played it for 35 years or so.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thank you, glad you enjoyed it. One of my favorites to although I wasn't that great at it back in the day

[@Krristopher]

They have two Joust Pinball machines at the Museum of Pinball in Banning California. I was supposed to go in march to play it but it closed to covid. It's a really fun machine.

[@jal051]

I loved this arcade. It felt so smooth and precise. The programmer deserves at 10. And it was always different and always challenging. My favorite arcade of all times. I think I was around 12 when they had the machine at a bar below my home. I coulnd't stop playing it.

[@AdamsBrew78]

Joust is the best early arcade with gravity, inertia and position as primary mechanics. When NES came along, My history with Joust was probably why I was immediately drawn to Solar Jetman - as it took these mechanics to the next level, with the addition of sci fi, shooting and large maps to discover. It’s one of the most under rated game of that generation imo.

[@robertgodlewski8553]

I would love to see a graphical overhaul of Joust with the same gameplay mechanics!

[@bland9876]

Look up baloon fight that game is like joust but with easier controls.

[@stashmerkin9576]

I think it's interesting that Joust re-used a good deal of sound effects from the Gorgar pinball machine. Also by Williams.

[@atomictraveller]

this is interesting to note, bumping your comment since some people spend decades making computer sounds.

[@residentelect]

Excellent! Another staple of the amusement arcades I spent most of my summer holidays frequenting. "Go outside and play!" Mother would yell, but to me that simply translated into; "Go on son, get yourself down to the arcade for hours, and sink all your pocket money into those amazing machines!" I really do miss those days... In fact at the moment when I'm on my days off I just miss being able to go outside?!! I can imagine what few arcades still exist must be really struggling thanks to the lockdown? They are usually quite tight spaces, so I can't imagine how they will enforce social distancing when they eventually do reopen?? Sad times indeed 😥 Thanjs for still pumping out the content Patman, it's a great distraction from everything else happening right now 🇺🇲🇬🇧👍

[@ergonautilus]

It's over, Red Knight. I have the high ground!

[@rvsb15]

you can still play this game, it's now on the AppStore under the name JOUST.

[@stevelee372]

Great inertia physics, Thrust on C64 was a big step up where you collect a power core doohickey that drags on your ship's flight, an absolute bugger but soooo addictive! 💙👍🏼

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

The physics were really good especially for game At that time

[@daneast]

Not only was that one of the most trippiest commercials I've seen, but it also lasted longer than my typical Joust game.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

LOL, I wasn't sure if I should included or not considering it was a little under two minutes. However, it was too bizarre not to include it :-)

[@kevinkingslayer2450]

The flying mechanics had me MESMERIZED as a kid.... Another great video by the Patman!!!!✌😎

[@JohnsNightmares]

I loved the slope cameo! Excellent episode! Keep up the good work Patman!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thanks a ton!

[@jamesanthony8438]

"Joust" has always been one of my favorite video games (and one of the few that I was actually any good at). Still have the 2600 version. Loved "Tail Gunner," "Red Baron" and the Star Wars vector graphic arcade games, too. When I was working at Domino's Pizza in the mid 80's, several of us would go to the local Putt Putt Golf and Games, get $20 in game tokens each and play "Gauntlet" until the place closed on Saturday nights. Man, I miss the 80's. =(

[@raymondlugo9960]

This one of my favorite games of all time. I've never seen the cocktail version or Joust 2

[@rvsb15]

you can still play this game, it's now on the AppStore under the name JOUST.

[@MrZedblade]

My favorite part of these videos is the commentary on the home versions, especially the not-so-good ones.

[@fsp394]

one of my favorite games! Thanks for covering it

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@Sinistar1983]

You should do sinistar next, it's my favorite Williams arcade game

[@DrZlu]

Joust was one of my favourite games. I played it a lot in the arcades and with the fabulous Atari ST conversion (1986) which was definitely the best port. I still play it from time to time on the MAME emulator along with Joust 2 which I never had the chance to play before (it was never released in my country). Thanks for your great videos!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thank you for watching, the Atari ST version was fantastic. It's too bad joust 2 was released just after the videogame crash was recovering because it was still a great game and should have received more coverage

[@midwest82000]

The value of your videos is seriously underrated. You're telling an important part of tech history and doing it very well. Thank you

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

I appreciate that! Thank you very much :-)

[@geminidefect]

trs-80 color computer had some wonderful versions. it needs more love on this channel.

[@FhargaZ]

Great video, also nice having guests reading the extracts 🙂

[@vassa1972]

Cool stuff thanks for the memory, loved both games back in the day, lost so many quarters too. Never knew that they produce a pinball version, neat stuff.thank you

[@erikrounds]

I love this game, it's one of my all-time favorite 2 player arcade games. I actually got to play against John Newcomer a few years back at the Let's Play Gaming Convention. I could tell that he's played this game a lot :)

[@raymondlugo9960]

I never knew the 2nd player rode a stork.

[@mn5stoat169]

I thought it was a swan.

[@cauldronofstardust]

@mn5 stoat Now that you mention it, that actually would’ve been a pretty good choice. Nothing I’ve ever encountered is nastier than an angry swan 🦢. They can be extremely terrifying & won’t back down from a fight

[@sandal_thong8631]

Read that on the explanation flyer just before watching!

[@fredhurst2528]

Totally remember that commercial with the knights breaking through the walls. So funny. Oh, and, I loved the arcade Joust. Such unique gameplay and simultaneous 2 player action.

[@SomeOrangeCat]

Holy....Was that a commercial for a game, or a desperate cry for help?

[@Lastjustice]

Yeah that was some likely drug induced craziness there.

[@rustydowd879]

It was like they had 3 different concepts for a commercial and just did them all.

[@SomeOrangeCat]

@@rustydowd879 It got damned uncomfortable during that last 10 seconds, like they should have cut it off right before that.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

It's crazy that lasted two minutes but the commercial was so bizarre that I had to include it

[@angrytheclown801]

It's 80s, so cocaine was involved.

[@chatbear69]

Don't have a clue as to how many quarters I put into this and Sinistar. Great video and reminder of how much fun I had as a kid. Thanks!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for watching

[@BlackArroToons]

Great history of. The sound effects are awesome in this classic, which used to be a favorite arcade game back in the day.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thank you, that's another game gets really hard really quick in my opinion

[@mushuhart2792]

Patman ..then ..now ..forever 🙏 I enjoy the videos you put out my brother from another mother!

[@TheGreenarrow88]

One of my absolute favorites, perhaps the perfect balance between depth and simplicity

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

It absolutely is, I agree

[@Rayman1971]

Yet another awesome blast from the past!!! Keep 'em coming!!!

[@ronalpert1415]

Played this at the Barcade in LA last night, for the 1st time in several years. Forgot how truly addictive it is - really one of the best classic games ever, and manages to STILL be just as good today as it was when it appeared 40 years ago! Love Joust!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

It really is addicting

[@bmkretrogaming7634]

Great documentary Patman! Just picked up a copy of the Atari 7800 Joust port myself. Including a recommendation, and a link to your video on my Atari 7800 Joust review video.

[@lethalwolf7455]

Loving the upload from the patman! Just made my night better!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Awesome, glad I could help :-)

[@realmchat6665]

Great video as always, really like your game history and port comparisons.

[@darthmix]

Underrated classic, always one of my favorites. We had the Atari 800 version, which didn't look arcade perfect but played great and my brother and I would play for hours and hours.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Couldn't agree more!It was close though

[@johnjet23]

Thank-you for all of the amazing clips. These are great documentaries, but they need music.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Glad you like them! Thank you. I've thought about adding music but not sure which kind to add

[@enfieldjohn101]

Great game! I love the concept and especially the sound. That the knight hatches from the egg rather than the birds, is funny and very clever. The Game Boy version was interesting because it had options of either the classic background or an 'updated' one that looked pretty cool. It also had the option of 'auto-fire' for the game that let you hold a button down to flap the wings. Was kinda hard to control your mount that way, but a nice feature to give your thumb a break. It's a fun version.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Absolutely :-)

[@alexmacias2988]

Awesome video Pat!! I loved this game growing up.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thank you very much, I always enjoyed it as well

[@thanto575]

Now you got me thinking of how important Williams games were to the arcade ecosystem back in the day particularly their sounds.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Oh absolutely they were

[@beedwarf]

Really, really nice video; I used to play those Mattel Electronics Football I & II hand held devices; didn't know the game designer of Joust worked on those games.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thank you very much

[@kjhoskins]

Great game. This was the reason I bought a 7800.

[@EverettNewell]

I really enjoy your videos my friend. Thanks Patman!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Glad you like them! Thank you

[@MidnightBanshi]

I loved Joust back in the day, and was shocked at the ONE time I ever defeated the pterodactyl. I actually played the Joust pinball machine when it was at one of our local arcades, and it was definitely one of the most unique tables I'd played.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

I don't think I ever beat the pterodactyl. I did play the Joust pinball back in the day

[@darthmeyers074]

I remember playing the tabletop version at Pizza Hut when I was a kid. Awesome game.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

It was very cool and unique

[@edwardburns3405]

Great memories! Never played Joust that often, I was more of a Defender guy. Would that they’d start manufacturing all these cabinets again. I know you can buy cabinets with many of these games built in but nothing beats a dedicated “one game cabinet”.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Absolutely, and authentic arcade cabinet from the early 80s just can't be beat

[@1000bip]

That commercial was insane! I loved it

[@alkohallick2901]

Williams had the best sound effects.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Yes they did

[@latedep31]

Also one of the reasons why their pinball machines from the same era are so good.

[@beedwarf]

@@latedep31 'Pinball Hall of Fame William's Collection' for the modern gaming systems should be of interest; I want the compilation for 'Black Knight', one of the 1st pinball games that solidified those classic sound effects used in the video games.

[@milesbrown2261]

whenever I visited arcades in the 2010's I would always flock to the world arcade collection machine that had joust on it I was addicted. Joust is my favorite arcade game. The medieval fantasy premise, the challenging unique control of the bird, the graphics and sounds just ogh man so wonderful.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

It is truly a classic

[@fred21679]

Very informative, thanks for making this!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Absolutely, thank yoou for watching

[@kenwheeler3637]

The 5200 port is pretty good as well with the original analogue controllers being well fitted for it. Another classic they would have been perfect for, especially with the twin controller coupler, is for the game that guy is leaning against at the 1:00 mark, Crazy Climber. Sadly the only thing we got was a very sub-par port on the 2600 than only utilized a single controller, ruining the entire dynamics of the game. The game did get a lot of love and attention in Japan though with some really interesting ports and adaptations.

[@ace942]

Thanks for the video. I was not aware of Joust 2 or the fact that there was a 2 player version of Joust pinball.

[@elliotfletcher3614]

One of my favorites! Great docu!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Thank you very much

[@rusty1187]

I LOVED this game!!! not your usual shoot-em-up. My arm still has a cramp below my right elbow to this day!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

LOL

[@NickWeissMusic]

the physics, animations, and controls of the original game are rock solid stable. There were glitchy and hard to follow games even in arcades, console ports in that era all looked pretty crappy and many were terrible to play, but Joust is so simple and direct, it was playable on anything.

[@radaction5743]

My favorite arcade game! I got so much enjoyment from one quarter. It's the only video game I know where two people could play and kill each other!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Actually if you go back and look at boot Hill from the 70s it featured two players that could shoot their guns across the screen and kill each other

[@ThomasGrillo]

Really enjoyed this one. I had an Atari 400, which saw a very nice port of Joust for it. I can't afford a real arcade cab, but was able to pickup an Arcade1up version of Joust, this week. Thanks for sharing.

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

Very cool, I don't have any but wish I did. Thanks

[@Slammy555]

I used to work at the arcade, I could play joust for a really long time. You could capture a joust bird and kill pterodactyls on the center island easily. I'd build up a bunch of guys then sell the game for my original quarter when things got busy.

[@brianwestley6985]

Yep, the local arcade put up a sign "NO HUNTING FROM THE ROCK" Here's someone demonstrating it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnW9ZZd6htmVacU

[@cueball981]

We have a few retro gaming bars here in the Phoenix Valley. I always gravitate towards Joust! Great game!

[@PatmanQC-Arcade-Documentaries]

I've always enjoyed it

[@cujoedaman]

Not sure if this was one of the items on your list, but Joust actually made it into World of Warcraft. Back in 2010, Blizzard worked in a quest line that represented Joust located in a fiery, lava filled hatchery where you would equip a lance and mount up on a hippogryph which, unlike other flying mounts in the game, needed to have you repeatedly tap the "flap" button to get it to fly. You had to knock other enemies off their mounts in two waves. The third (egg) wave has you going and destroying all the eggs within the hatchery to complete the quest line before you return to the main quest giver. You were rewarded with a choice of either a gold or blue mini-jouster battle pet (pokemon) which featured a tiny rag doll, holding a tiny spear, riding atop a similarly colored buzzard (kind of a weird choice since the enemies in Joust rode buzzards). The controls were a bit clunky, but once you worked it out you could manage fairly well. It wasn't a 100% recreation as instead of a fiery hand grabbing you from the lava, there were lava eruptions that would occasionally happen, the lava never rose up to burn the bridges and since it was a 3D environment, you had to work on all axis to win. Unfortunately, there was no pterodactyl. However, later on (and after much griping at not being able to have both mini-jousters), they implemented a daily (a daily repeatable quest) where you had to return to the hatchery and "joust" more enemies. If you did this ten days in a row, you were awarded the achievement "The 'Unbeatable?' Pterodactyl: BEATEN" (again, ironic because there was no pterodactyl) and you were given the reward of the other mini-jouster you were not able to choose before.