Video Game Search

showing 29 games

name	publisher(developer)	year	description
Analogic	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #3 is used to play four different games: Tennis, Analogic, Hockey and Football. Tennis is basically the same game as Table Tennis (game card #1), only now you use a screen overlay to simulate a tennis field and traditional tennis rules apply. Analogic is a brain teaser played on a galactic map made of numbered squares. One player starts in planet ODD while the other starts in planet EVEN and the objective is to be the first to reach the opponent's planet. The ODD player is only allowed to move to a square if it's number summed with EVEN's current square totals an ODD number, and vice-versa. Hockey is another evolution of Table Tennis, but this time around your objective is to hit the ball into the net of the opposing player's side. Football is probably the first rendition of American Football on videogame form. With the assistance of deck cards (provided with the game) you choose the moves (Pass, Kick or Run) and play them out on screen. Running requires game card #4 to be inserted.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Baseball	Magnavox	1972	One of the six add-on games for the Magnavox Odyssey released in 1972. It works with game card #3 originally supplied with the system. Although Baseball is quite a complex simulation of the sport, most of the game's depth takes place off-screen, as the console is only used to duel out game situations in classical Table Tennis manner. Players have a card line-up with player stats, which translate into advantages or disadvantages for the on-screen action.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Basketball	Magnavox	1973	One of the four 1973 add-on games for the Odyssey, Basketball is a rather realistic portrayal of the sport. It comes with game card #8, the same card included in Handball. In order to simulate gravity affecting the ball, the playing field has been turned sideways - the floor is on the left side of the screen. The player currently in control of the ball can dribble by moving his spot vertically and moving the ball along with the English knob. The other player, not requiring the English knob, has his hands free to also move horizontally, giving him an advantage in trying to steal the ball from the opponent. Stealing the ball reverses the roles. The aim of the game is for the player in control of the ball to maneuver it around both player spots and let it light up the opponent's basket.
Brain Wave	Magnavox	1973	Brain Wave is one of four add-on games released for the Odyssey in 1973. It works with game card #3 originally supplied with the system, and is played both on-screen and on the included game board. The goal is to build a "train of thought" across the game board, blocking the other player's path. The thought tiles required for this can be bought by points earned in the on-screen part of the game. There, the defending player rolls his dice to decide how many fields he may move his spot through maze. The attacking player then tries to serve the ball with such a trajectory that it hits the defender. If the defender is in a spot where he is easier to hit, the attacker gains less points.
Cat And Mouse	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #4 is used to play three games: Cat and Mouse, Football and Haunted House. In Cat and Mouse, two players chase each other in a maze, taking turns. At any one time, one will play the Mouse who's objective is to reach his home, while the other player plays the Cat who tries to catch the Mouse before that happens. Football is probably the first rendition of American Football on videogame form. With the assistance of deck cards (provided with the game) you choose the moves (Pass, Kick or Run) and play them out on screen. Passing and Kicking require game card #3 to be inserted. In Haunted House, one player will act as detective while the other plays as ghost. The objective of the detective is to gather the most Clue cards and find the hidden treasure in the mansion, while the objective of the ghost is to slow the detective down.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Dogfight	Magnavox	1972	[media=youtube]Oe0gvHpLjDw[/media]*Dogfight is part of the Shooting Gallery add-on for the Odyssey. It requires the supplied rifle accessory, and game card number 9. The color overlay shows numerous airplanes and cross-hairs, all connected by one dashed line. The first player has to maneuver the dot on the screen along this path, while the second player tries to shoot it. Only when the "plane" passes one of the cross-hairs, the light will be bright enough for the light gun to register. Players change positions and win the game by shooting down the airplane more often than their opponent.*One of the four games coming with the Light Rifle [Retro-Maniac]
Football	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #4 is used to play three games: Cat and Mouse, Football and Haunted House. In Cat and Mouse, two players chase each other in a maze, taking turns. At any one time, one will play the Mouse who's objective is to reach his home, while the other player plays the Cat who tries to catch the Mouse before that happens. Football is probably the first rendition of American Football on videogame form. With the assistance of deck cards (provided with the game) you choose the moves (Pass, Kick or Run) and play them out on screen. Passing and Kicking require game card #3 to be inserted. In Haunted House, one player will act as detective while the other plays as ghost. The objective of the detective is to gather the most Clue cards and find the hidden treasure in the mansion, while the objective of the ghost is to slow the detective down.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey. It had two variants [Retro-Maniac]
Fun Zoo	Magnavox	1972	[media=youtube]1WsoQSOXYD8[/media]*One of the six Odyssey add-on games released in 1972, Fun Zoo is an educational game targeted at pre-school children. It works with game card #2 originally supplied with the system. The Zoo Keeper picks up one of the 28 included cards and names the animal or object it depicts. The players now need to navigate the player spot along the yellow paths to the cage containing the animal or object the Zoo Keeper named, in order to win that card. Straying from the path and lighting a wrong cage means losing one of the previously earned cards.*One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Handball	Magnavox	1972	[media=youtube]Liv-sjILVMw[/media]***Handball is one of six add-on games released for the Odyssey console in 1972. It comes with game card #8, which makes the center line from Table Tennis deflect the ball. The center line is positioned at the left of the screen, while both players are placed to the right. In a gameplay much more like Squash than Handball, players now alternate in avoiding to miss the ball, and hitting it back towards the wall.
Haunted House	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #4 is used to play three games: Cat and Mouse, Football and Haunted House. In Cat and Mouse, two players chase each other in a maze, taking turns. At any one time, one will play the Mouse who's objective is to reach his home, while the other player plays the Cat who tries to catch the Mouse before that happens. Football is probably the first rendition of American Football on videogame form. With the assistance of deck cards (provided with the game) you choose the moves (Pass, Kick or Run) and play them out on screen. Passing and Kicking require game card #3 to be inserted. In Haunted House, one player will act as detective while the other plays as ghost. The objective of the detective is to gather the most Clue cards and find the hidden treasure in the mansion, while the objective of the ghost is to slow the detective down.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Hockey	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #3 is used to play four different games: Tennis, Analogic, Hockey and Football. Tennis is basically the same game as Table Tennis (game card #1), only now you use a screen overlay to simulate a tennis field and traditional tennis rules apply. Analogic is a brain teaser played on a galactic map made of numbered squares. One player starts in planet ODD while the other starts in planet EVEN and the objective is to be the first to reach the opponent's planet. The ODD player is only allowed to move to a square if it's number summed with EVEN's current square totals an ODD number, and vice-versa. Hockey is another evolution of Table Tennis, but this time around your objective is to hit the ball into the net of the opposing player's side. Football is probably the first rendition of American Football on videogame form. With the assistance of deck cards (provided with the game) you choose the moves (Pass, Kick or Run) and play them out on screen. Running requires game card #4 to be inserted.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Interplanetary Voyage	Magnavox	1973	One of four add-on games released for the Odyssey in 1973, Interplanetary Voyage lets players pretend they are space pilots on missions throughout the solar system. It comes with game card #12. Picking one of the mission cards, the goal is to land one's spaceship on the right planet. This can be achieved by giving the horizontal and vertical controls a short spin and hoping that the player spot will come to a halt in the correct location under the screen overlay. Another mode of play called University of the Solar System makes use of the 72 included knowledge cards. These contain questions about the solar system which players have to answer, decoding the correct solutions on the game board.***Its creator himself considered this as one of the best games available for the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Invasion	Magnavox	1972	Invasion is one of the six add-on games for the Odyssey released in 1972. It requires game cards #4, #5, and #6 originally supplied with the system. The game is heavily based on the classic board game Risk. The fantasy world is represented as a number of countries on the included game board, and players try to conquer their opponents' castles. The console is used to battle out attack and defense. A player can either choose to sneak into the castle by trying to blindly move her player spot to the gates, or attack directly by maneuvering the game ball around the defensive player. Once inside the castle, she has to try to destroy the tower defense by estimating where the ball spot will land on the screen.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey. It had three variants [Retro-Maniac]
Overkal	Inter Electrónica	1973	Overkall is a clone of the Magnavox Odyssey console, but features no cartridges, instead it has seven built in games: Tenis (Tennis) Futbol (Football) Esqui (Ski) Ataque submarino (Submarine) Persecution (Cat and Mouse) Carrera espacial (Analogic) Ruleta (Roulette) Tenis de Mesa (Table Tennis) As with the original Odyssey games the console includes overlays for the TV and game boards.
Percepts	Magnavox	1972	Percepts was shipped free of charge to owners of the Odyssey console who sent back their registration cards to Magnavox. The game comes with new screen overlays, 30 play cards (15 green + 15 purple), and an instruction sheet. It uses game card #2 from the original console and can be played by either Game of Pattern or Game of Symbol rules. Game of Patterns In the Game of Patterns, the 15 green cards are laid face-down in a 5x3 grid. Then, one of the 15 purple cards is revealed. Both players now try to memorize the pattern printed on it, find the card in the 5x3 grid that shows the same pattern, note its position in the grid, and race their player dots to the appropriate position on the screen with their controllers. The player who gets there first wins the green card. The game continues until all green cards are won. Game of Symbols The Game of Symbols has very similar rules, but now players have to match the little pictures printed above the patterns. The 15 green cards are now laid face-up, while the 15 green purple cards are laid face down between the player, where one of the cards then revealed to expose the symbol. To make the game harder, the positions of the green cards in the grid have to be memorized, as all the green cards have to be turned over after an initial memorization period. The player that correctly guesses the position that corresponds with the symbol wins the green card. The game continues until all green cards are won.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Prehistoric Safari	Magnavox	1972	Prehistoric Safari is part of the Shooting Gallery add-on for the Odyssey. It requires the supplied rifle accessory, and game card number 9. The screen overlay depicts a prehistoric scenery with a number of different dinosaurs. One player has to position the light dot beneath one of the animals, while the other player tries to shoot it with the rifle. As a hit is only registered where the light shines through the translucent animal shape, smaller targets are harder to hit. Both players get 15 shots, and the one with more hits wins the game.***One of the four games coming with the Light Rifle [Retro-Maniac]
Roulette	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #6 is used to play two games: Roulette and States. In Roulette, you place bets and spin a light dot on the screen that should fall inside the roulette overlay. The winner is the one to get away with the most money. In States, you get to play an educational quiz game about the 50 North American states, with the help of a deck of cards (provided with the game).***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Shooting Gallery	Magnavox	1972	Shooting Gallery is one of the games of the Shooting Gallery add-on for the Odyssey. It requires the supplied rifle accessory, and game card number 10. One player runs the Shooting Gallery by making sure the light dot passes back and forth on the current row of targets. The other player uses the rifle and tries to shoot the targets on the overlay as the light passes beneath them. After 10 passes, the operator moves the light to the next row of smaller targets, which are harder to hit. There are 4 rows in total. After all 4 rows have been passed 10 times, players change positions. Whoever hits more targets is declared winner of the game.***One of the four games coming with the Light Rifle [Retro-Maniac]
Shootout	Magnavox	1972	[media=youtube]7uZTvp7YUiQ[/media]*Shootout is part of the Shooting Gallery add-on for the Odyssey. It requires the supplied rifle accessory, and game card number 9. One player is the Sheriff and gets to use the rifle, while the second player controls the Dalton Gang, and has to move the light dot on the screen through the wild west scenery depicted on the overlay. At every doorway and window the second player passes, they have to stop for as long as it takes them to say "You'll never get me, Sheriff!" before they can move on. This gives the other player time to aim for the gang and shoot. Once the gang has reached the end of the path, the two players switch roles and declare the winner whoever scores more hits.*One of the four games coming with the Light Rifle [Retro-Maniac]
Simon Says	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #2 is used to play two games: Ski and Simon Says. In Ski, the player must follow a line that simulates a snow course without going out of bounds, suffering penalty points if he does. In Simon Says, one player holds a deck of cards (provided with the game) with depictions of several body parts and must then indicate them to the other players by saying something like "Simon says... touch your right hand". The other players will then rush to the specified place as quickly as possible, the winner being the one to touch the most body parts before his/her opponent.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Ski	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #2 is used to play two games: Ski and Simon Says. In Ski, the player must follow a line that simulates a snow course without going out of bounds, suffering penalty points if he does. In Simon Says, one player holds a deck of cards (provided with the game) with depictions of several body parts and must then indicate them to the other players by saying something like "Simon says... touch your right hand". The other players will then rush to the specified place as quickly as possible, the winner being the one to touch the most body parts before his/her opponent.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Soccer	Magnavox	1972	[media=youtube]WZ_G2vVArBs[/media]*Soccer replaced the game Football in European export versions of the Magnavox Odyssey. It uses a custom screen overlay and two game cards, #3 and #5. The gameplay is a variant of Table Tennis in which the horizontal position of players is fixed (although not enforced by the Odyssey console itself). If a player manages to maneuver the ball around her opponent, the next volley will take place one step closer to the opponent's goal. Once a player has reached a position in the opponent's half of the playing field, she is allowed to score a goal. The game also includes rules for penalty kicks, which require changing the game card.Only available in-pack of the (non-UK) European release of the Odyssey - not available for sale separately, and not available in the US nor the UK. The UK release of the Odyssey was the same package as the US imported into the UK.**One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey. It had two variants [Retro-Maniac]
States	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #6 is used to play two games: Roulette and States. In Roulette, you place bets and spin a light dot on the screen that should fall inside the roulette overlay. The winner is the one to get away with the most money. In States, you get to play an educational quiz game about the 50 North American states, with the help of a deck of cards (provided with the game).***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Submarine	Magnavox	1972	Submarine requires Odyssey's game card #5. One player controls a group of ships and must follow a path in the screen overlay, while a second player controls the submarine and must try to sink those ships. Players change roles and the one to sink the most ships is the winner.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Table Tennis	Magnavox	1972	Table Tennis requires Odyssey's game card #1, and is an early father of Pong. Each player controls one "paddle" on opposite sides of the screen. The objective is to hit the moving ball past your opponent's side, winning a point, while preventing your opponent from doing the same to you. At all times, the players must avoid the top or bottom of the screen (otherwise, it's called "ball off the table"). There's no score keeping on screen, so the players must keep score by themselves. The first player to get 21 points wins the match if he has at least a 2 point margin. Otherwise, play is continued until that margin is attained by one of the players.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Tennis	Magnavox	1972	Odyssey's game card #3 is used to play four different games: Tennis, Analogic, Hockey and Football. Tennis is basically the same game as Table Tennis (game card #1), only now you use a screen overlay to simulate a tennis field and traditional tennis rules apply. Analogic is a brain teaser played on a galactic map made of numbered squares. One player starts in planet ODD while the other starts in planet EVEN and the objective is to be the first to reach the opponent's planet. The ODD player is only allowed to move to a square if it's number summed with EVEN's current square totals an ODD number, and vice-versa. Hockey is another evolution of Table Tennis, but this time around your objective is to hit the ball into the net of the opposing player's side. Football is probably the first rendition of American Football on videogame form. With the assistance of deck cards (provided with the game) you choose the moves (Pass, Kick or Run) and play them out on screen. Running requires game card #4 to be inserted.***One of the 17 games packaged with the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
Volleyball	Magnavox	1972	Volleyball is one of six add-on games released for the Odyssey in 1972. It comes with game card #7, which makes the center line from Table Tennis deflect the ball. The center line is positioned at the bottom of the screen, representing the net. Players try letting the ball hit the floor on their opponent's side, changing its trajectory by using the English knobs. The ball disappears from the screen if it touches the net.***Its creator himself considered it as one of the best games available for the Odyssey [Retro-Maniac]
W.I.N.	Magnavox	1973	W.I.N. - Word, Image, Number is one of four add-on games released for the Magnavox Odyssey in 1973. It works with game card #4 originally supplied with the system. Each player picks 2 word cards, 2 number cards, and 1 image card. They then take turns at the console in trying to put the invisible player spot on any letter, number, or shape they need to complete the contents of their cards. Pushing the reset button makes the spot appear on the screen. Lighting a wrong symbol might give other players an advantage if they can use it for their own cards. The first player to gather all elements he has on his cards wins.
Wipeout	Magnavox	1972	Wipeout is one of six Odyssey add-on games released in 1972, and the first home videogame with a car racing theme. It works with game card #5 originally supplied with the system. The race takes place on the included game board, on which players move their car tokens. How many spaces they can move is not decided by throwing dice though, but by an on-screen race using the Odyssey console. While one player tries to maneuver his spot along the race track shown on the screen overlay, the other one counts how many times he can make the ball spot oscillate on the screen, deducting a point from the racer every time it does so. Colliding with the ball spot or leaving the race track costs points too, further reducing the number of spaces the racer can move his token on the game board after he finishes.***Its creator himself considered this as one of the best games available for the Odyssey. [Retro-Maniac]

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