2600 Horror: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Halloween

Wizard Video Games was a title created by the slightly better-known distribution company Wizard Video to distribute Atari 2600 games based on horror movie titles.  Wizard Video was created by Charles Band, who would go on to create Full Moon Productions (now Full Moon Features), the company behind cult horror titles like Puppet Master and Subspecies.

Wizard, known for distributing sleaze titles like I Spit on Your Grave (a film Roger Ebert would describe as one of the worst he ever saw, which left him feeling uncomfortable sitting amongst movie-goers who were clearly enjoying the sadistic on-screen depravity), had home distribution rights for the The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, a 1974 cult-classic horror film released on VHS by Wizard Video in the 1980s.  During this time Wizard Video determined that there may be money in video game adaptions of adult horror films, and thus the Wizard Video Games label was born and the Atari 2600 adaptations of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Halloween came to life.

Although horror and video games fit together well nowadays, the hardware of the 2600 was not sophisticated enough to create a truly atmospheric game.  Perhaps the best example of this basic hardware used to good effect for horror would be Atari’s own Haunted House, which used lack of visibility, claustrophobic environments, a one-item-at-a-time inventory and enemies which could not be killed to create tension.  Wizard Video Games opted for more visceral imagery to set the games apart.  Unfortunately, this resulted in a very mixed bag, seeing as the Atari 2600’s graphical capabilities made it difficult to create an effective shock based on imagery.  In the end, Wizard Video Games produced only two titles, one a very pathetic attempt at adult horror, the other a decent effort that at least produced some suspense.  Owing to the graphic imagery in both, however, retail distribution was slim, and the retailers that did carry the titles often sold them behind the counter.  Thus the games gained very low exposure and, in a time where graphic violence in video games (still largely seen as toys) was uncommon or unheard of, the games developed notoriety.  Low production and poor sales mean that these two titles are now highly sought by collectors, especially if they can be found with intact packaging.

Starting with the worst, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre does not even make a pretense at being scary, only at being “adult” through its use of violence.  The player takes the roll of Leatherface and chases girls through a field, killing them with a chainsaw for points.  Graphically the game comes across as ridiculous, with Leatherface wearing what could easily be taken for blue pajamas and “chainsaw” that looks like a child’s rendition sticking right out of his chest.  Should you catch any victims, killing them results in an odd jumble of pixels, perhaps to suggest a mutilated body, but it is really hard to tell what they were going for.  There are other objects littering the field, and touching them temporarily freezes your character.

The game is extremely simplistic and involves almost no strategy.  You simple run, saw up your victims and avoid obstacles.  Your chainsaw constantly loses fuel, which acts as the game timer.  Once the fuel is gone, the game is over.  It’s strictly a race to gain as many points as possible, but the game is so basic and easy that if it were not for the idea of chasing people with a chainsaw, the game would have dropped into obscurity without much notice.

Halloween, on the other hand, is a game where Wizard Video Games revealed that they could produce a half-way decent product.  In it, the player takes on the role of a babysitter, and you and the children under your care are being stalked by Michael Myers.  The graphics are decent for the 2600 and the house has multiple rooms and floors to explore.  The objective is to run through the house, collect the children and lead them, one at a time, to the front door to escape.  While you search, Michael will appear, seemingly at random, to threaten you and the kids.  Whenever he appears onscreen, a rendition of the iconic Halloween theme begins to play, which is a great touch and adds to the tension.  When Michael appears, you can either run and try to lose him, or if you find a knife in one of the rooms, can turn and attack him instead.  Also changing things up, some rooms in the house experience power outages, and you can only see in these rooms through brief flashes of lightning.

Apart from the theme, Halloween’s “adult” status comes from actual depictions of animated blood.  If Michael catches you, he cuts off your head and your character runs back a few paces, spurting blood from the neck.  The same thing happens should Michael catch one of the children you are trying to protect.  Find a knife, however, and you can give Michael a taste of his own medicine, although in true Halloween fashion, he will still show up later, apparently unharmed, so this is a temporary (though satisfying) relief.

Unlike The Texas Chainsaw Massacre this title is actually fun to play, at least for a little while, and it displays some decent 2600 graphics and a reasonable amount of tension.  Had it not been for the bloody decapitations, the title may have had a chance for more wide-spread appeal and could have been remembered as a classic title on the 2600.  As it is, it is an obscure gem and collector’s item.