C&VG


Decathlon

Publisher: Activision
Machine: Atari 2600

 
Published in Computer & Video Games #33

Decathlon

One of the first Olympic-style games to hit the UK market was Activision's Decathlon. In it, you have to take part in all ten events of the decathlon including the jumping, running and throwing events. One to four players can take part in the game with each event offering a new challenge.

You play the game by moving your joystick from side to side as fast as you can to generate speed when running and use the fire button to either jump or throw an object. I found the game a little monotonous - and the very idea of the 1500m! I'd prefer to run it than wiggle the joystick for that length of time!

The pole vault was the best of all the events because it had a very short run-up and there's more skill involved. It all depends on how fast you wiggle the joystick, but you can't get a lot of variety with just two commands.