Vectrex In the Spotlight - A wonderously unique retro experience

[Rev. Rob]

Before the days of Mario and the NES, there was a phenomenon in this country. Outside of schools, next to Laundromats, on street corners, in every mall in America existed a world – now nearly extinct – called video arcades.

 

These so-called video arcades featured new and exciting video games. These games represented the cutting edge of videogame technology. Even all of the way through the 1990’s, video arcade games were always years beyond what home consoles were ever capable of.

 

In the 70’s and 80’s this was ever more apparent. A new technology called vector graphics.

 

“Vector graphics or geometric modeling is the use of geometrical primitives such as points, lines, curves, and polygons, which are all based upon mathematical equations to represent images in computer graphics.”

 

In other words, vector graphics where polygonal models, or wire frames which could be made to look like true 3D.

 

One of the earliest popular vector games ever released was Atari’s Asteroids, which featured stunning glowing vector lines drawn on a black background. Released in 1979, the world had hardly seen anything like it. It was much more crisp and futuristic looking than common pixilated raster games of its era.

 

The unavoidable port to the 2600 proved the limitations of home console. Without a special screen, vector graphics are impossible. Many Asteroids fans revolted at what is commonly accepted to be the worst version of Asteroids to have ever been produced.

 

The next year, in 1980, Atari continued their success with vectors and developed Battlezone, a 3D tank warfare simulator. Unlike Asteroids, Battlezone featured 3D and color. This game proved to be so popular that the US Army commissioned a version known as The Bradley Trainer, to train new recruits on their Bradley combat vehicles.

 

Despite the success of Battlezone, Atari was not in a position to port this game in its arcade form. The Atari 2600 and other game consoles of the time were woefully outdated technologically, and relied on tech from the mid 1970’s. This would prove to be a factor in the pending Video Game Crash.

 

The problem in the home market was that there was a demand for the wildly popular vector arcade games, but no one was poised to step up. That is, not until 1982.

 

In November of 1982 a little known videogame company entered the market with a new console. The company was Santa Monica, California based General Consumer Electronics, Inc. (GCE) and the console was the Vectrex.

 

The Vectrex was designed to be the console of choice for the serious gamer, and also to compete head-on with Atari and Mattel, and Coleco, the “big three” console developers of the day.

 

The GCE Vectrex featured a 9-inch monochrome built in monitor, specially designed to be able to display vector graphics. The world’s first ever controller that featured an analog joy stick – with four buttons. It also had another secret weapon, Minestorm. Minestorm was not just a pack-in, but a built in game, commonly referred to as the “Asteroids killer” by Vectrex fans of then and now.

Because the monitor was only able to display black and white, GCE used a trick that arcade developers used at the time. With each game came packed a screen overlay, to simulate color.

 

In 1983 Milton Bradley, a consistent force in videogames, was so impressed with the Vectrex, that they bought GCE outright, and began marketing the console in other markets.

 

With the support of MB, GCE developed several innovative add-ons: The light pen, which allows one to draw with vectors on the screen, and a 3D headset, which was required for certain cartridges. Both features were revolutionary at the time.

 

Plans were immediately laid out to replace the Vectrex with a console that contains a larger, color screen, and one that is powerful enough to wow audiences with games on the par of Atari’s Battlezone.

 

Unfortunately, the game market was destined to crash. With the crash, Milton Bradley abandoned the Vectrex in 1984 and closed down GCE forever. The planed sequel never surfaced, and no prototypes are known to have survived.

 

Fortunately, several prototypes of incomplete games did survive, however, and have since been released by the very much active Vectrex homebrew scene. In addition, several original works and ports of other arcade classics such as Missile Command and Space Invaders have also been released for the Vectrex in recent years by the homebrew community who continues to support their beloved console.

 

In 1988 Smith Engineering attempted to secure the rights to the Vectrex name, technology, and game library from Hasbro, (a company that MB merged with years prior). Smith Engineering intended to release a new handheld Vectrex. This deal almost happened, but Hasbro felt that there was still no home market for consoles, especially handhelds. They also felt that consumers would not go for the $100 price tag. One year later Nintendo launched its Game Boy for $109.99, and the rest is history.

 

The Vectrex can commonly be found on eBay and other auction sites. Be prepared to spend over $100 for the system and a few games. Though the system is “easy” to find online, it is highly desired, and can commands a high price, especially a complete system with documentation and packaging.

Edited June 22, 2007 by Rev. Rob

[warmachine]

It's always nice to read about the vectrex.

We really don't talk about it enough.

What an amazing machine.

 

EDIT:

 

Is it possible for sinistar to be ported to the vectrex?

Edited June 22, 2007 by warmachine

[Lord Helmet]

The Vectrex is one of my favorite pieces of my collection. Very cool system.

[Video]

The Vectrix has always been facinating to me. But I just can't bring myself to pay $100+ for a 20+ year old system with more parts than useual to go bad (especially since most people sell that old of stuff 'as is' which many people like me automatically translate into 'doesn't work' )

 

BTW, I thought Battlezone was monochrome? The red text was just an overlay I thought (or is the red actually drawn on the monitor) Though Tempest would be really damn cool on a home system.

[Rev. Rob]

The Vectrix has always been facinating to me. But I just can't bring myself to pay $100+ for a 20+ year old system with more parts than useual to go bad (especially since most people sell that old of stuff 'as is' which many people like me automatically translate into 'doesn't work' )

 

Vectrex consoles are very reliable. Not need to worry. And the $100 beats the price of a modern game console, for sure!

 

BTW, I thought Battlezone was monochrome? The red text was just an overlay I thought (or is the red actually drawn on the monitor) Though Tempest would be really damn cool on a home system.

 

You're probably right. I should have researched better.

[A.J. Franzman]

BTW, I thought Battlezone was monochrome? The red text was just an overlay I thought (or is the red actually drawn on the monitor) Though Tempest would be really damn cool on a home system.

You're probably right. I should have researched better.

Yes, Battlezone used red and green overlays on a black and white vector monitor. Red Baron and Star Castle (and others?) used overlays for color. Later vector games did have true RGB color, though.

[jboypacman]

I always set my Vectrex out when i have people over and they almost always end up playing a few rounds of MineStorm.

[blastermaster]

I have been wanting one for years, and just snagged the one that was in the marketplace! hoping to have it at my door asap, seems like a pretty nice piece of work. now all I need is a multicart and a place to download and print overlays...

[jboypacman]

I got the Sean Kelly Muti-cart recently for the Vectrex and it was totally worth the money i spent on it.Awesome having all thoses games on just one cart.

[Video]

The Vectrix has always been facinating to me. But I just can't bring myself to pay $100+ for a 20+ year old system with more parts than useual to go bad (especially since most people sell that old of stuff 'as is' which many people like me automatically translate into 'doesn't work' )

 

Vectrex consoles are very reliable. Not need to worry. And the $100 beats the price of a modern game console, for sure!

 

 

 

Cool to hear. I'm probably just making excuses cause i"m an ultra cheap bastid

 

But yeah, if I get money, I'll think about picking one up...I do think it's definately one of the cooler consoles out there, especially with the built in monitor.

 

I've got some questions though.. First, how hard is it to get overlays? What all games had them, and can I make them on a standard Ink Jet printer or something? I assume most of the games have/had them. Second, how many people can this thing support? I know it's got a nifty controller (I actually had one of those moded to play 5200 at one time) But I've not seen anything on ammount of controller ports. And uh...that's about it.

 

Awesome review BTW. Look forward to more. Can I jack it for my board?

[Richard H.]

and can I make them on a standard Ink Jet printer or something?

Here's some good info

 

 

But I've not seen anything on ammount of controller ports.

2 ports, both analogue controllers with 4 buttons

[Rev. Rob]

The Vectrix has always been facinating to me. But I just can't bring myself to pay $100+ for a 20+ year old system with more parts than useual to go bad (especially since most people sell that old of stuff 'as is' which many people like me automatically translate into 'doesn't work' )

 

Vectrex consoles are very reliable. Not need to worry. And the $100 beats the price of a modern game console, for sure!

 

 

 

Cool to hear. I'm probably just making excuses cause i"m an ultra cheap bastid

 

But yeah, if I get money, I'll think about picking one up...I do think it's definately one of the cooler consoles out there, especially with the built in monitor.

 

I've got some questions though.. First, how hard is it to get overlays? What all games had them, and can I make them on a standard Ink Jet printer or something? I assume most of the games have/had them. Second, how many people can this thing support? I know it's got a nifty controller (I actually had one of those moded to play 5200 at one time) But I've not seen anything on ammount of controller ports. And uh...that's about it.

 

Awesome review BTW. Look forward to more. Can I jack it for my board?

 

Sure... just give credit to www.revrob.com

[Atarifever]

Sure... just give credit to www.revrob.com

Thread highjacking: That is a really good site. I didn't think I'd ever find a site that focused on all of my interests. Dislike of Paris Hilton, fascination with classic videogames, and a realisitic view of religion that didn't degrade into a crazy right defense of forced Christianity or a crazy left call for abolition of all religion. Keep up the good work.

[Flojomojo]

Sure... just give credit to www.revrob.com

Thread highjacking: That is a really good site. I didn't think I'd ever find a site that focused on all of my interests. Dislike of Paris Hilton, fascination with classic videogames, and a realisitic view of religion that didn't degrade into a crazy right defense of forced Christianity or a crazy left call for abolition of all religion. Keep up the good work.

I must agree ... but without an RSS feed, I won't be watching it closely. Please put up an RSS feed!

[JB]

In the 70’s and 80’s this was ever more apparent. A new technology called vector graphics.

 

“Vector graphics or geometric modeling is the use of geometrical primitives such as points, lines, curves, and polygons, which are all based upon mathematical equations to represent images in computer graphics.”

 

In other words, vector graphics where polygonal models, or wire frames which could be made to look like true 3D.

You've got the wrong vectors.

That's the definition for Adobe Illustrator-style vector drawings.

 

Vectors in gaming are different. All the software stores is endpoints and directions. It's up to the display hardware to translate it into a viewable image. A vector display works like an EtchASketch, directly tracing the image to the screen, whereas a raster display scans every part of the screen every frame, and you lay out an array of pixels to create an image, more like a LiteBrite.

 

The big advantage to vector displays is that the small number of points could be manipulated very easily, and since the display would redraw the entire object, it was freely scalable and rotatable for very little processor time.

And CLEANLY, too! Even today we haven't escaped aliasing, which never happens on vector displays.

 

The DISADVANTAGE, which ultimately killed vectors, is that the more objects you have, the longer it takes to draw a frame.

Past a certain point, you just can't draw screens fast enough. You can actually see this in Vectrex Berzerk when there's a lot of robots on screen. The game will start flickering, and maybe even slow WAY down, depending on how many robots are in the room.

As processors got faster, the uniwue attributes of vector displays became a curse rather than a blessing.

 

 

Plans were immediately laid out to replace the Vectrex with a console that contains a larger, color screen, and one that is powerful enough to wow audiences with games on the par of Atari’s Battlezone.

 

Unfortunately, the game market was destined to crash. With the crash, Milton Bradley abandoned the Vectrex in 1984 and closed down GCE forever. The planed sequel never surfaced, and no prototypes are known to have survived.

A. I'm fairly sure the Vectrex could do Battlezone as-is.

 

B. There IS one known color prototype.

http://home.earthlink.net/~jmorg/vectrex/VecColor.htm

 

In 1988 Smith Engineering attempted to secure the rights to the Vectrex name, technology, and game library from Hasbro, (a company that MB merged with years prior). Smith Engineering intended to release a new handheld Vectrex. This deal almost happened, but Hasbro felt that there was still no home market for consoles, especially handhelds. They also felt that consumers would not go for the $100 price tag. One year later Nintendo launched its Game Boy for $109.99, and the rest is history.

Actually, the rights reverted to Smith Engineering when the Vectrex was discontinued. And Smith authorized non-profit distribution of all copyrighted Vectrex material, including games .

 

Way I've heard it is they were designing the handheld when they heard about the GameBoy. Brawling with Nintendo was deemed a bad idea, so they scrapped it.

 

 

 

 

 

The Vectrex is love.

 

 

 

What all games had them, and can I make them on a standard Ink Jet printer or something? I assume most of the games have/had them.

EVERY original Vectrex game had an overlay except for the three 3D Imager games, which had a color wheel.

 

Second, how many people can this thing support? I know it's got a nifty controller (I actually had one of those moded to play 5200 at one time) But I've not seen anything on ammount of controller ports. And uh...that's about it.

Two. Most of the original games support trading controllers between players. Only 2-player simultaneous games require a second stick.

[Mayhem]

Way I've heard it is they were designing the handheld when they heard about the GameBoy. Brawling with Nintendo was deemed a bad idea, so they scrapped it.

 

Not true, according to Jay Smith himself, what RevRob said is what he said. Hasbro thought the selling price was too high for the public, even though the Gameboy ended up launching for me. The project was scrapped more than a year before anyone in the West had heard about the Gameboy.

[Video]

Awesome review BTW. Look forward to more. Can I jack it for my board?

 

Sure... just give credit to www.revrob.com

 

Cool, thanks. I gotta go there myself sometime.

 

A handheld vectrix would be cool. Now there's a project that would be cool to see someone pull off. Lots of people making portabal consoles from Atari to 360, but the Vectrix would require a special monitor of some kind to work (I think, or is it the same as a standard CRT just with a guided laser or something)

[+remowilliams]

A handheld vectrix would be cool. Now there's a project that would be cool to see someone pull off. Lots of people making portabal consoles from Atari to 360, but the Vectrix would require a special monitor of some kind to work (I think, or is it the same as a standard CRT just with a guided laser or something)

The Vectrex itself is about as portable a console as it's going to get while still being a 'Vectrex' Remember that vector CRT displays (like the Vectrex, the original arcade Asteroids, etc) are very different from all other forms of displays.

[JB]

Way I've heard it is they were designing the handheld when they heard about the GameBoy. Brawling with Nintendo was deemed a bad idea, so they scrapped it.

 

Not true, according to Jay Smith himself, what RevRob said is what he said. Hasbro thought the selling price was too high for the public, even though the Gameboy ended up launching for me. The project was scrapped more than a year before anyone in the West had heard about the Gameboy.

Oh...

 

Learn something every day.

 

 

HASBRO! YOU SUCK!

 

A handheld vectrix would be cool. Now there's a project that would be cool to see someone pull off. Lots of people making portabal consoles from Atari to 360, but the Vectrix would require a special monitor of some kind to work (I think, or is it the same as a standard CRT just with a guided laser or something)

The Vectrex itself is about as portable a console as it's going to get while still being a 'Vectrex' Remember that vector CRT displays (like the Vectrex, the original arcade Asteroids, etc) are very different from all other forms of displays.

Actually, for black and white displays, only the driving hardware is different. The CRTs used are the same for raster and vector.

 

I'm much less sure for color vector displays.

 

 

 

But it certainly won't adapt to LCDs, which are a basic requirement for a "true portable."

[Bill Brasky]

too many words.

[AussieAtari]

I love my Vectrex and it is always on display in The Cave.

 

My only beef with my unit is that it is missing one of the front rubber feet.

 

"Not too much of a problem, fix it you lazy bastard!" I hear you all cry, but the unit is well made and the feet were properly fastened with small bolts and nuts rather than self-tappers or glued on.

 

That makes it very hard to get the remaining foot off so I can glue two new feet on (I cannot find, after much looking, a foot the same dimension as the original) without pulling most of the insides of the unit apart so I can get to the nut.

 

All those stored high voltages floating around makes me very wary when I open my Vectrex.

[accousticguitar]

After dealing with analog joysticks on the 5200, I am having second thoughts about the Vectrex.

[Mayhem]

Well the one on the Vectrex is spring loaded to return to base

[Dusk2600]

i said it at least a year ago and ill say it again, the vectrex is 1 of the most unique gaming experiences 1 can ever have, i love mine, wish i had a 3d imager tho...

[Lord Helmet]

One of my best classic gaming investments was a Vectrex and VecFlash cart. Great fun