Gregory DG Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 Just looking at the box again... Is that an image of 7800 Centipede on the left side (barely visible since it is cropped)? Including a full-blown cart port would cut into the profits, but it would have been cool if they could have had mini-carts of some kind. Oh well. This looks pretty sweet, so I might get one. (Funny that the Flashback 1.0 was the 7800 and the more "advanced" FB 2.0 is the 2600. ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidcrowe Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 (edited) "schmucks? are we all from the good old age?" People on boxes look so fake. I believe Curt 100%, and I love Grames now. This FB2 is the SPIRIT of Atari. These games are alive thanks to Grames BUY IT! BUY IT! BUY IT! Edited May 3, 2005 by sidcrowe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LU8 Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 Let me tell you my recent experience with buying a new old stock Donkey Kong cart from Telegames, then you will understand what Curt said about not including a cart slot. I bought this cart, brand new, from the authorised company (Telegames), the cart didn't work. I emailed Telegames, said the cart didn't work. They said carts rarely don't work, but they said send it back and if it's faulty we will send you a new one at no extra charge. So they sent me a new one, which worked, and the extra postage was their cost. I might add that I also bought 7800 Midnight Mutants, 7800 Dig Dug, 2600 Jr. Pac Man and Secret Quest. All worked perfectly. To avoid product liability problems from old 2600 carts it's ok that Flashback 2 doesn't have a cart slot. Although, I hope Flashback 3 will have a USB connector (I think Curt said this might still happen), I also hope someone here will be making a little kit with all the parts needed to add an external cart slot to Flashback 2. I thought it was originally planned to make the 2600 jr console have just one chip, which in effect is what the Flashback 2 is, i.e. a real 2600 in a new smaller case design. God Bless Atari and America!!!! And France, Infogrammes is a French company. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
82atari5200 Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 God Bless Atari and America!!!! And France, Infogrammes is a French company. 848369[/snapback] Shhhh... I was trying to forget that fact. Oh well.Nothing's perfect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tillenterprises Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 God Bless Atari and America!!!! And France, Infogrammes is a French company. 848369[/snapback] Shhhh... I was trying to forget that fact. Oh well.Nothing's perfect. 848379[/snapback] And Atari and these beloved games were born right here in the good ol' USA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt Vendel Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 Wow, Sidcrowe liking Atari again of all things :-) Well, it is rather nice to have seen much of the Boycott Atari avatars disappear... Curt "schmucks? are we all from the good old age?" People on boxes look so fake. I believe Curt 100%, and I love Grames now. This FB2 is the SPIRIT of Atari. These games are alive thanks to Grames BUY IT! BUY IT! BUY IT! 848347[/snapback] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt Vendel Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 You're correct... The last batches 2600jr's were starting to ship with a new all in one 2600 on a chip made by Ricoh for Atari. Problem was the damned chip had like a 99% failure rate! I'm not kidding either! I have only seen 1 out of about 20 units with the Ricoh chip that are still working, it was notoriously faulty. This was at the end of life cycle for the 2600 anyway, so no further work was put into it. I have some engineering notes on it and within the notes they referenced the "JAN" project which was a 1982 attempt to wedge a 2600 into a single chip and it was originally slated for the "VAL" (CX-2000) prototype and was hoped that in 83/84 to put it into the 2100 (which would become the 2600jr in 1986) I have a Val Cx-2000 and that unit actually works still to this day (I also fixed Adam (buyatari)'s cx-2000 and his also has a JAN chip in it and is working too, so its funny how a pair of 23 year old units are still working, yet something was seriously lost in the translation in the 1991 attempt at a single chip 2600 by Atari Corp and Ricoh. Now that was all still nmos design, still a power hungry little piece of silicon. The new FB 2.0 2600 chip (by the way for those who like how the old Atari had codenames for projects/chips the new 2600 FB 2.0 chip is codenamed "Michele") is an ASIC and takes much smaller nibbles in power consumption so it is a perfect device for handheld implementation. Oh and thanks go out to Ed here on the msg boards who helped me and the team correct one circuit hiccup in compatibility with Video Pinball, thanks Ed!!! :-) Curt Let me tell you my recent experience with buying a new old stock Donkey Kong cart from Telegames, then you will understand what Curt said about not including a cart slot. I bought this cart, brand new, from the authorised company (Telegames), the cart didn't work. I emailed Telegames, said the cart didn't work. They said carts rarely don't work, but they said send it back and if it's faulty we will send you a new one at no extra charge. So they sent me a new one, which worked, and the extra postage was their cost. I might add that I also bought 7800 Midnight Mutants, 7800 Dig Dug, 2600 Jr. Pac Man and Secret Quest. All worked perfectly. To avoid product liability problems from old 2600 carts it's ok that Flashback 2 doesn't have a cart slot. Although, I hope Flashback 3 will have a USB connector (I think Curt said this might still happen), I also hope someone here will be making a little kit with all the parts needed to add an external cart slot to Flashback 2. I thought it was originally planned to make the 2600 jr console have just one chip, which in effect is what the Flashback 2 is, i.e. a real 2600 in a new smaller case design. God Bless Atari and America!!!! And France, Infogrammes is a French company. 848369[/snapback] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt Vendel Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 Infogrames is the majority share holder of Atari, Inc. However Atari, Inc is the culmination of several US/UK companies pulled together into a single entity- including GT Interactive, Micrprose, Hasbro Interactive, Atari Interactive, Rainbird/Firebird and several other firms. Curt God Bless Atari and America!!!! And France, Infogrammes is a French company. 848369[/snapback] Shhhh... I was trying to forget that fact. Oh well.Nothing's perfect. 848379[/snapback] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StanJr Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 To be quite honest, as much as I hate the capitalist regime and the quest for the almighty profit, the sheer fact that Curt is involved in this is good enough for me. I am much more interested in the FB2 now. I firmly believe that Curt has the classic gamers' interest at heart and would not associate himself with an inferior product or a cheap marketing gimmick created with nothing but $$$ in mind. I've been lucky enough to "know" Curt for a few years now, and he is the very top of the line in this "community." If Curt says its good, its good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philipj Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 That box design looks great. It's very old school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King_Salamon Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 Ahh.. Video Pinball is another title to add to the list of games on the FB 2.0. Thanks Curt.. and indirectly thanks Ed! Couple weeks until E3 and more news on this awesome little system! Woo Hoo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mos6507 Posted May 3, 2005 Share Posted May 3, 2005 Ahh.. Video Pinball is another title to add to the list of games on the FB 2.0. Thanks Curt.. and indirectly thanks Ed! Couple weeks until E3 and more news on this awesome little system! Woo Hoo! 848556[/snapback] Well, that might be the case, but don't make assumptions. They obviously developed the chip to be able to do all the tricks regardless of whether it ships with the title in question or not. I'd be surprised if they didn't test things like Cosmic Ark and Kool Aid Man on it just to make sure the TIA implementation was spot on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scogey Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 WOW! video pinball....thx for that little leak....i am having fun speculating on the games that might make the cut. my wish list includes video pinball, along with phoenix, galaxian, and defender. i figure pac man is a longshot and space invaders is probably a no can do because of licencing issues...oh well this 2.0 seems to adress all my complaints about the first one when it came out. 1. not enough games 2. most are 2600 games, why did the unit and controllers look like 7800 3. 1/2 size controllers...why? my hands havent been shrinking since i was 12. 4. price a little high all of these seem to be taken care of. awsome job! i will be first in line for this thing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
82atari5200 Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 To be quite honest, as much as I hate the capitalist regime and the quest for the almighty profit, 848453[/snapback] You wouldn't have been able to enjoy Atari had it not been for the Capitalist regime and the quest for the almighty dollar. I don't think Nolan Bushnell created Atari for philanthropic purposes. Don't ever recall Atari being big over in U.S.S.R. comrade....You just hate the regime because you're not part of it. "Greed is good. Greed works" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 I don't think Nolan Bushnell created Atari for philanthropic purposes. 848965[/snapback] YOU LIE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidcrowe Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 (edited) Well, there's capitalism, and then there's monopoly capitalism. But who cares I want this so much I wish I could buy it in Canada first without reading any reviews. I want to prove my love for Atari and increase confidence in the product by buying it as soon as possible EDIT: Ladies and gentlemen, my new avatar Edited May 4, 2005 by sidcrowe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Tomlin Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 this 2.0 seems to adress all my complaints about the first one when it came out.1. not enough games 2. most are 2600 games, why did the unit and controllers look like 7800 3. 1/2 size controllers...why? my hands havent been shrinking since i was 12. 4. price a little high 5. Power-joy type Famiclone controller ports. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATARIeric Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 (edited) @ Curt Vendel: If the 2.0 needs the cart port installed, does that mean the games that come on the chip wont work anymore due to the chip needing to be taken out ? or you think the need for a daughter board to put the chip on and then wire in a switch on daughter board so you can switch back and forth from the chips games to a cart that is inserted ? which cart connector would you reccomend for this project due to size of the connector part 2600, 2600A or 2600jr or it wont really matter ? Edited May 4, 2005 by ATARIeric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mos6507 Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 Quoted from Gamasutra today: Atari has announced the Flashback 2.0, a second standalone collection of classic Atari games that attaches directly to televisions. The lineup of 40 games in the 2.0 version includes Pong, Asteroids, Centipede, Millipede, Lunar Lander, Breakout, Missile Command, and Combat, amongst others. Furthermore, though not mentioned in the announcement, it's possible that this is the edition of the Flashback that will contain the winner of the Retro Redux competition, held in early April. The unit will retail for $30, as opposed to the first Flashback's price point of $45. sTeVE 845659[/snapback] I thought the Retro Redux competition was written against NES hardware? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt Vendel Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 There are 2 convenient traces on the board leading to the Menu/Game chip to cut and disable with through board holes on either side of the trace points. What this means is, you cut the traces, wire up a double throw/single pull toggle switch and you can switch between cart and built in game, tried to make using a cart and retaining the built in game usage as easy as possible for everyone. Well, you can put in the physical connect, as for the plastic guide that's not gonna fit, so bare in mind that cartridges with the closed doors will have to be opened or people will have to rig up something on their own. The other thing... the PCB has nothing behind it, so I would recommend buying a piece of lucite or wood and you'll need to make a physical backing behind the board to give it something to push against when inserting carts so that the PCB doesn't crack, this is a hack, so remember, everyone needs to be ingenious and creative. Also something that hasnt been discussed, you will have to cut the top grill area of the case for a cart to slide in, so bare that in mind. I tried to put in enough to make things less complicated, but at the same time, you still need to put in a little bit of your own work and creativity. Curt @ Curt Vendel: If the 2.0 needs the cart port installed, does that mean the games that come on the chip wont work anymore due to the chip needing to be taken out ? or you think the need for a daughter board to put the chip on and then wire in a switch on daughter board so you can switch back and forth from the chips games to a cart that is inserted ? which cart connector would you reccomend for this project due to size of the connector part 2600, 2600A or 2600jr or it wont really matter ? 849402[/snapback] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt Vendel Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 They were done in Flash in the competition and the guidelines were to write games with the limits of 2600 hardware, some people went outside the lines however, the winner's game can still be implemented into a future product though. Curt Quoted from Gamasutra today: Atari has announced the Flashback 2.0, a second standalone collection of classic Atari games that attaches directly to televisions. The lineup of 40 games in the 2.0 version includes Pong, Asteroids, Centipede, Millipede, Lunar Lander, Breakout, Missile Command, and Combat, amongst others. Furthermore, though not mentioned in the announcement, it's possible that this is the edition of the Flashback that will contain the winner of the Retro Redux competition, held in early April. The unit will retail for $30, as opposed to the first Flashback's price point of $45. sTeVE 845659[/snapback] I thought the Retro Redux competition was written against NES hardware? 849440[/snapback] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
israelg Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 Does anyone has the complete list of games ? And what is ther release date ? 10X... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATARIeric Posted May 4, 2005 Share Posted May 4, 2005 The other thing... the PCB has nothing behind it, so I would recommend buying a piece of lucite or wood and you'll need to make a physical backing behind the board to give it something to push against when inserting carts so that the PCB doesn't crack, this is a hack, so remember, everyone needs to be ingenious and creative. Also something that hasnt been discussed, you will have to cut the top grill area of the case for a cart to slide in, so bare that in mind. I tried to put in enough to make things less complicated, but at the same time, you still need to put in a little bit of your own work and creativity. Curt Do you think i can use a 30degree 2600 connector or the straight connector with longer pins ? I wonder if i could use a build up of double sided foam airplane tape to be used as my backing instead of wood ? I have 2 huge rolls and i finally might have use for the tape Thanks for the tips Curt. Eric Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draikar Posted May 5, 2005 Share Posted May 5, 2005 Did Atari make this new "plug and play" system to allow external carts after some "modifying" to its board on purpose ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feralstorm Posted May 5, 2005 Share Posted May 5, 2005 Presumably everything is done to fit a certain specification/cost point/price point. putting a cartridge or other connector in adds the cost of the connector, contacts, and whatever other components are needed to support the carts. Having solder points to allow a hardware hacker to do the job him/herself is minor by comparison, and likely doesn't cost much more than the circuit designers' time and salary to implement, and has the benefit of a few extra sales to the hardware tinkerer crowd. If making the FB 2.0 hackable meant that it wouldn't come in on-budget or on-schedule, it wouldn't be hackable. (probably) Now, I need to figure how many extra FB2s to get (allowing for my own screw-ups), and what machine dies to donate a cart port. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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