During the early 1980s, Coleco ported eight of their ColecoVision coin-op conversions to the Intellivision: Carnival, Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Junior, Lady Bug, Mouse Trap, Turbo, Venture and Zaxxon. Of these games, Carnival is arguably the most arcade-like in its faithfulness to the design and playability of the original game.

Although less aesthetically pleasing and harder to control than the ColecoVision version (the gun pauses for a split-second when you press left or right on the disc), this rendition of Carnival is an acceptable copy, considering the limitations of the Intellivision relative to the ColecoVision.

The Atari 2600 version of the game lacks the bonus rounds, in which you must shoot a bear that walks faster and faster across the screen, but the Intellivision game has all the elements of play in place. The Atari 2600 game is also lacking in difficulty levels, which this version thankfully keeps intact (from the ColecoVision port).

Unlike most shooters, which give you unlimited ammunition, Carnival makes you earn additional ammo by firing at extra-bullet targets. This aspect of the game is crucial in that it makes the aiming and timing your shots very important. Adding to this are the pipes, which rotate on a wheel at the top of the screen. These are tough to hit, but you should take them out as soon as possible as new targets continue pouring out as long as at least one flag remains standing.

The ducks, which increase in number the deeper you get into the game, can fly down to eat your bullets, and you can add or take away from your score or ammunition dump by hitting a plus-minus target. Also cool is the fact that you must shoot the letters in BONUS in the correct order to rack up the extra points.

Carnival is more than an ordinary, mindless shoot-'em-up thanks to these features, and the Intellivision version of the game is about what you'd expect: a blockier and clunkier, but competent rendition of the arcade and ColecoVision semi-classic. ~ Brett Alan Weiss, All Game Guide

The ducks, rabbits and owls are recognizable, though not exactly cute. The game has the overall look of its {!
arcade} counterpart. ~ Brett Alan Weiss, All Game Guide

The music is an off-kilter carnival theme that pauses for a split-second each time a target is hit. The sound effects are solid. ~ Brett Alan Weiss, All Game Guide

Carnival met with only marginal commercial success in the arcades, but it was given new life via home consoles, including the Intellivision. It is a fun game that combines reflexive shooting with a bit of strategy. The controls for this version could use some refining, though. ~ Brett Alan Weiss, All Game Guide

You'll enjoy this game again and again as you try to increase your high scores by spelling out BONUS a number of times and hitting the plus-minus target as often as you can when it is on a plus. Four levels of difficulty make the game good for all ages. ~ Brett Alan Weiss, All Game Guide