Which Video Game is Known to Be the Worst Ever? Unpacking the Infamous Title of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

When the question arises, "Which video game is known to be the worst ever?" a single title often springs to the minds of gamers and critics alike: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial for the Atari 2600.

Released in 1982, the E.T. video game wasn't just bad; it was a catastrophic failure that has become a legendary cautionary tale in the history of video games. Its notoriety stems from a confluence of factors: rushed development, abysmal gameplay, and a significant role in the North American video game crash of 1983.

The Story Behind the Stinker

The pressure to create a blockbuster game was immense. Atari paid a then-record $25 million for the rights to the E.T. license, banking on the immense popularity of Steven Spielberg's iconic film. Howard Scott Warshaw, a young and talented programmer at Atari, was tasked with developing the game. He was given an incredibly short deadline – just five and a half weeks – to create a complete game from scratch.

This impossible timeline meant that corners had to be cut, and crucial game design principles were, unfortunately, overlooked.

Gameplay That Would Make You Want to Phone Home

The gameplay of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is where its true awfulness shines through. Players take on the role of E.T., tasked with collecting three pieces of a "Super Phone" that E.T. needs to contact his home planet.

Confusing Pits: E.T. can fall into numerous "interdimensional pits" scattered throughout the game's poorly designed levels. These pits are incredibly difficult to get out of, often requiring players to repeatedly press buttons and hope for a lucky break. Many players would find themselves stuck in these pits for extended periods, leading to immense frustration.
Collecting "Pieces": The primary objective involves collecting glowing orbs, which represent parts of the Super Phone. However, the game's mechanics for collecting these orbs are clunky and imprecise.
Alien Agents: The game features "Scientists" and "FBI Agents" who would chase E.T. and steal the collected pieces. This mechanic, intended to add challenge, only served to further complicate an already incomprehensible game.
Unresponsive Controls: The controls were notoriously sluggish and unresponsive. Performing simple actions like jumping or moving E.T. felt like a chore, making any attempt at navigating the game world a maddening experience.
Lack of Direction: The game provided very little in the way of guidance. Players were often left wondering what they were supposed to do next, or how to even achieve their objectives.

The overall experience was a far cry from the magical and emotional journey of the film. Instead, it was a bewildering and aggravating ordeal.

The Fallout: A Mountain of Unsold Cartridges

Atari, confident in the E.T. brand, manufactured an estimated 4 million cartridges. However, the game's dreadful quality and the lack of positive word-of-mouth meant that sales were abysmal. Retailers were stuck with massive quantities of unsold games.

In a move that has become as legendary as the game itself, Atari reportedly buried hundreds of thousands of unsold E.T. cartridges, along with other unsold games, in a landfill in Alamogordo, New Mexico. This event, often referred to as the "Atari burial," became a potent symbol of the excesses and eventual collapse of the video game industry in the early 1980s.

"It was a dark time for Atari. The E.T. game was a massive financial and reputational disaster. It truly was the nail in the coffin for many."

— A seasoned video game historian

Why is E.T. Still Remembered?

While countless other terrible video games have been released since 1982, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial for the Atari 2600 holds a unique and enduring place in gaming lore.

The Cultural Impact: The game's failure directly contributed to the North American video game crash of 1983, a period where the industry saw a dramatic downturn in sales and public interest. This crash reshaped the entire landscape of video gaming.
The License Abuse: It became the poster child for how a beloved license could be mishandled, demonstrating the dangers of prioritizing brand recognition over quality game design.
The Tangible Evidence: The infamous landfill burial provided a physical, albeit buried, testament to the scale of the disaster. The eventual excavation of these cartridges in 2014 further cemented the game's legendary status.
A Benchmark for Bad: For decades, E.T. has served as a benchmark against which other notoriously bad games are measured. If a game is truly awful, it's often compared to "E.T. bad."

Conclusion: A Permanent Stain on Gaming History

So, to definitively answer the question, "Which video game is known to be the worst ever?" E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial for the Atari 2600 stands as the undisputed champion of awfulness. It's a game that serves as a stark reminder of the risks involved in game development, the importance of quality, and the power of a franchise to either soar or spectacularly crash and burn.

Frequently Asked Questions about E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (Atari 2600)

How did E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial become so famous for being bad?

E.T.'s notoriety comes from a combination of factors. It was developed under immense pressure with an impossible deadline, leading to a rushed and fundamentally flawed game. Its confusing gameplay, frustrating mechanics, and unresponsive controls made it a terrible experience. Furthermore, its massive commercial failure and the subsequent burial of millions of cartridges in a New Mexico landfill cemented its legendary, albeit infamous, status in video game history.

Why was the E.T. video game so rushed?

The game was rushed because Atari paid a colossal $25 million for the license to Steven Spielberg's hit film, "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial." They wanted to capitalize on the movie's popularity by releasing the game in time for the Christmas shopping season. Programmer Howard Scott Warshaw was given only about five and a half weeks to create the entire game, a timeline that was virtually impossible for developing a quality product.

What was the impact of the E.T. video game on the video game industry?

The catastrophic failure of the E.T. video game was a significant contributing factor to the North American video game crash of 1983. Its massive commercial failure led to huge financial losses for Atari, damaged consumer confidence in video games, and flooded the market with unsold inventory. This period saw a dramatic decline in the industry, from which it took several years to recover.

What happened to the buried E.T. cartridges?

Millions of unsold E.T. cartridges, along with other Atari games, were reportedly buried in a landfill in Alamogordo, New Mexico, in 1983. For years, this "Atari burial" was a legend among gamers. In 2014, a documentary crew, with Atari's cooperation, excavated the site and indeed found a large number of E.T. cartridges, confirming the long-held rumors and adding another layer to the game's peculiar history.