So how did you get your first 5200?

[dcden]

I got my first Atari 5200 in Nov 1983 along with Pacman and Qix. I bought it with the money I received from winning a spelling bee a few weeks earlier. When my mom saw me walk in the house carrying the console, she expressed her disappointment that I'd spent all my money on it instead of, oh, clothes or savings. But I learned my lesson from a few years before when, after having won that same spelling bee then, I didn't spend my money right away and thus had to deal with another family member constantly badgering me for "loans". Better to spend my money right away before anyone else could get their hands on it.

 

Anyway, it was a four port model. I loved Pacman but got bored of Qix early on. The Qix cart broke but I didn't miss it too much. For me, Pacman was probably the #1 reason I chose the 5200 over other consoles. I also liked having a pause button and found the graphics really dazzling. I never understood the joystick hate as I was able to adapt to the quirks pretty easily. The controllers felt comfortable in my hands also.

 

I grew my collection to 8 games (not including Qix) and a Trak-ball by the fall of 1985, when the 5200 broke. I believe this was due to a power surge during a nasty storm, but don't know for sure.

 

For Xmas 1986, my mom I guess got over her disappointment with my video game fascination as she got me another 5200. By this time the 5200 consoles and games were a lot cheaper so I guess that factored into her change of heart. The new one was a two port model. With my Christmas money I did a grab of five more games for 13 total.

 

The Atari still works and I've actually spent some time this past week firing it up and set a few new personal high scores (950k+ for Q*bert at the default setting, 400k+ for Frogger at the slow setting). I don't think I'll ever sell it or give it away as it is an antique. I'm encouraged by the other posters who have provided ways of repairing broken controllers, in case mine ever expire. They work fine though sometimes I have to jiggle the connection to the console a few times before they're good. Perhaps they need cleaning? I'm a bit more concerned about having a decent TV to play the games on. I tried hooking the Atari up to my HDTV but there was a significant delay between controller action and on-screen action that made it unplayable. Apparently this is a common problem with HDTVs and mine does not appear to have a setting that resolves this problem, so for now I'm still playing the Atari on my CRT TV, until that dies...

[Charlie_]

I got my first Atari 5200 in Nov 1983 along with Pacman and Qix. I bought it with the money I received from winning a spelling bee a few weeks earlier. When my mom saw me walk in the house carrying the console, she expressed her disappointment that I'd spent all my money on it instead of, oh, clothes or savings. But I learned my lesson from a few years before when, after having won that same spelling bee then, I didn't spend my money right away and thus had to deal with another family member constantly badgering me for "loans". Better to spend my money right away before anyone else could get their hands on it.

 

Anyway, it was a four port model. I loved Pacman but got bored of Qix early on. The Qix cart broke but I didn't miss it too much. For me, Pacman was probably the #1 reason I chose the 5200 over other consoles. I also liked having a pause button and found the graphics really dazzling. I never understood the joystick hate as I was able to adapt to the quirks pretty easily. The controllers felt comfortable in my hands also.

 

I grew my collection to 8 games (not including Qix) and a Trak-ball by the fall of 1985, when the 5200 broke. I believe this was due to a power surge during a nasty storm, but don't know for sure.

 

For Xmas 1986, my mom I guess got over her disappointment with my video game fascination as she got me another 5200. By this time the 5200 consoles and games were a lot cheaper so I guess that factored into her change of heart. The new one was a two port model. With my Christmas money I did a grab of five more games for 13 total.

 

The Atari still works and I've actually spent some time this past week firing it up and set a few new personal high scores (950k+ for Q*bert at the default setting, 400k+ for Frogger at the slow setting). I don't think I'll ever sell it or give it away as it is an antique. I'm encouraged by the other posters who have provided ways of repairing broken controllers, in case mine ever expire. They work fine though sometimes I have to jiggle the connection to the console a few times before they're good. Perhaps they need cleaning? I'm a bit more concerned about having a decent TV to play the games on. I tried hooking the Atari up to my HDTV but there was a significant delay between controller action and on-screen action that made it unplayable. Apparently this is a common problem with HDTVs and mine does not appear to have a setting that resolves this problem, so for now I'm still playing the Atari on my CRT TV, until that dies...

 

I have two Sony HDTVs and they both lag like you describe, with older systems hooked up through the composite or RF ports.

Modern consoles like the 360 or PS3 over HDMI seem to have no lag at all.

An older LG HDTV I have seems to have very little or no lag.

 

Best bet, if you have room for it, is to stop by a Salvation Army or Goodwill and find a small CRT for under $25.

Use that for the Atari.

[pablum]

I have an aunt on my father's side of the family who just gave her 5200 and some games to me and my brother sometime in the early-mid 80s. Probably '84 or '85. Got the box for it and everything.

 

Still have it, but it doesn't work now. Turns on for a moment then overheats and stops working. The original controllers busted early on as usual for the console, but I bought a refurbished one some years back. Need to actually buy a working 5200 again soon.

[Video_Invader]

My first one came from the trash. Someone threw one out back in 88 with 5 games and 4 controllers. The games were Centipede, Pac-Man, Joust, Defender, Missile Command. I still remember thosae days. Played the hell out of Defender, Pac-Man and Joust. 3 of the controllers were dead and the 4th gave out some time after i acquired it. After getting rid of it, my dad bought me a new 7800 from Fingerhut.

[TheAtarianGuy]

I got my first 5200 when I was checking out a lot of Atari stuff. When the guy wasn't looking, I hit him over the head with it and ran. Actually, I paid $15 for a boxed 5200 with Pac-Man.

[famicommander]

A local game store I regularly patronize (Level 7 Games; if you're ever in Denver, look them up!) gave me my 5200 for free. They had received it as part of a large lot they bought from someone, but couldn't sell it because it was missing the controller and the little plastic tray that flips up and down was cracked. They knew I always came in for the "strange" (TG16, Atari 7800, Lynx, Jaguar, Jag CD, 3DO, CDi, SEGA CD, N-Gage, 32X, Neo Geo, Virtual Boy, Vectrex, etc) and set it aside for me. One day I came in to buy a new release and the owner just asked if I wanted a free 5200. Of course I took it.

 

So then I acquired a controller and hit the ground running.

[Video_Invader]

A local game store I regularly patronize (Level 7 Games; if you're ever in Denver, look them up!) gave me my 5200 for free. They had received it as part of a large lot they bought from someone, but couldn't sell it because it was missing the controller and the little plastic tray that flips up and down was cracked. They knew I always came in for the "strange" (TG16, Atari 7800, Lynx, Jaguar, Jag CD, 3DO, CDi, SEGA CD, N-Gage, 32X, Neo Geo, Virtual Boy, Vectrex, etc) and set it aside for me. One day I came in to buy a new release and the owner just asked if I wanted a free 5200. Of course I took it.

 

So then I acquired a controller and hit the ground running.

Don't blame you there. Would have done the same thing myself.

[Seethransom]

Christmas Morning. Good times had by all.

[+save2600]

Christmas Morning. Good times had by all.

 

The gift of Atari at Christmas time has always been one of the greatest gifts of all!

 

You should go into better detail about this particular Christmas Seethransom... events leading up to the day, why you asked for one, what games came with it, who all played, what were the more popular games among the family, etc.

[Seethransom]

Quad,

I was blindsided! You see, I had no idea this existed. "It must be double the power if it is 5200"! The best part of the whole thing, it played real Pac-Man! No more Bonk Bonk Bonk! I got Wokka Wokka! We played all day. I honestly cannot tell you what else I got that year.

At my first chance, I wanted to take a real look at this machine. I loved the sleek design, the one cord across the floor as I sat in front of it, cross legged. This is how we rocked the console back then. Wired controllers, and frequent game changes kept the console in arms reach. It had pause! Blew my mind. Now when Mom wanted something (like always when I picked up a joystick), I could return to the game later. With neatness in mind, you can stow away your controllers in the console(we didn't know we were ruining them in the process). Before the controller hit problems, I loved them.

It seemed all my favorite arcade games were ported over, and were much closer to the real thing. I still loved the 2600, but the 5200 made me a little bit of a snob. I'd play Atari at friend's houses, but I never looked at it the same. Though in the last days, they really got better at exploiting more from the 2600 hardware, and ROM sizes. I was happy that Atari re released titles found on the 2600. To me, (young mind) it seemed like they got to do it all over again, with more refinement. I did not feel frustrated buy a title again (or at least Dad Didn't). People did not understand upgrading back then, but my Dad did. He is a computer guy.

I never understood Intellivision, to me nothing great (to me at a young age) was released. They seemed to be all clone titles. Today, I think it is a fine console. I had a friend with Coleco, but it didn't impress me too much. To be fair, I didn't get enough time with it. I respect the Coleco today, it was a fine system. Also, it was made here in CT. My family were faithful to the Atari brand.

We did go through a lot of controllers, but I was good at keeping them alive.

Family favorites were Pac-man, and his female counterpart. My Mom, and Sister loved Centipede. I found out years later it was made by a woman. Don't think I am saying it is a game for girls, I love it. I am saying that women take to it easily. My Mom did not play too many games, but she liked this one. Frogger, and Defender too.

There were a few games only my Dad and I seemed to enjoy. Space Dungeon was one of the best games ever. I never saw it in the arcade.The controller caddy was a simple, but a genius add on. That game did not show up for any other system, until the PSP. I was determined to hit level 99, but it is a brutal game. We love the Star Trek Sim, and Star Raiders. Star Raiders is where the keypad shines. We ended up with many other games, but these are the first to come to my mind.

I'm excited to have a system again. I can't wait for it to show up. I have a copy of Space Dungeon, Qiz, and Pac-Man to start out. It will be fun to show my 20yo nephew that grew up on PS1

I'm not rich (disabled), but I really want the multi cart. The thought of the games released for the computer, ported over is a huge plus to me. It rounds out what I played at the arcade. I also really want to see the protos. I'll be saving my pennies. Perhaps an Xmas gift for me.

Kinda a christmas that will never end.

[namedjughead]

My Uncle had the 5200 when I was growing up in the 80's. He lived with my grandmother, and I have fond memories going to her house and playing Space Invaders and Pac-Man. It was a nice break from my NES. Flash forward to 2013, my buddy Brian and I were at the local retro game store. Someone had brought in a Darth Vader 2600 that they were selling. As we were leaving Brian told me that had an Atari when he was a kid, but it didn't look like that one. He started to describe the 5200 to me, and I got very excited. He said that it was still in his mother's attic. I offered to buy from him for $50. I took a few weeks, but he got it for me. It's a very clean 2-port model, and it included 5 games: Pac-Man, Galaxian, Pole Position, Super Breakout, and Pengo. The controllers only partially worked, but I was able to clean them and get them both working. I'm going to put some aluminum tape on the carbon dots eventually. I have since picked up Star Raiders and Space Invaders. Atari 5200 will always be what i think about when someone says Atari, and i'm glad i finally have my own.

[Jess Ragan]

I think I got my first Atari 5200 from a friend who was eager to leave it behind and build his NES collection. His mistake was my gain... I played the ever-loving crap out of the machine until 1988, when I bought my own NES. Regrettably, I sold that 5200 in the early 1990s (more fool me!), but I replaced it about fifteen years later with a model I found on eBay. That was a smart decision on my part, as the system was one of the two port models (no shock box!) but had the old BIOS. Why anyone would want a 5200 that can't play Mountain King is completely beyond me...

 

One event from my childhood that STILL gets under my skin is when I found a fully decked-out Atari 5200 at a pawn shop for $20. I couldn't afford it, and neither could my mother, so I had to leave it behind. A week later, that glittering prize was gone, snapped up by someone else. To this day, I still get a little irritated every time I drive past the building, which since has become a cell phone store.

[jcleverly]

well, for me it was christmas 83. i remember finding it in my grandparents basement when i was 6 and my mom explaining how they had to use an eraser on the contacts to make it work. i was 3 when we got it and my mom told me that every night my dad would play pac man with me sitting next to him until i fell asleep. these days i've got it with a lot more games, and tempest too, which i've been waiting for for the 5200 forever. it's been a while since i've used factory 5200 sticks. i've been using wico sticks i got from fred at the game exchange in plaistow, nh anbd i haven't looked back since.

[Seethransom]

I so happy there are others out there who loved this machine as much as I do. Seems most people never heard of it. If someone has heard of it, they crinkle their face, and go "ohhh". I have one terrific controller now, as well as the Wico, and a PC to 5200 with a Makopad. Since getting my 5200 a few months ago, I also found two more for around $10 each. A VCS modded 4 port no asterisk, and a 2 port. If anything happens, I'm covered!

[+Allan]

My favorite system is the 5200. Got mine the first Christmas they came out. I got Space Invaders, StarRaiders, Missile Command, Counter Measure and Galaxian. I still have my first 5200. I remember calling Atari all the time to find out about new games coming out. It was really cool that you could call them and ask them stuff like that. I remember them talking about a new game coming out called Final Legacy. I sucked that it never came out except in prototype form and for the 8-bit computers. The real holly grail was Tempest though. Had to wait thirty years for that one. Plus I really wanted Asteroids. That one really needed a re-write like Centipede. Great times though.

 

PS. Hello fellow Yankee, Seethransom.

 

Allan

[eccofonic]

I had the 5200, but I sold it and the carts a long time ago...

 

As a christmas present in 1982:

4-port 5200
super breakout
galaxian

as time went on (next 3 or so years):

astrochase
blueprint
centipede
congo bongo
countermeasure
dig dug
joust
jungle hunt
kangaroo
mario bros
miner 2049er
montezuma's revenge
ms pac man
pac man
pengo
pole position
popeye
q-bert
qix
quest for quintana roo
realsports baseball
realsports football
realsports tennis

space dungeon
star wars: return of the jedi death star battle
vanguard

 

it's also possible i had robotron 2084 and star wars arcade, but i'm absolutely sure of the above...

 

(didn't buy any activision titles as I had the 2600 too)

 

and:

masterplay joystick interface... wow! this was the greatest accessory ever

 

I got an Atari computer a year or so later... 5200 took a back seat...

Then around 1987-ish (the Atari Corp magazine-ad direct-mail-order "blow out") I bought:

ballblazer

rescue on fractalus

 

Of course, now I could kick myself for getting rid of all of it, but anyway...

Edited January 23, 2014 by eccofonic

[Falconhood]

I always think it is Christmas, but the Christmas of 1982 I very much remember playing Cosmic Avenger all day, on Colecovision.

I may have gotten it for my Birthday on the April following?

I know my Step sister got me KANGAROO for Atari 5200 for one of those following occasions, because I lost my mind with excitement over getting it.

[moknbyrdx1]

I remember getting my 5200 when the system hit the market. There was a small electronics, and appliance repair, store in the middle of Pinson, AL. I saved up my allowance and popped for the $124 dollar Atari 5200. Next door, to the electronics store was a huge slot car racing track and store.

[+x=usr(1536)]

A user here was getting out of all things Atari a few years ago, and had a non-working 5200 he wanted to get rid of as part of that.  It was an A8 variant I had very little experience with, so I jumped on the yours-for-the-cost-of-shipping offer.

 

As it turned out, all it needed was an RF modulator.  And a power switch.  And a 4013.  And a bunch of transistors.  And a power supply.  And a CPU.  And controller rebuilds.  And so on and so forth.

 

The custom ICs were OK, which was a big plus, and while it needed a bunch of work it at least hadn't been abused.  Been running like a champ for the past 4 years or so, and was an interesting introduction to the system.

[Flyindrew]

December 2021-After work on a very cold winters early evening, walking through an old neighborhood in Brooklyn, streets deserted due to COVID, when out of the corner of my eye, through the window, in an old style mom and pop TV repair shop, I see a 5200 box sitting on the counter. The old man behind the counter told me it was sitting in the basement for years and its mine for $100. Since then, I have poured so much time and money into my 5200 and its been worth every moment and penny. Even including my Xbox Series S, the 5200 is my favorite system past and present. 

I never had a 5200 back in the day, but did have a new 8 bit at the time so have experience with the games. 

[+Gemintronic]

A few months after purchasing Adventure II.  Probably as a flea market find.  As a kid I couldn't afford it.  As an adult I avoided it due to hearing about joystick issues.

[0078265317]

On 4/21/2013 at 8:39 AM, dcden said:

I got my first Atari 5200 in Nov 1983 along with Pacman and Qix. I bought it with the money I received from winning a spelling bee a few weeks earlier. When my mom saw me walk in the house carrying the console, she expressed her disappointment that I'd spent all my money on it instead of, oh, clothes or savings. But I learned my lesson from a few years before when, after having won that same spelling bee then, I didn't spend my money right away and thus had to deal with another family member constantly badgering me for "loans". Better to spend my money right away before anyone else could get their hands on it.

 

Anyway, it was a four port model. I loved Pacman but got bored of Qix early on. The Qix cart broke but I didn't miss it too much. For me, Pacman was probably the #1 reason I chose the 5200 over other consoles. I also liked having a pause button and found the graphics really dazzling. I never understood the joystick hate as I was able to adapt to the quirks pretty easily. The controllers felt comfortable in my hands also.

 

I grew my collection to 8 games (not including Qix) and a Trak-ball by the fall of 1985, when the 5200 broke. I believe this was due to a power surge during a nasty storm, but don't know for sure.

 

For Xmas 1986, my mom I guess got over her disappointment with my video game fascination as she got me another 5200. By this time the 5200 consoles and games were a lot cheaper so I guess that factored into her change of heart. The new one was a two port model. With my Christmas money I did a grab of five more games for 13 total.

 

The Atari still works and I've actually spent some time this past week firing it up and set a few new personal high scores (950k+ for Q*bert at the default setting, 400k+ for Frogger at the slow setting). I don't think I'll ever sell it or give it away as it is an antique. I'm encouraged by the other posters who have provided ways of repairing broken controllers, in case mine ever expire. They work fine though sometimes I have to jiggle the connection to the console a few times before they're good. Perhaps they need cleaning? I'm a bit more concerned about having a decent TV to play the games on. I tried hooking the Atari up to my HDTV but there was a significant delay between controller action and on-screen action that made it unplayable. Apparently this is a common problem with HDTVs and mine does not appear to have a setting that resolves this problem, so for now I'm still playing the Atari on my CRT TV, until that dies...

Do you still have the broken 4 port model?

[0078265317]

My first was in 82 from toysrus.

[moycon]

Never bought a 5200 when they hit the market. My friend Mike had one when they first came out. He also had the 2600 adapter (he had to have his system modified to use it) . We'd play 5200 games for a bit and then eventually switch over to 2600 games because we both had lots and lots of 2600s games! A few years later we both went to separate high schools. At some point he asked if I wanted the 5200 with all the games (about 10) , and I said YES!!! Still have it, and the 2600 adapter and games to this day! 

[0078265317]

14 hours ago, moycon said:

Never bought a 5200 when they hit the market. My friend Mike had one when they first came out. He also had the 2600 adapter (he had to have his system modified to use it) . We'd play 5200 games for a bit and then eventually switch over to 2600 games because we both had lots and lots of 2600s games! A few years later we both went to separate high schools. At some point he asked if I wanted the 5200 with all the games (about 10) , and I said YES!!! Still have it, and the 2600 adapter and games to this day! 

Cool I wish I still had my childhood 5200.  Other peoples ebay stuff just aint the same.

Edited August 20, 2023 by 0078265317