somebooks

Yes, seems like that would work! Although.. maybe playing with paddles will naturally lessen the likelihood of hitting the button anyway? May not even need to change the button thing if the game controls change significantly. Hard to know until playing the new version. My only other idea is to hold the button for a second or two for the reset.

my 12yo son and i just had a blast playing this on a sunday afternoon. a lot of shouting from both of us, haha. (the winner of each match got to eat a lemonhead -- which really raised the stakes) wanted to mention -- there were a number of times when one of us accidentally hit the button and reset the game in the heat of battle, which was kind of a bummer. the couch compliancy is awesome, but it may be worth considering some adjustment to how the reset works while players are in the middle of a game... like maybe you have to hold the button for a longer amount of time in order to reset ? (uh... or we can also just be more careful about not pressing the button... but thought you'd want to hear the feedback.)

oh no, i love all these games a lot! this vote is too hard!

"Thrilling" is definitely an apt word. I felt like I was on a rollercoaster or skydiving or something when i first played Lead a couple years ago, I couldn't believe it. There are lots of amazing 2600 games out there, but I do think Lead might be the most "thrilling" I've played -- a finely honed blade of a game.

My town had a thing called "Junk Day" where everyone put unwanted but not-completely-useless household items (chairs, tricycles, shoes, old TVs, encyclopedias) out by the curb. Anyone could take anything they wanted, otherwise it would all be collected and thrown in the dump I guess. Us kids would wander around town and grab anything that caught our eye. Wearing lampshades on our heads, battling with old brooms, etc. Pretty fun times. At some point in the late 80s/early 90s (my memory is hazy) someone tossed out their old 2600 and i snatched it up. My first console. I slowly built a collection of games mostly from garage sales or toy stores going out of business (I remember getting Commando and Kung Fu Master on discount at Kiddie City... along with a Boglin).

This seems to explain what you're talking about: http://www.ataricompendium.com/archives/articles/vcs_label_variations/vcs_label_variations.html There are Home Run and Canyon Bomber carts pictured that look like yours, with no "use with joystick controller" text under the title. There's no picture like your Circus Atari... but if you scroll down to "2b. Controller type omitted re-releases (1986-1988)" on the page, that seems to match your carts. And Circus Atari is listed among them.

I love this game.

Oh, I thought of another one that almost-but-not-really fits your description: Dark Chambers. It’s two player co-op… but if one player dies they just wait for the other player to complete the level and then they rejoin on the next level. Again, not exactly what you’re describing with taking turns and whatnot… but close. And its definitely another one that doesnt require a long wait time and is good for pairs of players who have uneven game-playing experience.

@roadrunner @Prizrak --- Oh that's interesting! What a neat idea to make a full virtual 2600 experience, selecting cartridges, 80s radio, etc. @keithbk --- I've never seen Chuck, but just watched that Missile Command sequence on youtube and i think i'm convinced to give it a shot, haha.

Hmm... well, it's a little different, but there's Entombed. Two players play at the same time, and if one player dies then you both stop and restart the level. The player who died loses a life, and if either player loses all three of their lives then the game ends. So it's cooperative if both of you trying to help each other survive as long as possible... or its competitive if you're trying to be the last survivor. And this isn't exactly what you're looking for either.. but my son and I like playing Mines of Minos because it has the option for the second player to control the enemy monsters. It's a pretty neat feature which ensures that both players are always playing.

Hah! Right, of course.

So excited for this! I stumbled on the first Sword of Surtr on the PlusCart late one stormy night and was really taken with how deep and absorbing it was. Can't wait for a sequel.

Since there aren't a ton of 2600 games that have music, I'd be curious to hear if anyone listens to music when they play Atari... Is there any music that feels connected to your 2600 experience? Any music you used to listen to while playing back when you were younger? The two Yes albums "Fragile" and "Close to the Edge" are pretty perfect for me.

I bought it last year! One of the first homebrews I ever bought! Wonderful, challenging game.

these are beautiful! wow!