Atari 2600 Game
Produced by: Milton Bradley
Model Number: n/a
Rarity: 4 Uncommon+
Year of Release: 1983
Programmer: Uncredited
Navigate your spaceship through the seemingly never-ending catacombs. Shoot down your enemies before they get close enough to harm you. Watch out for deadly force fields and sharp turns. Its Survival Run for the Atari 2600.
When I first loaded up this game I was struck with one thought, "Oh my God, this is Descent on an Atari". It pretty much is. Guide a spaceship through underground tunnels in a first person perspective. The graphics are Pseudo-3D and are not bad for a 2600. Enemies zoom forward as nicely as can be expected. This game alone proves that Descent was not an original idea. I can't help wondering if there is even an earlier indoor 3-D pilot game.
You will find that this game is very easy once you learn how to turn when you get to a branch at the end of a tunnel. The enemies give you so much time before they attack that it is nearly impossible to miss them. One notable thing is that the Y -Axis on the joystick is reversed in this game. But it feels wrong somehow because of that. Perhaps it would feel right playing with the Flight Yoke controller that shipped with the game.
From the manual
With Cosmic Commander Control you are piloting a Class 1 Starfighter deep
in a far-off solar system. You have entered a complex maze of subterranean
tunnels with no way to turn back. Follow your onboard, computerized map
through a Survival Run. Conserve and restore your energy level and score
points as you defend yourself against alien guards and their force fields.
Your Cosmic Commander Control instantly responds to every move you make to
deliver precision control and pinpoint firing accuracy. You're in total
command of all the screen action as you take off on the ultimate space
adventure.
Powerful aliens have assembled an awesome strike force to destroy Earth. Grab
the controls of your starfighter and attack the enemy fortress, lying deep
inside a distant planet. Fly through the maze of subterranean caverns at hyp-
erspeed, following your onboard computer map for navigation. Fire your photon
torpedoes to zap enemy force fields and marauding alien guards as you race
toward the ultimate showdown against the Alien Master in his command ship.
Collectors Information
Some copies of this game shipped with no label on the end. Both versions are equally common, the version with the end label appears to be the collector's choice. Packed in this game was a large flight yoke controller that was called the "Cosmic Command". It is supposed to represent the controls to a spaceship. This controller is worth a lot more than the cartridge is, even though it is functionally identical to the standard 2600 joystick.
This game is valued at around $10
USD. As always, games with boxes and manuals are worth more.