The failures and successes of Atari in the ’70s and ’80s are well-documented, but if you were of gaming age back then there was no doubt that for a brief time, they were the kings of gaming.  Oh sure, we all knew kids who had Intellivision or ColecoVision – and truth be told they were superior systems – but they were desperately out of step and knew it.

Atari, like many of its contemporaries, was hit hard when the North American video game market imploded in 1983.  They were never able to build on the success of the Atari 2600 console, as the subsequent 5200 console was discontinued after just 18 months on the market and the 7800 was halted for a few years.  But none of that really mattered, as within a few years the Nintendo Entertainment System would begin its ascent into gaming legend, and Atari was toast.

Still, I had a blast playing my Atari.  I had or played all of the games in this ad except for Star Raiders.  I’ll go with Defender and Berzerk as the best of the lot.