Atari Thread

[Anonymous No.7225726]

Was discussing the Atari 2600 in a different thread and was given some recommendations on what to play. Really excited my Dad hooked me up with this system. I've never played atari before and the ports of the arcade games always seemed cool to me. Anything else I should look into? Flash Carts? Mods? Homebrews. Looking for all relevant info.

[Anonymous No.7225735]

>>7225726
I have done my own research too, I'm looking into the Harmony Cart. And Bout to bring home a Sharp 19r-m100 crt. Thanks again for any info you guys got.

[Anonymous No.7225776]

Better pic of what I got already.

[Anonymous No.7225796]

>>7225726
your missing adventure and pitfall, arguably the best games on the system

[Anonymous No.7225806]

>>7225796
Good looking out, checking them now.

[Anonymous No.7225820]

>>7225726
>>7225735
Killer setup, you're pretty much ready to go. The Harmony Cart flash cart is around $40, well worth getting —I have one in the mail now actually. I love the 2600 version of Centipede, I think it plays better than the arcade. Dark Towers, Enduro, Kaboom!, and Warlords are some personal favorites. Warlords with some beers and 3 friends is a fucking blast. Your dad hooked it up, I grew up with an Atari 2600 in the 90s due to having an old one lying around, so I have a lot of anachronistic nostalgia for it.

[Anonymous No.7225827]

>>7225820
Dude, thank you for the big recs. And good to hear. Is it worth doing an rgb mod or should I just use the coax adapter I was given?

[Anonymous No.7225851]

>>7225820
>I love the 2600 version of Centipede, I think it plays better than the arcade.
I got the trackball for this... one thing the Atari 2600 actually has over later consoles is the odd controllers, like dials/spinners.

[Anonymous No.7225852]

>>7225726
For Homebrews I would recommend:

Pacman 8k
A much better version than the one originally on the 2600

Halo 2600
Similar to Berzerk, but Halo themed.

Dragon's Descent
Like a cross between Berzerk and Adventure.

Aquaventure
An unreleased prototype game. Similar to Defender but underwater themed. Very fun.

[Anonymous No.7225854]

>>7225726
Yars' Revenge, Video Pinball, Jungle Hunt, Swordquest, and Pitfall are great single-player games. For multiplayer games, Space War is a lot of fun. I'd avoid most arcade ports since they're clearly downgraded. The 5200 is a lot better for those, but at the same time
>buying a 5200

[Anonymous No.7225858]

>>7225820
this
warlords is ebin

[Anonymous No.7225872]

>>7225854
5200 defender was a remarkably well done port
5200 mountain king, similar story

obviously anon can just emulate a lot of the actual arcade games now, but the 5200 did, in fact, have a purpose

[Anonymous No.7225902]

hey opie, did you get a paddle controller?
if so, try kaboom

[Anonymous No.7225936]

also
if you can find the rest of this doc, watch it
its pretty entertaining
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fr-xg_CuOlk

todd frye seems like a fun dude to get stoned and talk assembly code with
hell, most of em seem that way

[Anonymous No.7225939]

>>7225902
I got 2 paddles and 2 joysticks. Trackball is another controller I should get?

[Anonymous No.7225943]

>>7225872
I was more so talking about buying a 5200 nowadays. There was definitely a reason to buy it back then since it had the best arcade ports only rivaled by the ColecoVision, but in the modern day I don't see much reason buying one outside of collection purposes.

[Anonymous No.7225961]

>>7225939
trackballs tend to be a little wonky after all these years same for all analog style controllers ime
try before you buy if you can

>>7225943
yea youd undoubtedly be better off with a 7800 nowadays

[Anonymous No.7225965]

>>7225726
have fun with your dad anon. my mom and i did the same thing not too long ago and made a lot of memories.

[Anonymous No.7225968]

>>7225939
that said, i think the old paddle controllers are way better than the trackball ones

[Anonymous No.7226019]

>>7225827
You're very welcome, always happy to discuss the 2600, as it doesn't get a lot of love from anyone under 45. The Atari doesn't actually generate RGB internally, much like the NES, so any S-Vid / RGB mods are faking it —so that's up to you if the improvement / cost / time is worth it. Composite mods are more common, might be worth it if you have a scaler. If you're using a CRT anyway though, I think you'll be surprised how usable the RF quality is. You will want to get a pic-related adapter for RF though, those old switch boxes are garbage.
>>7225851
I've actually never tried a 2600 Trackball, it's funny —I'm quite good at 2600 Centipede with a joystick, and totally suck at the arcade version with the trackball.
>>7225872
>>7225943
Buying an Atari 800XL and a flashcart will give you access to the whole 5200 library and let you use controllers that don't blow. Also the Atari 8-bit computers have a ton of fun titles and you can use it as a terminal for your modern PC or BBS with the boomers.

[Anonymous No.7226029]

>>7226019
that adapter is exactly what I have now in the back of my lcd. It looks like shit, but I'm hoping this crt the gf found will look a lot better.

[Anonymous No.7226032]

>>7226019
i always sucked with the trackballs too anon
good point about the 800XL tho

[Anonymous No.7226041]

>>7226029
Oh perfect, it will look great on a CRT, pic not related. The way it draws its video was designed from the ground up based on an electron gun. If you enjoy the games and the Atari, I recommend reading "Racing the Beam", you can find a copy online, it's the best book about the system and a pretty quick read.

[Anonymous No.7226045]

>>7226029
>but I'm hoping this crt the gf found will look a lot better.
it undoubtedly will
rf is always gonna be kinda wonky going back to, but it is what it is. plugging it into era-appropriate hardware will, at the very least, give you the authentic experience

seconding the composite mod tho, if you absolutely MUST plug it into a new tv

[Anonymous No.7226860]

Atari is useless. The games are all shit ports of games better played literally anywhere else. It's a neat system but there's not a whole lot to say.

[Anonymous No.7227091]

I wish the atari had more truly original games and games that aged well but warlords is always a riot and toyshop trouble is my favorite homebrew ever