Matt's List Sports Geek Former sports writer Matt Thompson gravitates toward sports and first-person shooter games. He has, however, mastered 'Super Mario World.' • Tim's List The Countdown (in order of importance) 10.) Adventure 9.) Duke Nukem 3D 8.) Police Quest 2 7.) --------- 6.) --------- 5.) --------- 4.) --------- 3.) --------- 2.) --------- 1.) ---------

By Matt Thompson
Austin360

No. 10: Adventure

The Game: The box's graphics promised a full-color medieval challenge, with a serpentine dragon working through labyrinthes toward a majestic castle, the keys to glory clutched in its clawed hand.

Either way, it slayed dragons.

And that was enough.

What Was So Great About It: Simply put, 'Adventure' was the first video game that didn't let me down. 'Pong,' which my dad brought home probably about a dozen months earlier, was limited significantly by the fact nobody wanted to play against me after those first few glorious days. At the time, I figured they were scared off by my burgeoning superiority. Looking back, they were probably bored beyond the threshold for (grown-up) human survival.

The arrival of our Atari 2600 (actually, a Sears licensed knock-off ... but it got the job done) heightened prospects for keeping my family members -- all significantly older -- interested a bit longer than 'Pong' had managed ... but, again, more often than not I ended up taking solitary target practice in 'Outlaw' or turning solo lap after solo lap (after solo lap) in 'Indy 500.'

With 'Adventure,' though, I didn't have to wait for my brother to come home from wherever it was he was ... In point of fact, there was only room for one.

Damn, that was liberating.

Which isn't to suggest I stopped boring everyone. I'm sure I forced 'em all to sit through way too many of the high-flying adventures of the Little Square Dot. When I, much later, heard tell of the mysterious "hidden screen" (today considered the very first "Easter Egg," an electronic signature by the game's much-screwed-over designer, Warren Robinett), I'm sure they had to sit through way too many more as I showed 'em how to find it.

But, for myself, on days when my friends were too busy to play or the weather was uncooperative, I became an Adventure Wizard (no pun intended). I timed myself. I figured out ways to make it more interesting. I played it in color, and with the flip of a switch, black-and-white.

Cut me some slack here: We didn't have cable.

Impact On The Rest Of Humanity: Not a lot, really. The game's noted for Robinett's hidden credit line (something he'd apparently passed on doing for his other mind-blowing 2600 hits: 'Slot Racer,' 'Maze' and the non-stop thrill fest that was 'Basic Programming.'

And it was one of the first video games I can remember that was solveable. 'Asteroids' lasted forever. 'Space Invaders' started over once you rolled the score (trust me, I know). But each and every 'Adventure' eventually came to an end ... sometimes in a flash of colorful glory as you returned the "Chalice" to the Golden Castle, sometimes with our hero -- the Little Square Dot -- assuming a permanent residence within the stomach pouch of a dragon that looked suspicously like a seahorse.

It wasn't 'Myst,' but it was a baby step in that direction.

And frankly, between 'Myst' and 'Adventure,' I'll take my formless little buddy any day.

No. 9: Duke Nukem 3D