Atari 2600+ Console -- Exciting or Trouble?

The Atari 2600+ console was recently announced. Does it look exciting or are there troublesome issues lurking?
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#atari #atari2600

[@PatTheNESpunk]

What do you think about the Atari 2600+? Are you excited or would you rather grab a Retron 77 or perhaps a Flashback?

[@lo1bo2]

Personally I'm passing on it. Still have my childhood Atari plus a couple Flashbacks. The Flashbacks were a good value if you got one on clearance.

[@wizzel22]

The Flashbacks are crap, they are slow as hell. The Retron77 is the only way to play games from sd-card and even after the A2600+ get's released it will be the best option you can get. Yes, you can't play all Carts on it, but you have Stella 6.6 that plays your games in almost realtime.

[@GeneSimmonsBoots]

I have 3 original Atari 2600s. I never picked up a Retron77, so will be buying this for certain, plus a couple of the new paddle controllers. I look forward to collecting some 7800 carts now that I'll have a console to play them on.

[@raydorschner7461]

The big difference with the Retron 77 is that the 2600+ will be able to play the XP games they are releasing now. Which the Hyperkin one could not. But we'll see ;-)

[@darkwombat333]

Something rarely talked about is that the Retron 77 and Atari Flashback Anniversary run Stella on very poor CPUs (android boxes). I tested and movement speed was a little jittery and much less smoother than just using Stella on my high end PC with a CPU that makes these games run as smooth as possible. You really need to either have a n FPGA solution or go full emulation, there is no in between. I have my Stella Atari games launching through Lanchbox and using my Atari VCS classic joystick with the built-in spinner for paddle games and a nice scanline effect. You cant beat it.

[@cax1175]

This will outsell the Intellivision Amico for sure!

[@KunaX3]

Goated comment

[@RussellmaniaXXV]

There’s definitely steak with that sizzle!

[@MrRedFoxorMrelzorrorojo]

That's a low bar... considering the Amico never went on sale.

[@ccricers]

Still blows my mind Amico crowdfunded 5x more money than Atari VCS

[@bald_engineer]

@@ccricersTo be fair, Atari pre-sold a product to its core audience. Intellivision bilked uninformed “investors” with a pyramid scheme. I think the Amico only got a couple thousand actual pre-orders.

[@tomflanagan3889]

This video is very inaccurate. The problem with the Retron 77 was the cart dumper, not Stella. Stella is a very good emulator that can play pretty much everything.

[@JasonDube-oy8mx]

FINALLY SOMEBODY❤

[@ZeroPageHomebrew]

Stella isn't the issue with either the Retron77 or the 2600+, it's the cartridge reader that is causing the incompatibility. For the Retron77 there is a community made upgrade that allows 99.99% compatibility with ALL games including brand new homebrew using the SD card reader. The cartridge reader on the Retron77 is not upgradable and will never be able to read all the cartridges. It remains to be seen what will happen with the 2600+ and what the final compatibility will be when it's released.

[@koalakoa]

The atari+ chip is also 1080p vs 720p-ish with the retron and flashback. Would be nice to see lag results and final support for the Atari+ when it launches. The cost however is a huge deterant for what you are getting though. Dollars to donuts this doesn't seem to be a good value for money.

[@JVeg199X]

THIS. Stella has supported bankswitching for more than a decade!

[@SpeccyHorace]

This whole video was unusually ill informed. It took them about 20 minutes to understand the compatibility list in front of them.

[@Crusader228]

Well this kinda ruined my day, I had just recently found all my old Atari cartridges and I wad excited that I could get to use them again, according to Atari the ones I have do pass but it’s a bummer a gane like Star Wars won’t play.

[@robmoye7373]

Yeah I was pretty sure Stella wasn't the issue. Pretty stupid if the 2600+ doesn't have 99.9% compatibility though, for the price. Seems like they could make this just as good as an fpga even with emulation if they wanted to.

[@ramgladore]

I think they went with the dip switches on the multi-cart because these carts are made to be compatible with the original hardware

[@urbanknish]

Bank switching is absolutely supported. Tons of games above 4k here. Games like Gravitar and Desert Falcon, which are pretty sophisticated for the 2600, run. There's only a very small handful of games known not to work. It's a low-cost, fun way to play the vast majority of the old games (and new ones) on HDMI. I am suspicious of the "untested" listings though. This is a big concern. Any nerd has all of these games and they are easy to find. I saw that Pitfall II was "untested". That's a red flag IMO.

[@maize5]

How much did you give Tommy?

[@urbanknish]

Don't know WTH you are talking about but your mom paid me well.@@maize5

[@CaptWhifflebat]

Considering the original 2600 released in 1977for 189.99 which in today's dollars is over $1,000, I have to say that this is interesting at a fraction of that price.

[@Retrosys]

All 7800 games passed except 3 that were “untested”. You kind of glossed over that. I’m buying it for 7800 compatibility, and that’s the only reason I am interested in it. An HDMI 7800 is great, and this is the only solution for using my original carts on an HD TV outside of loading up ROMs on a mini pc. I have all my controllers and I have a full 7800 set that I’m excited to use on it. My 7800 still works, I just want to get off the CRT and reduce my retro game set up. Soon as I have the Analogue Duo, I’ll have an HDMI solution for every console I currently own.

[@Boswd]

Glossed is putting it charitable , 7800 was completley missing from this conversation. I hate when they have an agenda.

[@vijnananath]

They did mention that 7800 games will work, but also brought up that there's no two button controller for this thing. Check about 20 minutes in for that discussion.

[@Retrosys]

@@vijnananath they didn’t talk about the compatibility percentage, also didn’t mention that it works with original controllers

[@Boswd]

@@vijnananath they barely touched on it because its a huge selling point... I don't mind people being skeptical but these two have an agenda.. they want to see this fail..

[@OriginalMasters]

Good to see you guys again so soon. While we’ve briefly got Atari 2600 on our minds, now is a great time to check out Fast Food, Plaque Attack, and Pressure Cooker, three fine, food-themed games for the system!

[@Gamma00Ray]

It's good to get a modernized 2600, or you could see it as a 7800. Plus you get the paddle experience on a modern TV.

[@beny.391]

At its price point I'm willing to take the risk. Always kind of wanted to have a reason to pick up Atari games I find at yard sales as a side hobby but not enough to bother hooking up an aging console from the 80s to modern televisions.

[@fatfurie]

i mean you can have always just went to a shop and grabbed one for less lol

[@knghtbrd]

You guys don't run emulators much, so you're under the FALSE presumption that Stella can't play these games. The problem ain't Stella. The problem is the Retron 77 just dumps the 4k memory space of its cartridge port and runs that. Obviously that doesn't work. To do what the Retron77 was trying to do, you'd need to start reading data from the cartridge port, realize what game it was (via signature check), then start doing weird reads over and over again to manipulate the cartridge's mapper to get the rest of the game out. Hyperkin was not about to do all of that because lazy cash grab. Doing it right on the 2600 is fiddly because you only have the data and address bus. No R/W line, no clock, nothing. You have to have a custom chip with "knock codes" or something that flip pages on command specific to the game. Which means you have to know how the game works to rip it. Will the 2600+ do that? Honestly, I've got less faith in Atari SA than I do Hyperkin. But Stella absolutely can play these games if they're ripped properly.

[@dolsthoo]

Not completely true: the Retron 77 dumps cartridges with ROMs which are

[@madmax2069]

​@@TheJMan977well, there is going to be some because like the Retron 77 the 2600+ is also a cart dumper. The cart dumper aspect of the retron 77 was the main issue.

[@madmax2069]

​@@dolsthoowell the 2600+ is also a cart dumper, so they're going to have the same issues as the Retron 77 unless they emulate everything properly, but there again you also have homebrew games that do use far more additional hardware on the cart.

[@TaeKwonMoe]

Holy crap, thank you for the tip on the Flashback. Not sure how I missed that one. I need to finish Pitfall II!! Never did as a kid.

[@PixelChonk]

The wild thing about the retron 77 is that it will play games if i dump the roms onto the sdcard, but not if i have the actual cartridge in the console, which seems super backwards to me. The emulator is better than the hardware is even making it seem. if this console works the same way, then there is no point at all.

[@urbanknish]

The list was updated. You can definitely find Solaris, Star Raiders, Taz etc. on it and they are playable.

[@Gamma00Ray]

It's kind of crappy that you guys present an AtGames product as the alternative.

[@tekkaman-blade]

Am I silly for wanting the Paddle Controller / 4-Game Cart bundle? I already have an original Atari 2600 and the standard controllers, but I never acquired any paddle controllers. Is this not a decent way to get a pair of them? Especially since they'll be newly produced versus 40-year old used ones on eBay? Will this weird switch-based multi-cart work on an original Atari 2600?

[@DiceRobo]

I would imagine the dip switches are there because they wanted to do that, I don't know what menu would ever work with 2600 graphics lol. No idea for sure though, I would say get it and if it doesn't work return it or sell it.

[@Gamma00Ray]

You're not silly. It's a selling point of the 2600+ for me. It's shaping up to be a great way to get the paddle experience on a more modern take on the 2600.

[@SpeccyHorace]

Not silly at all imo.

[@madmax2069]

​@@DiceRobothe dip switches are there because that's the only way they could get a multi cart to work with a cart dumper.

[@segastardust8836]

Both Solaris and Star Raiders are on the list, and they're listed as compatible. There's two sections, first party and third party. It isn't Stella that can't play bank switched games, it's the R77 cartridge slot that can't read them. The 2600+ compatibility list shows many bank switching games. I agree, I would prefer an FPGA. I don't think Atari has the internal R&D resources for such an endeavor. Also, Atari mentioned at PAX how users will be able to update the firmware through the USB jack. So this compatibility isn't final.

[@KunaX3]

People who love atari will buy it, end of the drama.

[@Lynxan]

I have a 7800 from back in the day, still works fine.

[@michaelbuddy]

the atgames anniversary unit has 130 games and a cute enclosure, hdmi, includes paddles on the more expensive one. It's also emulation or whatever. And I'm sure you can load custom roms onto it given how the earlier units are hacked, though might require an OTG usb.

[@SpeccyHorace]

I like it. I also thought the switches on the multicart were pretty cool. I didn't want a shitty menu.

[@shaunwalsh8993]

I got a Stella disc for my dreamcast and id say about 80% of the games work although all paddle games are not really controllable

[@BriansManCave]

From what I understand, it will not read the Harmony flash cart at the system just dumps the rom. That is probably why the multicart is using the switches.

[@obsoleteobsession]

I hear your criticism and think it's valid, however I think this product's goal is different from the typical emulation box. This is a nostalgia play - if all you want to do is load roms and boot from a menu, you can literally do that on an iPod. This is made for people who want to be able to replicate the original experience. Putting some half-baked android menu on a multicart would interfere with that feeling, physically selecting the game and it booting straight from power is the thematically consistent choice for this console.

[@darcyska]

This actually looks like a pretty reasonable console to put out to market - It's certainly niche and appeals to a fairly small demographic, but it looks like they've crossed the Is and dot the Ts

[@wolfshanze5980]

Saying "they both use Stella, so compatibility is the same" is like saying "they both use Microsoft Windows, so the experience is the same"... but that's like saying Windows Me is the same experience as using Windows 10. The Retron77 uses a very old version of Stella... like 2012 version... where the 2600+ uses the current version of Stella, where compatibility is much better. They do NOT have the same issues just because they both use Stella... there is a major difference.

[@garypranzo9334]

Wide screen is important for one reason. If connecting to a 4:3 CRT or 4:3 LCD with an HDMI converter you want the video stretched to 16:9 so it fills a 4:3 screen and looks normal. If you do not have wide screen you will have black bars on left and right.

[@JohnSegerclucka]

I personally think it's a great idea. I'm definitely going to buy one.

[@larryinc64]

I was interested in it, but this discussion did raise a lot of red flags that I can only hope are ironed out on release. At the least you should wait until the in-hand reviews. The idea is great, but the execution is what will make or break it.

[@JohnSegerclucka]

@@larryinc64 Ya, I'm going to wait until I read user reviews, etc

[@urbanknish]

I pre-ordered it on the first day. I'm a little suspicious of the "untested" games (like Pitfall II). But I'm really hoping it works out.

[@SynopsisGrim]

I'll treat that compatibility list like I'd treat a marketplace post. "Untested" is just as good as "unworking".

[@pollo20x6]

Pat. Ian. Thank you for making these 😂 I legit was interested in the Amico until I watched your stuff. Not like serious serious, but being a fan of retro, I looked into it and came across your podcast. And was like nooooo way am I getting that. Now I see an Atari commercial and i am legit interested. Give new life to my dead 2600. And once again, I learn stuff that i legit woulda never considered. Thanks guys. I hope you guys are doing great. I'm also from SD and boi howdy its getting crazy. House prices, amiright? 😢

[@B-Vulpone]

glad you guys finally covered this. a year ago you guys had a podcast where you talked about Nintendo and Sega making consoles that would play the original cartridges and I remember you saying Atari wouldn't make this😂

[@CSanykdotCom]

I use Stella on Windows, and have been a user since the mid-1990s. Stella is a fantastic emulator, and on Windows it plays the entire 2600 catalog without issue. While emulation will never be 100% equivalent to actual hardware, and an FPGA implementation of the original hardware can be far more faithful, I don't believe that the problem with the Retron77 or this system are due to it using Stella or emulation, but due to other factors. The Retron77 used an outdated build of Stella, but was patchable through firmware updates, and when running a hacked firmware, could also run ROMs off of an SD card, and was much better when used this way. The initial run of controllers were of poor quality and notorious for breaking, which contributed to the poor reputation of the system. Hyperkin improved the quality with later Trooper joysticks and they are pin compatible with original joysticks, making them a possible workaround as well for people who have them. I don't see the point of these systems, since I can just run Stella on any PC, hooking it up to any monitor, and it is easy and free, assuming you already have the PC. They're cheap, and easy to transport, I guess, and maybe it's easier to use original controllers with them than it is with a PC (you'd need a USB-to-DB9 adapter, but those aren't terribly expensive, either). Since the 2600+ hasn't come out yet, I don't want to be prejudicial of it, but I also don't see a reason to own one if you're a retrogamer who has a working Atari 2600 console or a working PC that you can run Stella on. Like you guys, I would have been much more interested in it if it were FPGA based. But I'm not ready to write it off just because it is emulation based. Atari's published list only has a small number of "failed" titles, and most of those used third-party enhancements like the Supercharger. More concerning is the large number of games on the compatibility list that are officially "untested" -- it's odd to think that Atari SA's engineers couldn't find a copy of Pitfall II for testing, as it's one of the most common and popular games on the system. How many of the titles currently listed as "untested" end up being "fails" will tell the tale, and make or break the system. It seems shortsighted that they did not provide a 2-button controller for use with 7800 games that require a 2-button joystick, though. They don't even have them available as an aftermarket product, which I hope they'll do something about that in the future. The enlarged cartridge slot, which Pat scoffed at, is actually a good feature -- many of the original 3rd party releases for the 2600 used non-standard cartridge shells, some of which were larger, and would not fit easily into the cartridge slot of the Atari 2600 Jr and 7800, and would sometimes only barely fit after being jammed and forced into the slot, which puts stress on the connectors and is not good for hardware longevity. Having a larger slot shows Atari at least knew enough to address that problem. I do think that the paltry 10 games included on the multi-cart is a bit insulting; Atari could have provided a larger selection of games from their catalog on a single cart: 50, or 100. Every game ever commercially released for the Atari 2600 will fit on a 3.5" floppy disk. Atari only has the rights to the games that they own, and there were a lot of 3rd parties that released many of the better titles for the system, though. While I'm not going to buy one, it will probably have appeal for a gamer who used to have an Atari collection, but doesn't have a reliable working console anymore, and wants something that is cheap and easy to hook up to a TV and just play existing games. It may be that Atari is hoping that the 2600+ will help them sell new manufactured cartridges, which they have been starting to make again. Which, if it succeeds at that, would be cool, in the same way that it would be cool if you could go to your Ford dealership and buy a 2023 built Model T or Model A. I like the idea of old obsolete systems never going out of manufacture and continuing to exist, and there's not really a good reason for them to be discontinued, just as phonographs and vinyl records didn't need to go away when the CD was invented.

[@RobertGuido]

I know they've been winding down the podcast, but I just got to say the second I heard the 2600 announcement I heard these two gentlemen in my head. And I'm excited to see they are putting there to cents in. I'm not really a fanboy but I got to say I really enjoy their thoughts on retro topics

[@steveafulton]

I bought it because I'm a sad Atari nut, but I have some reservations. What I'm looking for is an HDMI out from a 7800 compatible console so I can see the colors properly for my 7800 homebrew games. My AV modded 7800 doesn't produce the correct colors (as far as I can tell). I hoping this will be closer. However, it may not even work for this. From what I can tell, the big issue for me it that the system won't work with the popular multi-carts like Concerto, but may work with the Dragonfly. Multi-carts are the only way I can try out my own games on real hardware.

[@andrewb4999]

Atari 50th was such a beautiful love letter to the history of Atari and it’s games that it’s such a disappointment that this hunk of crap comes out around the corner.

[@OGTimeBandit]

You guys are so off base. The dip switches for the multi cart are cool.

[@ShadyPlatinum777]

No but Pat and Ian don’t like it so it’s bad

[@phat-kid]

i have an original 2600 and i have solaris but it doesn't display properly on my crt. it cuts off the bottom of the screen which you need for your stats. so i need an even older crt i guess.

[@madmax2069]

4:12 Stella was never the issue, the issue here is the fact that the Retron 77 is a cart dumper, and the 2600+ is also a cart dumper. When you have games that use additional hardware on the cart there's going to be issue simply due to that fact unless the emulator can emulates said extra hardware, because a cart dumper dumps the game onto onboard memory and no longer needs the cart because it doesn't directly communicate with the cart after it dumps the cart. And this is a big issue for homebrew games because many of them use additional hardware on the cart.

[@twalchusky79]

Your right about the atari 50 being good for most people. But heres the problem where, for me personally, runs into and why i just might get the +. For me when it comes to atari i want the games that i grew up playing. Those being: Berserk Et (dont judge!) Cosmic Ark Demon Attack Night driver Stampede Atlantis The sword quest games (which are probably on most if the flashbacks and 50th anyways) And Vanguard If the 2600+ plays those cartridges and i want to play the games legally thats really the only way im going to revisit those games again because the previous didn't have most and i don't have a crt tv or even the og console anymore . That said, for the aesthetic of the og (because lets face it for nostalgiic reasons (ill admit it) the atari 2600 + looks better than the retron 77. But they will also nickel and dime ya on the "extras". I think the price will drop below 100 at some point and that will be time to get it. Those games i mentioned were my childhood until i got a NES in 88. So i have some fond memories of those (even et.. really dont judge!) And eventually want to revisit those games if/when the opportunity presents itself.

[@darkridearts]

ET and Crystal Castles are awesome!!

[@twalchusky79]

@@darkridearts I literally just went to my local retro store and got a decent deal on the games. Got defender, stampede, cosmic ark, demon Attack and 2 other ones for $27 . They were buy 2 get 1 free. So I got away fairly cheap. Couple other ones I'm prob gonna get on eBay since they were cheaper (with box). Hopefully my nephew (he's 7) will enjoy these games as much as I did. He's already taken an interest in Demon Attack (winning!) From the KZbin videos

[@danielmad]

Wow, I’m so glad I stumbled on your video. It’s been a while since I’ve listened in, but everything you guys said, lead me straight to cancelling my pre-order.

[@SpeccyHorace]

Look into it properly for yourself. This video is not entirely accurate or indeed fair.

[@jdraven0890]

Thanks for the analysis, I still own OG hardware and will just stick with that.

[@philipcohen7192]

Is there a market for first party HD consoles like a sega released HD genesis?

[@andyauthor2007]

That was my very first question when I first saw this thing: how can you play Atari 7800 games on it with a controller that only has one button? Most games you can't. I have the Atari 50 Flashback Gold, and I'm very happy with it. I still have to install the firmware update to fix the paddles but otherwise I'm very happy with it. I agree with Pat, buy the Atari 50 Flashback Gold instead because the lineup of games on it is pretty solid and I haven't noticed any emulation problems.

[@Retrosys]

It’s compatible with original controllers. Pick up a proline controller or one of the Euro pads.

[@Picverse]

I think you are wrong about this and heres why. First off you were right about the Amico all along and I canceled my pre order for that. I never even considered the VHS as I like the look of it but the thing was just weird and expensive. This Atari 2600+ at the $130 is what we have been asking for, which is an upgraded AT-Games that has actual cartridges (I pointed this out years ago). I mean people bought the LEGO 2600 and that was just a display modal of the 2600 for over $200. Sure things could be better but that goes for anything. I bought this and I will review it and if you are right I will admit it, but I think you missed the point of it.

[@desiv1170]

Thanks for keeping the elitest nerd stereotype grounded in reality... It's almost like this was intentionally scripted that way.

[@taylerannsupergirl5587]

Ty for helping me avoid this mistake.

[@rebelrouzer5318]

Star wars arcade and texas chainsaw both work on Stella. Please do better research. The only game ive seen that wont work on stella is cathouse blues.

[@markrotondella4689]

There are bank shift games on the list, listed as compatible.

[@TheThejaketucker]

Shouts out to Joe Derosa and Joey Roses sandwich shop in NYC

[@Frogdoddofficial]

I like the idea... not sure if I'll actually get one though.

[@MrRom92DAW]

I think this is ok, not really for me if I already have an original console - I’d like it more if it were an FPGA console. Probably still not for me in that case, but infinitely cooler, and I think it would have more of a market if it were low-key hackable and able to be turned into a very nice looking MISTer box. The cart with the dip switches is kinda cool, I actually like that as it means it would maintain compatibility with the original console. There might actually be legit ROMs in there. I’d love to see that approach taken with a multicart collection of rarer/unreleased/homebrew games, but definitely not for common carts I already have. Maybe Atari will continue to release cartridges like this and support the 2600 as a platform. I think we’d all rather see a $60 multicart with 10 games than a $60 collectible cart with 1 game.

[@MrRom92DAW]

@ytthrowaway4584 I wouldn’t mind if it were twice or even triple the price - I’m willing to pay for quality, but I’m not willing to pay for an emulation box with a fancy shell.

[@fenixlolnope361]

it's really cool tbh, I want one. I don't mind that it's an emulator thing. It can be modded later right? I have a Genesis Flashback and I honestly don't mind it for showing off genesis games on an HDTV. If I *really* want the genesis experience i'mma pull out my model 1 anyways

[@jengelenm]

Very interesting perspective you guys have. I duckduckgoed the CPU SOC, so it’s designed for 1080p out, which would improve upon the 77’s 720p resolution. Indeed, that compability list is a joke.

[@bluedistortions]

1040p resolution on a console that only has a 10 x 10 pixel output..

[@mgabrysSF]

Seems to be selling all right bar for that and then the 50 collection I think they’re doing all right

[@greywolf7583]

Do you think a Harmony Cart would work on this new Atari 2600+ 🤔

[@darkridearts]

I ordered one. Let’s see how it goes.

[@failsafedictator]

Well Atari also bought AtariAge. So there is an Atari guy there in the forums answering any questions about anything, including Atari 2600+, hotel, etc. It does seem like they want to be better but who knows. Thankfully Albert will still run things there. Whatever the case is, Atari is producing unlike Intellivision.

[@F1JV]

MMEGA*…ain’t happening soon & probably unlikely ever. 🥺😢😰😭😰🥲🥹 *Make Mattel Electronics Great Again

[@F1JV]

Maybe I should have just gone with MEGA*…??? *😄Mattel Electronics Great Again😄

[@madmax2069]

​@@F1JVwot?

[@F1JV]

@@madmax2069 …😄”jeauke(s)”😄

[@basketballsteve54]

You guys kinda slammed Retron77 but at least that sd card slot does play homebrew and most games and the community build adds Stella options. Also the Hyperkin Ranger controller is a really good 2600 controller (paddle/joystick combo) uses it all the time on my Atari jr.

[@AloanMoreira1]

I´ll get this for sure! I´m 51 and the last time I had this console was 1985! so yeah, I´ll finally reunite and won´t let go this time! plus, I´m an Atari 2600 lover: I love its LEGO graphics and its limited gameplay and color palette, so.. it´s all beautiful iconic art to me!

[@PatTheNESpunk]

Pat Math - *45-year-old cartridge ecosystem.

[@SpeccyHorace]

The least of the problems with this video.

[@hauntedspaceship4175]

Thank you for giving us an episode to enjoy on Saturday morning with my coffee

[@resellerworldnj]

Well I guess at least they actually are coming out with something unlike the phantom Amico. It’s all money nostalgia driven targeting enthusiasts and collectors (of which there are many). And they WILL buy it.

[@CP-ih6zq]

It’s the paddle games that I want to play. I have a Vader console and a few sets of paddle controllers. The at games versions I keep hearing about the paddle controllers not working properly. If I can use my own set and play, super breakout, circus Atari, and Kaboom on my main tv. I will be happy. I did buy the home brew Pac-Man (coming late) so it will be disappointing if it doesn’t work.

[@kevinlawson1746]

Don't all the ATGames Flashbacks use emulation and those have Activision games on them . Looks good and I like the switches on the cartridge, it's all part of the retro feel and look , plus I hope maybe you can find an easter egg by playing with the switches on the cartridge. So for me I'll be getting one . Oh and If I'm looking at that list right you can also play Pal games .

[@madmax2069]

I do believe that the flashback #2 used an Atari on a chip it was actual 2600 hardware all packaged into a single chip, all the rest uses software emulation

[@whoeverest_the_whateverest]

Wait, aren't those switches on multicarts are actually switches on the console itself? Is there anything that explicitly says/shows that switches are on cartidges themselves, and not the four switches on console?

[@SpeccyHorace]

The switches absolutely are on the cartridge, yes. And you can see them on the cartridge in the thumbnail picture for this very video.

[@whoeverest_the_whateverest]

@@SpeccyHorace okay. Weird though, the 4-in-1 paddle multicart also shows 4 switches being used, despite only 2 being enough for 4 games, which for me looked likr proving that it's 4 switches on console being used. Even picture on the cartridge shows only first two being used, which means that if switches are on cartridge itself, they made some absolutely useless parts in it

[@madmax2069]

​@@whoeverest_the_whateverestbecause it's an old style multi cart, old multi carts used switches like that, it's not odd. Oh and being that this is a cart dumper the switches are the only way a multi cart is going to work on it.

[@garethbeaton8414]

Love a pico 8 in depth chat

[@retro_reflections]

Hope it all works out for the best (hey, positivity, right?), but I'm happy to stick with my good old heavy sixer which still does the job without any grumbles. 😊

[@yay4this]

You guys.. embellishing. Stay ignorant, my friends. This has been out for weeks and you guys never reviewed the details or compatibility list before starting a podcast session.

[@joecrackin3783]

I picked up a retron77 and it didn't work out of the box. Thought about getting this when I saw the orders go up but wanted to wait for just this reason. Glad I did.

[@madmax2069]

The issue with the Retron 77 was that it was using such an old version of Stella, the second issue is that it's a cart dumper, so it dumps the cart into onboard memory and runs it from there instead of the cart. While the 2600+ is also a cart dumper I can imagine that it's going to be a bit better that the Retron 77, but still limited due to it also being a cart dumper. There's a few games (especially homebrew) that uses additional hardware in the cart, and being that cart dumpers do not run the game from the cart it completely ignores the required additional hardware in the cart. The only way around this is to have the additional hardware on said cart emulated as well.

[@ColeHomeVideo]

Word on the street is that GrapeadeFade is a very nice fellow.

[@mstreed]

The compatibility list is so hidden on the page, you actually have to READ to find it. 🤣

[@mightywhiskas3880]

Soulja boy owns Atari now because they were so proud of him with his console

[@michaelbuddy]

Atari JR you didn't get paddles. I think you got two joysticks tho

[@Crusader228]

I just recently found my old Atari games and I was super excited for this. This is such a bummer! I don’t know what to do anymore.

[@richboehne4062]

Until the product is released and someone tests a high action paddle game like Kaboom, we won't know if this thing is any good or not.

[@donaldsmith5667]

I will grab one just for the nostalgia of buying a new Atari 2600 console in 2023. I’m using the Retron 77 right now and it gets the job done for me. My library is around 50 games and they all work fine. But, Atari really does need to put out a wireless controller because playing with a corded Atari joystick for this thing is going to be absolute ass.

[@MahkyVmedia1]

I love how Ian acts like working at Luna was a career

[@cliffjumper1984]

Lol it's like hearing other youtubers reminding us that that worked at gamestop at some point

[@dewlibertybrew426]

Isn't Stella a really good 2600 emulator that can emulate pretty much all 2600 games perfectly and has been able to for many years? Why is the version for the Retron 77 and 2600+ so broken that it can't support bank switching? I feel like I'm missing something here.

[@madmax2069]

It's not Stella, it's the fact that both are cart dumpers, so any game that uses additional hardware on the cart is pretty much out of the question unless the additional hardware in said carts is also emulated. A cart dumper is pretty much self explanatory, when you turn the system on with a cart inserted it dumps the cart into onboard memory and after that it doesn't communicate with the cart any longer so it would have no way to use the required extra hardware that's on said cart.

[@dewlibertybrew426]

@@madmax2069 But shouldn't Stella be able to emulate the functions of that extra hardware? So the system is basically ripping the cart to a rom, correct? Roms of games that use extra hardware run fine on the PC version of Stella. Shouldn't it be like the FX chip in SNES games where the emulator also emulates the extra chips a cartridge uses?

[@madmax2069]

@@dewlibertybrew426 that depends on how good the SOC is on the device. Because there's a few 2600 home brew games that use an ARM CPU for additional processing, and that could be far too much for the SOC in the emulation device to handle. Not only are you emulation the 2600, you would have to be emulating any additional hardware, and that could bring a weak SOC to its knees, we're not talking about a PC (or even a lower end smart phone) in terms of processing power here, the SOC in these are usually far far far weaker. And then there's the flash carts, it's not going to matter what you do a modern flash cart is not going to work, ever.

[@CaptainRufus]

It does not sound like I want this thing. At all. Darn.

[@RobertGuido]

I don't know if this is marketed towards the hardcore Atari fan base or casual gamers or what. However, thinking about a dip switch cartridge, most casual people are too lazy to pop a DVD in to watch a movie. They'd rather just pull it off streaming I don't see them getting down on their hands and knees and doing ditch which is just to play missile command

[@greybush38]

I got a Raspberry Pi with a Stella adapter that works better than this!

[@janwilt6974]

Guys, did anyone think that this is 7800 in a 2600 case with 100% compatible with all 2600 games with HDMI upgrade!

[@KartKing4ever]

I was excited as well. Had no idea this thing will have so many issues. I can get over the emulation thing if all of my original games worked on the thing, but as stated, some of the best games on the console are unplayable here.

[@Ruleof2Review]

This thing looks dope to me!

[@phat-kid]

i just don't get it because my atari 2600 i got from a flea market for $15 in 2019 wasn't working but all i had to do was open it up and connect a ribbon cable or something like that. they basically don't break. but now all the games i have on my list to collect are going to go up in price even more than they did because of the market manipulation from fake collectors (people who think games are investments, not games) post covid.

[@phat-kid]

but also the 80 pound crt flat screen i found on a curb on trash day by my house in 2021 was free, and kids are paying $300 plus shipping or something stupid like that for crappy crt's off of ebay. so i guess it makes sense a lot of people never go outside to find stuff at flea markets and dumpster diving and thrift stores. they just watch youtube and order whatever thing from our childhoods, from before they were born, is trendy on ebay lol.

[@retropocalypse1984]

It's the current majority shareholders.They are only about Atari as a novelty.

[@metronome8471]

"You're all wrong! The whole world is wrong!"- Rei Ryghts, 'Goddess of Tari.

[@brianclimbs1509]

I think the switches on the cart is needed for back compatibility with old 2600s isn't it? Could you make a back compatible menu with bank switching?

[@madmax2069]

No. The switches on the multi cart are due to the fact that the 2600+ is a cart dumper. It could never work with a 2600/7800 flash cart (harmony cart, Concerto cart) because it dumps the cart to on board memory to run from.

[@brianclimbs1509]

Are you saying that a multi game cart would work on an original 2600, but not the 2600+?@@madmax2069

[@maroon9273]

Trouble, after vcs they want to release a software emulated 2600+. Atari need a backward compatible fpga console that plays all atari game console, mobile and atari pc games. Compatible with atari os alongside windows 10 and its OS.

[@RetroMythologist]

Ohhh.. I had totally assumed this was FPGA. Why would they not? That would actually be cool.

[@madmax2069]

Because it would be far too expensive, the cost of the system would be out of reach for many. You can pretty much safely assume that the price would be around double than it's current cost if it was to use FPGA

[@nicelytoastedd]

THEY SAID THEY TESTED AIR RAID

[@DiceRobo]

they used the cartridge from that lady on ebay

[@als81940]

I'll wait for the Polymega module!!🤔🤣

[@JerBuster77]

"It can play old Atari games" Oh cool, just need to get a shovel and dig up that old copy of E.T. I got rid of back in the 80's.

[@incognitro1420]

I can play all of these games on the Atari 50 Collection. Why would I purchase this console?

[@The_Haze]

You guys are shitting all over this. Come on. It will be better than the Retron 77 if they are using the latest version of Sella. According to the Sella Wikipedia page version 6.7 supports bank switching and is compatible with most Atari 2600 games. Time will tell though... We won't know until it's been released.

[@DiceRobo]

The compatibility is by far the worst thing about this. If it did have at least like 95% compatibility, I would call it a slam dunk. I actually like the Dip switch just from the viewpoint of something that would work on both an original and on this system, if you want convenience, get the 50th collection. Also I'm going to have to hard disagree with the more general Hyperkin comparison, I bought one of their NES clones and the "procube" wii U controller, and both were made of the worst most garbage plastic i've ever used. I would rather play games with gamestop's gamecube controller than that terrible thing. A high quality plastic replica that doesn't do anything is worth more to me than any "functional" console that hyperkin makes (maybe that's why i was tempted to buy the Lego atari 2600....)

[@pureprophit1670]

What’s up with the envelope in the background??? It says Larry’s Manly on it. Who the heck is Larry??? Why does Pat Think he’s so Manly???

[@JNAMOTORSPORTS]

Hope it’s real wood also just charge more

[@JumboJosh-lv3mo]

Atari has there’s higher quality, and doesn’t break if you breathe on it compared to the 77. 7800 games are here too with 10 free games. Also the NES classic was the same damn way and that couldn’t even run cartridges.