Polybius Posted May 21, 2015 Share Posted May 21, 2015 I recently bought a Hyperkin Retron System to play my Nes collection on, so I didn't have to put more wear and tear on my Nintendo (replacement cart connectors get expensive after awhile! ). I really liked it, its so easy to set up and small enough to take anywhere with a tv, plus it plays my games pretty easily. Well, it got me to thinking, maybe there is a similar system to play Atari 2600 games on? Well, I had no luck finding one , so, I contacted Hyperkin to see if they would consider making one for the Atari Games. They said they would forward my email to their R&D department and look into possibly making one. Long story short, there may be a new system to play your old Atari games on to where you dont have to hack up your old machine to play it on a newer tv. And yes, the original system is still best, (im not selling my sixers, either one) , but if they put out a Retron System to play Atari games on,( for about $20-25 USD) would you buy one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted May 21, 2015 Share Posted May 21, 2015 No. I wouldn't. And you don't need to hack up your old machine to play it on a new TV. Just get a RCA-to-coax adapter for about three bucks and plug it into the cable/antenna input on the back of the TV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutsy Doodleheimer Posted May 21, 2015 Share Posted May 21, 2015 No way! Retron systems are cheaply made in my hinest opinion. And 2600 systems can survive a nuclear war. I'll pass. I'm a purist and rather play my carts on a genuine system. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toiletunes Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 I'd try it for the right price, then I'd go back to the real console. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zetastrike Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 I probably would pass in favor of the real deal, but the general public might take to it since the Flashbacks all kind of blend together and there's, like, an unlimited amount of loose carts for sale out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldenegg Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 No. I wouldn't. And you don't need to hack up your old machine to play it on a new TV. Just get a RCA-to-coax adapter for about three bucks and plug it into the cable/antenna input on the back of the TV. It's not quite that simple anymore. Most new TVs do not come with analog tuners, so you need a separate tuner (VCR, demodulator, etc) in order to connect the system to a TV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 It's not quite that simple anymore. Most new TVs do not come with analog tuners, so you need a separate tuner (VCR, demodulator, etc) in order to connect the system to a TV. Yes they do, North American ones anyway. That generic ATSC digital tuner embedded in the chipset is almost always capable of decoding legacy NTSC signals. There are tons of leftover legacy analog cable systems out there in smaller markets. My 60" 2013 Samsung LED does a pretty darn good job with my old games and computers, in fact, even if my wife won't let me use it much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+sramirez2008 Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 I'd pass. Nothings better than firing up a real cart on a genuine 2600...nothing! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+frankodragon Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 Only if the carts can be easily inserted and pulled out. I've heard about those whom had difficulty getting the carts out of the slots unless they used vice grip locking pliers or some other form or removing the cartridges without damaging the connector pins inside. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wongojack Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 Search for Flashback threads. This has been covered. I recently bought a Hyperkin Retron System to play my Nes collection on, so I didn't have to put more wear and tear on my Nintendo (replacement cart connectors get expensive after awhile! ). I really liked it, its so easy to set up and small enough to take anywhere with a tv, plus it plays my games pretty easily. Well, it got me to thinking, maybe there is a similar system to play Atari 2600 games on? Well, I had no luck finding one , so, I contacted Hyperkin to see if they would consider making one for the Atari Games. They said they would forward my email to their R&D department and look into possibly making one. Long story short, there may be a new system to play your old Atari games on to where you dont have to hack up your old machine to play it on a newer tv. And yes, the original system is still best, (im not selling my sixers, either one) , but if they put out a Retron System to play Atari games on,( for about $20-25 USD) would you buy one? And yes, I would buy one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutsy Doodleheimer Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 Only if the carts can be easily inserted and pulled out. I've heard about those whom had difficulty getting the carts out of the slots unless they used vice grip locking pliers or some other form or removing the cartridges without damaging the connector pins inside. Same here. You have to practically force out the cartridge. I bought one back in 2008 or 2009 as a backup system. I was really nervous owning one and not comfortable. I thought I was gonna rip the game out with the cartridge pins along with it. I think it's made from cheap off the shelf parts. Retrons are overrated. Spend more money on a genuine authentic system. You get what you pay for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imstarryeyed Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 I would buy one, since many tv's today cannot sync an Atari. Yes many will, but many will not. As a retail classic store owner I would sell these when I cannot get any ataris repaired. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major_Tom_coming_home Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 To me the Retron really only makes sense as an NES replacement since that console tends to be unreliable and top loaders are expensive. Thankfully, used Ataris are fairly cheap and reliable. I personally would not buy a Retron 5 because it is really only an emulator that can read cartridges. Other folks are happy with that and it's fine for them, but it's not for me. For me it's all or nothing. The choices are to play on original hardware or aquire the ROMs and play them with the best emulation system available - a PC with a controller adapter for the system being emulated. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major_Tom_coming_home Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 It's not quite that simple anymore. Most new TVs do not come with analog tuners, so you need a separate tuner (VCR, demodulator, etc) in order to connect the system to a TV. I keep an old TV around for that very reason. The one I use now was made in 1987 and is sweet with wood grain, but I'm looking for an even older one that uses dials instead of buttons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 I would if the price was right ($100 or less). HDMI would make the most sense.There was a thread some time back that floated the idea of a new 2600 clone made by Legacy Engineering/Syzygy based on the prototype Atari 3200 design. That, I'd love to see. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ComputerSpaceFan Posted May 23, 2015 Share Posted May 23, 2015 I would buy one if they made it 100% compatible. Much as I love my hacked FlashBack 2 it irks me that I can't play some new homebrews on it and weird stuff like the starfield in Cosmic Ark doesn't show correctly. If I can put in a request to Hyperkin, please please make it obvious which position the Difficulty Switches are in? The FB line really made an odd decision to have push buttons instead of toggles when they made their consoles. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldSchoolRetroGamer Posted May 23, 2015 Share Posted May 23, 2015 Yes I would like to see a Hyperkin Retron Atari 2600 so then I could see all the people complain how it does not play Odyssey / Fairchild / Coleco Telstar / etc games...... 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutsy Doodleheimer Posted May 23, 2015 Share Posted May 23, 2015 Yes I would like to see a Hyperkin Retron Atari 2600 so then I could see all the people complain how it does not play Odyssey / Fairchild / Coleco Telstar / etc games...... Also don't forget 5200 and 7800 games. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WildBillTX Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 (edited) I would buy one, if it was under $100, could play all classic and homebrew 2600 and 7800 cartridges, had a SD or USB input for playing rom files, with composite (stereo audio) and HDMI output...and woodgrain. Adding 5200 compatablity would mean extra ports and maybe replicating a joystick/keyboard combo. Then again a 5200-Intellevision-ColecoVision clone system would also be an interesting idea. I dont know why many here are against one, would it drive down the value of your vintage consoles? I dont have a Hyperkin Retron 5, but I have thought about buying one just for the HDMI port for my flatsceens. I do have a Yobo FC Twin system and I wish it was better built.. it's also a hassle to get the cartridges out. Edited May 24, 2015 by WildBillTX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikey.shake Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 Please, please, please let them name it the "Gemini's Twin"... I've got mixed feelings about this one. In theory? Sure! But practically speaking, I feel like a dusty-but-working original 2600 could already already be had for cheaper than you'd pay for a Retron2600 in some parts of the world (including the Internet), and it might last you longer if both do the exact same thing (like the cheap, straight-up NES replacements on the market). I'd be interested in a contemporary third-party 2600-alike for reasons like availability in stores and ease of replacement, but I see some potential issues with what might get put to market. Most of the third-party retro consoles I've seen are notably "cheaper" in construction than the older stuff. Thin, breakable plastic, questionable QC, funky controller port fits, etc. I would worry that if I had one of these Retron2600s (or whatever they'd be called) and it konked out, and I had to buy a replacement... I'd probably be $50-$60 deep on the replacement console at minimum, when even a noob like me could probably get a 4-switch for significantly less than that. I've cleaned the Atari-brand consoles I own of dust, dirt, grime, and one from a junk shop even needed to be cleaned of some kind of...uhhh... well... urine. But with a little cosmetic cleaning, all the old consoles I have work almost perfectly. When looking for a multi-system, the stories of sloppy quality control across most brands wasn't exactly promising. I recently got a Retro-Bit "Super Retro Trio" (to add Genesis back to my life and save wear-and-tear on my frontloader NES). While I like it, it's guilty of a lot of the problems I listed (flimsy plastic, cheaply constructed, etc.) I've felt the same way about most of the Retron stuff I've seen, too. This SR3 works a-OK at a week old, but it's the only console in my cabinet that I'm expecting to have to replace within the next 5-10 years, and all the others are at least 20 years old already. It's a little bit depressing thinking that thought the day you take something out of the box for the first time. If someone did it up right and put out a really solidly-built 2600 replacement console, though, all this "cheap construction" stuff would be moot. Is it worth aficionados having to dig at junk shops to find systems? Do you want to have to potentially wipe pee off of your just-bought console?* Some people would say "no". And I don't blame them. An easily-available modern replacement could be a great option if it's 1) well-built, and 2) not terribly expensive. If I were just a little more casual about "collecting" (I like the artifacts), I could totally see a modern third-party system being the impetus for people to get rid of an old console. As long as the way my controller acts in my hands doesn't change, and what's on screen remain the same, I don't care what the box connecting the two is. In theory, it's all about the games, right? The HDMI upscaling thing, if that circuitry were included in the box, would be a great addition -- but again, where do we draw the line on what this hypothetical replacement would have above and beyond an original 2600? Maybe just standard VCS circuitry with an RCA /S-Video out? I absolutely agree that it would need SOME kind of updating of the video output, with the disappearing of RF/coax inputs. No argument there. But once you start adding SD cards and 5200 support and all that, it kinda muddies the waters of what's being propositioned. And I don't wanna get political, but some of the stuff I've heard/read over the "Retron5 allegedly used open-source code" debate has put me off buying Retron-brand stuff for a while. Not just what allegedly happened, but I didn't care for the way they handled/responded to the accusations. I'll not go into details, but if you're interested, search the web and see what you find. But like I said -- In theory? Yes! In practice? ...maybe? ------------- (This whole rambling is based on the idea that this hypothetical Retron console would neither be an "emulator box" like the Retron5, nor have any built-in games, but be a straight-up "plug in the cart and play it" hardware console replacement.) (*Online retailers could sell "vintage-accurate" Deluxe Packages of the Retron2600 for a premium price. Comes with one random loose wiring connection that you have to find yourself, and 1 in every 3 units gets peed in by a housecat!) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtariIntellect Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 The price sounds bad for it. I would definitely buy it though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutsy Doodleheimer Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I'm highly curious if Hyperkin is going to do this project if they are going to have a woodgrain finish for this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Master Phruby Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 I not buying at Hyperkin system until they are compatible with Everdrive and other similar cartridges. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldSchoolRetroGamer Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 (edited) I not buying at Hyperkin system until they are compatible with Everdrive and other similar cartridges. As long as Hyperkin sticks to the model of using software based emulation they never will be. Hardware emulation based like the Super Retro Trio works with all my Everdrives but software emulation based that dump the cart content to ROM first simply cannot and no patch or upgrade can change that. Edited May 24, 2015 by OldSchoolRetroGamer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WildBillTX Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 (edited) As long as Hyperkin sticks to the model of using software based emulation they never will be. Hardware emulation based like the Super Retro Trio works with all my Everdrives but software emulation based that dump the cart content to ROM first simply cannot and no patch or upgrade can change that. Which means if Hyperkin makes this 2600 console, it wont work with the Harmony Cart. BTW I saw on YouTube theres a new hack file or workaround that allows the Retron 5 to load rom files. Edited May 27, 2015 by WildBillTX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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