Missile Command

Name:	Missile Command
Company:	Atari
Model #:	CX-5202
Programmer:	Rob Zdybel
Year:	1982
Released?	Yes
Notes:	Missile Command was one of the first five games developed for the 5200.

One of Atari's most beloved classics, Missile Command was almost deemed too scary for the general public.  The original plot was supposed to feature a missile attack on California, but this idea was scrapped due to fears of the game causing a mass panic (this was during the Cold War after all).  Programmer Dave Theurer actually woke up in cold sweats due to the nightmares he had about nuclear war after working on this project.  In the end the location was made generic, and the name was changed from Armageddon (meaning the end of the world) to a more subdued Missile Command.

The concept of Missile Command is simple.  Shoot down all the incoming missiles before they hit your bases.  You start each wave with 30 antiballistic missiles (ABMs) which you must launch at the incoming nuclear warheads.  Each ABM will explode into a ring of fire when it reaches its target.  It's this explosion that you must use to destroy the enemy warheads.  If any missiles strike your cities they will be destroyed (one city is replaced every 10,000 points), and if a missile strikes your base you will lose any missiles currently inside and have to wait until the base is restored before you can shoot again.  Thankfully the enemy can only destroy up to three cities on each wave, so if you've got four or more cities you'll always be able to continue to the next level no matter how disastrous things turn out.

It's not just enemy missiles that you have to worry about, each stage features killer satellites and bombers which will slowly move across the screen launching MIRVs (Multiple Independent Re-entry Vehicles) which will branch out quickly from a low altitude and decimate your cities if you're not careful.  Make taking these out a a priority before they're able to launch.  On higher levels you'll start encountering Smart Missiles which will actively seek out your bases and are apt at avoiding your ABMs.  If you don't score a close hit on a Smart Missile it will simply bounce off the explosion and keep coming.  You can turn on an option that will turn all missiles into Smart Missiles by pressing the 8 key on the title screen.  This mode is good for practicing against Smart Missiles or making the game very VERY difficult.

The 5200 version of Missile Command is very close to its arcade counterpart with one exception, the player only has one base!  Even though the 5200 could have handled all three bases due to its extra buttons, the game had been ported from the Atari 400/800 which had only one fire button so the extra bases had to go.  While most hardcore arcade junkies were dismayed with this change, many players found it easier to only have to worry about one base instead of three.  

Despite the lack of Alpha and Gamma bases, the 5200 version of Missile Command plays well, and the non-centering 5200 stick is actually a help for once rather than a hindrance.  However it's when Missile Command is hooked up to a 5200 Trak-Ball that the game really shines.  Trak-Ball designed Dan Kramer has said that he created a special three button Trak-Ball that worked with a modified three base version of Missile Command, giving the player a true arcade at home experience.  Sadly this version was never released.

The 5200 version of Missile Command is a pretty decent port and probably should have been the pack-in title instead of Asteroids Super Breakout.  It's a shame Atari didn't decide to enhance this port like they did with Super Breakout, Dig Dug, Qix, and Centipede, but the 8-Bit version was already nearly arcade perfect (minus the extra bases).  So plug in your Trak-ball, and start defending those cities.  The world is counting on you!

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