The Top 30 Vertical Shooters for the Atari 2600 #22

Space Invaders
Atari

One could argue that Space Invaders is the vertical shooter that defines the genre.  It certainly feels like the consummate classic in the field.  That impending doom march of the Invaders.  That alluring droning of the UFO as it taunts you from the top of the screen.  Those equally defending and infuriating shields that are never where you need them to be.  When I hear the words "vertical shooter" these are the images in my mind.

Space Invaders is a great game!  And to be honest I am partial to the "improved" Invaders in the VCS version. But you don't get to the top of a list like this by just being a classic or by defining a genre.  As a matter of fact that sort of works against Space Invaders here. The game lays the foundation for many better games to come, but when you break new ground you are setting yourself up to be improved upon.  Many of the games further up this list owe their greatness at least in part to Space Invaders.

My biggest qualm with Space Invaders for the VCS is the lack of challenge.  The base game can be mastered and the score rolled with relatively little practice.  I wish the score counter went into the millions because I think I could play it that long.  And no, I am not going to just keep rolling the score and try to keep track of how many times I have done that.  Thankfully there are lots, and I mean lots, of variations on the base game to keep things fresh, but if we are evaluating these games on the base game play, then I have to say that Space Invaders gets a bit stagnant a bit too quickly.

I have big love and big respect for Space Invaders on the Atari 2600, but I just don't play it much anymore. It would rank much higher on a list of classic, iconic label and box art, however!

My Top Space Invaders Score:  Score Rolled, repeatedly.

The Top 30 Vertical Shooters for the Atari 2600 #30

GORF
CBS ElectronicS

We start the countdown (count up?) with a game that sort of embodies the entire spirit of the list.
Take Space Invaders, Galaxian, and Gyruss, do them all really poorly then cram them all into a single game and you have GORF.  Fortunately, the sum total of GORF is better than its parts for that is its only saving grace.

GORF is a very ambitious game.  With 4 distinct levels of game play, two of which ape existing games destined to be classics, this game takes a lot of risks and comes up short on most of them.  The Space Invaders level is stripped down and not terribly challenging. The Galaxian level has a bit more flair, but is far too easy and brief. (It should be noted that the original arcade version of GORF had a level that was exactly like Galaxian only with few enemies.  Both that level and the level presented here, also in the arcade game, employ the Galaxian-esque dive-bomb attack for enemy ships.)  The Gyruss-like level (Gyruss would not be created until 1983, two years after GORF) provides the most challenge in the game, but even that is minimal and again, all too brief.  The mothership level presents a bit of a challenge at higher levels, but a single shot to the neck still takes it out with little fun..errr...fuss.

If you played these levels independently, you would probably give video games up for good and go back to an exciting hobby like botany.  But there is a little bit of magic in playing all four successively.  It's not much, but it does make GORF worth playing, every so often and only if you don't have access to Space Invaders, Galaxian or Gyruss.  I still play GORF from time to time, because there is a some charm here, but it rarely makes it onto a list of games I am excited to play.

Maybe if they had been able to port over the voice....

My best GORF score: 13150*
*Curious fact, I set a new personal high score for GORF whilst playing it for this project.  That score beat my previous high set exactly 10 years and a day before.  Video game synchronicity is scary.