theatari7800:

Food Fight
Atari 1984
Released proper 1987
1-2 players

Food Fight is a perfect example of everything the Atari 7800 can do RIGHT. Unfortunately early on there weren’t many titles that showed off the prowess of the system quite like Food Fight did. What exists here is an exclusive arcade port of an obscure Atari coin-op title, done just as well as can be given the limitations. In Food Fight you control Charley Chuck as he attempts to reach the end of each stage and its different flavor of ice cream, all the while trying to avoid deadly-to-the-touch chefs and the manholes that abound in each wave. Despite speed, your only hope is the food placed around each stage, which Charley can pick up and throw at the chefs, who can just as easily throw it back in your direction, so time, speed and skill are of the utmost essence in Food Fight.

One slight drawback to the 7800 port is Charley’s slow pace, even when he’s running he still goes at a slow jog, which is hardly fast enough to evade any close call moments, of which you run into many in Food Fight. Control takes no hits despite the awful 7800 “ProStick”, this is actually one of the few games where the stick’s awkward fashion actually comes in handy.  Speaking to translation, everything is here, albeit downsized to the limitations. The music, backgrounds, colors, cues are all intact, including the instant replays during tense rounds. Food Fight had all the ingrediants for a killer app, but alas, time was its fate.

Released in 1987 as a launch title, but originally meant to be released in 1984, before the 7800 was shelved, Food Fight along with many of the system’s early titles sat on the shelves for years while Atari worked out arrangements with GCC, the company that designed the 7800 and its first wave of titles.

Even though Food Fight *was* an exclusive title, it doesn’t mean squat when it’s 1987 and Charley Chuck is no longer the fresh arcade face you’re used to - rather, it’s Mario and company, or 1942, Double Dragon, etc. By that time people weren’t playing the simple wave-after-wave-after-wave gameplay as much anymore, as arcades and developers had gravitated more towards shooting, platforming, or fighting games at the time.

Despite the slow movement, Food Fight is definitely a must own for the 7800, and seeing as its one of the most common games available for the system there’s no reason not to own it if you have a ProSystem. Highly Recommended. (+)