Action Quest

"I love the simple graphics, the dark screens and the SILENCE...very mysterious atmosphere."

EXACTLY. Well put, sir.

I absolutely love this game (still play it regularly on my 800.) I love the simple graphics, the dark screens and the SILENCE...very mysterious atmosphere. To Muffy St. Bernard...the secret to playing "Speedy Little Devils" is, first, before entering, aim your gun for a left hand shot, then enter, move straight up a bit then STOP...the speedies will line up with you...two quick side to side shots, then move up a little bit more and stop again, etc until you have the prize, then repeat the procedure in reverse.

All that said, I think that "Speedy Little Devils" on Level 3 is too difficult.

This is among the first few games I ever owned (on cassette) for my Atari 800. The game is loosely based on the Venture coin-op but it's more of a puzzle game than an arcade contest, which is most welcome. And as someone else said, it was definitely worth waiting for the tape to load!

I logged many hours on this game back in '82, and to me, it represented what having a computer at home was all about. Instead of a simple shooter (which the arcades well full of), this game made you take the time to think your way through it. At the time, this was a new concept for a video game, especially for one that you could play at home! Pretty mind-blowing stuff, at the time...I wonder how many games of today were influenced by this title.

In sum, this still stands as a classic early piece of Atari 8-bit software.

And yes, the 2 sequels (Ghost Encounters and Journey to the Planets) are even better!

A lot of creativity went into this game, which probably explains why I still enjoy it today. The puzzles are clever without being too frustrating, and it has just enough visual flair to hold your attention. Back when I only had a cassette storage device, this game was WORTH waiting for.

An entertaining, novel game. An excellent introduction and the first of a loose trilogy. A little less difficult than Ghost Encounters, the 2nd installment. Action Quest is nicely paced. The graphics are adequate. The sound is good with nice, brief, aural rewards for solving a puzzle. More importantly, the puzzles are logical and solveable. Sometimes, a room does not seem to contain a puzzle. It does. Throughout the trilogy the puzzles are consistent in that some have more than one solution, and that they are not usually sequential or linked. All are timed, and fairly. Some puzzles require a bit of dexterity and all require a bit of thought.
Are you going to shoot those bats, or see what they do when you light a torch?
Experiment, its not fatal. I mean it is, but if you have another quarter?
The wife and I solved Action Quest and it was fun.