-^CrossBow^-

I wouldn't think the actually voltage from the wall outlet would matter. What matters is the adapter is actually putting out a solid 9 volts DC to the 2600 itself. Although I once used a variable adapter myself and found that I could play my old 4 switch 2600 on as little as about 6.5 volts...but that the colors were screwy and the picture would be fuzzy. So it could be a dirty transformer (Dirty as in quality of the power). I suggest trying a new adapter from somewhere...then blame the RF mod on the unit itself.

Ever think that although Coke hacked the Space Invaders game for the VCS and gave it out to their employees that technically, you can't win at space invaders because there is no ending to it eventually you will lose. Hence, Pepsi would inevitably always win. Ironic don't you think?

For starters, the Mega Boy was basically a hand held 2600 that had a very short life span. It is considered rare even where it was made in Brazil since it was not widely released. The Mega Boy didn't come with a built in game however, it did come with an educational quiz game but had a cart slot so as to be able to use other games. http://www.atarihq.com/museum/2678/megaboy.html

Eckhard, Thank you for clarifying Pin 14 for me. I might try and do it again tonight...although I already repaired the broken trace..etc. But it wouldn't take me as long now that i don't have to map out the exact pin locations anymore. BTW...I would not only add that missing step about the pin 14...but also..add that after removing the "Resistor-like" jumper from the W2 location...that it is much easier to add it to the bottom of the console board..rather than mess with the everything else in your way. BTW...ever heard of a 7800 that has all the ICs in sockets already?! mine does... it already had the socket in there for a 28 pin chip...but nothing else had been done. also my 7800 is a Rev A 001 unit...hehe...I love it.. PS...where do I get the DevOS02.bin file? It isn't in the devkit.zip I grabbed from Dan a while back... Thanks

Hmmm... Tough call there Retro... I would have to say that my favorite 7800 game that I have is probably Double Dragon because it took me like 3 weeks before I was able to beat it. However, now that I have...I haven't touched it in ages. My current favorite 7800 title...is most definitly Xenophobe!!! Least favorite...hmmm...was probably Super Skateboarin...I mean...What the hell were they thinking? Great graphics...and sound...but boardin in a factory and turning things off...Nope...that just plain sucks for a game...reminds me of Keystone Kapers...only now I actually hit the obstacles and not jump over them. BTW..Keystone Kapers is a really cool game in my opinion...hehe.. [ 04-25-2001: Message edited by: -^Cro§Bow^- ]

Anybody out there who maybe has undertaken this procedure. To those people...I have a few questions. I recently received a new Bios for my 7800 containing the DevOS burned into. I then took it upon myself to make the other needed modifications to my 7800 However, of course it didn't work. All I would get when turning the unit on was multi colored bars...same thing that happens when you remove the bios chip out of the unit and turn it on. I rechecked all my connections...etc. and all seemed just as the PDF documents. But now a few questions. On the SRAM 74SL04 that has to be piggybacked onto the SL08...what do we do with pin 14? The PDF mentions to soldier down pins 1 and 7 to the SL08..bend up pin but that is all. It does state to bend up the other pins of course...but never mentions 14??? Anyone know? Also..on the bios chip itself...is all that needs to be burned in the last 4k of the chip..just the DevOS file...or do you burn the DeVOS bin in to the chip...and then burn a copy of the 7800 bios itself into the last 4k? I believe that the chip I have may only have just the DevOS burned into it. Even then, I am not sure if it is at the first of the chip segments...or actually in the last 4k. Without access to an eprom burner myself...I cannot verify the chip. My suspicions are that the chip wasn't burned proper or that it all has something to do with that stupid pin 14. Anybody enlighten me as to what could be wrong?

No kidding...I felt bad having to submit my less than pristine 7800 Rampage Cart. But as is typical of Activision...it has that glue oil residue coming through on that label. But at least we have a scan of the 7800 version of rampage...hehe..Perhaps someday...someone will be able to provide a better scan of that one...and kick mine off the list *sniff*

On my 7800 controllers...the discs were cracked...usually in the center..therfore..they weren't making good contact hence the sluggishness. The discs are held in place on the pcb with tape..the same kind that you find on shipping boxes...(Mylar). So basically would cut out around the disc area with an X-Acto blade or equivelent...and then pull up the damanged cracked disc and replace it with an old one from a otherwise beat to death 2600 one. Most thirdparty controllers used the same stuff as well. Then apply a new precut section of the mylar tape to stick the disc back in place. Not the best way...but it has worked for me all this time. I used to keep my 2600 controllers working forever...until finally the white joystick plastic itself...would break and crack...hence useless at that point. I hope that helps.

Matty, Not sure about the game you listed and the 2600 Junior. I never had a 2600 JR...only the 4 switch version 1st..back in 82...then later I got the 6 switcher (Heavy Sixer made in 77) just a few months ago. I only have one game that rolls. I at first thought it was a compatibility problem with my 7800. But it rolls also on my Heavy sixer...so..I must have a pal version of Wizard of Wor. Oh well. I can't adjust the vhold easily on the TV so I have gotten used to playing it with my eye jumping up and down!!! JoseQ's EmuViews (Emulation news and Reviews on arcades and the vintage console classics!)

To be honest, I haven't had any probs with my controllers...they seems sluggish. But I found out it was due to the metal disks which contact the pcb underneath. They are the same ones used in the 2600 controllers. Therefore...I gutted out several old pairs of older 2600 joysticks..and used their disks..now. I am back in the game so to speak.

Joel, That is possible. There are known issues with several of the newer Atari games which came out during the revival years and the older 6 switches. For instance Centipede messes up on the title graphic on a Six switcher..but works fine on everything else. Or...do I have that backwards...? Either way...it isn't uncommon for a few of the newer 2600 titles to have compatibility problems on the older 6 switchers.

Robster, I believe there is a market. It wouldn't be a huge one...lord knows the guy wouldn't be able to retire from it or anything. But I think that it is a great option to have avail. If I had the dough to do it...yeah I most definitely would buy one. Imagine...a 2600 on the road?! Awesome!!

Yeap...the whole Layout is smooth smooth smooth. I like the scans of the cart...I love the scans of the manuals...and I like the archives section for each system. [ 04-23-2001: Message edited by: -^Cro§Bow^- ]

Albert, Alex, You guys did it!!! Finally we have the Atari Site of all sites. My scans look good and all is right in the world. BTW...I may be able to provide some of those hidding roms soon. Keep the fingers crossed. [ 04-23-2001: Message edited by: -^Cro§Bow^- ]

Another of my older reviews that I apparently never posted here to AtariAge. This was originally posted and still to be found over at Jose Q's Emuviews website, this review is of one of the many games that made me want the Atari 7800 back in the day and is one of the elements related to video games in my life to help create my online alias today. I present to you my original review of the Atari 7800 arcade port of Crossbow! Title = Crossbow Platform = Atari 7800 ProSystem Genre = Shooter (Can use a lightgun!) Released = 1987 Players = 1 --------------------- When Atari released their 7800 Pro System, they promised to the masses true arcade quality and sound for the home. Several conversions on the 7800 live up to this claim. One such game is a personal favorite of mine. That game is none other than Crossbow… You and a band of your trustworthy friends set out on a trek across dangerous landscapes and adventure to seek out and destroy an evil wizard who has stolen all the treasure of the land and claimed himself ruler. So begets the story behind this masterpiece. The graphics, sound, and game play were excellent on the arcade. So how does this console conversion stack up? Let’s get to it… The basic idea behind the game is that you take the role of protector to your “friends”. You choose the scenes by shooting at colored boxes on the bottom of a map screen. Depending on which colored block you shoot after which scene will depend on where you go next. Then a scene will appear where your friends will walk across the screen one at a time, (usually...). As they walk across the different scenes, they will face dangers such as bats, flying lava, arrows, lightning…etc. It is your job to prevent your friends from perishing by shooting those items which threaten your friends’ survival. Sometimes it will be necessary to shoot at some objects in order for your friends to even cross the scene. This only sounds easy until you start to get to some of the more difficult levels where so much is happening all at once. The archers at the drawbridge are good example of this; all those little thin arrows can be hard to take down at once. The graphics in Crossbow are some of the best I have seen in any Atari system of the time. Although not really listed on the cart...the game is considered a Super Game class for the 7800. Almost all the scenes are created exactly as the arcade version in every detail. The resolution isn't up to the arcade version but we are talking about a console version here. However, all the animations from the arcade are included in the 7800 version. About the only scenes which do not look quite up to par with the arcade are the river bridge scene and the statue room just before the final boss. Although in my opinion, the final boss scene looks better than the arcade version if that is possible. The play control in this game was originally to be used with the light gun accessory which was for sale separately. Crossbow on the other hand can be used with either the light gun or the joystick controller. I must admit that I have never played this version with the light gun. But I am pleased to say that even with joystick controllers, I find the game is more than responsive and doesn't really require the light gun. I would imagine that with the gun the feel of the game would more closely match the actual arcade feel. But again, I do not feel that a player needs the light gun to enjoy the game thoroughly. The sound is the only blemish on the surface of this game. Since the 7800 basically uses the same sound as the 2600…the sound basically “bytes” in most games on the 7800 or sound exactly like the 2600 as the 7800 version of Crossbow does not use a separate Pokey sound chip in it. But I am pleased to tell you that it certainly makes very good use of what it does use. There isn’t any music but that isn’t to say this is a bad thing. Music in a game like this would distract you from what is most important, which is the sound of the critters that come after you. Each creature or object on the screen that poses a danger to your friends has a separate sound to go with it making it easier to know what’s coming. Some sounds may be repeated for different things in the game, but they aren’t repeated within the same scene. But all this sounds like a good game. Is Crossbow a good game? I believe it is. If you’re into the shooters of that era (think Operation Wolf), then this game certainly fits within as being a fairly unique title. The game play is very smooth although sometimes you feel as if it is taking forever for your friends to cross the screens. The challenge is also an area where the game will be a mixed bag to players. For me I find that it isn’t all that difficult once I have played it for a while. I have so far been able to defeat the wizard at the end a total of about 4 times in a row. But I own this cart and have played it quite a bit. There are some monsters which always come from the same side of the screen and roughly at the same intervals. That makes prediction an easy thing on some scenes. On others however, things can be random and change in their attack speed. The Jungle scene frequently will get me from time to time on that. Over all I would say that the 7800 version of Crossbow is favorite console conversion of the title I've played. Overall, if you can find this game anywhere! You should grab it and perhaps pay the premium they may ask. I still feel the game is worth the $40 or so that was spent to get it back in 88. I hope you find it to be the same for you. --------------------- Graphics = 10 (For the Atari 7800 it is a very detailed game with all scenes from the arcade presented intact) Sound = 9 (It is the standard TIA sound but the use of different sounds for each enemy is quite nice) Controls = 7 (I find the joystick controls to be more than playable, though a light gun might give better control) Challenge = 8 (The game has a lot of enemies that can attack your friends, learning the enemy and sounds is a must) Replay = 6 (Once you know the most direct path to the castle and learn the enemy patterns, there isn't much to come back to other that higher scores) Overall -^CB^- grade = 8 (Another solid 7800 arcade port faithfully brought home!)

Many of you have known me for some time. Some of you even know me on a personal level having been a part of or attending my events here in Tulsa known as the Oklahoma Video Game Exhibition or OVGE for short. As such you may also know that I play lots of video games...lots...and lots of video games. I've been playing video games since I was about 4 and figured out how to hook up an old Odyssey 300 that my mother got somehow to our 19inch color magnavox TV back in the late 70s. Since then I was lucky to have lived the 2600 years later followed by the NES years (thanks to my step brother who had an NES and brought it over on the weekend when they would come to visit their father, my step-dad), to finally, the 7800 years. However, this is where my home console gaming came to an abrupt end. Only about 6 months after I received my 7800 as a B-day present in '88 it quickly began to collect dust with only the occasional game of 2600 Ms. Pac-Man or Midnight Magic being played by my mother. It didn't sit dormant due to lack luster sales or game releases...it sat stale because I had finally gotten my own IBM clone. And this is when video games changed for me just as they had when I first discovered them on the Odyssey 300 back in the day. I remained a devout PC gamer and only a PC gamer until the late 90s when emulation and my rekindled love for the classics began to burn anew. Since then I've reclaimed that dusty 7800 and put it back in service in the living room. It too now shares space with many consoles of the era and newer. To cut it short, I'm now more of a console gamer again, than a gamer on my PC. Sure I still play the newest coolest PC games whey they are made and are something I might enjoy. But for the most part, my money is spent on the consoles from which, my addiction was originally born. There are many game genres that I enjoy and think others would like or should try out. So I decided to start this little blog to contain detailed reviews of games new and old that have particularly impressed me, or impressed me upon hype and later turned me down. I hope you enjoy reading some of these reviews and look forward to hearing any comments you may have to add or PMs you feel like sending if you'd rather not have your opinion publically known. Some of these reviews are actually several years old and were created originally for the now defunct but still alive emulation website known as Jose Q's Emuviews. Some of us still haunt the place now and then in the chat area...but only to say a quick word and tag with the date and time. Enjoy!