Atari - E.T. The Game

1982-1983

A video game based on the biggest film in 1982 seemed like a guaranteed success. However, the decision to make an E.T. video game was made too late, giving developers only five weeks to finish it in time for the 1982 Christmas season. The game was very difficult to play, felt clunky, and most found it boring. It’s often cited as the worst video game of all time, and Atari reported over $1 billion loss in today’s money. The game was blamed for the 1983 global recession in the video game industry.

Additional info:

npr.org - Total Failure: The World's Worst Video Game

Engadget - The true story of the worst video game in history

Virtualatari.org - Play the game online!!!

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