2600 Gravitar, when you look at it closely enough, bears a sort-of resemblance to 2600 Mario Bros. The title screens are very similar, and both games suggest the programmers went out of their way to avoid flickering graphics, even to the point of changing enemy behavior. Here, only one saucer attacks at a time in outer space, and only one Rammer attacks at a time over a planet's surface. The planets in outer space, and the Bunkers on every planet, are all arranged such that only one appears in any given horizonal "row" across the screen.
Fortunately these imposed limitations don't hurt Gravitar as much as they do Mario Bros. The game still offers plenty of enemy aggression, and there is still plenty of gravity to contend with. In other words, this version is at best only slightly easier than the arcade game, and it's still pretty darn hard.
The 2600 version's difficulty is good news for arcade fans, but daunting for other, less skilled players. Thankfully Atari has thought about the rest of us as well, and included game variations that allow even the most uncoordinated pilots to last more than mere seconds against Gravitar's forces. Players can start the game with as many as 100 spare lives, and there are variations without enemy fire and one even without gravity.
Atari made this version rather difficult to find back in the day, first offering it only through the mail-older Atari Club, and then releasing it stores only after Nintendo had usurped Atari's claim to the home video game kingdom. But if you enjoyed arcade Gravitar and are a fan of the Atari 2600 also, this one is worth seeking out.
Grade: B+.