Medieval Mayhem

This article is about the Atari 2600 game. For other uses, see Medieval Mayhem (disambiguation).

Medieval Mayhem
Developer(s)	Darrell Spice Jr.
Publisher(s)	SpiceWare
Platform(s)	Atari 2600
Release date(s)	2006
Genre(s)	Action
Mode(s)	1–4 simultaneous players
Rating(s)	N/A
Media/distribution	Cartridge

Medieval Mayhem is an action game developed for the Atari 2600 video game console, inspired by the arcade game Warlords.^[1]

Background

Medieval Mayhem was written by Atari 2600 homebrew developer Darrell Spice Jr. and released under the SpiceWare label in 2006. David Vazquez and Erik Ehrling provided graphics and music for the game, respectively. The game was inspired by Atari's 1980 arcade game Warlords, which was first ported to the Atari 2600 in 1981 by game designer Carla Meninsky.^[1][2]

Gameplay

Medieval Mayhem gameplay screenshot featuring the "launch dragon"

Medieval Mayhem is an action game that features a king in each of the four corners of the screen. Each king is protected by a brick castle. The object of the game is to destroy the opponents' kings by breaking through the walls of the castle with a fireball. Up to four players can play simultaneously; each controls a shield in front of the castle. If there are fewer than four players, the remaining shields are controlled by the computer.^[1][3]

At the start of the game (and each round), a "launch dragon" appears and releases a fireball. As the game progresses, additional fireballs appear. A round is complete when three kings have been destroyed, leaving one remaining. The player with the surviving king wins the round, and a knight marches across the screen, carrying the banner of the winning player.^[3]

Reception

Retro Gamer published a favorable review of the game, giving it a 90% rating and calling it "hugely entertaining".^[4] The game received an "A+" rating from The Video Game Critic, the only Atari 2600 homebrew to do so, and one of the only two Atari 2600 games from any era to earn an A+ rating. (The other is the 1984 Starpath Supercharger version of Frogger).^[5] Allgame gave it 4 out of 5 stars.^[6] Medieval Mayhem has also been featured in several retro-gaming tournaments.^[7]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Yarusso, Albert. "Medieval Mayhem". AtariAge. http://www.atariage.com/software_page.html?SoftwareLabelID=2749. Retrieved November 22, 2010. 
2. ^ Yarusso, Albert. "Programmers: Carla Meninsky". AtariAge. http://www.atariage.com/programmer_page.html?ProgrammerID=37. Retrieved December 3, 2010. 
3. ^ ^{a b} "Atari 2600 Reviews M-O: Medieval Mayhem". The Video Game Critic. http://www.videogamecritic.net/2600mo.htm#Medieval_Mayhem. Retrieved November 22, 2010. 
4. ^ Allen, Mat (2007). "Medieval Mayhem: Let the muliplayer mayhem commence". Retro Gamer (39): 14. "As simple a game as Medieval Mayhem is in concept, it provides a hugely entertaining multiplayer experience of immense longevity. The colourful graphics and chunky sound are mere icing on the cake of this excellent game, one that deserves to be a part of your collection." 
5. ^ "Atari 2600 Reviews". The Video Game Critic. http://www.videogamecritic.net/2600_g.htm. Retrieved November 22, 2010. 
6. ^ "Medieval Mayhem". Allgame. Rovi Corporation. http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=73703. Retrieved 27 November 2010. 
7. ^ AC tournament in Congis-sur-Thérouanne, France: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010; Eurocon 2009; Classic Gaming Expo 2010

External links

• Medieval Mayhem entry at AtariAge
• Official site