This port of a great classic proves worthy and includes a great deal of fun.
Supporting up to four players using the Atari Paddles (since two paddles are attached to one plug-in and since there are two ports on an Atari 2600, that would give you four paddles), players must defend their fortresses while knocking a fireball across the screen to all of their opponents' and take out the defending walls. Upon doing so, one final blow must be struck into the central section of their base to fully defeat that player. Three must be taken out in order for one last man to be standing in the end; everyone for themself, it's a free-for-all battle.
Warlords wasn't limited to only being played by four human players. Settings can be changed to make it so three human players compete including one computer player, two humans and two computer, or one human against a full onslaught of AI opponents in a survival match. It proves to be a game of challenge and sometimes requires extremely fast reflexes, Warlords can help train reflexes to an extent while proving to be a great experience, with friends or none.
Good: Support for up to four players * Intense constant action * Addictive gameplay * Proves a worthy port of the original
Bad: Sometimes the fireball moves too fast for any reaction * AI can be dense at times
Graphics: Not nearly as good as the arcade Warlords' graphics by a long-shot, that's a certain given without any doubt, but that doesn't mean it's terrible. In fact, it's not even bad at all, the graphics were pretty good for their time and hold up well still today, though the "use your imagination" rule applies as most Atari games did and continue to do. There's no mistake in distinguishing between what's what, everything is simple just like it should be, but there still feels like one cherry could've been added to the sundae.
Sound/Music: What do you expect to hear when you play an Atari 2600 game? Of course, lots of beeps, blips, explosions and other random noises. Again, use your imagination, but audio isn't bad either. Everything has its own sound, between knocking the fireball across the field of play to somebody losing their fortress. Music, well.. Don't expect any, so your own background music would be a good substitute for the lack of tunes.
Difficulty: Things can get pretty heated during battle: the ball might end up flying everywhere at light speed and the AI might be dead-on accurate at catching it every single time, things might seem a bit sticky. Still, in such a case, quick strategy is required if you are to finish the job. When playing with all human players, it all depends on their skills. The difficulty range for this game really depends on the situation and/or the person(s).
Gameplay: The field of play is a big square area sporting four fortresses, one in each corner. A ball is released in the middle of the level and is directed to a random corner, leaving whoever it comes toward the chance to grab it or knock it back. The ball then can be shot or knocked by use of angles and positions (think Pong and using the edges of the paddle to move the ball back by an angle) to any of the other players. The rest must protect their forts against this ball and use it at their own advantages, figuring out new strategies and techniques to trick the other players, human or not. The walls of each fort must be chipped away with the ball. Once that is accomplished, players must then fire the ball right into the center of the open fortress to finish it off. Once three fortresses are taken out, the last player standing wins. A total of five points must be achieved in order to finish the whole game.
Controls: Very easy to control, moving the paddle's knob left and right moves the defense for the fortress. If the button is held as the ball touches the shield, the ball can be held in possession of whoever has it, aimed and fired upon other fortresses for a direct and strong attack. Mastering the control is simple and there is absolutely no confusion involved or encountered, nothing fancy is required.
Overall: Warlords is a very fun and, sometimes, intense game of competition, whether you have friends over or all alone in the dark with just you, a soda and your Atari. You'll find yourself playing several matches for quite a while. It's cheap, it's easy to find and it's a great experience to be had, so don't miss out on it. It can be found on several Atari classic compilations like Atari Anthology, but there's nothing like playing the good ol' cartridge, so do yourself a favor if you have some spare cash and an Atari with a set of paddles.