Atari 2600 Action Pack - PC, 2/4/96

Like Nintendo's Game and Watch anthology Game Boy Gallery, the immediate effect of this Activision anthology is to remind you how poo games used to be.

Of the 15 games on show, the funniest is Boxing, an aerial view of what looks like two bulbous scorpions dancing.

By the time we get to 1982's Cosmic Commuter, we have a sweeping palette of up to eight colours, and "shadows".

Activision's Atari 2600 Action Pack is unsurprisingly aimed squarely at fat pigs wishing to recapture the magic of their stinking, solitary youth.

Running in exec-o-Windows, it even has a horrible "Nagging Mom" to recall those wasted teenage hours. Every so often she says stuff like "You'll ruin your eyes" and "Dad is drunk".

If you played and enjoyed Pitfall, Chopper Command and stuff you should get this. If only to prise the rose-tinted nostalgia specs off your heads.

Atari 2600 Action Pack - PC CD-ROM - by Activision

Req: Windows 3.1
Graphix: 50%
Sonix: 51%
Gameplay: 58%
Lifespan: 70%
Originality: 75%
Uppers: 15-game nostalgia-fest
Downers: Shows how bad games once were
Overall: 62% - We've never had it so good