Who says Atari games don't have depth? Um, pretty much everyone. And those people need to play Riddle of the Sphinx.
I've encountered a handful of Atari haters in my life. Not many, but enough. I get it. So many Atari games are so primitive, they're nearly conceptual. Atari games are like cave art, even compared to the next generation jumpers on the Nintendo Entertainment System. Atari was a new technology with a stew of ideas about what defines a "video game," not all of them good. And many, many games for Atari 2600 basically define "shovelware."
Most Atariphobic gamers will at least respect the evolution of arcade gaming, noting such classics as Space Invaders and Asteroids, yet argue that Atari games are impertinent now, mere building blocks for the castles to come. If they watched enough videos, they'll probably name-drop Adventure, Pitfall!, and, just maybe, H.E.R.O. And then shrug off the rest. There are bigger, brighter, boobier games today, the kind that grab your dopamine trigger and squeeze blam blam blam--you're dead to the world for the next 300 hours.
I respect those games. But what Atariphobes are missing is the context. Atari games live in their own space, buzzing and farting, a kind of primordial pixel party, beckoning with a stick and one button. Simplicity. You can't expect Atari games to do what games do now. In other words, please do not compare. Understand that Atari games have their own value within their own context. Know that these games are fun under said context. And also, shut up already and talk about Riddle of the Sphinx.
Like other Imagic games, the graphics here are detailed and colorful, and the sound effects appropriate (not annoying). We are an Egyptian prince who can sling endless stones, which is good for knocking out thieves and giant scorpions. Just don't hit Anubis - that really pisses him off, and you'll lose a bunch of "inner strength points." Wow, it's like a spiritual journey!
This game really is a journey. Like other adventure games on Atari, Riddle of the Sphinx requires both joysticks (2nd for inventory) and the black and white switch (for stats like thirst). Basically, you need to find and obtain treasures on your vertically-scrolling quest (you can backtrack, too, and you'll need to). There is a wealth of objects, sixteen, I think, and you'll find most of them useful, if not necessary. Some are very handy power-ups, others are gifts for the gods. While you're traveling, you need to refresh your thirst at the random oases or by other means. My favorite method is finding the lotus-blue Isis, "goddess of fertility and motherhood." She'll heal you all over, and often gifts a sweet treasure. The Prince merely needs to "kiss her feet to show his grateful respect." I love that. "Kissing feet" means bumping into her from below. We Atari nerds have imagination.
I love the whole manual, which is also an item needed to play the game. In the desert are six or so different temples. Each temple requires a unique offering to receive a gift in exchange, and some temples won't let you pass without one. The manual gives us riddles to figure these out, and yes, the Sphinx has a riddle (and is picky about the three potential answers). For the Temple of Isis: "Gentle Isis, goddess of all that is good. Her Temple in the desert is as a precious jewel in Egypt's crown. Offer her a gift worthy of an empress."
Okay, so the answer is literally in the riddle. The hardest riddle for me was the final Temple of Ra. Or rather, I knew the answer, but I couldn't find the object. Because this adventure game has a hidden object that you can find if you explore early. Because you need the object for the ending. Because this game has an ending, sort of. It has so many things. I didn't mention the strategy required when bartering with nomadic traders, the fun of digging with the spade, and the nifty/weird trick of scrolling bad dudes off the screen. This game has so much going for it. So much . . . depth.
Other action-adventure games for Atari, such as Quest for Quintana Roo or E.T., are too complicated for their own good. Some games try to incorporate too many items and pits and methods and pits and pathways and pits and pits. Imagic did it right. They made an adventure game for Atari that is complex, yet simple. It's fun. It may even be my favorite Imagic game. Oh wait, I just thought of another. Nevermind. Imagic has a lot of great games.
At the "end," the white sand turns into regular tan sand. Since there had been a curse on the land, does that mean the sand had been cursed into a white color?
If you like old-school action-adventure games, or if you need to try an Atari game with a bit of exploring and collecting and "depth," please give this game a try. Keep the manual handy (it's online). I really enjoyed playing this one, multiple times.
I recommend Riddle of the Sphinx to Atari curious, Atari nerds and collectors.
Life game . . .
Remember Alanis Morissette?
I kind of left her in the 1990s, in a binder with Soul Asylum and Sugar Ray. Recently, Alanis released a "meditation album." Being a fan of ambient music, I gave it a few listens. And it's not bad, in a New Age Buddhist Earth Goddess kind of way, and I happen to like New Age Buddhist Earth Goddesses. I would kiss her feet to show my grateful respect. I can hear traces of Eno's "Music for Airports" in the structures of a couple songs, how they breathe and grow and lift and sigh and open and close. I still don't want to meditate to "the storm before the calm" album, especially not the few manic noisy tracks, but it's good to keep on while I write about Atari games.
This got me interested in her older material. When's the last time you listened to Jagged Little Pill, the album? Well, what do you know. It's good. It's really good. It's freaking awesome so-good-this-can't-possibly-be-this-good good. Not everything from the Nineties should stay there. Some songs like "Hand in my Pocket," "All I Really Want," and "You Learn" are more profound and spiritual to me now than they ever were all those decades ago. And that song off the follow-up, "Thank U". . . shivers! Alanis is brilliant. I have to thank my previous partner for bringing Alanis to my attention to begin with . . . it hurts me to write that. I've done a deep dive into the Alanis discography and brought forth fistfuls of gems like "Tapes" and "Losing the Plot." Her lyrics are (ironically?) not ironic but straightforward and honest. This doesn't always work for me, but when Alanis gets it right, she stabs it directly into my heart.
Comments