''Mangia'' (also styled ''Mangia'', with a trailing apostrophe) is a

video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...

for the

Atari 2600 The Atari 2600 is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS), it popularized microprocessor-based hardware and games stored on swappable ROM cartridg ...

released by Spectravision in 1983. The title "Mangia" is an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

word meaning "eat!". The North American version is one of the rarest games for the 2600.

Gameplay

The player controls a young boy who must eat plates of

pasta Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an Leavening agent, unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or Eggs as food, eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Pasta was originally on ...

placed in front of him by his mother, who will keep feeding him until his stomach explodes on-screen. To prevent this, the player can throw it to a cat, who occasionally appears at the window, and a dog, who walks across the bottom of the screen. However, if the mother sees the pasta being thrown to the cat or dog, she brings three times as much pasta the next time she returns. The joystick is used to control the player: pressing right causes the boy to grab a plate of pasta, pressing left causes him to eat it, and pressing up or down causes him to toss the pasta to the cat (named Frankie in the manual) or the dog (named Sergio) respectively. If the cat and dog are not nearby when the food is thrown to them, the mother returns with extra pasta to "punish" the player. The fire button is not used. If the player is idle, instead of eating the pasta or throwing it to the animals the pasta will accumulate on the table until it breaks, causing the player to lose a turn. Attempting to eat all the pasta without giving any to the cat or dog will cause the boy's stomach to swell, changing colors from blue to yellow to red, before finally exploding in a mass of chunky blue pixels.

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite web , url = http://www.atariage.com/software_search.html?SystemID=2600 , title = Atari 2600 Rarity Guide , work =

AtariAge AtariAge is a website focusing on classic Atari video games. The site features gaming news, historical archives, discussion forums, and an online store. It was founded in 1998. Taking its name from the 1982–84 '' Atari Age'' magazine, the site ...

, access-date = September 23, 2010 , archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080501165134/http://www.atariage.com/software_search.html?SystemID=2600 , archive-date = May 1, 2008 , url-status = dead {{cite web , url = http://www.atariage.com/manual_html_page.html?SoftwareLabelID=283 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303201318/http://www.atariage.com/manual_html_page.html?SoftwareLabelID=283 , archive-date=March 3, 2016 , url-status=dead , title = Atari 2600 Manuals: Mangia (Spectravision) , work =

, access-date = September 23, 2010 {{cite web , first= Michael , last=San Filippo , date=January 18, 2020 , url = https://www.thoughtco.com/italian-sayings-using-the-word-mangiare-2011767 , title = Italian Sayings Using the Word Mangiare , work =

ThoughtCo Dotdash Meredith (formerly The Mining Company, About.com and Dotdash) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, hom ...

, access-date = July 22, 2025

External links

Mangia
at Atari Mania 1983 video games Action games Atari 2600 games Atari 2600-only games North America-exclusive video games Single-player video games Spectravideo games Video games about children Video games about food and drink Video games developed in the United States