Remember the Noid? What about Yo! Noid for NES?

Remember the Noid? He was that weird looking claymation mascot of Dominos Pizza. If you don't remember the company's mascot than you surely don't remember his NES game: Yo! Noid! The game was marketed towards kids (obviously...who else would be a fan of the Noid) but was a game so hard that it was unsuited for any kid without a Game Genie. Why was it so hard? Well, the Noid had no life meter and died with any enemy contact. That probably wouldn't be that bad if the Noid was equipped with a decent weapon, but alas the Noid only has a Yo-Yo to protect himself. The game was developed by Capcom and shares nearly all it's gameplay concepts (but none of its grahics) with a Japanese game called Kamen no Ninja Hanamaru (Masked Ninja Hanamaru). For some reason, I had this game and attempted playing it for about a day before it started collecting dust on the floor of my room. I gave it a second go around with a Game Genie, and cheated my way through the levels. The game never really left me with any semblance of fun and definitely serves as an example of a failed commercialization/localization/cartoon-tie-in video game project. Luckily this is one of the only such wacky game projects I have ever heard of.

Yo Noid is on the left, crazy Japanese ninja game is on the right

Sega Master System

First Released: June 1986 (USA)

Gaming Era: 8-bit

CPU: 8-bit Zilog Z80A

Cost: $139.99 (w /Hang-on & Safari Hunt)

Sales: 13 Million Units

Controller: Gamepad

Death: 1989 (rights sold to Tonka in 88)

Life: 3 years

Best Games: Alex Kidd in Miracle World, Space Harrier, Strider, Shinobi, Penguin Land

The Sega Master System was pretty much a non-entity in the United States and Japan where Nintendo controlled 95% of the market. However, worldwide it was a moderate success which set the stage for the successful Genesis. In Europe, Sega smartly marketed the system in territories that Nintendos weren't available, and was a rival and competitor to the Nintendo (though it never surpassed it). In Brazil, they still make Sega Master Systems! It was an absolute smash hit and marketed and adapted to the territory expertly by Tec Toy. All in all, the Sega Master System was a mild success worldwide, but allowed Sega to learn and enter the video game market. Sega was able to learn enough to see widespread success with the Sega Mega-Drive / Genesis. Sega's Master System set the stage for the first official console war: SNES vs. Genesis in the 16-bit era of video games.

The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)

First Released: October 18 1985 (USA)

Gaming Era: 8-bit
CPU: Ricoh 8-bit Processor

Cost: $199.99 (SMB bundle)

Sales: 60+ Million Units
Controller: Gamepad
Death: 1995 (Japan continued manufacturing them until Oct 2003)

Life: 10 years
Best Games: Super Mario Bros. (1-3), Metroid, Legend of Zelda, BattleToads, Double Dragon, Ninja Gaiden

The Nintendo Entertainment System was a game changer. It was released despite the video game market crash of 1983 and was extremely successful. Atari blew its chance to distribute the system and the NES went on to become the best selling video game console of all time (at the time). The Nintendo is also the birth place of many of Nintendo's stellar franchises: Mario, Zelda, and Metroid. The NES has also had one of the longest lifespan's of any system. In fact, Nintendo of Japan still repaired Nintendo's up through 2003 when parts became too scarce. Atari may have started the home video game market, but Nintendo revived it and made it what it is today. Many gamers today started on the NES and know it as their first system. It is definitely the king of the 8-bit crown and the best system of the era.

The Atari 7800 Video Game Console

First Released: June 1986 (USA)
Gaming Era: 8-bit

CPU: 1.79Mhz
Cost: $139.99
Sales: 1 Million Units

Controller: Joystick

Death: Jan 1992

Life: 5.5 years

Best Games: Pole Position II, Mario Bros, Asteroids, Donkey Kong

The Atari 7800 was too little too late. By the time it was released, the NES already had a firm grasp on the US market and the Sega Master System had the rest. The Atari 7800 was compatible with all Atari 2600 games (making it a valuable collector's item) but it was plagued by a 2 year delay and a complete lack of titles due to many developers exclusive contracts with Nintendo. It should be noted that Atari made one of the Biggest Video Game Mistakes of all time by turning down Nintendo's offer to manufacture the NES in America in favor of the 7800. One can only imagine what the Atari name would mean today if they had the sense to accept Nintendo's offer.

The Atari 5200 Console

First Released: Nov 1982 (USA)

Gaming Era: Early 8-bit
CPU: 1.79Mhz

Cost: $249.99

Sales: Exact Figure Unknown, but very Poor
Controller: Joystick w/keypad
Death: 1984
Life: 1.5 years
Best Games: Space Invaders, Dig Dug, Q*bert, Robotron 2084

The Atari 5200 was a failure despite it's improved graphics. It's big mistake was that it was not backwards compatible with the successful Atari 2600 (this was later resolved albeit too late). Of course there was another big mistake: the joystick sucked - it broke and wore easily and didn't auto-center making games like pac-man miserable. Atari didn't really support the 5200 either, instead continuing to focus on the 2600. Then the Video Game Crash hit...which pretty much killed the 5200. There were 125 games released for the 5200 and they were of good quality garnering a cult following for the 5200. However the 5200, remains one of the first misteps of many by Atari.

Retro Review: Atari Asteroids

You can play asteroids above for yourself. The above is a pretty spot-on translation of the 80s Arcade classic. It seems even more appropriate to review Asteroids since it was just released to Xbox Live Arcade. Asteroids was surely one of the best games for the Atari 2600. The game gave you more control over your ship (compared to space invaders) and while it was only black and white, it featured smooth animations/rotations for the time. The most important thing was that the gameplay was simple yet extremely challenging. As an arcade game this puppy just ate your quarters up and it is still worthy of a couple minutes here and there. Does Asteroids stand the test of time? Not really. The gameplay is too simplistic compared to even NES or Master System games, and while it still controls/plays well, it is clearly an arcade game with limited appeal. Graphics & Sound are pathetic and poor for even 2d games, so while in its day it was king, Asteroids is a little too retro for its own good. It still offers a decent challenge though and of course has that nostalgic flair.

The Atari 2600

First Released: Oct 1977 (USA)
Gaming Era: Early 8-bit

CPU: 1.19 Mhz

Cost: $199.99

Sales: ~40 Million

Controller: Joystick

Death: Jan 1992

Life: 14 years 2 months
Best Games: Pitfall, Adventure, Breakout, & Pong

While there are technically earlier systems...they really were more like computers. Atari is the home console that started it all. Before Nintendo & Japan ruled Gaming, a US company started bringing video games into people's homes. While released in the late 70s, Atari didn't explode until 1980 when it brought in profits over $2 billion dollars. It reigned supreme until the video game crash of 1983. The Atari era gave birth to one of the biggest developers today: Activision. Activision's Pitfall! is considered the best selling game ever for the Atari 2600.