Buried under layers of trash in a New Mexico desert landfill sits a pile of video game cartridges. They're not just any games. They're millions of copies of E.T. the Extra Terrestrial for the Atari 2600. This 1982 flop didn't just bomb—it helped kill the booming video game business overnight.
Atari rushed the game into stores. It became the worst video game ever made. But the real shock? The company dumped unsold copies in secret. The story sounds like fiction. Yet it's all true.
The Hype Behind E.T. the Video Game
1982 was video game heaven. E.T. the Extra Terrestrial ruled movie theaters. The Spielberg blockbuster earned $800 million. Everyone wanted a piece.
Atari saw dollar signs. They bid $20,000-$25,000 for the license. No other company dared. Atari promised Steven Spielberg exclusive rights. Production started right away.
One big problem. Atari had just five weeks to make it. Christmas sales waited for no one.
Meet Howard Scott Warshaw: The Man on the Clock
Howard Scott Warshaw was Atari's star coder. He made hits like Yars' Revenge. Now, E.T. was his third game in a year.
Warshaw flew to California. He played the movie on a big screen. Then he locked himself away. Five weeks. One programmer. No team.
He designed gameplay on the plane ride home. E.T. had to phone home. Dig holes. Avoid FBI agents. Sounds fun, right?
What Went Wrong with E.T. on Atari
Warshaw finished on time. Atari pressed 4 million cartridges. That's more than Atari 2600 consoles sold that year.
Reviews hit like a truck. Critics called it frustrating. Unplayable. E.T. fell into pits with no escape. The phone home screen? Nearly impossible.
Players hated it. Returns piled up. Only 1.5 million sold. Atari lost $100 million in the E.T. debacle alone.
"I made the worst game of all time. But I stand by it." - Howard Scott Warshaw
No Testing, No Mercy
Atari skipped playtesting. Warshaw begged for time. Bosses said no. Ship it for holidays.
Gameplay bugs everywhere. E.T. got stuck underground. No clear goals. Kids cried in stores.
It wasn't just bad design. The Atari 2600 hardware was ancient. 128 bytes of RAM. Tiny screen. E.T. needed tricks to fit.
The Secret Landfill Burial
Atari panicked. Warehouses overflowed with returns. What to do with millions of cartridges?
They chose Alamogordo, New Mexico. A town desperate for cash. Atari paid $25,000 to dump truckloads of games. Crushed consoles too.
On September 7, 1983, semis rolled in. Workers sealed concrete over the pit. Legend born: Video games buried in desert.
Locals whispered rumors. Trash diggers found green cartridges. But city blocked the landfill. Story faded to myth.
How E.T. Killed the Video Game Crash of 1983
Atari dominated 80% of the market. E.T. losses hurt bad. But it was the tipping point.
Too many bad games flooded stores. No standards. Consoles from everyone. Quality tanked.
Sales dropped 97%. From $3.2 billion in 1982 to $100 million in 1986. Factories closed. Jobs gone.
- Atari fired thousands.
- Warner Communications sold Atari.
- Nintendo swooped in with strict quality rules.
The crash lasted three years. Gaming nearly died. E.T. became the scapegoat.
Atari's Downfall Timeline
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1982 | E.T. released. 4M copies made. |
| 1983 | Landfill dump. Sales crash begins. |
| 1985 | Atari splits. Nintendo rises. |
| 2014 | Landfill dug up. |
The 2014 Dig: Proof Emerges
For 30 years, skeptics laughed. "Buried E.T.? Fake news."
Then Microsoft stepped in. For a documentary. They funded the dig.
July 2014. Crews broke concrete. Heat hit 100°F. They found them. Sealed E.T. cartridges. Pristine.
Over 30 truckloads unearthed. 100+ consoles too. Auctioned for charity. One E.T. sold for $1,500.
Warshaw watched live. "Vindicated," he said. Myth confirmed.
E.T.'s Lasting Legacy Today
Gaming boomed back. Now a $200 billion industry. Thanks to Nintendo's cleanup.
E.T. lives on as trivia king. Worst game ever. Buried treasure.
Warshaw? He's proud. Documentaries feature him. He coded under impossible odds.
- Game now on iOS, Android. Fixed version.
- Inspired books, podcasts.
- Landfill now tourist spot.
Atari? Revived. Makes retro stuff. Full circle.
Lessons from the Landfill
Rush jobs kill. Test your work. Quality wins.
Video games rose from ashes. E.T. proved even disasters spark stories.
Next time you play, think of that desert pit. Gaming history hides in trash. And it shaped your console today.
Who knew a bad game could bury an empire—and dig it back up?