Grizzards is a new turn-based rôle-playing game for the Atari 2600 and compatible video game systems .

The land of Syrex is a dangerous place. Fierce monsters roam the countryside. But luckily for you, you're a Grizzard handler!

Train your Grizzard to use a variety of moves to take on the monsters. Discover new kinds of Grizzards with new capabilities. Can you conquer all the monsters of Syrex?

Now in Beta release!

News

Grizzards will be available via AtariAge beginning at Portland Retro Gaming Expo 2022. The authors (Bruce-Robert Pocock & Zephyr Salz) will be at the Expo, although we will not have a booth.

The latest Beta version of the game was uploaded: Wednesday, 29 June, 2022 at 8:26 PM Pacific Time

The latest daily build of the game was uploaded: Monday, 8 August, 2022 at 12:20 PM Pacific Time:

Downloads

Select your region and game variant here first:

TV Region:

NTSC (The Americas, Japan, Korea)
PAL (UK, Western Europe except France)
SECAM (France, Eastern Europe, Africa)

SaveKey?

I have a SaveKey, MemCard, or AtariVox, or use the Stella emulator or Gopher2600
I do not have a memory device
I only have an Atari Flashback Portable, so I can't plug in a memory device
You can buy SaveKey or AtariVox+ devices at the Store. Commercial cartridge versions from AtariAge do not require a memory device and can save to the cartridge.

Demo or Full game?

Demo Version (32kiB F4 ROM)
Full Game (64kiB EF ROM)

How do I start this ROM?

You are permitted to download and play Grizzards on your personal computer or game console for free. If you enjoy the game, of course you're encouraged to purchase a copy from AtariAge (when it becomes available) or make a donation. Commercial use, or any redistribution in any medium, is prohibited without a license. Contact us if you have any questions.

Extras

• Map of Syrex
• Theme song (MP3 version)
• Mainland (Treble, Anchor) background music (MP3 version)

Features

• 30 Grizzards to catch, metamorphose, and train
• Over 200 screens in 3 main areas
• 64 unique Moves for Grizzards and monsters to use
• About 30 unique non-player characters
• 4 musical tracks
• 86 different kinds of monsters
• 64 combat Moves for Grizzards or monsters
• Over 300 unique speech phrases, including full NPC dialogue and narration of combat
• 20pp manual with full-color map
• New Game Plus mode with harder difficulty level
• Two difficulty modes
• ½ megabit (64k bytes) of adventure!

Go Shopping

The final release will be available in the Store along with dozens of other exciting retro games. You can also buy SaveKey or AtariVox+ devices here.

Want a three-button Joy2b+ game pad designed for the Atari 2600 and other Atari 8-bit systems? Check out this RetroGameBoyz.com control pad designed for 2600 homebrews.

Grizzards Merchandise is available now.

Downloading ROM files for personal use is free, but donations are accepted via PayPal (@brucerobert)

Reviews

Visit our thread on the AtariAge Forums.

Our beta version premièred on Zero Page Homebrew on Twitch on Friday, 11 March, 2022. An early alpha version was previously shown on Friday, 6 August, 2021.

Help

Check out the manual (in the Downloads box on this page) for detailed instructions on playing the game. The manual differs slightly depending on which region and version of the game you have.

This map (not to scale) is found on the back cover of the manual, and may help you find your way. You begin the game in the ruins of Treble Village; you'll probably want to head west (away from the deadly Fire Bogs) when you get started.

Need more help? Contact us at support@star-hope.org.

Screenshots

Showing NTSC screenshots. PAL and SECAM colors and layout may vary.

Showing PAL screenshots. NTSC and SECAM colors and layout may vary.

Showing SECAM screenshots. NTSC and PAL colors and layout may vary. SECAM hardware also provides a black-and-white mode (not available on NTSC or PAL).

Credits

Video game, web site, in-game art and sound effects by Bruce-Robert Pocock. Music and additional artwork by Zephyr Salz.

Includes VCS header file by Matthew Dillon, Olaf Rhialto Seibert, Andrew Davie, and Peter H. Froehlich. Binary to decimal translation based upon code by Andrew Jacobs, based upon code by Garth Wilsone. Six Digit Score 48 pixel wide display routines as explained on Stella list by Erik Mooney and Bradford W. Mott. SaveKey EEPROM and AtariVox speech synthesis driver based upon code by Alex Herbert. Random number generator by AtariAge forum user Supercat. Some math functions by AtariAge forum user Omegamatrix. Some math functions taken from December 1984 Apple Assembly Line. Have You Played Atari Today jingle by Atari Inc. transcribed by AtariAge Forum user tigger-the-hun. Atari 7800 console detection logic by Fred Quimby courtesy of Darrell Spice, Jr. AtariVox and SaveKey illustrations in this manual are from the AtariAge store. The AtariAge logo and logotype are the property of AtariAge.

Special save to cartridge circuitry designed by Fred Quimby. Thanks to Albert Yarusso for publication support. Special thanks to everyone in the Stella and AtariAge communities for making this game possible.

Testers