Got my first 7800

[+Cafeman]

Saw a 7800 in a retro store, it came with about 10 games (Some 2600) and various controllers. Picked it up, just got done playing about 2 hours.

 

Mind you, I only have a few games so far, but my first impressions aren't very good! I have a 2600 and a 5200 and I play them both quite a bit, as info.

 

Okay, my games and impressions. Feel free to post if I didn't like a game you think is awesome -- I'd like to hear why.

 

1. Pole Position II. "High-performance racing at its best", quoth the label. Well, I was underwhelmed ... it is definitely prettier than the 5200 and 2600 versions, with all 4 courses and they play pretty well. However, that edge-of-your-seat Pole Position feeling does not seem to be here. The sounds are not that good either.

 

2. Choplifter. Much better visuals than the 5200/8bit old version. seems much closer to the coin-op version. Fun game so far, not my favorite game though, and I find the control a bit difficult at first. Seems like a good game so far though.

 

3. Food Fight. Pretty much arcade perfection, it is a great port. I don't own this game at all (on other systems) and so far, its my fave 7800 game.

 

4. Karateka. What?! How ... do .. I .. pull off moves?! I hate this crappy game!

 

5. Crossbow. I have never like this game much, and playing it without a light gun makes it worse. Blech! However, it seems like a good port of the coin-op, and I do remember how popular the coin-op was with its big life-sized crossbow controller, so I can understand its presence here. I'll still play it for nostalgia's sake, and the unique factor.

 

Other comments .. some of my 2600 carts are VERY HARD to get into the slot. I didn't think I'd get Kaboom to work, but I finally did somehow. River Raid was also hard to squeeze into the cart slot. However, a few other games fit in pretty easily.

 

Question: the 7800 is RF but is it somehow a more clear, interference-free RF from the 2600? Seems that way.

 

Tomorrow I'm hitting the exchange and getting some more 7800 games! $1.00 to $2.00 a piece me thinks.

Edited August 24, 2005 by Cafeman

[CaptainCaputo]

Saw a 7800 in a retro store, it came with about 10 games (Some 2600) and various controllers. Picked it up, just got done playing about 2 hours.

 

Mind you, I only have a few games so far, but my first impressions aren't very good!  I have a 2600 and a 5200 and I play them both quite a bit, as info.

 

Okay, my games and impressions. Feel free to post if I didn't like a game you think is awesome -- I'd like to hear why.

 

1. Pole Position II.  "High-performance racing at its best", quoth the label. Well, I was underwhelmed ... it is definitely prettier than the 5200 and 2600 versions, with all 4 courses and they play pretty well. However, that edge-of-your-seat Pole Position feeling does not seem to be here.   The sounds are not that good either.

 

2. Choplifter. Much better visuals than the 5200/8bit old version. seems much closer to the coin-op version. Fun game so far, not my favorite game though, and I find the control a bit difficult at first. Seems like a good game so far though.

 

3. Food Fight. Pretty much arcade perfection, it is a great port. I don't own this game at all (on other systems) and so far, its my fave 7800 game.

 

4. Karateka. What?! How ... do .. I .. pull off moves?! I hate this crappy game!

 

5. Crossbow. I have never like this game much, and playing it without a light gun makes it worse. Blech! However, it seems like a good port of the coin-op, and I do remember how popular the coin-op was with its big life-sized crossbow controller, so I can understand its presence here. I'll still play it for nostalgia's sake, and the unique factor.

 

Other comments .. some of my 2600 carts are VERY HARD to get into the slot. I didn't think I'd get Kaboom to work, but I finally did somehow. River Raid was also hard to squeeze into the cart slot. However, a few other games fit in pretty easily.

 

Question: the 7800 is RF but is it somehow a more clear, interference-free RF from the 2600? Seems that way.

 

Tomorrow I'm hitting the exchange and getting some more 7800 games! $1.00 to $2.00 a piece me thinks.

917514[/snapback]

the 7800 is a great system once you get some more games for it, yes many 2600 games have trouble fitting in the slot

[+Mitch]

Karateka is one of the poorer games on the 7800.

 

You must have one of the later 7800s with the slightly smaller cart slot. There are a few ways to get around this but you have to open up the 7800 and modify the cart slot collar slightly for all of them. Of course, if you pick up a CC2 then you don't need to worry about that.

 

RF is RF, yours is probably tuned better than average. Though, since 7800s are generally newer than 2600s they have less years for electronic drift to get them out of tune.

 

Have fun.

 

Mitch

[ZylonBane]

CaptainCaputo, you do realize the Quote functionality is optional, yes?

[CPUWIZ]

Saw a 7800 in a retro store, it came with about 10 games (Some 2600) and various controllers. Picked it up, just got done playing about 2 hours.

 

Mind you, I only have a few games so far, but my first impressions aren't very good!  I have a 2600 and a 5200 and I play them both quite a bit, as info.

 

Okay, my games and impressions. Feel free to post if I didn't like a game you think is awesome -- I'd like to hear why.

 

1. Pole Position II.  "High-performance racing at its best", quoth the label. Well, I was underwhelmed ... it is definitely prettier than the 5200 and 2600 versions, with all 4 courses and they play pretty well. However, that edge-of-your-seat Pole Position feeling does not seem to be here.   The sounds are not that good either.

 

2. Choplifter. Much better visuals than the 5200/8bit old version. seems much closer to the coin-op version. Fun game so far, not my favorite game though, and I find the control a bit difficult at first. Seems like a good game so far though.

 

3. Food Fight. Pretty much arcade perfection, it is a great port. I don't own this game at all (on other systems) and so far, its my fave 7800 game.

 

4. Karateka. What?! How ... do .. I .. pull off moves?! I hate this crappy game!

 

5. Crossbow. I have never like this game much, and playing it without a light gun makes it worse. Blech! However, it seems like a good port of the coin-op, and I do remember how popular the coin-op was with its big life-sized crossbow controller, so I can understand its presence here. I'll still play it for nostalgia's sake, and the unique factor.

 

Other comments .. some of my 2600 carts are VERY HARD to get into the slot. I didn't think I'd get Kaboom to work, but I finally did somehow. River Raid was also hard to squeeze into the cart slot. However, a few other games fit in pretty easily.

 

Question: the 7800 is RF but is it somehow a more clear, interference-free RF from the 2600? Seems that way.

 

Tomorrow I'm hitting the exchange and getting some more 7800 games! $1.00 to $2.00 a piece me thinks.

917514[/snapback]

the 7800 is a great system once you get some more games for it, yes many 2600 games have trouble fitting in the slot

917517[/snapback]

 

 

Karateka is one of the poorer games on the 7800.

 

You must have one of the later 7800s with the slightly smaller cart slot. There are a few ways to get around this but you have to open up the 7800 and modify the cart slot collar slightly for all of them. Of course, if you pick up a CC2 then you don't need to worry about that.

 

RF is RF, yours is probably tuned better than average. Though, since 7800s are generally newer than 2600s they have less years for electronic drift to get them out of tune.

 

Have fun.

 

Mitch

917518[/snapback]

 

 

CaptainCaputo, you do realize the Quote functionality is optional, yes?

917519[/snapback]

 

[CaptainCaputo]

CaptainCaputo, you do realize the Quote functionality is optional, yes?

917519[/snapback]

 

yes i do

[video game addict]

LOL

 

Food Fight was my favorite for the 7800 when I owned one. Galaga is pretty nice as well, since neither were available on the 2600/5200. These are two very good reasons for owning a 7800.

 

Midnight Mutants & Scrapyard Dog might be worth your effort to track down. Both of these looked to be very cool games, almost NES quality.

[sku_u]

If you get a chance, pick up Robotron 2084, DK and DK Jr (all cheap commons). Also grab the Pacman hacks if you have a CC2. Other than those, I don't play much in the way of 7800 stuff, although the Qbert and Frogger homebrews look more than promising.

[Danno]

CaptainCaputo, you do realize the Quote functionality is optional, yes?

917519[/snapback]

 

So is the ignore feature.

[The_Laird]

I love Crossbow, but then again I liked the arcade. It is best played on a light gun. The other Gun games are good to Barnyard Blaster, Meltdown (very under rated) and Alien Brigade is freakin awesome.

 

Yes Scrapyard Dog, Galaga and Midnight Mutants are all essentials. As are Commando - a truely awesome conversion of the arcade with a pokey chip for improved sound, Ballblazer - pokey chip again and amazing graphics, Ikari Warriors - great conversion, Double Dragon - pretty good conversion with cool tunes, Mean 18 Golf - Superb, Klax - Brilliant puzzle game and close to arcade and of course the one and only Ninja Golf - One of the weirdest games ever and a good one at that! See my avatar and my signature!

Edited August 24, 2005 by mr.kizza

[shadow460]

The best carts in my 7800 collection are:

Asteroids (the game is at its absolute best)

Donkey Kong

Galaga

Ballblazer has a lot of tech in it, but the gameplay is somewhat dry.

Pitfall II

 

I wanna get Escape From the MindMaster. I used to have it, but I don't anymore.

 

I know Pitfall II and Escape are 2600 titles, but they both are better quality than some 7800 games.

Plus with Escape, you gotta have a multicart of some type. The Supercharger isn't guaranteed to work (though I do consider it a multicart).

 

I've been browsing around the net and 7800 titles, even Alien Brigade, are pretty easy to find in the boxes. In fact, I just got Asteroids, BallBlazer (red), Xevious, and One on One Basketball all boxed with the shrinkwrap.

I located copies of Escape and Alien Brigade new and for sale on the net.

[+Cafeman]

Got some more games today.

 

1. Centipede 7800 -- man, I am TIRED of Centipede. But I read this one has 2-player cut-throat and coop, and that's why I got it. Tried it out and it makes the game new again. Great 2-player idea! (but I prefer 5200 version).

 

2. Desert Falcon -- isometric just like Zaxxon, I like this game, though I don't fully understand it yet. I like how you can hop along, swim in water, AND soar. Seems like you must pick up Hieroglyphics while shooting the enemies. This was a pleasant surprise!

 

3. Donkey Kong -- although visually very good and fun in gameplay, the sounds are so incredibly weak and annoying that I didn't play long. (I prefer the A8/5200 ported version). Why does the 7800 have such weak sound? Atari, shame on you!

 

4. Dig Dug 7800 -- man, I am TIRED of Dig Dug. But at $1.00 I had to try out this version, and it is a very solid port.

 

5. Xevious -- great port, I would've loved this back in the day. I already have Xevious on PSX though. Good job though, I'll play with it later.

 

6. Ballblazer -- hey hey hey, I recognize dat Pokey sound! Seems identical to 5200, I'll have to do a direct comparison some day soon.

 

I still am looking for a copy of Asteroids, I like the looks and description of the 7800 version. Overall, my favorites so far are Desert Falcon, Food Fight, and 2-player Centipede. The worst was Karateka. It is weird how some carts fit much more easily than others.

[DracIsBack]

Welcome aboard. Now you'll just have to port Adventure II to the 7800! :-)

 

For the record, these are my faves:

 

Arcade Classics:

Xevious

Joust

Ms Pac Man

 

Computer Ports:

Ballblazer (though according to lore, this was a 7800 game first)

Tower Toppler

Mean 18 Golf

 

Arcade:

Commando

Klax

Xenophobe

Ikari Warriors

 

Adventure:

Midnight Mutants

Alien Brigade

Scrapyard Dog

[shadow460]

I think O'Shea is still selling Asteroids for $5.

You can get a loose one for less at 4 jays.

 

As it was MIB when I got it, it is one of my most prized games. The others are the sealed Commie Mutants and Virtual On with the Twin Stick.

[Lord Helmet]

The 7800 shares the 2600's sound capabilities, which is why the sound sucks. Some games included a pokey chip in the cartridge for better sound (see Ballblazer).

[JagFan422]

i have 2 7800's the rarest game I have is Rampage.

 

the 7800 is a good system as long as your expectations are low. from the games I own, if you go into thinking that the 7800 can compare to the NES, then your going to be greatly disappointed. But keeping in mind that it is Atari, then you will have fun. I like Rampage, its not as good as the NES version, the graphics are worse as is the sound, but its still enjoyable. As for Midnight Mutants, I can't figure it out. All i do is run around until I die, so I don't play that as much. Choplifter is fun, Karateka I actually got pretty far in, DAMN BIRD, but yes, it is very hard and aggrevating. Other than that, i think you already own every other game that I do.

[DracIsBack]

The 7800 shares the 2600's sound capabilities, which is why the sound sucks. Some games included a pokey chip in the cartridge for better sound (see Ballblazer).

918415[/snapback]

 

Just to elaborate further:

 

The 7800 attains its backwards compatibility by essentially including 2600 on its motherboard, as well as additional hardware. This causes two issues:

 

1. The system (in the 1980s) wasn't the most "streamlined" design, including essentially 7800 and 2600 hardware. Somewhat expensive to build.

 

2. Having all these chips also means that the 7800 motherboard is cramped for space. Atari had room for a MARIA graphics chip but not room to add a POKEY too.

 

The original plan was to create a low-cost sound chip (Gumby) would could be shipped in many carts. However, Tramiel irritated GCC and the development of GUMBY halted.

[DracIsBack]

i have 2 7800's the rarest game I have is Rampage.

 

the 7800 is a good system as long as your expectations are low.  from the games I own, if you go into thinking that the 7800 can compare to the NES

 

If you want NES style games, I'd recommend ALIEN BRIGADE, COMMANDO and SCRAPYARD DOG.

 

As for Midnight Mutants, I can't figure it out.  All i do is run around until I die, so I don't play that as much.

 

You know you have to use the right button to get Grandpa's instructions, don't you? Grandpa guides you through the tasks you need to achieve.

 

Start out by getting the knife (in the house) and take it from there.

[Danno]

The 7800 shares the 2600's sound capabilities, which is why the sound sucks. Some games included a pokey chip in the cartridge for better sound (see Ballblazer).

918415[/snapback]

& Commando and the homebrews Beef Drop & Frogger.

 

The easiest and best investment you could make is to get a Cuttle Cart 2.

 

then you can play ALL of the games, and ALL of the hombrew/hacks that there aren't carts for.

 

7800 Centipede Trak-Ball, Qbert, Beef Drop(Burgertime), Pac-Man (& all the Pac versions), Impossible Mission FIXED, Frogger, Tubes, Combat 7800.

 

and HUNDREDS of 2600 hacks/homebrews.

 

Plus ALL the other games available, with the single exception of Pitfall II (which you need tha cart for because it's the only game not compatible with the CC2.

[Chris-in-NJ]

Re Desert Falcon: Yes, you do have to pick up the hieroglyphs while shooting! Each combination of three does *something*... As you get up into the higher levels, they can even do bad things to you, like prevent you from flying, prevent you from swimming, etc. for a short time.

 

Yes, Desert Falcon is one of my favorite 7800 games! I just might pick up the 2600 version one of these days for a change of pace...

 

IMHO you'll like the 7800 if you're a fan of its arcade ports. I had both Scrapyard Dog and Midnight Mutants, and sold them both as they just didn't have that elusive Atari "feel". Felt too much like NES games, and it's the NES that put me off video games for nearly two decades!

[FireTiger]

As far as DF its my fav. And if you do a search for "Falcon" I have a thread that has alot of the combos. Even with my name to limit the search, this forum.

[Lord Thag]

I have a 7800 and there are some great games on it. I've found that, while the graphics are usually (not always) poorer than the NES, the gameplay is much better. Ikari Warriors and Xenophobe are good examples of this. Actually, Xenophobe kicks the NES versions ass on all fronts...

 

My personal favorites are:

 

Arcade:

Xenophobe -best home port ever

Ikari Warriors -very good port

Ms Pacman -damn near perfect

Joust -ditto

Asteroids -awesome port with multiplayer

Centepede - see above

Rampage - Very fun port, great 'zone out' game

Xevious - awesome port, and more challenging than the arcade

Food Fight - perfect port of a great game

Robotron - use the dual joystick setup and it's great, if not perfect

 

I don't have Commando or DD, so I can't speak for those

 

Originals:

Ninja Golf -Ninjas & Golf. It doesn't get any better than this

Tower Toppler -beautiful, fun, and challenging

Desert Falcon - one of my all-time fav shooters

 

 

Here are a few to stay away from:

Donkey Kong/Donkey Kong Jr. -Not horrible, but not very compelling either

Ballblazer - *yawn* space soccer -wheee

Karateka - a travesty, run away

[The_Laird]

Ballblazer - *yawn* space soccer -wheee

 

You what???? How can you hate Ballblazer! Its easily one of the best games on the system.

 

Xenophobe -best home port ever

 

Sorry that accolade would have to go to the Lynx version.

 

Ninja Golf -Ninjas & Golf. It doesn't get any better than this

 

Oh yeah baby, damn right on this one. Look at my avatar!

[Lord Thag]

Ballblazer - *yawn* space soccer -wheee

 

 

 

You what???? How can you hate Ballblazer! Its easily one of the best games on the system.

 

Nah. It's technically impressive, but not very fun in my book. It's all a matter of opinion though. Why do you like it? It just seems like soccer with a twist to me.

 

Xenophobe -best home port ever

 

 

Sorry that accolade would have to go to the Lynx version.

 

I just got a Lynx, I'll have to pick this up. Xenophobe is one of my favorite 'zone out' games. Still, the 7800 version is tops. The NES version is crap by comparison.

[shadow460]

The music is what makes BallBlazer worth anything.

It's fun at first, but the gamepaly dries up really fast. It is, however, worth plugging in to the 7800 just for background music.

 

As far as ROMS/multicarts go, I really don't get into a game until I can put my hands on it, plug it in, and play it. Don't ask me why, but I just do not get the same experience out of a multicart or an emulator. I played one particular game on multicart, and that was it.

 

When I get the opportunity, I am going to try and get a EPROM programmer, that way with the proper board and a bin file I can make my own carts.