Tax Avoiders is a platform video game developed for the
Atari 2600 by Darrell Wagner, a former CPA and IRS Agent. In the game the player takes the role of John Q who wants to become a millionaire. He must do so by collecting income and avoiding taxes over the course of a year. On the game's first screen John must move around and collect income while avoiding red tape. On the second screen, which occurs at the end of every quarter, John must get in touch with a CPA and an investment advisor while avoiding an IRS agent. The game is one of the first games to have an ending which depends on whether or not John ends the year a millionaire.
Tropes:
- Artistic License – Economics: Mostly averted because the game was designed by a CPA and tax agent. The only straight play is that John always loses tax audits.
- Intimidating Revenue Service: John must absolutely avoid touching the IRS Agent on the second screen.
- Multiple Endings: One of the first games to have multiple endings. In this case, two depending on whether or not John ends the year as a millionaire or not.
- Taxman Takes the Winnings: What happens if John contacts the IRS Agent.
- Video-Game Lives: Averted. John does not have lives in the game. It ends only when the end of the in-game year is reached.
- Visual Pun: The "red tape" John must avoid confronting is represented by actual pieces of red tape.
- Whammy: If John touches the IRS agent, he is audited and 50% of his income is taken.
