The Ultimate Imagic/Atari 2600 Tier List - ALL RELEASED GAMES RANKED

Join us for a captivating journey back to the golden era of gaming as we rank every Imagic video game cartridge released for the Atari 2600, organizing them into tiers based on their quality and impact. In this exciting video, we delve into the archives of gaming history, exploring the groundbreaking titles that defined a generation.
Relive the nostalgia of the Atari 2600 as we meticulously analyze and evaluate each Imagic game, placing them into tiers based on gameplay, graphics, sound, and overall significance. From the legendary classics like "Demon Attack" and "Cosmic Ark" to the hidden gems such as "Fathom" and "Star Voyager", we leave no stone unturned as we examine each game's unique features, gameplay mechanics, and its place in the wider gaming landscape.
Whether you're a devoted Atari enthusiast or a curious gamer interested in the history of video games, this video provides an engaging and informative experience. Join us as we embark on this epic journey to rank Imagic game for the Atari 2600, carefully placing them into tiers that reflect their quality and significance.
Don't miss out on this incredible exploration of gaming history! Hit that subscribe button and prepare to take a trip down memory lane with us as we celebrate the iconic Imagic games that left an indelible mark on the Atari 2600 era. Get ready to discover which games earn the highest honors and which ones find their place in the lower tiers.
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[@chazcov08]

I still remember the day I beat Demon Attack! It took 84 waves to do it, and I called my friend to tell him. He wasn’t home, so I asked his mom to give him the message. I said, “Just tell Kurt, ‘84 waves!’ He’ll know what I mean!” And his mom was like, “Okayyyyyyy…”. LOL! He called me back later and yelled into the phone, “84 WAVES!!!” LOL! Oh, what a fun childhood we had!

[@pex_the_unalivedrunk6785]

You're kidding me!? I need to play it again I guess... after about 30 waves I figured there wasn't anything more. 😥🤣 Silly me

[@chazcov08]

@@pex_the_unalivedrunk6785 yup. After you complete the last wave, the screen just goes blank. Nothing more after that.

[@IuriFiedoruk]

Demon Attack is one of the games from the 2600, I can still play today and have fun.

[@legendsflashback]

With best cover ever

[@PCKid32]

Me too. My favourite 2600 game. Play it regularly. I was in my 30s when it came out. I finally beat it one night. Sat on the floor in my lounge, my wife went to bed and at 3 in the morning level 245 ended the game. No congrats. No game over just a blank screen. I sat there like a zombie. Due to the shocking ergonomics of the joystick I couldn’t initially get my hand off it. It was cramped shut. But it was so worth it.

[@CallousCoder]

I’d never heard of it or iMAGIC. I don’t know whether they released here in the Netherlands. We weren’t a big ATARI country either more a home micro country. But I’ve played most Activision games at the toy stores and a friend. But I can’t recall any iMAGIC. And I gotta say these look nice. Laser Gates looks Nice too.

[@Mrshoujo]

@@CallousCoder Imagic is how it's typed. Capital I.

[@CallousCoder]

@@Mrshoujo for some reason the dictionary kept making it a lowercase I could’ve be bothered 😉

[@vjhernandez13]

Of all my Atari 2600 games, Atlantis had the best sound effects. I fondly recall turning up the volume to better feel the impact of those explosions!

[@FischerFan]

Back in the day, a neighbor loaned me some of his Atari cartridges. Two of them were Activision Skiing, and Atlantis by Imagic. At the time, I was impressed with the graphics of both games and especially at how challenging Atlantis was. I recently picked up one of the Atari Activision packs online which has 15 games, and also includes the DOS Box conversion that enables one to play these great old games. Most of the games are by Activision, but the one exception is Atlantis.

[@danhulshult4614]

John, I love your channel and you have excellent content! I am 70 years old and over the years have tried to complete my library of Atari games. Your ranking of IMAGIC games is spot on. I owned every one of the ranked games except Winged War. I say “spot on “ with one HUGE exception. To this day ( I’m 70 years young ) I still play my all time favorite IMAGIC game which is Subteranea. Your rating is correct for the first two levels , however, a few years back I continued to play beyond level 3 and , boy , was I surprised and now addicted to this game. It speeds up and gets WAY more intense. I still love this game! Again, love your channel and keep up the excellent content. SIDENOTE: Are you still officially unemployed? And putting all your effort and energy into your passion? It shows you love what you do. Thanks for being there for this “seasoned “ player! Dan

[@GenXGrownUp]

Hi, Dan. Thanks for watching and for all the kind words. I'm am still "funemployed" and my daily job is GXG content. If you have an interest, I do a daily vlog (and have since the day I was laid off) over on my own channel. You may enjoy following that journey: youtube.com/@jonofgenxgrownup

[@SongbirdPro]

Have to agree. Always been a fan of Subterranea.

[@JeffBreyer]

I picked up a 2600 a few years back. I wasnt around when it was a thing, but along with the console I did get a copy of Demon Attack. I couldn't believe how fluid the graphics were. The sprites were really unique. Sounds felt right. And I thought the 2600s controller would be terrible to play with but it actually was quite good. Really impressive. Definitely S tier.

[@jfunk513]

Demon Attack and Cosmic Ark are games I played a lot as a child (especially Demon Attack). Rob Fulop (founded Imagic after receiving a voucher for a turkey as a bonus instead of a bonus check from Atari) is one of my all time favorite programmers

[@heloripascal8997]

Picked up Demon Attack for my VCS when it came out. Admittedly it was the shiny box that got my attention but I was not disappointed. Imagic and Activision made some of the best games I ever played.

[@yandman26]

Fathom is absolutely an S tier game. Look at the Sprite design, look at the scrolling, the volcanoe. The different things you're required to do.

[@Mrshoujo]

*Volcano Too Much Volcano

[@sandal_thong8631]

I think I have it on my wish list if ever buy more 2600 games. Looks like it has enough to do to keep me interested for more than a couple minutes. I think I'd seen a print ad for _Trick Shot_ so too bad it sounds so limited.

[@Cafeman_2D]

I am truly enjoying the tiered lists. Several of these I never played. Demon Attack, Atlantis and most of all Dragonfire were my favorites.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Thanks for your feedback and for watching! 😀

[@legendsflashback]

@@GenXGrownUp great video

[@The_Badseed]

Man Imagic made some great games. Even though it was kind of a stinker, I loved riddle of the spinx. I had a thing for RPGs even back then, riddle and raiders of the Lost ark were as close as possible to a 2600 rpg. Great video

[@R4D4_]

Love the tier videos! I preemptively vote for Parker Bros. next!

[@buckeyechad1]

Good choice!

[@BlueLegend595]

Yes. Parker Bros next please.

[@deementia6796]

I totally understand why the games get the rankings they get. Hell, I'm glad that he rated some of the games more fairly than other reviewers, because he actually went through the manuals to learn how to play the games .. something that many of the younger reviewers don't bother with .. "well, it's a 2600 game so it SHOULD be simple. If I can't figure it out on my own, it MUST be the designers fault that I can't just pick up the game plot!" I loved the games ranked S and A as well, but I do have a fondness for both Riddle of the Sphinx and Trick Shot. As an only child, there were SO MANY games that needed another player or the game was pointless, and most of the time I was by myself. Riddle of the Sphinx was so detailed that I could get immersed in it, and those times I could beat it were just SO Glorifying to me! And Trick Shot was one I could play with a friend, or just play as both players and play "pool" on a console that felt more like real pool. It wasn't until a year later with "Billiards" for the C64 that I was able to get a better version.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Thanks for watching! 😀

[@sandal_thong8631]

I remember two kids traded games (and manuals). When they wanted to trade back, one said his grandma threw away the manual because it was just paper on the floor to her. When I hear that people as kids didn't read the Atari manuals, I just think, when was "RTFM" invented? Also, hearing there are games that use the B&W / Color switch to do something just makes me think that's so dumb. At least people could think about switching the difficulty switches. I think the advanced throwback consoles don't even have switches for B&W TVs!

[@RCfromtheNYC]

Of the games covered in this video, I enjoyed Demon Attack, Cosmic Ark, aaaaaand...Riddle of the Sphinx. It took me about an hour to get a feel for the dual stick controls, and it is the only game that I had someone help me to finish (volun-turned a cousin to sit with me for over 3 hours).

[@MrJacksspleen]

My cartridge would freeze up all the time as you were right in the verge of finishing the game... and broke my soul.

[@Breakfast_of_Champions]

This reviewer here even gave away he didn't really solve the riddle as he claims you can't go back😉

[@johneygd]

Moon sweeper among other games just looks mind blowing ,and since some atari 2600 games do show more then 3 spries atonce,i might wonder how this was done,it’s possible that they rendered extra sprite trough software or they used the background as an extra sprite alternative or they cycle trough each 3 sprites by by showing each of them at different positions depending per frame to make it appear as if there’re more sprites on screen.

[@litjellyfish]

There is only sprites and background. And background is always done in software as there is no framebuffer at all. So you can say that any animation of the background is a software “sprite” If the sprite data of the player 1 and 2 is the same you can in hardware set to reaper it 2 or 3 times as fixed positions. So you can get 6 sprites that way and even trick it to display even more repeat if it’s static so up to 12 hires sprites in a line I think. Also you can use ball 1 and 2 plus missle to form gfx acting as and extra sprite. Especially since you can choose to expand those 1 px wide objects to 2x / 4x pix. That is pure hardware. Then you can either flicker every other frame to have more appearing to be on the same line. Or interlace to give another illusion of more in a row This is again about how much you can have on a scanline. If they do not overlap scanline wise you can of course multiplex and reuse each sprite as much you want. This is how lines and starfields usually are done with the missile / ball sprite

[@sandal_thong8631]

I'd be interested to know how M-Network avoided flicker with _Dark Cavern_ since there are 5 enemies. I think _Mouse Trap_ by Coleco had only 3 to avoid it. _Wizard of Wor_ could have 5 enemies, but I don't think they even tried, or learned from _Pac-Man_

[@TheMultiGunMan]

There's quite a few great games on this list. You're making me want to go play some games on my Atari 2600.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Sorry-not-sorry. 😜

[@lo1bo2]

Not directly related to this video, but sometimes I think about buying a wood grain six switch version of the Atari VCS. I have my childhood "Vader" 2600, but something about having all the switches on top and the classic color appeals to me.

[@pex_the_unalivedrunk6785]

I have a heavy sixer of both Atari and Sears make...one is fried, though possibly fixable. The other...idk i don't really sell my stuff. Having all the switches on top was nice, made it feel like a spaceship console.

[@johnenoch6222]

Imagic games were great and got the most out of the 2600. Loved Demon Attack, Dragonfire, and Atlantis. Awesome stuff Jon!

[@GenXGrownUp]

Thanks, John!

[@JGreen-le8xx]

Fathom was literally The Little Mermaid BEFORE The Little Mermaid. You have Flounder, Scuttles, and trapped Ariel.

[@jackfrost3910]

I literally mapped out fathom since the manual told me "Free the mermaid seven times and watch for a special surprise." I was confused back in the day when I did, nothing happened except for a bunch of random letters and numbers appeared at the bottom of the screen. Pitfall II had the character celebrate the best they could, and I was expecting something similar. I didn't know until years later it displayed an address on the final screen.

[@JohnSTF72]

Cosmic Arc, Demon Attack, Fathom, Laser Gates and Subterranea were a major part of my childhood playing with the 2600. Never heard of 'No Escape' before to be honest. Thanks for this cool Tier List.

[@sandal_thong8631]

The space part of _Cosmic Ark_ was based on _Space Zap!_ a tabletop arcade game I got to play at a store in 1981, with four big buttons for shooting. After the asteroids come from each direction, you have to time your shot to shoot a tie-fighter that circles you. It's either a bonus or you must shoot it to avoid losing a life.

[@kurtmager1626]

I had both Fathom and Wing War, but for the Colecovision. Wing War was released in the US, but only for the Colecovision. Those versions of each. They were my two favorite Colecovision games out of my small collection, but I put Wing War on a higher tier than Fathom. The reason is because while both were expanded upon for the better system, they are both essentially the same game, the difference being Fathom is broken up into stages, and Wing War is one HUGE world filled with more variety.

[@handyhank1967]

Thank you for this.. I forgot about a lot of these games. I loved Demon Attack.....

[@GenXGrownUp]

You're quite welcome. I thank you for taking the time to watch.

[@jameserdmann2468]

I completely forgot about moonsweeper! I loved that game. I can see your point about the controls though. Dragonfire was the bomb also. These tier videos are fun!

[@GenXGrownUp]

Thank you!

[@michaeljarvisakasleepyjarv1698]

John I absolutely love your channel, it stirs up so many great childhood memories. I played the heck out of many of these games and wanted them all but only had Drangonfire, Atlantis , Cosmic Arc, Demon Attack, Star Voyager, I had Fathom but I never could get good at it. I liked Fire Fighter too, played it a lot. Laser Gates was one of my favorites, it was kinda like Vanguard but not as multi leveled both were in my top played carts.

[@GamingTheSystems1]

Great video. I too loved the silver box design. I wish I was better at Demon Attack so I can see all the different demons.

[@frankc4755]

Hi Jon, Excellent job on the Activision and Imagic tier lists !!! Now that you tiered 2 of my top 3 video game publishers for Atari (Activision #1, Imagic #2, in that order for me), maybe one for my #3, M Network? Maybe honorable mention, Parker Brothers? LOL! Thanks for all your content! I never miss a post!

[@sandal_thong8631]

Activision had 6 games I know of that sold over 1 million, including Pitfall! which probably sold 4 million! Imagic had 3 games that sold over 1 million, including _Demon Attack_ that sold 2 million, probably just falling out of the top 10. Parker Bros. had two games that sold over 1 million, including _Frogger_ that sold 4 million! (I like _Q-Bert,_ but I don't think it made 1 million). Coleco had 1 title that sold 4 million, _Donkey Kong_ though I don't think they had "it going on." Of the 27 games that I'm told sold over 1 million, the other 15 were made by Atari. M-Network had none; though they advertised on TV, their 2-player ports from Intellivsion just couldn't breakthough in 1982's competitive year. Maybe if they had done it in 1981 when competition was weaker, and made 1-player game variations since that was the thing in the early 1980s, while 2-player games were so 1977-1980. Certainly the "Super Challenge" of _Super Challenge Baseball_ was to find another kid who had the game or was willing to learn the controls to get good at it. Same with _Armor Ambush_ which was leaps and bounds above the tank part of _Combat,_ a 1977 game that made the console look bad in 1981-4. I read Mattel couldn't even get a 1-million seller for the _Intellivision,_ though the console sold 3 million, as their best selling game, _Baseball_ sold maybe 900,000.

[@JoeUzzolino]

Some M-Network games were so good… Soccer, baseball, dark cavern and space attack. Kool-Aid was cool because it was different. They tried with the Tron games but nothing beats the arcade version of Tron.

[@Dave-ms3ri]

As you said, there is so much to Riddle of the Sphinx that you miss without the manual. Even with the manual the difficult level is very hard for two big reasons: you can’t win unless you completely counterintuitively go backwards to the oasis to get the staff, and for some of the items required you either have to hope Isis gives it to you or you have to learn how to shoot and evade while using the shovel. On the easy level it’s fairly boring. At its most difficult it’s an interactive puzzle that fights you while trying to solve it. When I was 9 it was a point of pride that I figured it out before the adults. I think I’d probably rate it a bit higher, the only downfall is replay value because once you solve the “riddle” definitively all that’s left is speedrunning it, which I became very good at. Just dig up the sceptre and it goes very quickly. I’m enjoying your lists, by the way. I of course disagree with some of your choices (Atlantis doesn’t deserve that high of a rating, for example, not for an awkward fixed shooter), but it’s good to see these games highlighted for the technological tour de forces that they were to the ‘80s. Thanks for the time and effort.

[@sandal_thong8631]

I was so glad a friend let me play _Riddle of the Sphinx_ at his home. I think he had the manual so that was a good thing. I picked it up at a thrift store around 1990, so had to take notes to figure it out again on my own. Now we can just download the manuals.

[@djgrom9542]

My favourite part about Cosmic Ark was the booklet. It said something like 'The game ends when you run out of energy and die' I never forgot that sentiment :)

[@GenXGrownUp]

True in life, as well!

[@pex_the_unalivedrunk6785]

💀💀💀

[@curtismanley3459]

Loved Cosmic Ark and Demon Attack as a kid playing the 2600. I always thought that Demon Attack was a follow up to Phoenix with the birds flying back and forth. I didn't care... just thought it was fun.

[@jim1174]

One of my favorite imagic games was Dracula for intellivision.

[@derekbuckler9888]

I was born in 74' johnny, so I grew up playing the Atari 2600. God knows I spent so much time playing Atlantis, and cosmic ark to. I didn't know the name of the company made these wonderful games, great vid!😮

[@shawnwade302]

I found at a garage sale a couple years ago a Atari 2600 console. All the switches were there but most of the major internal components we're gone. This same Atari 2600 console now houses a raspberry pi 4 and now it plays all Atari games all NES and SNES and all Sega Genesis games. My proudest achievement on this was having an HDMI port installed on the back.

[@tarzankom]

I had Demon Attack for the Vic 20. It was one of my favorite games.

[@neildestefano991]

Fantastic!! Demon and Cosmic are my favs!

[@tchoupitoulos]

They made an Intellivision-only game, Safecracker!, that was also very good. Also had the two-screen gaming implementation: In the first, you're driving between locations on an isometric view plane of city blocks, trying to find the safe as well as parts of the safe combination while avoiding (or shooting down) police cars. In the second, you attempt to crack and open the safe.

[@andyleclerc3600]

I only ever found 3 of the games, the good news, is they were all indeed TopTier...Atlantis, Cismic Ark and Demon Attack. And Imagic wasn't joking when their ads said "Until now, you've had it easy". These games were tough to master.

[@sandal_thong8631]

And they knew those games were good, because they paid for TV ads!

[@SidebandSamurai]

I really love this series, I know you put a lot of effort into these types of videos, and that's what makes this so engaging. Thanks for all your hard work and research.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Wow, thank you! 🤩

[@jeremiahthomas8140]

I cannot do a tier list of Imagic since I have never learned how to play Riddle of the Sphinx. Cosmic Ark was a favorite as a kid. As an adult, I found and enjoyed Atlantis, Star Voyager, Dragonfire, and No Escape. I had Demon Attack as a kid, but it was never a favorite.

[@pandeia72]

I have Demon Attack. Its amazing. One variant that I played so much was that playing with two players, it is one cannon but changes the player randomly. 🔥 😊

[@ButterSpider3]

Solid ramking. I had a couple imagic games. But some of those are just unheard of to me. Another informative video. I really enjoyed this. Maybe even more than the activision ranking. I was aware of almost all of them. About half if these were news to me.

[@wallacelang1374]

I have around 8 Imagic game cartridges for my Atari 2600 which I regularly play and they are all fairly good games: • Atlantis • Cosmic Ark • Demon Attack • Dragonfire • Fire Fighter • Riddle Of The Sphinx • Star Voyager • Trick Shot

[@DAVE-1973-]

In the early 80s i owned Demon Attack, Atlantis, Star Voyager, Fire Fighter, Sphinx, Trick Shot and No Escape. I now also own Cosmic Ark, Dragonfire, Fathom, Moonsweeper, Solar Storm and an ntsc repro of Wing War. I always felt like Imagic and Activision made the best games and had nicer graphics. Of course like every company they had some titles that were rushed out and not quite polished enough, but out of these 17, most of them are actually pretty good games. Demon Attack was always my top favorite Atari game. You also have to give Imagic tons of credit for making very good Intellivision games.

[@AllOuttaBubblegum123]

I loved cosmic Ark as a kid. I recall renting it for weeks at a time lol.

[@sandal_thong8631]

I think some kids "rented" games by buying a game and then returning it for an exchange. Certainly there were a lot of taped-up games in bins for Atari games at Zayre's.

[@charlesronk2989]

Back in the probably early 80's, my brother in law who was laid off from Comcast Cablevision Wrote a preface for a comparison book. He sent it to all the game manufacturers of the time. They all but one sent him every game and every attachment along with a new system. The one company said he had to complete 2 chapters before they would send him the rest of their stuff. I remember spending the night with him and my sister trying out all of these systems and games he had. He never did write any more to the book.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Wow.

[@Datan0de]

Wow, am I glad i just discovered this channel! It feels like home. Imagic was probably the most consistently excellent game maker for the 2600, and their box art and ads were like nothing else out there. I spent many, many happy hours playing Star Voyager, Cosmic Ark, and Atlantis. Weird anecdote: The last video game I played as a single man was Demon Attack. The morning of the wedding I was at my best man's house getting ready and had some time to kill. He had Stella on his computer, and I actually thought "what do I want my last pre-marriage game to be?" Demon Attack it was!

[@GenXGrownUp]

Happy that you found me - welcome! Thatks for sharing the story - love it! 😀

[@tony--james]

if you watch the 1984 movie "Electric Dreams" when he's in the computer store, you can see a Store Display rack for these Imagic games, there's a still picture of it on IMDB , in the movie's photo gallery, interesting to see them like that back in the day,

[@OG785]

I didnt play many imagic games but did have Atlantis and really enjoyed it. Thanks for the memories.

[@sinistermoon]

I remember being so happy when I finally got all of the Imagic games for 2600! I still have them all.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Oh, wow! Even a Wing War? The box for that one isn't actualy the chrome we know from North America, but a sort of weird orange box.

[@sinistermoon]

@@GenXGrownUp I have all of the North American and European releases :)

[@retrojoe85]

I am a 1985 italian guy, in the '92 I got my very first console, an Atari 2600. At that time, the 2600 (in Italy it was called as "Duemilaeseicento" or "Atari Duemilaesei") was the console of the poorest families but man, what a ton of fun I had with this machine. Still love it, and in those days it was common to get some Imagic games during schoolmates' exchanges. I tried them all, except Demon Attack and Wing War: so, my biggest complain about Demon Attack comes from the fact that I've tried it only a few years ago. Best Space Invaders-style game on the 2600. Period.

[@GenXGrownUp]

That's a really interesting bit of history I otherwise didn't know about. Thanks for sharing with us!

[@Irish37]

Actually, "Riddle Of The Sphinx" was my favorite Imagic game. My brother and I used to love to play it. We'd take turns. One would read the manual out loud while the other played the game, then we'd switch. I loved the fact that it was a game you could actually win, instead of an ever-increasing difficulty rating and then you'd lose. I think it's the godfather of dense, complex, story games like Myst.

[@GenXGrownUp]

It did have some innovative ideas, but not yet well executed. It sounds to me like you formed some pretty awesome memories with your brother over this game, so while I'm not promoting Riddle of the Sphinx, I give you and your brother's memories a solid "S" rank!

[@sandal_thong8631]

@@GenXGrownUp It was a better adventure game than _Raiders of the Lost Ark_ which I couldn't figure anything out on my own without the manual, or a walkthrough guide or video online.

[@GenXGrownUp]

@@sandal_thong8631 No? I loved Raiders and replayed it hundreds of times as a kid!

[@10yard]

Another fantastic video that I am going to watch again. Thank you 10 year old Jonny!

[@frankschuler2867]

We didn't have a bunch of Atari games when I was a kid and we didn't have much access to discovering what else was out there. As an adult, I started looking more deeply into some hidden gems for the 2600, and I discovered Demon Attack and Atlantis sometime in my 40's. I was impressed. As a 40+ year old video gamer, I really do enjoy them. Anyone interested should check them out. One nice thing about 2600 games is that many of them can be obtained for very little money. I probably added 30 games to my 2600 collection several years ago for less than $100. Many of the games only cost me a dollar or two. Granted, they are going to leave a lot to be desired by younger gamers, but they really are a lot of fun if you give them a chance. Worth it!

[@MrDuneedon]

It’s strange; I owned and played an Atari 2600 growing up, but never owned *anything* from Imagic. I don’t remember my friends having too many of these games, either. In any event, loved the video!

[@GenXGrownUp]

Thanks for watching! 😀

[@sandal_thong8631]

Many programmers who left Atari said they didn't like having to program many game variations. But perhaps that's why I was leery of buying 3rd party games. Then Atari's game variations became just difficulty levels you were likely to skip. Imagine if Atari _Pac-Man_ was good and had different mazes to try out?

[@ridiculous_gaming]

I have students today who love the simplicity, tight controls and challenge of dragonfire.

[@neilthomas6042]

Interesting and entertaining video. Funky boxes and box art.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Glad you enjoyed

[@drno-xc1yt]

Imagic had so many really good VCS games - Atlantis, Cosmic Ark, Demon Attack, and of course Dragonfire. It always sucked when you lost that middle turret in Atlantis.

[@sandal_thong8631]

I haven't put the time in to learn to play with just the right and left turrets, so once the middle is gone, I'm in trouble. Much as I loved playing Atari, the one-button joystick was such a limitation!

[@legendodinson7082]

Totally agree with the statement about megamania and demon attack where the simple fact that the enemies change makes a huge difference in fun and replayability.

[@PCKid32]

So relieved to see my favourite 2600 game Demon Attack got an S. If you look back you’ll see I suggested you do Imagic and you did so thanks for that.

[@GenXGrownUp]

I don't need to check the receipt - I got you. 😁

[@pugslt1]

I overheated my 7800 playing Demon Attack. Greatest gaming memories from that game.

[@pex_the_unalivedrunk6785]

Oof...I have a 7800, I'm mostly worried about it's wonky AC adapter plug in... it's not a usual 1/4 inch jack, but something goofy with a blue plastic end. Chuck Norris and Artillery game double ender combo is fun though...and Pole Position II is a big improvement over the original port on 2600.... it's pretty close to the arcade version.

[@vincentferrari]

Imagic was one of those developers that just stood out to me as a kid as someone who made quality games and I agreed with this tier list in its entirety, although I'd put Subterranea a tier higher (nitpicking, I know). Also Carnival did, in fact, come out for the 2600. I had it, and it was made by Coleco. Another game I loved but those DAMNED DUCKS.

[@markstahl1464]

Wow, that picture of you as a kid is LEGIT!!! Wood paneling and all…..

[@GenXGrownUp]

It is, isn't it? The tube TV, the toy microscope - it definitely lends to my dork cred!

[@OriginalGrasshopper]

Another awesome ranking vid! Thanks Jon. Please do an M-Network one next.

[@sandal_thong8631]

I saw a TV ad again where the TV they're playing on flies across the room. Compared to Atari sports games, theirs looks cool. But they didn't have one-player options and they also competed against all those other 1982 carts, including the Realsports games that I'm told are buggy. Still, worth watching a ranking of them, if he can do that for mostly 2-player games.

[@dublinfool25]

I'm subscribing because you, like me, proudly displays their 2-XL. Just awesome.

[@GAMECLOSET]

Great list. I agree with your grades for sure. Several of the Imagic games like Demon Attack, Cosmic Ark, and Atlantis, I bought (well, my parents bought for me) in 1982/83 and I always seemed to get them on sale from an old store franchise called Big Town, in Lorain, Ohio. (Oddly, all of my Imagic games were bought there and not Sears, Kmart, Gold Circle, Hill, or Zayre… yeah that’s a list alright). Some of these games in the lower end, I didn’t play back in the day, so unless it was an exceptional game like Laser Gates, I passed quickly. 😂

[@sandal_thong8631]

The first three you mentioned sold at least a million and maybe two for _Demon Attack,_ though I wonder, how much of their profit went to Atari in a settlement or lawsuit judgement from that game? But I was writing to wonder if they knew that having games with titles starting A,B,C or D would give them an advantage on shelves of first looksee?

[@backinthedaygamer]

Demon Attack is hands down one of the best Atari games and the best Imagic title. I used to play it w my Gramma back in the day.

[@pex_the_unalivedrunk6785]

LoL i was afraid my Mom who was super religious would think "Demons are evil" so I actually scratched out the word Demon on the cartridge label so she wouldn't throw it away. One of my favorite games on the Atari VCS though, right up there with Phoenix, and a few others I could play for hours, weeks, months, years...even now, especially while high.

[@markhickerson7431]

I had Demon Attack on the Intellivision. It was one of my favorites. Imagic also released a game called Beauty and the Beast on the Intellivision. You had to use windows that opened and closed to climb up a building while the beast would throw barrels at you along with other hazards. The funny thing was you could fall off the side of the building and it showed you falling each level you had made it up. And then you would have to start your climb again.

[@daviddavies3637]

I sold my copy of Riddle of the Sphinx a few years back. Had never figured out how to play it properly in over 20 years. Now I learn that you needed two joysticks. It was still boxed with manual as well. Goddammit. At least I still have my Atlantis, which I did play a LOT of.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Oh, no! 🥲

[@Knome-Ansland]

I remember Demon Attack was one of my favorites ever. The moment I defeated the final enemy on the last board, the screen went blank. No evidence to show the friends! 🤨

[@Skorpio420]

Another awesome video! Hopefully you do a Parker Brothers video.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Let me catch my breath, then I'll see what I can do! 😀

[@SeanGrantstormpinball]

An excellent list! It was great watching the game footage, brought back a lot of memories! I definitely agree with the bulk of your rankings. I think Solar Storm was better than you gave it credit for. I remember liking the speed of this game, and also the sound effects. Its not perfect, but its not terrible either, Looking forward to checking out your other tier lists as well! Heading to the Parker Brothers one right now! :)

[@peterperpetua2974]

Great video, I always enjoyed Imagic games. One interesting note even though released by Imagic, Laser Gates was actually programmed by Venture Vision (a sequel to Rescue Terra 1).

[@Mrshoujo]

Fun fact: The boss on 2600 Laser Gates is a 6507. For Atari 8-bits, it's a 6502.

[@tfofgaming3413]

Imagic was phenomenal, and to me, gives the 2600 most of its top-tier games. Activision has a few too, and there are some games I like that don't belong to some major publisher back then, like Phoenix, that I love. Then of course are the arcade ports...the 2600 is just a classic, what more can be said? this video kinda makes me wanna make a tier list of my collection of games for it.

[@WagnersTechTalk]

Loved this look at all the Imagic games, thanks Jon! Atlantis is my favorite as a little Jon-e.

[@GenXGrownUp]

You bet, Jon. I thank you and Little Jonny thanks you!

[@SylveonTrapito]

I can't believe most of my favourite games of the 2600 was almost all from Imagic. I guess even as a kid, I could tell wich games were good and wich ones not.

[@MrSmriley]

For me, Riddle of the Sphynx was so completely different that I absolutely loved it.

[@goldhawk81]

Great list and the way you rate games as if you were playing as a 10 year old is exceptional. I agree with you on most of the list and also think of them as if I were a child playing them. Cant wait for your next review list.

[@GenXGrownUp]

Thank you for the kind words, goldhawk81. I'm very glad you're enjoying my productions! 😀

[@TitanTed]

Cosmic Ark started as a clone of Midway's Space Zap, same mechanic for the asteroid portion of the game. The second part was added on to keep the game from getting too repetitive.

[@cryptocoffee13]

As Iconic as some of the original Atari 2600 titles are, the Imagic games were just as memorable and to me, the first type of "cutting edge" games offered on the system. I think you may have found a niche with these ranking videos but what the heck do I know!

[@GenXGrownUp]

Imagic did always feel a bit elevated - even the wonky ones! 😉 Yes, the first couple of these I've tried have really found an audience, which is very gratifying.

[@sandal_thong8631]

Imagic had some hits right out of the gate in 1982. Activision's games from its initial offerings in 1980? Not so much, though they got some million-sellers in 1981. _Stampede_ wasn't one, but that's their game I really liked playing in 2020 during the Pandemic. (I initially typed "Stamped".)

[@mymomsaysimcool9650]

That foil packaging was so 80’s. Always meant quality to me.

[@glenbartram5362]

I get that trying RotS without the manual is an exercise in futility, but for one who played it back when it was new… I freakin LOVED that game!! Real puzzle solving and story telling in a 2600 game was revolutionary! I can only imagine the kinds of puzzle solving they could have worked into a game if they tried! Anyway, RotS was probably in my top 10 2600 games, and I will die on that hill!

[@Alpha5119]

Im so glad you did this list. I would have rated them almost the same. Cosmic ark has always been a go to game . There are some games in there I never played and im going to check them out.

[@andymanaus1077]

Clearly someone at Imagic was brilliant at multicolour sprite design. This, of course, was never something the designers of the hardware ever thought was possible, let alone planned for, but almost all of Imagic's games look fantastic on screen. I'm always in awe of how much programmers could squeeze out of such rudimentary and awkward hardware. When I was a kid with an Atari, I never realised just how difficult the machine is to code. I started learning BASIC in 1982 and had no idea how spoiled I was to have such a simple, intuitive language. I still find it difficult to comprehend the torture that was programming on the Atari VCS. These guys were real geniuses and really earned their reputation as magicians on the Atari. It's sad that Atari refused to acknowledge its programmers. In the end they actually caused the outcome that terrified them: they lost their best programmers to other companies. On the other hand, we would never have had companies like Activision and Imagic and the programmers wouldn't have had the freedom to innovate if they'd stuck around Atari.

[@djgrom9542]

Thank you for this list. There are a few I have never heard of and now I have to go and find them :)

[@GenXGrownUp]

You're so welcome!

[@rebuh1968]

Demon Attack was definitely a favorite. I remember that you couldn’t pause the games back then but if you got to a real high level you could leave one of the attackers that doesn’t shoot and park your guy to the far right. I’d turn off the tv telling my mom not to turn off my Atari.

[@chrispapanastasopoulos9192]

You just jogged my memory…there was a Curtis Mathis TV store within walking distance. And they had a 2600 setup with Atlantis. They would let me and my sister play there for a while. It was so much fun to go there while on summer vacation. The other option was the Perry Drug store in the same open mall but I only had a buck or two at most to use on the coin op games there.

[@MannyCakes1984]

Another awesome video. I have to say, all these games that are featured are pretty solid. Great work as always.

[@MikesTek]

My two favorite Imagic games were Cosmic Arc and Star Voyager. I know you weren't a big fan of the 2nd one, but as a kid it was great game. It had a ranking system that you went through and made the game have replay value so you could always try to get higher. I know this sounds like just a high score, but it was somehow better. I'm sure it doesn't hold up today, but I used to play that for hours.

[@markmorris76]

Adventure and Pitfall were the iconic games. Tank Combat or someting that came iwth it was aloso fun. Boy did I play Adventure with maybe the first easter egg ever in a video game. The bats were hilarious. Edit: I see this is for Imagic games. No idea really. What a time to be alive. The one with the robots shooting at you was pretty fun.

[@TCGView]

I turned away to look at something else while this video was on and then I heard the sounds. The sounds of Cosmic Ark. Those sounds alone took me way back.

[@sandal_thong8631]

I saw a lot of TV ads for video game ads in 1982. If a company believed in the game they did one, and Imagic did for _Atlantis, Cosmic Ark, Demon Attack,_ and I think _Dragonfire._ The first three sold over 1 million each, which is great! I watched a documentary about the making and testing of _Atlantis._ I think they said Imagic was just going to go public when Atari announced its increase in profit for the year was downgraded from 50% increase to 15% increase which panicked investors. Probably because kids were buying carts from Imagic, Activison, Parker Bros. and Coleco in the millions, rather than exclusively from Atari. I saw print ads in comic books in 1983, but I don't remember any more TV ads, at least not for Imagic's 1983 games. Also, I read Imagic and Atari had a return policy (or exchange?), but that didn't help Imagic if people didn't want their 1983 games. I still got some games new in 1983 _(Vanguard, Jungle Hunt_ and Moon Patrol),_ but none in 1984 (though I wanted/want _Star Gate)._

[@WowplayerMe]

Here are some interesting factoids I've heard about Imagic Games. 1. Atlantis was inspired by an arcade game called Colony 7, released in 1981 by Taito. 2. The Space stage(s) of Cosmic Ark are based on the Midway arcade game Space Zap. 3. Imagic released Moonsweeper in 1983, three years later Atari released Solaris, which had very similar game play. 4. Demon Attack was reportedly based on Galaxian, but most people think it more closely resembles Phoenix, especially Atari, who sued Imagic over that fact. The case was settled out of court & Imagic didn't have to stop selling the game. (Unlike Odyssey, who had to pull KC Munchkin off the market after Atari won the Pac-Man lawsuit.)

[@sandal_thong8631]

I played _Space Zap!_ on an arcade machine. It had a Tie Fighter that circled you and spiraled in, which you probably had to shoot at the end of each wave of asteroids.

[@RonAlbaneseEntertainment]

Imagic was truly amazing, in that the entire library’s presentation was incredibly highly stylized - and there were more than a few great games … then, there are those exclusive Intellivision titles!

[@dad7275]

No Escape. One of my absolute favorite 2600 games.

[@BuzzGarwood]

Another gem of a video! Great job!

[@teamoptimus7069]

Hey, first off I'd like to say I love the channel you do great work on your content. Second, there will probably be future live streams of some of these games as well as Activision titles on my twitch channel. Thank you for the inspiration and keep up the great work.

[@8-bitblue858]

If you are looking for something specific: 2:08 Atlantis 3:56 Cosmic Ark 5:25 Demon Attack 6:56 DragonFire 8:19 Fathom 9:28 Fire Fighter 10:29 Laser Gates 12:00 Moonsweeper 13:29 No Escape 14:42 Quick Step 16:05 Riddle of the Sphinx 17:17 Shootin' Gallery 18:05 Solar Storm 18:56 Star Voyager 20:10 Subterranea 21:14 Trick Shot 23:04 Wing War 24:23 Final Tier List

[@GenXGrownUp]

✅

[@MrJacksspleen]

Did anyone else have the Riddle of the Sphinx game that would lock up in the middle of game play just as you were making great progress? It drove me insane!

[@ShadeofJeremy]

Okay, so I've played a lot less of these than I thought. So I cannot really comment on your rankings much. But I will say that I'm with you on Firefighter. I have played that one quite a bit. True it's not really a very good game. But so what i enjoy it. The concept of fighting fires and rescuing people rather than shooting bad guys or whatever, it appeals to me. Anyway another fun video and I'm looking forward to more as you put them out keep up the good work.

[@alemusg]

I agree with the rating given to each game, except for Subterranea… that game is at least an “A” class!!!.. I really liked the IMAGIC games!.. and the presentation of the boxes and cartridges were very eye-catching

[@exidy-yt]

Wing War on the ColecoVision was perhaps the best pre-NES 8-bit console game ever made. I didn't even know there WAS an atari VCS port of it released since it was PAL only, but unfortunately the VCS just wasn't up to the complexity the game required. A real shame. Great listing!