Is Tax Avoiders on Steam?

No. Tax Avoiders 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 Tax Avoiders on?

Tax Avoiders is available on Atari 2600.

When did Tax Avoiders release?

Tax Avoiders was first released on February 1, 1982.

Tax Avoiders

Feb 1, 1982Atari 2600

Tax Avoiders — frequently asked questions

Is Tax Avoiders on Steam?: No. Tax Avoiders 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 Tax Avoiders on?: Tax Avoiders is available on Atari 2600.
When did Tax Avoiders release?: Tax Avoiders was first released on February 1, 1982.

About Tax Avoiders

You are John Q and you want to be rich. In this game, you start out on the income screen where you try to collect the money (dollar signs) while avoiding the governmental red tape (look like red snakes). You have only one year to get your money and invest it. Each second, a day goes by. My, how time flies. Once a season, you are sent to the investment/tax shelter screen, where you must collect an icon representing an investment and then grab your portfolio (briefcase). Investments have a 50/50 chance of making or losing money. Also on this screen is a character whose color changes. What color he is determines who he is: Black=Eggie, the IRS agent. If he catches you, he will audit you. In these audits, you always lose. You are then taxed at 50% of your income and sent back to the income screen.There are no appeals to tax court. Pink=Waggie, the CPA. If he catches you (or you go to him), he will charge you $1,000.00 but whatever tax sheltered investment you have, he will put you in a better one. Green=Toodles, the registered investment adviser. If you two meet, he will put you in the best tax sheltered investment available, thus making you the most profit. After each season, you are taxed to an amount determined by your tax shelter. The object is to have $1,000,000.00 at the end of the year after taxes.

Summary via IGDB.

Game details

Platforms: Atari 2600
Themes: Action

Details via IGDB.

Collector value & authenticity

Atari 2600 · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-06

Loose

$30

Complete

$128

Sealed

$120

Release record

Territory	Label	Rarity
North America American Videogame	Standard	Rare

Source: Catalog numbers, label types, rarity, controllers and player counts: AtariAge 2600 software database

Region: NA
Released: 1986
Controller: Atari Joystick
Players: 1
Authenticity: Low

Not in Atari 50 — other compilations and plug-and-plays are not tracked hereLow counterfeit risk

Atari 2600 prices, all games & how to spot a fake

A platform game called Tax Avoiders, conceived by a former IRS agent, and one of the strangest premises on the console.

Tax Avoiders was conceived by Darrell Wagner at Dunhill Electronics, who was billed on the packaging as a "Licensed Tax Consultant and former IRS Revenue Agent". Todd Clark Holm, described as "an independent investment advisor, registered with the S.E.C.", developed it, and John Simonds designed it.

It was first conceived in 1982 but did not reach shelves until American Videogame published it in December 1986, years after the 2600's peak. It was made only for the 2600, and the box copy is a large part of the joke.

How it was made

Conceived by Darrell Wagner at Dunhill Electronics, developed by Todd Clark Holm, designed by John Simonds and published by American Videogame. First conceived in 1982 and released in 1986.

What the press said at the time

“The game is very cleverly conceived but primitively implemented with barely acceptable graphics and less than smooth control. It would be of value chiefly to collectors.”
— Computer Entertainer, January 1987

Cartridge & preservation record

Program size 8 KB, measured from the preserved dump.

Catalogue number as recorded for the physical release.

Before you buy

Low risk. The packaging is where the personality is, with the credentials printed on it, so a complete copy is the version worth owning if the box is in decent shape.