Summer Games

Summer Games is one of the titles that founded the entire genre of Olympic multi-event games, and on the Atari 800/XL it offers a set of events inspired by the Summer Olympics. Between events — including swimming, pole vault, gymnastics on the rings, diving, or rowing — the player chooses which ones to take part in, and can compete alone against the computer or against a friend on a single joystick. Controls are based on quick, precise button presses and joystick movements at the right moment, turning each event into its own small skill-based minigame, in which a few tenths of a second's better reaction than the opponent's decides the outcome.

On the eight-bit Atari, the game uses a colorful background reminiscent of an Olympic stadium and animates the individual athletes surprisingly smoothly given the platform's limitations, especially in events like gymnastics or diving, where precise timing of the takeoff animation and body rotation in the air matters. The musical accompaniment, including a festive fanfare reminiscent of Olympic ceremonies, was among what players remembered most about the game and gave the whole experience a ceremonial atmosphere, even though the actual gameplay was primarily about quick reflexes and precise timing estimation. Between events, the game also lets players watch a medal ceremony, giving the whole playthrough the structure of an actual Olympiad.

Summer Games was a commercial and critical success and launched the entire Epyx series (Summer Games II, Winter Games, World Games, California Games), which together defined the genre of sports compilations on home computers of the 1980s and inspired a range of competing titles from other publishers. Today the game feels like a charming time capsule of single-screen multiplayer competition, but its influence on later sports titles, including many console Olympic games of the 1990s, is undeniable.

Why play it: For lovers of single-screen multiplayer competition, this is a charming time capsule whose influence on later sports titles is undeniable.