Throwback Thursday: 1980s video games edition (1 Viewer)

[Bruce Dickinson]

Love the Ultima Series on the C-64. I kept burning out my 1541 Disk Drive. I would take them back to Sears because they were under warranty still and the guy there was finally like, "You know these things aren't meant to be played with 10 hours a day!!"

So many of the good C64 games would take up to two minutes to load. I eventually broke down and bought a "Fastload" cartridge that both sped up load times and shortened the lifespan of the 1541.

Being born in 1969--I ended up right in the sweet spot of retro gaming. I know we have discussed this before here, but I remember getting my Atari 2600 and playing it on an old Sears B&W tv that had a remote that had two buttons that clicked when you pushed them.

The 2600 had a "Mode" toggle that would tweak the colors, "optimizing" the screen for color or B&W TVs. And of course, there was the "TV/Game" switch on the cord that connected the deck to the television.

Like the OP, I remember taking a picture of my screen for Grand Prix--I believe the time was like under one minute or something for the patch.

My brother literally bought every single game that would come out on the 2600. I remember I would call every single store, every week looking for Indy 500--it came with special race paddles. He had a ton of games--all with the manuals in the boxes. I remember like 10 years ago he got rid of them all for next to nothing. I was just sick.

Yeouch. When I got a Commodore 64 I never thought I would play the Atari again, or even thought it would have sentimental value. I think my parents gave the deck and cartridges to friends with younger kids.

I have bought pretty much every system that comes out over the years and I have them in their boxes still--along with the games and manuals in their boxes. Sure I am missing some of the more eclectic launches such as the Atari Jaguar and I really, really want to get a Colecovision (had one and I just don't know where it went), but they are nice to have and collect.

Nice! Never owned an Intellivision but it was probably for the best. There's no way I would have kept those controller overlays organized and usable. Aware of the Colecovision but I don't remember every playing on one. But there was a lot of Atari 2600 and Commodore 64 time.

 

[⚡DEADHEAD⚡]

"Elf needs food.... Badly"

Gauntlet.

Hell yes.

Wizard was the only character to play because he maxed the potions. Best approach was calculated and slow. Doors would all open after a delay, which meant you could load up on keys for later use.

This dude rocked the elf.

Honorable mention of a couple not mentioned so far i don't think: Q-Bert (I was awful at this game) and Paperboy.

 

[Encyclopedia Brown]

Zaxxon

I had such difficulty playing Zaxxon and Q-Bert because I couldn't calibrate non-linear joystick movement. I always crashed into the first or second brick wall in Zaxxon and went right off the side in Q-Bert.

 

[Apple Jack]

Yes, I took a photo of the TV screen the first time I finished under 28.20 on Game 3 of Activision Skiing so I could join the Activision Ski Team.

Enjoyed that accolade so much, I took the screenshot of my first 10K+ Decathlon for my Activision Decathlon Gold Medal.

The key to Decathlon was getting the mini controller. I can't find a damn picture of it online, but it was tiny, with a really thin and loose stick. I remember the game came with the creator's records inside the booklet for each event. I had always been flirting with them, the day after I got this stick, I obliterated every one. Running Usain Bolt-like times in the 100m.

The Amiga PowerStick.

I was excellent at the throwing and jumping events with the standard controller, but the PowerStick was the PED I needed to score well on the sprints and win medals.

If ever accused of wearing a baseball batting glove while playing Decathlon to prevent blistering... I plead the 5th.

Yep, that's the one. I was better at every event with this, the stick was just so much more flexible, it made reaching and sustaining maximum speed so much easier. On the jumping events, that allowed me to focus solely on sticking the takeoff as close to the line as possible while still easily maintaining 100% speed.

You could get that thing going so fast, on the pole vault you could pretty much launch your guy into the stands after releasing the pole.

Yep. The only event I always hated was the 1500 (1600?) meter run. Jesus, that was tiring. I used to have to take a nap after that one.

My neighbor broke the controller doing the 1500 then threw it down, breaking it open, and we discovered that the bare board made the game much easier. You can just tap the board directly and the guy would go much faster than was possible otherwise.

 

[Otis]

I used to love the original Zelda. It was kind of this huge sprawling adventure that was way ahead of its time. The music was haunting. I played and best later Zeldas, but that first one was awesome.

Also trying to do the "hacks" in the original SMB and walking through the walls. Good times.

Getting Nintendo Power magazine in the mail.

The one thing I wonder if anyone remembers: I used to watch a video game show on TV early mornings. Must have been some time in the 80s. It was probably on at 6 or 7am. No idea what station. But kids would play and compete at video games and the prizes were obviously video game systems and bundles etc. Used to love that show and always was starry eyed about one day being on it. What was it called?

 

[Otis]

Zaxxon

I had such difficulty playing Zaxxon and Q-Bert because I couldn't calibrate non-linear joystick movement. I always crashed into the first or second brick wall in Zaxxon and went right off the side in Q-Bert.

These are good ones. Loved these games.

 

[Otis]

Gauntlet rocked too. As was Double Dragon. Anything you could play with your buddies at the same time was awesome.

Paperboy was a classic.

The original Kung Fu game was bad ###, as was Pro Wrestling. The stupid aqua man guy chomping on your shoulder....

Solomon's Key anyone?

 

[Otis]

Contra

/thread

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSMVxv_4UMU

Oh man the countless hours of Contra. Good one.

 

[Otis]

Contra

/thread

A college friend of mine has a T-shirt that says:

UP, UP,

DOWN, DOWN,

LEFT, RIGHT,

LEFT, RIGHT,

B,A,

START

With no other explanation or fanfare.

And a lot of us knew what that meant. Pre-internet.

Damn. Hadn't thought about that. But you're right. It was someone's older brother who heard from a friend at school who learned it from their cousin in other city, or some other preposterous chain.

Exactly. Pretty crazy how that spread just by word of mouth. And that we all still remember the code to this day. (The version I knew had you pressing SELECT four times before pressing START, but it still worked, I assume the same way ie 30 lives or something like that?)

 

[Otis]

There was that one Atari game with keys and dragons and different colored screens that was kind of Zelda like.

Also the ET game going to find all the stupid Reece's pieces. I never really understood how the game worked and would just wander aimlessly.

The intellivision game with the mazes and the spiders and robots. I can picture the cover graphic. Forget the name.

 

[rick6668]

I used to love the original Zelda. It was kind of this huge sprawling adventure that was way ahead of its time. The music was haunting. I played and best later Zeldas, but that first one was awesome.

Also trying to do the "hacks" in the original SMB and walking through the walls. Good times.

Getting Nintendo Power magazine in the mail.

The one thing I wonder if anyone remembers: I used to watch a video game show on TV early mornings. Must have been some time in the 80s. It was probably on at 6 or 7am. No idea what station. But kids would play and compete at video games and the prizes were obviously video game systems and bundles etc. Used to love that show and always was starry eyed about one day being on it. What was it called?

It was Starcade. Yes, it was awesome.

 

[rick6668]

There was that one Atari game with keys and dragons and different colored screens that was kind of Zelda like.

Also the ET game going to find all the stupid Reece's pieces. I never really understood how the game worked and would just wander aimlessly.

The intellivision game with the mazes and the spiders and robots. I can picture the cover graphic. Forget the name.

Adventure. I really loved this game. Would always play it at Sears or KMart where they had the Atari set up you could play.

I remember my friend telling me about the secret room with the dot in this game. Finding the easter egg in this game was amazing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YS-HYWRdb2g

I must have been the only person to like the E.T. game. I was actually at Universal Studios California when it was released and they had a whole section of monitors and the game set up on that you could play.

 

[ClownCausedChaos2]

Gauntlet rocked too. As was Double Dragon. Anything you could play with your buddies at the same time was awesome.

Paperboy was a classic.

The original Kung Fu game was bad ###, as was Pro Wrestling. The stupid aqua man guy chomping on your shoulder....

Solomon's Key anyone?

For two-player games, River City Ransom was highly underrated.

 

[WampusCat43]

Missile Command. No matter how many times I played it I couldn't improve. Same with Centipede. Stunk at both of those games.

I could only get so far and then that was it.

Some people are crazy good at this/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYujY9ZPB_E

Sick

Loved this game so much I bought one of the arcade version for my house and wore it out. If you run your score up to something like 750,000 it goes crazy, gives you about 30 extra cities and just starts raining crap down on you.

 

[rick6668]

Missile Command. No matter how many times I played it I couldn't improve. Same with Centipede. Stunk at both of those games.

I could only get so far and then that was it.

Some people are crazy good at this/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYujY9ZPB_E

Sick

Loved this game so much I bought one of the arcade version for my house and wore it out. If you run your score up to something like 750,000 it goes crazy, gives you about 30 extra cities and just starts raining crap down on you.

From the wiki:

The game features an interesting bug: once a score of 810,000 is reached, a large number of cities are awarded (176 cities plus the continuing accrual of bonus cities) and it is possible to carry on playing for several hours. At some later stage the speed of missiles increases greatly for a few screens. On the 255th and 256th yellow screens, known as the 0x stages, the scoring increases by 256 times the base value. For good players these two 0x stages could earn over a million points. This enabled them to reach a score of approximately 2,800,000 (although only 6 digit scores were shown, so it would display 800,000) and at this point the accelerated rate would suddenly cease and the game would restart at its original (slow) speed and return to the first stage, but with the score and any saved cities retained. In this way it was possible to play this game for hours on end.

In 1981, Floridian Jody Bowles played a Missile Command arcade game for 30 hours at The Filling Station Eatery in Pensacola. Bowles racked up 41,399,845 points with only one quarter using regular "Marathon Settings", besting the previous known record, according to Atari spokesman Mike Fournell.[12] The record was broken when Victor Ali of the USA scored 80,364,995 points in 1982. It is believed Ali played the game continuously for 56 hours. On December 27, 2013, Sandberg started a new world record attempt, aiming for a total playing time of 100 hours, a score of 100 million, and reaching 10,000 levels. The marathon ended after 71 hours and 41 minutes on December 30, culminating in a score of 103,809,990 on level 10,432, 10 points short of getting an additional 176 cities (see 'gameplay' above). While streaming the world record attempt live on TwitchTV, his viewers confirmed that the new record indeed seemed rather unbeatable.[13]Beginning on March 15, 2013 Victor Sandberg of Sweden recorded his attempt at the world record live on popular streaming site TwitchTV where he surpassed all previous records reaching a final score of 81,796,035 points after 56 hours of play. The record was broken at around 20:02GMT with all his viewers congratulating him for his achievement and some asking him not to make it impossible to beat.[13]

 

[Otis]

I used to love the original Zelda. It was kind of this huge sprawling adventure that was way ahead of its time. The music was haunting. I played and best later Zeldas, but that first one was awesome.

Also trying to do the "hacks" in the original SMB and walking through the walls. Good times.

Getting Nintendo Power magazine in the mail.

The one thing I wonder if anyone remembers: I used to watch a video game show on TV early mornings. Must have been some time in the 80s. It was probably on at 6 or 7am. No idea what station. But kids would play and compete at video games and the prizes were obviously video game systems and bundles etc. Used to love that show and always was starry eyed about one day being on it. What was it called?

It was Starcade. Yes, it was awesome.

I'm not so sure this is right. The guy in your video was playing an arcade, the one I remember had two kids playing console games side by side, going through the same sections of the game and comparing points. I distinctly remember them playing TMNT on the NES.

 

[Hov34]

Apple Panic

 

[rick6668]

I used to love the original Zelda. It was kind of this huge sprawling adventure that was way ahead of its time. The music was haunting. I played and best later Zeldas, but that first one was awesome.

Also trying to do the "hacks" in the original SMB and walking through the walls. Good times.

Getting Nintendo Power magazine in the mail.

The one thing I wonder if anyone remembers: I used to watch a video game show on TV early mornings. Must have been some time in the 80s. It was probably on at 6 or 7am. No idea what station. But kids would play and compete at video games and the prizes were obviously video game systems and bundles etc. Used to love that show and always was starry eyed about one day being on it. What was it called?

It was

Maybe this then?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezbeHt_7N8g

Or this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vfrxlx8Zd8g

 

[Insein]

I used to love the original Zelda. It was kind of this huge sprawling adventure that was way ahead of its time. The music was haunting. I played and best later Zeldas, but that first one was awesome.

Also trying to do the "hacks" in the original SMB and walking through the walls. Good times.

Getting Nintendo Power magazine in the mail.

The one thing I wonder if anyone remembers: I used to watch a video game show on TV early mornings. Must have been some time in the 80s. It was probably on at 6 or 7am. No idea what station. But kids would play and compete at video games and the prizes were obviously video game systems and bundles etc. Used to love that show and always was starry eyed about one day being on it. What was it called?

Could be Starcade.

 

[Insein]

I used to love the original Zelda. It was kind of this huge sprawling adventure that was way ahead of its time. The music was haunting. I played and best later Zeldas, but that first one was awesome.

Also trying to do the "hacks" in the original SMB and walking through the walls. Good times.

Getting Nintendo Power magazine in the mail.

The one thing I wonder if anyone remembers: I used to watch a video game show on TV early mornings. Must have been some time in the 80s. It was probably on at 6 or 7am. No idea what station. But kids would play and compete at video games and the prizes were obviously video game systems and bundles etc. Used to love that show and always was starry eyed about one day being on it. What was it called?

It was Starcade. Yes, it was awesome.

I'm not so sure this is right. The guy in your video was playing an arcade, the one I remember had two kids playing console games side by side, going through the same sections of the game and comparing points. I distinctly remember them playing TMNT on the NES.

Maybe this then?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezbeHt_7N8g

Or this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vfrxlx8Zd8g

Vide Power is the first one there. I remember that one but it was the 90's. That was around the 6am range though.

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

Other stations might have picked it up, but Starcade was originally a weekday afternoon show on WTBS.

Starcade with one "r" was kids playing arcade games against each other for prizes. The best part was the host awkwardly looking over the player's shoulder and trying to do play-by-play/color commentary.

Starrcade with two "r"s was the biggest NWA/WCW PPV of the year, usually headlined by Nature Boy Ric Flair.

 

[Jeremy]

"Elf needs food.... Badly"

Gauntlet.

Hell yes.

Myself and 3 friends used to take the bus downtown to the "Gold Mine" arcade to play this game. We'd each get $5 in quarters. 20 minutes later it was gone. I don't know if we ever got past level 8 or 9. I figured we must be getting close to the end. Turns out there's unlimited levels. What a gift that game was for arcade owners.

What was that pro-wrestling game where you started against a masked wrestler and the 5th wrestler was "Golden Hulk" for the title? I used to love that one. 3 splashes from the top rope and you had him.

That X and O football game mentioned earlier was a staple in every bowling alley IIRC. You could go through the quarters quickly in that one too with buying extra time. It was a toss-up what would give out first, your quarters or your arms.

Another one I love both in the arcade and the NES was Arkanoid. I finished the game once or twice on the NES, but eventually the Vaus controller broke and the game wasn't really playable without that. :(

 

[Jeremy]

Other stations might have picked it up, but Starcade was originally a weekday afternoon show on WTBS.

Starcade with one "r" was kids playing arcade games against each other for prizes. The best part was the host awkwardly looking over the player's shoulder and trying to do play-by-play/color commentary.

I loved that show. The grand prize was a full size arcade game IIRC.

 

[Copeman]

Also loved Super Sprint in the arcade. Had the three steering wheels in front of the console.

 

[Warsteinner]

Sorry if I overlooked it, but no Maniac Mansion fans around here?

 

[Jeremy]

Also loved Super Sprint in the arcade. Had the three steering wheels in front of the console.

I almost bought that game, many years ago. It was $400 used at the local arcade, but I was in college so I couldn't quite figure out how to make it work out financially or logistically. :(

 

[Copeman]

Also loved Super Sprint in the arcade. Had the three steering wheels in front of the console.

I almost bought that game, many years ago. It was $400 used at the local arcade, but I was in college so I couldn't quite figure out how to make it work out financially or logistically. :(

I would jump on that if I came across that now.

 

[Otis]

I used to love the original Zelda. It was kind of this huge sprawling adventure that was way ahead of its time. The music was haunting. I played and best later Zeldas, but that first one was awesome.

Also trying to do the "hacks" in the original SMB and walking through the walls. Good times.

Getting Nintendo Power magazine in the mail.

The one thing I wonder if anyone remembers: I used to watch a video game show on TV early mornings. Must have been some time in the 80s. It was probably on at 6 or 7am. No idea what station. But kids would play and compete at video games and the prizes were obviously video game systems and bundles etc. Used to love that show and always was starry eyed about one day being on it. What was it called?

It was Starcade. Yes, it was awesome.

I'm not so sure this is right. The guy in your video was playing an arcade, the one I remember had two kids playing console games side by side, going through the same sections of the game and comparing points. I distinctly remember them playing TMNT on the NES.

Maybe this then?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezbeHt_7N8g

Or this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vfrxlx8Zd8g

Vide Power is the first one there. I remember that one but it was the 90's. That was around the 6am range though.

YES. This is the one. You're right it says early 90s, I would have thought late 80s, but this makes sense.

 

[Otis]

There was an awesome helicopter rescue came in the mid 80s, you rescued hostages off an aircraft carrier and stuff. Choplifter? Loved that one.

 

[rick6668]

Also loved Super Sprint in the arcade. Had the three steering wheels in front of the console.

I almost bought that game, many years ago. It was $400 used at the local arcade, but I was in college so I couldn't quite figure out how to make it work out financially or logistically. :(

I would jump on that if I came across that now.

Off Road was close to this right?

One for sale by me:

http://rochester.craigslist.org/vgm/5098077475.html

Here you go:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwGAINxvTjQ

 

[BlueDredSo]

Kung Fu. That game kicked ###, except when you thought you were close enough for a strike and then realized "####!" you were still 1 step too far and either had to plan your attack all over again or get kicked right in the face.

Anyone remember Adventure Island? I loved that game, probably my favorite NES game ever. I never did beat it, and now that I have one of those NES/SNES/Genesis combo systems I might go out and try to find it.

I know this is a 90's game, but Battletoads was awesome. Hard as hell, but really fun. I remember how my friends and I celebrated when I finally got past that stupid part avoiding floating rocks on a rocket ship. You had to memorize it. No way on Earth you could react quick enough without knowing ahead of time.

 

[RedmondLonghorn]

I remember beating Atari 2600 Raiders of the Lost Ark. Even at the time, I knew the game sucked. This walkthrough illustrates just how badly it sucked.

 

[rick6668]

I remember beating Atari 2600 Raiders of the Lost Ark. Even at the time, I knew the game sucked. This walkthrough illustrates just how badly it sucked.

Hard as hell.

 

[Jeremy]

I remember beating Atari 2600 Raiders of the Lost Ark. Even at the time, I knew the game sucked. This walkthrough illustrates just how badly it sucked.

I could not figure that game out for the life of me.

 

[rick6668]

One I forgot to mention is Sword of Fargoal.

My cousin had this on the Vic20 and it loaded via tape. This game was awesome.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-o53OxoZYY

 

[RedmondLonghorn]

I remember beating Atari 2600 Raiders of the Lost Ark. Even at the time, I knew the game sucked. This walkthrough illustrates just how badly it sucked.

I could not figure that game out for the life of me.

It was really stupid. I apparently had no life, as I eventually figured it out.

 

[comfortably numb]

I loved and still play this on nes emulators online.

Bubble Bobble

This is a good quick time waster for me whenever I get in the mood.

Love that game.

 

[Bruce Dickinson]

Pitstop II for the C64.

You could race head-to-head on split-screen on tracks modeled after real race tracks. Oh, the drama of having to hold back a little so you could make it to the pits without blowing a tire and change in a fresh set.

 

[Mario Kart]

I used to love the original Zelda. It was kind of this huge sprawling adventure that was way ahead of its time. The music was haunting. I played and best later Zeldas, but that first one was awesome.

Also trying to do the "hacks" in the original SMB and walking through the walls. Good times.

Getting Nintendo Power magazine in the mail.

The one thing I wonder if anyone remembers: I used to watch a video game show on TV early mornings. Must have been some time in the 80s. It was probably on at 6 or 7am. No idea what station. But kids would play and compete at video games and the prizes were obviously video game systems and bundles etc. Used to love that show and always was starry eyed about one day being on it. What was it called?

It was Starcade. Yes, it was awesome.

I'm not so sure this is right. The guy in your video was playing an arcade, the one I remember had two kids playing console games side by side, going through the same sections of the game and comparing points. I distinctly remember them playing TMNT on the NES.

The show was called Video Power.

 

[shuke]

Favorite arcade:

Gauntlet

Paperboy

Galaga

Tetris

Konami Super Basketball God I would play this for hours on end at Putt-Putt

 

[shuke]

How about that Atari E.T. game?

Buddies and I played non-stop for days until we figured out there really wasn't any point. We kept looking for Easter eggs and waiting for something to happen, trying different things in different orders to solve some type of hidden puzzle.

 

[Bull Dozier]

One summer, my brother and I shared a paper route for the sole purpose of saving up enough money to buy ourselves a Colecovision. What a waste of a summer's labor. I think we only ever bought three games for it. Miner 2049er got the most play, but if memory serves, it was a pretty bad game.

A friend of mine is super into retro arcade games, and acquired so many he opened up an arcade. You pay one entry fee and then the games are set up for free play. I went a couple of times, but the nostalgia is better than the game play. The only one I played more than a couple of times was Track and Field. He did not have a Super Sprint, though, which I would have sat (stood) and played for hours.

 

[Cjw_55106]

1987 - Blades of Steel

My buddies and I always went to a friend's house and played tournaments while in high school. One day I implied that the younger brother (prob about 9) was gay. The dad wanted to rip my head off. He put his arm around my shoulder (was he gay?) and said "I know you arent saying my boy is gay". Fast forward 20 years and the kid came out to his family while in drag.

Anyways, awesome game.

 

[Shankopotamus]

My brother and I would go to war on the basketball game Archrivals. Final score would be 10-8 cause we spent more time beating each other up than trying to score.

 

[TheAristocrat]

How about that Atari E.T. game?

Buddies and I played non-stop for days until we figured out there really wasn't any point. We kept looking for Easter eggs and waiting for something to happen, trying different things in different orders to solve some type of hidden puzzle.

After the Internet, I found a playthrough guide, pulled out the old Atari, and beat that game. It was the most underwhelming experience of my gaming life.

 

[rick6668]

Favorite arcade:

Gauntlet

Paperboy

Galaga

Tetris

Konami Super Basketball God I would play this for hours on end at Putt-Putt

Fantastic game. Bravo! Bravo! Bravo!

 

[Willie Neslon]

Anyone bring up Jungle King yet? Had some good times with that one.

 

[WampusCat43]

This place just opened in Cincinnati (also in Columbus and Cleveland). You can't get in the door here.

 

[Scoresman]

Castlevania II - Simon's Quest

This game was a like gigantic kick to the balls. The developers outright said that the NPCs lied when giving clues to puzzles. Other puzzles were completely random like having to kneel on a certain block to have a random tornado whisk you away to a new area. My friends and I had to wait for the Nintendo Power to come in the mail with the walkthrough.

 

[WampusCat43]

Missile Command. No matter how many times I played it I couldn't improve. Same with Centipede. Stunk at both of those games.

I could only get so far and then that was it.

Some people are crazy good at this/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYujY9ZPB_E

Sick

Loved this game so much I bought one of the arcade version for my house and wore it out. If you run your score up to something like 750,000 it goes crazy, gives you about 30 extra cities and just starts raining crap down on you.

From the wiki:

The game features an interesting bug: once a score of 810,000 is reached, a large number of cities are awarded (176 cities plus the continuing accrual of bonus cities) and it is possible to carry on playing for several hours. At some later stage the speed of missiles increases greatly for a few screens. On the 255th and 256th yellow screens, known as the 0x stages, the scoring increases by 256 times the base value. For good players these two 0x stages could earn over a million points. This enabled them to reach a score of approximately 2,800,000 (although only 6 digit scores were shown, so it would display 800,000) and at this point the accelerated rate would suddenly cease and the game would restart at its original (slow) speed and return to the first stage, but with the score and any saved cities retained. In this way it was possible to play this game for hours on end.

In 1981, Floridian Jody Bowles played a Missile Command arcade game for 30 hours at The Filling Station Eatery in Pensacola. Bowles racked up 41,399,845 points with only one quarter using regular "Marathon Settings", besting the previous known record, according to Atari spokesman Mike Fournell.[12] The record was broken when Victor Ali of the USA scored 80,364,995 points in 1982. It is believed Ali played the game continuously for 56 hours. On December 27, 2013, Sandberg started a new world record attempt, aiming for a total playing time of 100 hours, a score of 100 million, and reaching 10,000 levels. The marathon ended after 71 hours and 41 minutes on December 30, culminating in a score of 103,809,990 on level 10,432, 10 points short of getting an additional 176 cities (see 'gameplay' above). While streaming the world record attempt live on TwitchTV, his viewers confirmed that the new record indeed seemed rather unbeatable.[13]Beginning on March 15, 2013 Victor Sandberg of Sweden recorded his attempt at the world record live on popular streaming site TwitchTV where he surpassed all previous records reaching a final score of 81,796,035 points after 56 hours of play. The record was broken at around 20:02GMT with all his viewers congratulating him for his achievement and some asking him not to make it impossible to beat.[13]

Cool! I was starting to wonder if it wasn't some 30-year-old dream. 176 cities - I had forgotten it was that many. I don't know what my final score was, but I know it rolled over after a million. Probably 3 hours of play.