Amityville315

I got the track ball running great. I had to swipe a roller from another one I had and I just tested on Missile Command, Space Invaders, and Centipede. Wow, Centipede flies! That game is fast! Missile Command I was able to get to the white wave on first try and Space Invaders is so much easier to be able to glide across the bottom as fast as you want. Super Breakout was better, but still seemed wobbly. On to Tempest...

I hear ya on the 2600 stuff. The ports there are much easier - no way could I flip the real Asteroids. Glad to know that the 5200 games are similar in difficulty to the real versions. Still, I look at the high scores posted with the stock 5200 controllers and I'm befuddled how they can be acheived! Man, I wish an Xbox controller could be modded to play 5200 games! Well, hopefully when my Y adapter comes in I have better luck with the Wico. I love the sounds on these games and would love to be able to compete for a high score. I'm thinking Ill have the best luck with Space Dungeon or Qix. It was a bummer, I finally ordered the darn Wico after a year of repairing/replacing the cx-50's and the guy didnt include the Y adapter. So it's a pretty desktop ornament for now. I got one off of ebay so once that arrives perhaps Ill get better results. As far as the track ball goes, I own two of them and one "kinda" works. It's a workout though. I can play a few screens of Centipede or a couple waves at Missile Command but the speed is tough and the accuracy isn't smooth enough. I literally have to lean in on the ball to get any precision shooting, which is the mainstay of both those games. Space Invaders and Super Breakout are impossible with it.

Is it me, or are these games pretty challenging? Granted, the controllers, even though they are Best "Golds" - seem to make the games even harder. The track ball doesn't seem to help much either. I need to lean on the ball unconfortably hard and can't even stay alive for more than a few minutes in a game like Super Breakout. Back in the day, I could play 2600 Asteroids or Missle Command for HOURS. I still actively play Xbox One so I know that my videogame skills haven't degraded that much. I'd imagine I'd gets slightly better results with a decent joystick replacement or having my track ball repaired better than I'm able to do it. But am I wrong in thinking that the 5200 games are in many ways almost as hard as their arcade counterparts? I look forward to the day I could play Defender with a controller that might actually help me rather than hinder. Thoughts?

Impressive!

Ugh. I just got a Wico stick on amazon and it didnt come with the Y adapter. Bummer! Are these hard to make or find? Should I bother keeping the joystick?

Much more helpful and interesting replies guys. Thank you. $1000 per word - wow.

S'all good.

Its just food for conversation dude. Nothing to get pissy about. Ok, 2 players, more enemies and more colors. I see your point. I just play the games guy - and even then, not very often. Sorry if my ignorance of Atari programming offended you. That being said, I dont get pissy when a student of mine has a problem with a basic F chord or the inabilty to make it through an Ac/Dc song. We all have different gifts fella. Btw, happy holidays!

Not all that much different from Berzerk really. Instead of robots in a maze we have monsters. Instead of Evil Otto, we get the Wiz. Probably just going out on the cheap.

So, Real Sports Baseball and Berzerk had some voice synthesis going on - any reason Wizard of War is mute?

7800 offers pretty decent arcade reproductions that feel like the real deal. Games like Galaga, Ms Pac-Man, and Donkey Kong Junior are excellent. My buddy was a big 2600 Ms Pac Man guy and once he played the 7800 version he couldnt go back.

I guess I took a different path. Originally, I sought out a 5200 set up and found a guy on craiglist selling a "bunch of atari stuff" which included a 7800 and a 5200. I think I bought the entire lot he had for $120 or less (included a ton of games and controllers including the 5200 track ball!). After plugging in the 7800 and playing a few old school 2600 games on it, I tried some 7800 games and was impressed. If the goal is to have the faux wood console to take you back to your childhood, I get that. However, the 7800 offers all the 2600 games and more.

Yup 7800 is totally the way to go. Having the option to have a few top notch 7800 games in your collection is a no-brainer. After a few hours of blocky 2600 graphics a 7800 game can seriously impress!

Star Castle arrived today just as Al said it would. Great packaging - impressive. Can't wait to play. Al is like the Atari retro version of Amazon Prime! I believe the mutant cats theory. Can I order the serum to transform my four felines into mutant minions?

In honor of thanksgiving, I thought I'd put up a post of appreciation of Al and all of his work keeping the Atari "flame" alive! In the past year or so, I rediscovered the Atari 2600, 5200 and 7800. Being able to come to these forums to get all the info I need has been invaluable in regards to repairs and collecting. Al does a great job running things and I appreciate his customer service and professionalism with the store as well as moderating this site. So Al...thanks man. Great job, sir!

Any lag going to that TV? What adapter did you use?

Robot Chicken rules. From the moment Superman said "Hellllo Kitty!" I was hooked!

1. Seaquest 2. Megamania 3. Dolphin 4. Boxing 5. Ice Hockey 6. Pitfall 7. Laser Blast 8. Kaboom! 9. Keystone Kapers 10. River Raid

A remake of Archon could be really cool. The battles could be in a 3-D realm like Mortal Kombat. The strategy side is essential to keep though. On Mortal Kombat Deception (PS2), they had a "chess mode" that was very similar to Archon with spells and everything. Unholy War was a knock off on the PS1 as well. Still, the charcters and premise of the original are classic. The Dragon's slithery movement is a nice touch. The sound fx are also quite good. Unicorns gallop, you hear the flap of the wings of the Phoenix... Good stuff!

My top ten: 1. Yar's Revenge 2. Asteroids 3. Adventure 4. Demon Attack 5. Haunted House 6. Pitfall 7. Warlords 8. Bowling 9. Boxing 10. Defender (can't play it now though) Honorable mention: Kaboom! Atlantis Empire Strikes Back Halloween (just the fact it got made!)

Happy to report the new Archon cartridge arrived today and works great! Truly it is a game that holds up for its age. Thanks to Al and the folks on this forum for getting the bug fixed. Al's customer service is top notch. Very impressed.

Admittedly, Colecovision does have a few good titles, but it also had a lot of lousy ones. I have both systems, and prefer the 5200 because it has games I like and even a few oddball titles like Dreadnaught and Fractalus.

That's excellent news. Archon lives! Do the spells work too? Same button as firing?

Go 5200!!!

Player one works. Player two can't fire. Controllers are both good. Port is good. I play Wizard of Wor with friends often. Player two cursor moves. I can't be the dragon...or the manticore...or the basilisk.... Bummah.