We all know that E.T. is not the "worst game ever". In my opinion, it's an average game with some ambitious goals. The visual style isn't bad. It's just not intuitive in the least. There are shitty, unplayable games on every system, and this ain't one of 'em. So why all of the fuss?
Here are some of my humble opinions: E.T. did not wipe out Atari, but it certainly was indicative of the meglomania and short-sightedness that permiated Atari from top to bottom. E.T. and Pac-Man were the results of this unsound thinking. WB went all in and lost their shirts; at least that's the layman conclusion that I've drawn.
The rest is an internet myth. I knew nothing of E.T. or the crash as a boy. I didn't own an Atari; I was an NES kid. I had seen used E.T. carts floating around thrift stores, if I recall correctly, but these meant nothing to me. When I finally got my first Atari 2600, in the summer of 2006, I hit the internet to research games, and discovered the crash and the E.T. lore. I knew nothing of either beforehand.
Now, I'm not disputing the reality of the crash. It happened, starting when I was about 3 years old and ending when I was about 5 or 6. But I never learned anything about it until I was 26. And of course I learned on the internet. Growing up, I learned about the great depression and the shitty 70s. And I personally remember the stock market crash of 1987, when my parents lost about $60,000 as I later found out. But not a word of the crash. Now why is that?
E.T. was not "so bad it killed the industry". But it is an example of bad business strategies. That's my 2 cents.
Here are some of my humble opinions: E.T. did not wipe out Atari, but it certainly was indicative of the meglomania and short-sightedness that permiated Atari from top to bottom. E.T. and Pac-Man were the results of this unsound thinking. WB went all in and lost their shirts; at least that's the layman conclusion that I've drawn.
The rest is an internet myth. I knew nothing of E.T. or the crash as a boy. I didn't own an Atari; I was an NES kid. I had seen used E.T. carts floating around thrift stores, if I recall correctly, but these meant nothing to me. When I finally got my first Atari 2600, in the summer of 2006, I hit the internet to research games, and discovered the crash and the E.T. lore. I knew nothing of either beforehand.
Now, I'm not disputing the reality of the crash. It happened, starting when I was about 3 years old and ending when I was about 5 or 6. But I never learned anything about it until I was 26. And of course I learned on the internet. Growing up, I learned about the great depression and the shitty 70s. And I personally remember the stock market crash of 1987, when my parents lost about $60,000 as I later found out. But not a word of the crash. Now why is that?
E.T. was not "so bad it killed the industry". But it is an example of bad business strategies. That's my 2 cents.
