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E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (Atari 2600) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia This game was one of many bad decisions that led to the bankruptcy of Atari, which posted a $536 million loss in 1983, and was divided and sold in 1984. There is an urban legend that Atari, stuck with tons of unsellable merchandise, secretly buried the millions of unsold E.T. cartridges in a desert landfill in New Mexico. Atari's stated reason for the burial was that they were changing from Atari 2600 to Atari 5200 games en.wikipedia.org /wiki/E.T._(video_game)   (3000 words)

Urban Legends Reference Pages: Business (Five Million E.T. Pieces) Atari's VCS game console was several years old by 1982, and its established customer base was being eroded by newer, better systems such as Mattel's Intellivision and Coleco's ColecoVision (especially when those systems started offering adapters that allowed customers to play VCS game cartridges without needing to own Atari consoles). Even worse, the "next generation" system Atari finally unveiled in late 1982,the Atari 5200, was a huge disappointment (in part because its joysticks were poorly designed and difficult to use, and because it was incompatible with the huge existing base of VCS cartridges). Atari sent their goose away not with the traditional gold watch, but with a pair of cement overshoes. www.snopes.com /business/market/atari.asp   (777 words)

In Defense of E.T. (from 2600 Connection #78   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-24) Atari was seemingly oblivious to this growing problem, still concentrating on profits at the expense of quality. Atari had already lost some of their most talented programmers (who formed Activision) after refusing to increase their salaries or provide royalties. Atari also earned a reputation for heavy-handed tactics—forcing retailers to order copies of games they didn’t want in order to get the games they did want, for example—not to mention failing to pay its vendors in a timely fashion. 2600connection.atari.org /et.html   (1470 words)

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial Even worse, the "next generation" system Atari finally unveiled in late 1982, the Atari 5200, was a huge disappointment (in part because its joysticks were poorly designed and difficult to use, and because it was incompatible with the huge existing base of VCS cartridges). Atari wanted this kept quiet and on a need to know basis so why would Atari tell the programmers of E.T. and Pac-Man that they were burying millions of unsold games. Atari 2600 Duds is simply a collection of ideas and opinions by a wide variety of people from a wide variety of places. www.sitesled.com /members/atari2600duds/et.html   (4605 words)

AtariProtos.com - All Your Protos Are Belong To Us! Had it been any other game Atari fans would have passed it off as another dud and moved on, but this wasn't just any game, it was Pac-Man! Atari had botched the most popular game in history and there was just no excuse. Atari management claims that no 8K version existed and that this was Tod's best effort. Atari made much better versions of Pac-Man for the Atari 400/800, 5200, Intellivision, and Colecovision (under the Atarisoft label), but these versions could never make up for the botched 2600 job. www.atariprotos.com /2600/software/pacman/pacman.htm   (459 words)

GameSpy.com - Article Atari Takes a Bath on E.T. It seems like it should be an urban legend, yet it's true. Then, starting in December of that year, it all came crashing down with the announcement that Warner Communications, Atari's corporate parent, was now losing money on the company that had been responsible for 70% of its 1981 profits. Thanks in part to E.T., Atari posted a $536 million dollar loss in 1983, the start of an agonizing death spiral that didn't end until the company was sold off in pieces a few years later. archive.gamespy.com /articles/june03/dumbestmoments/index4.shtml   (693 words)

GameSpy.com - Top 10 Atari decided that they could capture the tremendous magic of the film and compress it into a cartridge, and that they only needed five weeks to do it! Atari built the things so cheaply that they routinely malfunctioned after regular use (or even without it!). Atari probably could have redeemed itself by offering a sturdier, self-centering alternate controller, but shamefully, the company never did. www.gamespy.com /top10/december02/shame/index2.shtml   (717 words)

Buried Atari E.T. game carts unearthed - Joystiq I doubt those were real cartridges I had always heard that Atari rendered the cartridges in an inoperable condition (in pieces) before the shipped them out and after being buried for 20 years there is no way they'd look that clean. A big video game company died (Atari, and only the first of many times) and the other companies willingly pulled out of the console business because the computers and arcades were kicking their butts. There wasn't a period of time in the 80s when you couldn't find an Atari 2600/5200/7800 on which to play the hundreds of games, even if the company was dead their consoles were still in stores longer than any other console in history. www.joystiq.com /2006/01/25/buried-atari-e-t-game-carts-unearthed   (1924 words)

Seanbaby.com - EGM's Crapstravaganza: The 20 Worst Games of All Time The Atari 2600 had a game where General Custer raped Indians tied to cactuses, and THAT couldn't kill the system. This is an actual true story: Atari manufactured five million E.T. cartridges, and according to Atari's CEO, "nearly all of them came back." It got to a point where the world's children refused to take them for free. Calling this game a piece of trash is actually scientifically accurate because Atari eventually took their massive collection of useless E.T. cartridges and buried it in a New Mexico landfill. www.seanbaby.com /nes/egm01.htm   (434 words)

paul_slocum_yrs_rvng The Synthcart is an Atari 2600 cartridge that turns your 2600 into a pop music sensation, letting you play music using a pair of Atari's keyboard controllers. A: An Atari 2600 w/ power supply, TWO keyboard controllers, and a TV (or a VCR that includes a TV tuner and audio out). A: The sound is generated by the Atari 2600's built in sound chip (the TIA). qotile.net /synth.html   (1338 words)

The Essential 50 Part 13 -- E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial 1UP - Find Articles The tale of E.T. for Atari 2600 is a sad one: a story of corporate incompetence on a scale rarely seen outside of late-90s internet startups or certain oil concerns with friends in the executive branch. It represents the end of Atari's reign, the beginning of the early-80s video game crash that nearly brought the industry to its knees, and the arrival of a certain flavor of marketing-oriented cynicism that plagues the medium even now. But it certainly wasn't single-handedly responsible for changing the course of a multi-billion dollar industry; it was simply the straw the broke the camel's back. www.findarticles.com /p/articles/mi_zd1up/is_200404/ai_ziff124081   (421 words)

UGO.com Film & TV - Commercials of the '80s- Qwik, Transformers, Star Wars, the E.T. game for Atari 2600   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-24) Commercials of the '80s- Qwik, Transformers, Star Wars, the E.T. game for Atari 2600 We loved getting a look at the newest and hottest stuff on the market, and by stuff, we mean just about everything: Toys, snacks, games, etc. So in remembrance of those times, we're taking a stroll down memory lane and revisiting some of our favorite spots from the bube tube days of yore. See Transformers in action, the Nestle Quik rabbit playing Atari 2600, and E.T. in video game form, all straight from the ‘80s to your heart. ugo.com /channels/FilmTv/alsoPlaying/article.asp?articleId=8648&...   (165 words)

Atari E. T.   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-24) Atari E. Realized I totally forgot to chronicle the night that dad, Heather and I got E. home. We had the Atari 2600 game that was such a failure that season that it later was dumped into landfills. But I think mom was just coming in the driveway with Moby Dick’s fish (we nearly always ate fish on Friday - we called it ‘dick-burgers’) and we had spent over an hour playing the game. andymatic.com /2002/03/25/atari-e-t   (248 words)

YouTube - Berzerk (Atari 2600 Commercial) This was a faily good game for the Atari 2600. Atari's game jingles always ended up fitting perfectly with the "have you played Atari today?" jingle. Commercial for the vintage Atari 2600 ga Commercial for the vintage Atari 2600 game: Berzerk... www.youtube.com /watch?v=J0kWqjDUu7o&mode=related&search=   (370 words)

ClassicGaming.com - Game of the Week   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-24) E.T. cost Atari over $21 million just to license the rights to make the game, and in the end it cost them not only millions more in losses but a big hit to their reputation. Although the game sold over a million copies, over five million copies were either dumped on the market for next to nothing or destroyed. Didn't Atari realize that when they had to explain how to solve the game in the manual, something was wrong? www.classicgaming.com /rotw/et.shtml   (901 words)

The E.T. Atari Game Music Video - Kotaku Music video director Keith Schofield and indie rockers Wintergreen's fantastic ballad to one crappy game: Atari's E.T. The director's a big gamer and owns something like ten copies of the game. Anyway, I picked up ET a few years back at a garage sale, it really does suck, but its a nice lil gem in the collection, heh. Didn't someone from Atari finally admit that the work it would take to bury 5 million copies of ET then cover it in cement would be a costly endeavour and a stupid thing to do? www.kotaku.com /gaming/music/the-et-atari-game-music-video-170169.php   (204 words)

Phosphor Dot Fossils: Atari 2600 E.T. Pretty impressive stuff for the 2600, but the game was much more satisfying if one never got past that title screen. A spectacular sales failure for Atari, E.T. cartridges - according to legend - were returned to Atari in such overwhelming numbers that five million copies were crushed and buried in a New Mexico landfill. E.T. programmer Howard Scott Warshaw, who also programmed the vastly superior Raiders Of The Lost Ark game and the all-time classic Yars' Revenge, disputes that claim, though; while he admits that the game didn't go over well, Warshaw doesn't think that the destroyed inventory was anywhere near five million copies. www.thelogbook.com /phosphor/atari26/q0-00/et.html   (280 words)

The Atari Times - 2600   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-24) f you've even been stuck with the 2600 game E.T., here are some ideas for you to get rid of it once and for all! The views expressed are solely those of the author. Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari Atari atari www.ataritimes.com /2600/features/101usesfor_et.html   (472 words)

E.T. by Atari, label variations and items for sale. Some pirate game manufacturers would alter the code slightly, maybe just to insert their logo (like Robby Game) but some manufacturers would alter the program code slightly as well, to change object appearances or gameplay. If it for a different system (Atari 5200 vs Atari 2600) then we just provide a link to the game for the other system. This is the c1 variation of game #106 (E.T. by Atari). www.atariguide.com /1/106b.htm   (1453 words)

SpielbergFilms.com Forum - Anybody remember playing, and liking, the old E.T. 2600 Atari game?   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-24) Okay, I have a question for all you E.T. fanatics. It must be interesting with the E.T. games that came out during the 20th Anniversary for the PC and Game Boy Advance how different the strategies are compared to the classic Atari game. I'm an old-timer so I know I would prefer the old Atari game no matter how cheesy the graphics looked. www.spielbergfilms.com /forum/printthread.php?t=1306   (176 words)

eBay - atari 2600 e.t, Games, Vintage Games items on eBay.com   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-24) Atari 2600/7800 E.T. w/ Ins Manual Mint Cond. E.T. ATARI 2600 80s Used Video Game Cartridge 1 Cent Atari 2600 Game E.T. The Extra Terrestrial ET search-desc.ebay.com /search/search.dll?query=atari+2600+e.t&newu=1&...   (348 words)

Paul Thurrott's Internet Nexus My favorites: IBM PC Jr., E.T. for Atari 2600, and the Coleco Adam (I still own one). A few products don't belong on this list, however, including the Osborne Executive and the TI-99/4A, which any early 80's enthusiast will tell you was way ahead of its time. One other falacy to this page: The story about the Apple service bulletin advising customers to pick up broken Apple III units and drop them from a height of two inches happened to an Atari computer, as I recall, not an Apple computer. www.internet-nexus.com /2004/01/stupid-high-tech-products.htm   (114 words)

digg / jackspack / dugg Awesome music video tells story of doomed E.T. for Atari 2600 A music video about the rise and fall of E.T. for the Atari 2600. These guys actually go to the landfill where they were buried and digg up like 200 of the cartridges. digg.com /users/jackspack   (357 words)

GameGenie.com: Atari 2600 Cheats - E.T: The Extra Terrestrial GameGenie.com: Atari 2600 Cheats - E.T: The Extra Terrestrial Mother ship crash: Intentionally allow E.T. to die on the landing pad while waiting for the mother ship. E.T. will appear to be too tall, allowing his rear to appear from the bottom of the ship. www.gamegenie.com /cheats/2600/et.shtml   (72 words)

E.T. The Extra Terrestrial Cheats on Atari 2600   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-24) Cheats and Codes for E.T. The Extra Terrestrial on Atari 2600 Intentionally allow E.T. to die on the landing pad while waiting for the mother ship. Nintendo Fire does not collect user demographic information. www.nintendofire.com /cheats/atari2600/E.T._The_Extra_Terrestrial.htm   (156 words)

Re: How do I play E.T. on the 2600?   (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-24) Re: How do I play E.T. on the 2600? Playing E.T.,now that was a cool game for the Atari 2600. I remember being most impressed with the title screen and thought that was a great graphics picture. www.holyoak.com /aid/_disc1/000000c7.htm   (338 words)

E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial for 2600 - E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial Atari 2600 - E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial 2600 Game E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial for 2600 - E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial Atari 2600 - E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial 2600 Game Buy It E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial is an adventure game based on the popular movie. Catch the crooks and rebuild the bridge in this action-packed adventure from Atari. gamespot.com /atari2600/action/ettheextraterrestrial/?...   (234 words)

sell.com classifieds : Atari 2600 E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial for sale in Fresno (2ZW3J) sell.com classifieds : Atari 2600 E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial for sale in Fresno (2ZW3J) The seller is currently not accepting offers on this ad, but may at a later date. Designated trademarks and brands are the property of their respective owners. www.sell.com /2ZW3J   (57 words)

AtariAge - Atari 2600 - E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (Atari) AtariAge - Atari 2600 - E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (Atari) Atari buried 5 million unsold copies of E.T. in the New Mexico desert. Atari Stars (CO16725 Rev. F) - Page 23 www.atariage.com /software_page.html?SoftwareLabelID=157   (30 words)

E.T. by Atari for the Atari 2600. The success of the Spielberg movie launched this adventure game, and in turn the game was so bad it may have been responsible for crashing the entire video game market. Much hyped, rumor has it Atari ended up burying millions of copies of this in a landfill. This game has been viewed 8207 times since 2.16.2002 www.atariguide.com /1/106.htm   (219 words)

Cheats for E.T. The Extra Terrestrial on Atari 2600 Cheats for E.T. The Extra Terrestrial on Atari 2600 Reduced Power Zones (Rated 3/10 by 6 users) Our publisher also produces websites covering the following subjects which may interest you: www.cheatstation.com /cheats/atari2600/et_the_extra_terrestrial.html   (157 words)

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