Activision created some of the most popular games for the Atari 2600 in the early '80s. Keystone Kapers, Seaquest, Pressure Cooker, River Raid, Enduro, and both Pitfall titles are burned into the memory of an entire generation of players, but their television advertising played a crucial role. Thanks to the magic of YouTube and the work of some fans, we can now enjoy the clichés and general exaggeration of those commercials.
One of the things I miss most about video games is that if a player managed to beat a high score or achieve a specific goal, the creators would send some kind of recognition. Today, players receive achievements just for turning on their consoles. Back then, the achievement was real and tangible. Activision was part of this practice by sending patches that could be ironed or sewn onto clothing, but it also bet heavily on advertising to promote its games.
After all, you would sit in front of the TV to play, and it made sense that the hype would continue with the console turned off. But the most impressive thing is that Activision didn't limit itself to a couple of ads. The video we're sharing below (published by Retro Bliss Gaming) shows dozens of commercials with very high production values for the time.
Activision's Atari 2600 commercials
Another detail worth highlighting is the number of famous actors appearing in the ads. I imagine it's not hard to recognize Jack Black talking about Pitfall, but the trained eye will surely notice Phil Hartman (from Coneheads and Saturday Night Live) in the Ice Hockey commercial, Peter Jason (from They Live and Escape from L.A.) in Chopper Command, Gary Grubbs (from JFK), and decathlete Bruce Jenner (now Caitlyn Jenner) in Decathlon.
The last section of the video combines previews and news, forming a kind of mini-documentary, if we can call it that. History tells us that Activision released more than 40 games for the 2600 (available sources indicate 44 or 45), and on more than one occasion they made Atari itself look foolish, but the commercials did their part by winning over the audience.
