Finally got an Atari 2600

[Pixel_Outlaw]

Let me first say that what you have played on an emulator is not Atari 2600. It may look the same but it cannot capture the feeling of playing on the real hardware. Now for some time I had always wanted to try an Atari 2600 but as a kid I didn't have eBay as we do now. My first video game consoles was the Nintendo found abandoned by my dad. That system is great to own and play, but I always sort of wanted to play what came before that as a kid. My uncle had one but he never remembered where he put it.

So recently I got an Atari Jr ( The last "real" Atari 2600 model to be made) for about 40 dollars. The unit came with one racing controller, two paddle controllers, one joystick controller and one odd looking joystick controller The seller did not ship the item out right away because he said that there was some ban on his account that happened directly after I placed my order. This made me worry quite a bit but soon the mistake (apparently) was corrected and my item was shipped. It arrived today via FedEx at 7:30 PM. Now I have my atari with a few games enjoying something I never had but always sort of wanted in the back of my mind. It is nice having the original joysticks, yes but I think I like the feel of my Genesis controllers more as they easily fit and play nicely with the earlier generation system.

I have the following games and will soon be getting more.
41 Surround (A bit like the light cycles tron game)
Asteroids (2 copies)
E.T. (Not a game but torture)
Word Zapper

I look foreward to clearing out a local pawn shop that seems to have a giant bin of them.

So, if you have played Atari on the computer and think that you don't like the system for the graphics I urge you to try the games on the original system. It defies logic but they are actually great when played on the real hardware with a friend. I found quite a few people don't like the Atari but please, play the real thing before you make your decisions.

Now...to download those manuals for the games so I can figure out which of the 20 settings does what in each game.

[Ed Oscuro]

I have had a VCS and a number of games (the usual Surround, Combat, Venture, and so on). I'm not actually sure if I have more of the ones worth playing or just filler.

One thing to watch out for is the plastic going brittle on the controllers and breaking unexpectedly. I was just handling one and some of the plastic (I think the upright stick part) of one just snapped off. Hoorah for oldtime cheapness.

[Pixel_Outlaw]

Thanks for the tip, unless the game calls for a different controller I think I'll just substitute my ol Sega controllers for the joysticks.

[Never_Scurred]

Hahaha...I used to have a 2600 back in the day. This was when they were selling for like peanuts and the NES hadn't begun its reign.
Funny thing was when the NES came out, I remember trying to convince my mom that pixel blocks on a black background wasn't fun anymore and that all the other kids were playing games with colours and music and you could actually beat them.
Damn, i'm old.

[Specineff]

Get Reactor, P.O. Highly underrated game, and quite fun. Impressive physics for an Atari game, too.

[brentsg]

Track down:

Yar's Revenge
Jr. Pac-Man
Pinball
Defender II
Demon Attack

[jochen]

Worth a look :

Phoenix

Pitfall I and II

Hero

Atlantis

Vanguard

[Pixel_Outlaw]

Thank guys! Keep em comming.

I wish to avoid games that go on forever when you master them (I've rolled the score over on Laser Blast).

I know there are a few shmups on there too, how is Defender II?

[brentsg]

Thank guys! Keep em comming.

I wish to avoid games that go on forever when you master them (I've rolled the score over on Laser Blast).

I know there are a few shmups on there too, how is Defender II?

Actually Defender II is really great. I need to edit my post above because the first Defender sucked a bit.

Also check out:

-River Raid
-Wizard of Wor
-Warlords (if you have paddle controllers, awesome multiplayer)

[D]

-River Raid

this

[Herr Schatten]

Get Beamrider.

It may not be the best version of the game available, but it's incredibly smooth for a 2600 game, and terribly addictive. I expect you to join me and Shatterhand in voting for it when the next yearly top 25 comes up.

Another vote for H.E.R.O.

Also:

Laser Gates
Spider Fighter

[drboom]

Now, I'm a bit of a retro snob, but I just cannot go back and play the 2600. I grew up with it, but once the NES came out, it was instantly obsolete. I did buy one in the original box about ten years back and 200+ games, but it doesn't have the longevity the NES has for me. Yeah, Adventure is great, Haunted House is fun, and marathoning Berserk and Asteroids is a good (albeit lenghtly) time, but after a few plays, I just put it back in the box and move on.

That being said, add these to your list of must-plays:
Berserk
Adventure
Haunted House
Pike's Peak
Astro Blaster

...and pretty much anything by Imagic (Demon Attack, Atlantis, etc.)

[mortified_penguin]

Add another vote for Berserk and Yar's Revenge. I also really liked Cosmic Ark for some reason.

[antron]

The controllers with the Flashback 2.0 are nice repros, just a little smaller.

Fit your console with a composite/svideo upgrade chip from http://www.8bitdomain.com/ for much improved graphics.

Check out the 2600 homebrew scene:
Thrust+
Juno First (shooter)
Lead (shooter)

[szycag]

Two other arcade ports that are a little simpler than the arcade but still managed to be enjoyable were Pengo and Amidar. I think Pengo was pretty late, like 1984. It had some music in it. But if you want to play Konami and Sega games there are better systems of course Not the biggest fan of Atari. But I can agree that Defender II port is a marvel.

And if you want to talk homebrew scene I think this one is really going to surprise you.

[BrianC]

"41 Surround" isn't the title of the game, it's just "Surround". Some of the earlier games were numbered.

Here are some titles I recommend:

Atari/Sears:
Adventure
Air Sea Battle/Target Fun
Battlezone - impressive pseudo 3d
Berzerk
Breakout/Breakaway IV (paddle)
Centipede - Nice port and better than the Atari 800 version
Circus Atari/Circus (paddle)
Combat/Tank Plus
Crystal Castles - very impressive for the system. Simplified levels, but most arcade elements intact.
Dodge 'em
Dig Dug
Galaxian
Gravitar
Haunted House
Indy 500 (requires driving controllers)
Joust - I like the floating eggs in this port and the physics of this and the 7800 version
Jr. Pac-Man - One of the only home ports and very well done
Jungle Hunt
Maze Craze/Maze Mania
Midnight Magic - best pinball game on the system.
Millipede - Better than NES one IMO. Good stuff.
Missile Command
Moon Patrol - impressive port for the system with a nice parallax scrolling effect.
Ms. Pac-Man - Not as good as Jr. Pac-Man, but a very nice version. Much better than 2600 Pac-Man
Phoenix
Sky Diver - Fun 70s arcade port where you try to make the sky diver land on the target
Solaris
Space Invaders - Different from the arcade, but great in its own right tons of variations
Stargate/Defender II - very impressive port, better than the NES version
Steeplechase
Super Breakout (paddle)
Superman
Vanguard - impressive scrolling shmup port!
Warlords (paddle) - especially fun with 4 players
Yar's Revenge

Activision:
Boxing
Beamrider
Chopper Command - Fun Defender like game
Crackpots
Enduro
Frostbite - plays like a combo of Q*Bert and Frogger. Very nice game.
H.E.R.O.
Ice Hockey
Kaboom (paddle)
Keystone Kapers
Megamania
Pitfall
Pitfall II
Pressure Cooker - very original and fun food sorting game
River Raid
Robot Tank - fun Battlezone like game with changing weather
Seaquest
Spider Fighter
Starmaster
Tennis

Parker Bros:
Empire Strikes Back
Frogger
Gyruss - actually has the classic music!
Montezuma's Revenge - impressive for the system. Different level layouts than the original
Q*Bert
Reactor
Spider-Man

They did some nice ports, but some originals like ESB and Spider-Man are quite good too.

Imagic:
Demon Attack
Dragonfire
Laser Gates - fun scrolling shmup
Moonsweeper - nice pseudo 3d game
Star Voyager

CBS Games:
Solar Fox (only one I have from them) - Pac-Man-ish game where you try to get the squares while avoiding the crossfire

SEGA:
Star Trek - Nice port over to the system and very fun
Tac-Scan (paddle in port two) - simplified compared to the original, but very fun paddle game

Epyx:
California Games
Summer Games
Winter Games

All three of these Epyx games are impressive multi-event sports games for the system.

M-Network:
Adventures of Tron - Nice DK-ish game
Armor Ambush
Astroblast (best with paddles) - port of astrosmash from the Intellivision. 2600 one is better due to faster gameplay and paddle control.
Bump 'n Jump - Has some differences from other versions, but very fun and impressive for the 2600
Dark Cavern
Discs of Tron
International Soccer
Lock 'n Chase - very simplistic version, but good in its own right
Space Attack
Super Challenge Baseball
Super Challenge Football

Homebrew:
Conquest of Mars - port of Cavers of Mars with everything intact. Very nice game and hard!
Marble Craze (paddle) -fun Marble Madness-ish game that uses paddle controls to simulate marble maze games.
Star Fire - Best arcade style pseudo 3d first person space game on the system. Very fun. Based on an obscure arcade game (which the president of Exidy just gave permission for free download from mame's website).

But if you want to play Konami and Sega games there are better systems of course

2600 has one of the best ports of Frogger, but it's on cassette tape and requires an accessory called the Starpath Supercharger to play. The Parker Bros port is also good (and dirt common), but this one blows it away.

[BulletMagnet]

To echo what a few others have already said:

1) Get a full set of 4 paddle controllers.
2) Get Warlords.
3) Have a few people over.
4) THE MULTIPLAYER EVER

[BrianC]

I heard the homebrew Medieval Mayhem is also good (another game based on Warloads for the 2600, this one made to be closer to the arcade), but I only tried it in emulators, where the controls without a stelladapter don't do it justice.

[t0yrobo]

To echo what a few others have already said:

1) Get a full set of 4 paddle controllers.
2) Get Warlords.
3) Have a few people over.
4) THE MULTIPLAYER EVER

This. And bezerk for sure, I love that game.

[louisg]

I agree that it's a totally different experience with the real thing. And the paddle games are just great. I also like the arcade ports a lot; just think: before MAME, this was still one of the better ways to play a lot of these I still think the better ports for that system have a certain charm, and they are a bit easier-going than the arcade originals which can be nice on occasion.

My recommendations:
Ms. Pac and Jr. Pac
Missile Command
Space Invaders - this is the second-best SI game imo. The 2p mode is a blast.
Battlezone (seriously rules; I like it more than the original)
Gravitar (better than Thrust imo)
Enduro
Beamrider
Demon Attack
Star Trek
Marble Craze
Thrust (perfect port, and I guess the new one supports the driving controller)
Video Olympics - worth it just for volleyball
Super Breakout
Millipede - awesome awesome port
Crackpots
Frostbite - brilliant game
Frogger
Warlords

EDIT: oh and Berzerk

[drboom]

To echo what a few others have already said:

1) Get a full set of 4 paddle controllers.
2) Get Warlords.
3) Have a few people over.
4) THE MULTIPLAYER EVER

Triple ditto-ed. Use to have this cocktail arcade and it's just as fun on the 2600 with a bunch of people.

[szycag]

Was looking at some of the other paddle games after being curious about Warlords
What do you guys think about Demons to Diamonds?

[stuminator]

Get Kaboom, fun game that's fast and twitchy. My kind of game. I still don't know where my 2600 disappeared to years ago, reading this thread is making me want to pick one up again.

[BrianC]

Thrust (perfect port, and I guess the new one supports the driving controller)

It does, but I think another controller like that footpad is needed to take advantage of it since the driving controller has one button.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

I originally got one of those original Atari VCS console (aka the "Heavy Sixer" due to the use of heavy RF sheilding on the internal electronic components) back in the early 1980s. This was before the era of the Atari 5200 Super System console made it's debut.

The Spectravision released Planet Patrol for the 2600 circa 1982 is one cool shmup title to get...it just scrolls from left to right scrolling (opposite of the traditional right to left scrolling of today's yoko based shmup games).

Sega's Tac-Scan is another cool 2600 shmup title...you use the paddle controllers though instead of an joystick.

Imagic's 1983 MoonSweeper is legendary for it's super sliky smooth moon surface scrolling towards you...amazing sprite scrolling on the lowly 2600 console for it's time.

---------------------------------------
Insider MoonSweeper trick: There is a trick to rack up extra lives really quick by intially scoring the first 20,000pts. and using up a few of your shields (at -10pts. per second of usage) and score enough to reach 20,000pts. again. Drain your shield once to get your score 19,990pts. and under. Repeat this same trick until you have six or seven lives in reserve. Once you earn the maximum number of lives, the CPU won't give you anymore lives whatsoever.

2nd Insider Moonsweeper trick: You can shoot into the sun and blast it for extra points. Rescue the required number of astronaut survivors on a red colored moon and successfully use the gravity rings to escape the moon's gravity to blast off back into outer space. Then start shooting into the sun for some cool easy and free points to add to your overall score. Easy as pie!
---------------------------------------

I discovered both 2600 Moonsweeper tricks while messing around with it one day. ^_~

Parker Bros. also released 2600 versions of Star Wars: The Arcade Game and Return of the Jedi: Death Star Battle besides the already mentioned 2600 Empire Strikes Back game.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[Ed Oscuro]

The arcade version of Reactor (I think it's the same game anyhow) showed up in tonight's arcade games quiz run.

Berzerk, from what I've heard, is much easier on the VCS as enemies don't fire diagonally. Bah!

[antron]

Thrust (perfect port, and I guess the new one supports the driving controller)

It does, but I think another controller like that footpad is needed to take advantage of it since the driving controller has one button.

So much fun, the 'turn all you want' driving controller with Thrust.
I'm glad I pick one of those foot peddles up as they haven't been in the atariage store for a while. Actually, the atariage store hasn't been for a while either.

[BrianC]

Thrust (perfect port, and I guess the new one supports the driving controller)

It does, but I think another controller like that footpad is needed to take advantage of it since the driving controller has one button.

So much fun, the 'turn all you want' driving controller with Thrust.
I'm glad I pick one of those foot peddles up as they haven't been in the atariage store for a while. Actually, the atariage store hasn't been for a while either.

Thrust+ Platinum is available at Good Deal Games, though. They are partnered with AtariAge. Actually, Thrust+ was ordered for Christmas, but I had to send it to AtariAge for a replacement since the one I ordered didn't work right on most of my 2600 compatible systems (it only seemed to work on the 7800 that doesn't play Robot Tank. Everything it didn't work on plays Robot Tank fine).

[antron]

Thrust+ Platinum is available at Good Deal Games, though. They are partnered with AtariAge. Actually, Thrust+ was ordered for Christmas, but I had to send it to AtariAge for a replacement since the one I ordered didn't work right on most of my 2600 compatible systems (it only seemed to work on the 7800 that doesn't play Robot Tank. Everything it didn't work on plays Robot Tank fine).

ahh, thanks. and here's somewhere with the foot pedal:
https://www.atari2600.com/item--Foot-Pe ... D1568.html

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Tried the 2600 Trackball controller with both 2600 versions of Crystal Castles and Missle Command...it really is harder to play with this useless piece of shit. You'd have better control by using a standard 2600 joystick any ol' day with both games. Of course, ex-Atari employee Dan Kramer (developer of the classic 5200 Trackball controller) did make the analog to digital interface for the 2600 Trackball controller as well.

Kay-B Toys used to sell the Atari 2600 Jr. console brand new for a mere $24.99 USD back in 1986-1988. When I noticed that Atari first released Crystal Castles back in 1986, I bought it right away. Noticed that it had a 1984 copyright screen...had to guess that Atari Corp was going to release it back in 1984 but the Great Video Game Crash of 1983-1984 fiasco incident happened & it, supposedly, was cancelled at the last minute. Glad to see that it was properly released with a full color instruction manual (which was a rarity for 2600 games as most 2600 games came with black and white printed manuals anyways).

Atari did release an 2600 version of Stargate back in 1986...it has a copyright 1984 screen as well. I've got a copy of one for my 2600 games stash. Eventually, it was re-released as Defender II with Williams doing the cool animated title screen themselves. Requires the usage of two joysticks to play and the graphics are quite razor sharp for an 8-bit console version.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~