Mat Mania Challenge
Mat Mania Challenge — frequently asked questions
- What platforms is Mat Mania Challenge on?
- Mat Mania Challenge was released on Atari 7800.
- When did Mat Mania Challenge release?
- Mat Mania Challenge was first released on December 31, 1990.
About Mat Mania Challenge
Wouldn't you know it, you drew Bruno the Sledge, five time champion and all-around bad guy, as your first opponent in your quest for that elusive Atari Wrestling Federation championship belt. Ever since he lost his title to Eric the Flaxen Saxon, Bruno's been terrorizing the AWF circuit. Bruno the Sledge glares at you with his one remaining eye. When the bell rings, he charges like a man insane. Just before the impact of his 386-pound body, you step aside and raise your elbow. Perfect elbow smash! Bruno falls to the mat. You get him in a head lock, but his shaved head slips free. Then you see it. The famous Bruno the Sledge "Eye of Terror," the look of death. You're in trouble now! Mat Mania Challenge provides all the thrills and spills of professional wrestling. Do you have what it takes to survive brain busters and pile drivers? If you have the skills, the championship belt will be yours!
Summary via IGDB.
Mat Mania Challenge on Wikipedia
Mat Mania, known in Japan as Exciting Hour: The ProWrestling Network or simply Exciting Hour, is a 1985 wrestling video game developed by Technōs Japan and published by Taito for arcades. It is a spiritual successor to the 1983 arcade game Tag Team Wrestling, also developed by Technōs Japan, but published by Data East. The arcade game was a commercial success in Japan and North America, becoming the highest-grossing arcade conversion kit of 1986 in the United States.
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA 4.0).
Game details
- Platforms
- Atari 7800
- Developer
- BlueSky Software
- Publisher
- Atari Corporation
- Game modes
- Single player, Multiplayer
Details via IGDB.
Collector value & authenticity
Atari 7800 · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-19
How often it sells
- Loose: about 5 times a year
- Complete: about 4 times a year
- Sealed: about once a month
Sales frequency from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, as of 2026-10-19.
Price over time
- Loose
- Complete
A loose copy sold for about $19.99 in Jan 2010, $20 five years ago, and $51 as of Oct 2026.
Show as table
| Month | Loose | Complete |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2010 | $19.99 | — |
| Jan 2011 | $2.99 | — |
| Jan 2012 | $12.00 | — |
| Jan 2013 | $9.99 | — |
| Jan 2014 | $9.99 | $7.99 |
| Jan 2015 | $25 | $11.99 |
| Jan 2016 | $12.82 | $11.99 |
| Jan 2017 | $14.95 | $15.99 |
| Jan 2018 | $12.74 | $16.00 |
| Jan 2019 | $13.50 | $18.00 |
| Jan 2020 | $17.24 | $21 |
| Jan 2021 | $19.59 | $24 |
| Jan 2022 | $19.85 | $58 |
| Jan 2023 | $20 | $43 |
| Jan 2024 | $23 | $51 |
| Jan 2025 | $36 | $64 |
| Jan 2026 | $60 | $70 |
| Oct 2026 | $51 | $55 |
Monthly price estimates from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, sampled quarterly, through Oct 2026.
Documented sales
294 US copies invoiced by Atari in 1990
Ranked 38 of the 39 Atari 7800 cartridges in Atari's internal reports. These count cartridges shipped to US stores, less returns, not copies sold to players, and they end on 31 December 1990, so the game's 1991 shipments are not included.
Source: Atari Corporation's internal 7800 software sales reports (1986–1990)
Release record
| Territory | Label | Catalog # | Rarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| North America Atari | Color | CX7863 | Scarce+ |
Source: Catalog numbers, label types, rarity, controllers and player counts: AtariAge 7800 software database
- Region
- NA+EU
- Released
- 1990
- Controller
- Pro-Line Joystick, Fire buttons
- Players
- 1 - 2
- Authenticity
- Low
A scarce two-player wrestling conversion of the Technos arcade game that keeps some features from both arcade versions and drops others.
BlueSky Software developed the 7800 Mat Mania Challenge, and Atari Corporation released it in 1990. Wikipedia notes that it mixes features of the original Mat Mania arcade game and its updated Mania Challenge follow-up and lacks others. The arcade source is Technos' wrestling game.
Atari showed it at the summer 1990 show as a wrestling game for two, and in 1991 Video Games and Computer Entertainment still described it as bringing wrestling action to the 7800. It belongs to the library's final wave, and it supports one or two players.
How the Atari 7800 version differs
Atari described the 7800 game as a cross between Mat Mania and Mania Challenge: it has Dynamite Tommy and Hurricane Joe from the latter but omits all the villain characters.
Worth knowing
- From the 7800 manual. One-player games offer easy, medium or hard computer skill; two-player games have no difficulty selection.
- From the 7800 manual. Pause button supported.
Before you buy
AtariAge rates the Atari color-label cart scarce-plus, so it costs more than the common carts. The catalog number is CX 7863. Pro-Line joystick, one or two players. The box and manual carry much of a complete copy's value.
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