Riddle of the Sphinx & Fire Fighter: Atari Archive Episode 87

Bouncing back in time to August to catch a couple games that I'd missed came out that month, it's Imagic's brilliant adventure game Riddle of the Sphinx and graphically distinct Fire Fighter. Riddle of the Sphinx takes a unique tack to the adventure game approach seen in other games like Haunted House and Pitfall, resulting in what is perhaps Bob Smith's most ambitious game on the VCS hardware. Brad Stewart's Fire Fighter did not see the same accolades, but is a neat little speedrunning game seemingly aimed at smaller children. It's a neat pair that show why Imagic was a top-tier publisher at the time. Special thanks to ‪@ACriticalHit‬ for designing the thumbnail! If you enjoyed this, consider supporting Atari Archive on Patreon.com/atariarchive! Sources: Bob Smith, interview with the author, Feb. 3 2021 Brad Stewart, correspondence with the author, November 2022 Brad Stewart, interview with Scott Stilphen, Ataricompendium.com Imagic Panel, Classic Gaming Expo 2004 Arcade Express, May 22 1983 Sky Patrol, Atariprotos.com Video Game Update, September 1982 Logical Gamer, October 1982 Electronic Games, January 1983 Electronic Fun with Computers and Games, July 1983 Numb Thumb News Vol. 2 Space Gamer number 58 TV Gamer, June 1983 Video Games, February 1983, April 1983 Video Games Player, Fall 1982 Videogaming Illustrated, February 1983 Vidiot, March 1983 Timestamps: 00:00: Riddle of the Sphinx 09:00: Fire Fighter 16:10: Press Pass 19:06: Credits