It didn't take long after video games were invented for people to try to make RPGs. Or at least, they made the precursors to what we later understand as an RPG. While Atari computers would be fertile grounds for RPGs, you usually don't think of the Atari as an RPG powerhouse. Of course, the Atari consoles didn't have a lot of computing muscle and memory back then.
We did get games like Adventure and Swordquest. Adventure, released in 1980, brought a lot of new innovations to console gaming, including multiple screens and enemies that continue to move offscreen. Players have to solve mysterious mazes and battle evil dragons to restore a mighty kingdom. Sounds RPG to me.
And then there's Swordquest. Originally planned to be a 4-part series of games, the last part was never finished due to Atari's inevitable financial trouble. Once again, compared to modern games, the Swordquest games (Earth World, Fire World, Water World, and the unfinished Air World) are pretty rudimentary. But at the time, they were doing new things with narrative logic and multimedia storytelling - players were to solve puzzles in the games using the D.C Comics published comics that told the lore of the game.
Both these games could exist today, as low budget indie games, or huge, vast, AAA games. They're pretty solid concepts.
Hmmm. Since I wrote this blog, I'm not sure I know what an RPG is anymore....
I never had a 2600 as a kid so I don't have any special memories with these gamse. But even if I did have a 2600, I'd probably be more interested in the arcade ports and such.
The DC Comics being used to solve puzzles is an interesting idea.
I didnt play Adventure on 2600. I read about it in a video game guide from the early 80s. I did play a similar and more graphically sophisticated game like it on PC called Dungeons of Shalan that came from a monthly Softdisk subscription. I finally played it on the Atari collection on PS2, and have it on Atari Flashback Classics on Switch.
i did play Swordquest Earthworkd, but we couldn't figure it out.
Fallout Games on Bell Road in Glendale has an Odyssey RPG called Quest for the Rings for sale.
I played Adventure back in '80 but I never played the Swordquest games. Although I might have had one of them from a flea market buy in the 90s that I tried. I think I couldn't understand how to play it at all. I probably didn't have a manual or anything. Yeah, sometimes Atari games needed a manual to play them.