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Frankenstein’s Monster Atari Game!

First, my apologies if the site has looked all screwy and misaligned today...it wasn't coded correctly for certain browsers, like say, the browsers everyone uses. It may look like that for another day, but it'll be fixed tomorrow. Second, my head hurts. Third, there's a new article on the Halloween Countdown, taking us back to the days when the Atari 2600 was president of the world and could get away with giving us games like Frankenstein's Monster. As Player 1, your objective was to erect walls around the titular creature, using big rocks. Uh huh.

Posted by Matt on 09/18/2006. E-mail me!



Discussion Thread: 74 comments

Weird Al premired the music video for his latest single “White & Nerdy” on his myspace tonight! (it was supposed to be on aol.com, but some asshole leaked it to youtube, so that link is on his site now) And…it. kicks. ass. Possibly the best video he’s ever done.

And here’s a survey: What would make up an XE-opoly game? spaces, tokens, chance cards, etc?

Chestnuts roasted by Invader Norbert @ 09/18/2006 11:42 PM

I picked up a copy of that game ages ago at a yard sale. What happens when you win the game isn’t nearly as cool as the losing screen stompfest.

The “big finish” is this: Once you drop the last brick, the walls become as tall as the monster. Then as the cheesy victory music plays (the tune, if you can call it that, sounds like a Skeeball jackpot reinterpreted as a vaguely cheerful air raid siren), the screen flashes and the monster is erased from the top down, one line at a time. This takes place on the regular three-level game screen, which really makes it seem like the designers put the serious effort into the losing animation, while the winning screen was just a lazy afterthought.

There’s one other semi-interesting thing about FM. Sometimes with the old Ataris, you could cause strange variations in the games by quickly turning the machine on and off multiple times. (In Space Invaders, for example, you could corrupt the game so that you fired twice as many shots at once.) With Frankenstein’s Monster, you could screw up the background colors and turn the main character into a bizarre-looking purple and green dude, making this the one and only Atari game to feature an 80′s-era Elton John as the hero.

Chestnuts roasted by SJ @ 09/18/2006 11:43 PM

I’m glad travis said it before I had to.

Chestnuts roasted by dohopoki @ 09/19/2006 12:05 AM

Thanks for the info, SJ! Of course, now I am determined to beat the game so I can witness the amazing ending you speak of. This could take weeks.

Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 09/19/2006 12:08 AM

Jester, going to Wal-Mart is always sort of surreal, but your experience is the best by far.

A cephalopod ghost – a giant cephalopod ghost – would be really creepy. I’m glad its in the game, warms my heart. I’m an ex-biology major.

Chestnuts roasted by Jessica Marie @ 09/19/2006 12:13 AM

Awww yeah, I love your video game reviews! Keep ‘em coming!

Chestnuts roasted by Brandon @ 09/19/2006 12:52 AM

Jessica, Yeah it was weird, I had the satisfaction of seeing a child tortured by his mother by being forced down a tightly packed hallway of terror, But I was also pissed off because it ruined my shopping, before they showed up I was the only one in the halloween section. I just might take up Matts challange and draw out the story, Hmmmmmm now I need to go back to the Wal-Mart to Buy Crayons.

How the hell do I not have any crayons?, I remember having and entire plastic yellow construx briefcase filled with broken crayons when I was little. When did crayons fall out of a list of requirements that should be in my apartment?

Chestnuts roasted by Jester @ 09/19/2006 1:00 AM

Jester, just go buy some crayons. I got a pack of 24 of them for less than $2 Canadian. You can probably get a pack of 96 for under $4 US.
And folks, more of you should own a pack of crayons. I’ve done more than one page full of stuff with them for friends, and there’s just something awesome about that texture they leave behind.

Chestnuts roasted by Ronald MacKinnon @ 09/19/2006 1:35 AM

I’ve had “download Atari 2600 emulator and play Frankenstein’s Monster” on my to do list for years now. No I’m really going to have to do it. The best Atari site by far is Atari Age. (atariage.com)
Of course,if you’re looking to buy any upcoming new releases for Atari or Colecovision,they’re pretty much the only place that’s going to stock them. I just think it’s cool that new Atari games are being made at all.

Speaking of old games,you can click my name for downloadable PC versions of old handheld games,mostly Nintendo’s old Game & Watch series. Say what you will about the technology limitations,but some of these games are awesome. Lifeboat especially is a must see,because of the shark attack death scene you see when you fail to catch a guy. Snoopy Tennis is a classic too.

Chestnuts roasted by Kid Nicky @ 09/19/2006 4:21 AM

Sorry to be a snotty little bastard, but I just noticed that your Halloween Jukebox lists “Cry Little Sister” as a Sisters of Mercy song, it’s a very common mistake really – it’s actually done by Gerard McMann (McMahon). :x

And Christ, what a delightfully horrid game

Chestnuts roasted by Dark_Half @ 09/19/2006 4:29 AM

What the fuck kind of expensive ass crayons are you buying, Ronald? I don’t think I’d pay over 50¢ US for a 24 pack of crayons. Shit, I think I spent $2 on my Special Edition 100 pack.

God I need some motherfucking coffee.

Chestnuts roasted by Mystie @ 09/19/2006 7:31 AM

LMAO at Mystie.
And I think I said something about the Sisters of Mercy error last year.

Chestnuts roasted by Kid Nicky @ 09/19/2006 7:47 AM

Oh, and I forgot… ARRR!!! It be Talk Like a Pirate day!

Chestnuts roasted by Mystie @ 09/19/2006 8:01 AM

I think this is one of the games that my only friend who had atari had. But I always played pacman.

Happy Talk Like a Pirate Day evereyone!

Chestnuts roasted by kb @ 09/19/2006 8:08 AM

Arrrrrrrrrrticle and the Atarrrrrrri game gets bonus points for correctly distinguishing between Frankenstein and his creation.

/English Major..
//Yarrrr!

Chestnuts roasted by Cameron T. @ 09/19/2006 8:48 AM

Mars – that movie terrified me to my very soul. It was the only Nightmare that I saw in theaters and the concept of Freddy no longer being just a movie character caused me to sleep with a stuffed dinosaur to this very day. I’ve been afraid of Freddy since I was a wee one. Note to parents: Don’t let your 5 yr old daughter watch horror movies. that shit will stick with her.

I’m a sissy and I don’t care who knows it!

Chestnuts roasted by bitchpants @ 09/19/2006 8:51 AM

Holy shit, I just got into work and there is a HORDE of people across the street waiting for their shot at that new Elmo doll. Why’d I forget my camera today?

Chestnuts roasted by Matt @ 09/19/2006 9:19 AM

ARRRRRR. yeah, im a pirate…

that looks like a fun game, dunno why, but lately ive been on an atari kick, although i’ve never owned one myself, thank god for emulators,
WHY DON’T WE HAVE TARGETS IN CANADA DAMMIT!! i guess im not meant to taste the ghoulish delights of the PB3….The Bill for my therapy is in the mail matt, make sure you take care of it before the end of the month will ya?

Chestnuts roasted by JoshC @ 09/19/2006 9:36 AM

Ahoy! Be havin’ a happy International Talk Like A Pirate Day, ye scallywags!

YARRRRR!!!!!

Chestnuts roasted by Cap`n Hank Bloodbeard (bad karma) @ 09/19/2006 9:38 AM

Pirates suck. Ninjas rule.

Chestnuts roasted by Knegative @ 09/19/2006 9:43 AM

Jester – do it. I want to see the artist’s rendering of the torture.

Chestnuts roasted by Jessica Marie @ 09/19/2006 10:02 AM

Okay, been busy, got some catching up to do.

Went to Milwaukee last Tuesday night. At Wisconsin State Fair Park they have a “Halloween Express” set up in the parking lot. It’s a fucking HUGE inflatable jack-o-lantern with a Halloween store inside. I was so pissed that I didnt have a camera. Or time to stop.

Once in Milwaukee, saw Rob Zombie in concert (it was actually a Godsmack show but I could give a fuck). Everyone’s personal music tastes aside, it was kind of cool. The screen in the background was showing horror movie clips almost the whole time, including the beautiful shootout at the end of Devils Rejects. But my point is this: after one of his little breaks, he came out in a Michael Myers costume, the movie screen had the Halloween pumpkin on it, and the guitarist played that Halloween theme that I cant think of the name of right now, the music when he’s stalking after someone. So…I dont know if that means he’s gonna do the movie, is mocking the fact that he isn’t gonna do the movie, or maybe it meant nothing. The whole thing was fun, like watching a haunted house on stage.

Then Thursday, my little sister finally went in to have her baby (a boy). After 14 hours of labor and an emergency c-section, I am finally an auntie for the first time. :) Spent most of the rest of the week at the hospital with them, just chillin.

Somewhere in there, I went to Target too…I bought some of the mojito soda, and it makes me want to puke. Makes me feel like I’m drinking toothpaste spit. I was gonna buy some cans of Berried Alive too, but they had the regular berry lemonade in bottles so I just got that instead. That stuff is the best ever.

Chestnuts roasted by MaryJane @ 09/19/2006 11:13 AM

I just saw the same Rob Zombie tour a few weeks ago…he’s awesome.

I picked up the candy corn soda last nite….. its really weird. Definitely tastes like candy corn, almost a creamy aftertaste. Its drinkable but Im glad it only comes in a tiny can.

I did pick up the “lemon drop dead” flavor, and i’ll be trying a bottle on my lunch hour…its chillin in the mini fridge right now!

Target has awesome halloween stuff, bought me a sparkly light up skull!

Chestnuts roasted by m1928mouse @ 09/19/2006 11:27 AM

MaryJane
Last I heard, he was directing the new Halloween!

I heart Zombie.

Chestnuts roasted by broomstickjockey @ 09/19/2006 12:01 PM

Wait a second, that scrawny blue faced hippy guy with buggy yellow eyes is supposed to be Frankenstein’s Monster? Awesome. I guess they were trying to modernize him or something. The inaccuracy does go with the goofy premise of the game I suppose. It’s almost as if they were thinking, “Hey, we’ve got this game that doesn’t make any sense, what should we do with it? I know! Let’s put a strung out Frankenstein with jaundice on the box art! Awesome!”

Chestnuts roasted by Justin @ 09/19/2006 12:11 PM

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This entry was posted on Monday, September 18th, 2006 at 8:40 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.