Mind Maze

Mind Maze

Console: Atari 2600
TV Standard: Region Not Set
Developer(s): Atari
Publisher(s): Atari, Inc.
Release Date: 1984-10-01
Players: 1
Co-op: No
Type: Strategy

A game based on ESP?  Yes you heard me right, Mind Maze is the first (and only) Atari game to be based on the unproven (yet still popular) theory of ESP (Extra Sensory Perception).  It appears Atari was attempting to develop a sort of "Mind Reading" game for its new Mindlink controller.

Mind Maze is played somewhat like those old mind reading experiments where a scientist would hold up a card and ask a person to tell him what was on the other side.  Depending on the game selected, two to four cards appear on the screen each round.  The player then must try and guess the "correct" card by highlighting it (using the joystick) and pressing the fire button.  Unfortunately this is where the game begins to fall apart.  As you've probably guessed the theory of ESP is pretty far fetched, and the odds that the player can continually guess the correct card is slim.  So the player must simply sit there and randomly select cards until he by chance selects the correct one.  Predictably, this gets boring very fast...

Game Player of Mind Maze on Atari 2600
Controls - How to Play Mind Maze on Atari 2600

Generally, you can review the controls (keyboard) setting during each game in the screen before it starts. Use the arrow keys and “Z”, “X”, “A”, “S”, “Q”, “E” buttons to play, or customize yourself with your gamepad or keyboard.

KeyboardControls
← → ↑ ↓Directions for LEFT, RIGHT, UP, DOWN
Enter ↵START
ShiftSELECT
ZA
XB
AX
SY
QL
ER