
Final Approach
Final Approach — frequently asked questions
- Is Final Approach on Steam?
- No. Final Approach is not distributed on Steam, so there is no Steam Charts or SteamDB player count for it. Its live popularity is tracked here via Twitch viewership instead.
- What platforms is Final Approach on?
- Final Approach is available on Atari 2600.
- When did Final Approach release?
- Final Approach was first released on December 31, 1982.
About Final Approach
You are an air traffic controller at an international airport. You must guide planes in to landing safely. Your first screen is the Approach Control Radar screen or ARC. You must guide the aircraft , using the cursor, until they are headed left to right along the yellow line headed towards the black stripe. Make sure the other planes are headed where they won't immediately head towards each other or off screen. After the plane gets near the black stripe, move the cursor to the center red light and press the button. You will then be on the Ground Control Approach screen or GCA. Here you must center the plane's nose on the glide slope and localizer before it arrives at the end of the runway. If the landing is successful, the plane will disappear from the ARC screen and a new one will appear soon to take its place. If not, when you press your joystick button and return to the ARC screen, the plane will still be there. If a plane starts flashing on the ARC and you hear an emergency sound, this plane has an emergency and must be landed first. Scoring Successful landing=25 points Successful emergency landing if landing before other planes=50 points Aircraft wanders off radar=lose 5 points You get a control error (lose a life) if you allow a near miss or do not immediately land an aircraft in distress. You are allowed an additional control error (extra life) every 500 points. Game variations Games 1, 3, 5, and 7 are one player. Games 2, 4, 6, and 8 are two player. Maximum number of planes on radar: Games 1, 2, 3, and 4=4 Games 5 and 6=3 Games 7 and 8=2 There are crosswinds on landings in games 3 and 4 only. Difficulty switch A=faster planes B=slower planes
Summary via IGDB.
Game details
- Platforms
- Atari 2600
- Developer
- Apollo, Inc.
- Publisher
- Apollo, Inc.
- Game modes
- Single player, Multiplayer
- Themes
- Non-fiction
Details via IGDB.
Collector value & authenticity
Atari 2600 · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-06
Release record
| Territory | Label | Catalog # | Rarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| North America Apollo | Blue | AP2009 | Scarce+ |
Source: Catalog numbers, label types, rarity, controllers and player counts: AtariAge 2600 software database
- Region
- NA
- Released
- 1982
- Controller
- Atari Joystick
- Players
- 1 - 2
- Authenticity
- Low
A little-known Apollo cartridge, inexpensive and seldom discussed.
Games by Apollo released Final Approach in October 1982. Little is documented about the game beyond its publisher and release date.
Cartridge & preservation record
Program size 4 KB, measured from the preserved dump.
Catalogue number as recorded for the physical release.
Before you buy
Low risk; no reproductions are documented. Loose copies are inexpensive. Check that the label is intact and the end label matches the title.
Final Approach screenshots
Watch on YouTube
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