Atari 50: The Namco Legendary Pack review for PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, PC

The Atari 50 Anniversary Collection is by far the best compilation for classic Atari games to be released. Out of countless other collections, this one really hits home, complete with a wide library of Arcade and Console Games, developer interviews that are actually interesting to watch, and a wide selection of flyers, artwork and other extras.

The Namco Legendary Pack is the third expansion for the collection, and it serves to inject more liquid awesome into an already fantastic game. With it, you get an all-new timeline to explore with new interviews and all kinds of interesting extras like commercials and original artwork. Scattered among the new timeline are a host of new playable games all from Namco including Dig Dug and, Galaga and Pac-Man. In this review, I’m going to take a look at the new games and all of the different versions included. Did Digital Eclipse do a faithful job? Let’s find out.

In the Arcade Section we get, Dig Dug and Xevious. Both Games seem to be using original ROMS although Dig Dug has a slightly higher pitch in some of the music, but that’s something not many will notice. Both games play exactly like their Arcade Counterparts with no glitches or gameplay elements missing. Dig Dug and Xevious are accompanied by their home console versions for Atari Systems. You get Dig Dug for the Atari 8-bit Computer, the Atari 2600, 5200 and the Atari 7800, while Xevious only gets the Atari 7800 version. There WAS going to be an Atari 2600 version, but it was never released and there is an interview with Tod Frye explaining why. The Atari 8-bit and 2600 versions of Dig Dug are very privative and barely represent the Arcade Game, while the 5200 and 7800 Versions are closer to the original. The Best ones to experience will be the Arcade and Atari 5200 versions, with the 7800 version being a close third. Xevious’ only home version for the 7800 is great and almost feels like the Arcade Original in every way.

Next up we have Galaga and Galaxian. These games only have their home versions included but are represented well. Galaxian for the Atari 8-bit and 5200 are almost identical except the 8-bit version running a little slower. The Atari 2600 version is fairly decent given the limitations of the console. Whichever version you play in this collection, you will have fun. Galaga is the sequel to Galaxian and is represented by the Atari 7800 version. It’s a very good port, retaining much of the visuals and sounds from the Arcade version. It is so good that Atari have recently re-released this on cartridge for their Atari Plus line of consoles. These are great additions to the pack!

Finally, we have the Juggernaut himself, Pac-Man. While the Arcade version is not present which is kind of a bummer, we do get the Home Console versions which are represented perfectly. The infamous Atari 2600 version along with the Atari 8-bit and Atari 5200 versions are here, each one with significant differences. Of course, the 2600 version will be the most different, but it is also the most recognizable 2600 games of all time. Many people say this version is bad, but once you learn about how it was made and the tricks needed to make it work, which are all told through interviews with Tod Frye, you gain new appreciation for the final product.

The 8-bit and 5200 versions are a major improvement over the 2600 version, with its visuals, sounds and gameplay being closer to the Arcade original. The 8-bit version once again is the weaker of the two, with its slower speed and the complete omissions of the intermission animations that occur after a few levels. The 5200 version looks practically the same, but with much faster speed, and the intermissions restored. Again, the ROMS seem to be original, but some of the sound effects seem to be in a higher pitch, similar to Dig Dug. I want to reiterate that this very slight audio difference does NOT affect the overall enjoyment of the games in any way, but it’s just something I noticed, since I own the original carts.

If you have the Atari 50 Base Game, then you MUST grab this add on! It is extremely fantastic to have these games in the already great collection and make the base game feel more complete. Despite any insignificant gripes I may have, this is a must own add on to an already fantastic collection! Download now and dive back into the world of Atari!

Note: Atari provided us with a Atari 50: The Namco Legendary Pack code for review purposes.

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