Playing ATARI 7800 Games on a Tube TV - Mike Matei Live

[@dannysummers4591]

nothing beats the vibe of being in a room lit up by the glow of a CRT

[@B0nehead85]

The funny thing is. If your under, i guess, 20, then you may never have seen one. Crazy

[@professorpenne9962]

damn straight

[@arunca190]

“Tv colored walls.” What song? 😜

[@dannysummers4591]

Farthest back I go is NES, but I could understand the sentimental value of Atari era games.

[@anavash]

'struth!

[@ramzen89]

I grew up on Genesis, SNES and NES, so I missed out on Atari when I was younger. When I played the Atari 50th Collection, it really helped me appreciate just how far video games have come in 50 years, truly amazing. I loved Food Fight (Arcade version), Black Widow and Tempest 2000. I also enjoyed the interviews with Atari staff, from the drug use, too all the brainstorming that went on there. It was historical and educational, a great over view of where our passions in life started, or to barrow a quote from the Atari CEO, "our Genesis story".

[@matthewcasiglio2539]

I also grew up on Genesis super Nintendo and nes so I also missed out on Atari when I was younger when I played the Atari compilation for ds it really helped me appreciate just how far video games have come in 50 years truly amazing so far of what I've played I like millipede blackjack concentration brain 🧠 games and code breaker I never looked at the interviews with Atari staff from the drug use to all the brainstorming that went on there

[@lonreed9743]

Everytime I fire up the CRT my oldest son will come in the room asking what that buzzing/ringing sound is. We were all used to that growing up in the 80s and 90s.

[@brettdulaney299]

I was one of those unlucky kids back in the day, Christmas 87 or 88 me and my brother got a 7800 instead of NES ,food fight and desert falcon was my two favorites, choplifter wasn't bad,the 7800 version of centipede is two players which is cool thanks Mike

[@technoman9000]

I recently picked up a tube tv I saw on the side of the road, 27" Samsung from 2004. It's in great condition. I've been watching episodes of the Twilight Zone on it, good times. I need to set up one of these old consoles.

[@panpaletkalg2550]

so here's the story about Dark Chambers and Gauntlet (from AtariProtos.com) "At first glance it's easy to pass Dark Chambers off as a mere Gauntlet clone. However did you know that it's Gauntlet that's the clone? For you see, Dark Chambers is actually based off an 1983 APX (Atari Program Exchange) game by John Palevich called Dandy. Two years later Ed Logg created his arcade mega hit Gauntlet, using Dandy as inspiration. John was none too happy about this and planned to file a lawsuit, but later settled out of court (rumor has it he received a free Gauntlet machine). A few years later in 1988, Atari re-published Dandy for the 2600, 7800, and XE under the name Dark Chambers. This time however Atari gave John proper credit and no lawsuits were filed."

[@jsdirtygamez]

love being able to watch the yt vids when i miss it live. thanks for all the awesome content Mike.

[@timhowland7103]

My lord this brings back some memories! I remember the day we got out 7800. Pole Position II, Food Fight, Dig Dug. So much fun!

[@jaredbrown691]

Tower toppler has a level select based on the difficult switches settings. You have to change it so that it doesn’t keep moving to the next level. Kind of nice being able to move to different levels if you suck at the game like I do.

[@lewdshroom6176]

Thanks for the nostalgia trip Mike!

[@erichalfabeez]

I knew about the Atari 7800 back in the day, but didn't know anyone who had one. I was always curious how it was. I'm glad you did the stream the way you did because you also made it about the console experience and not just the games themselves. The games remind me a lot of Sega Master System games in general, but too bad the carts don't have gold pins like the SMS ones do. I was surprised how good Dark Chambers looked, I did a search and they have it on that Atari 50th Collection on Steam.

[@brettdulaney299]

I had one when it was new, it was a huge step up from the 2600 that I was used to but it wasn't nothing on the nes,or even the master system

[@salsa101]

food fight was one of the few games I liked on atari. I got my score so high that it crashed. I'm liking the glow of the tv. it's like watching an 80's movie scene with arcade monitors in the background.

[@JMFabiano]

Good time for this video....as a 7800 was my Christmas gift when my dad wasn't ready for paying for a NES. 1987 or 1988, if I remember correctly.

[@oldmandandan]

My favorite parts of this stream were: 1) Mike talking about how much better Robotron: 2084 for 7800 would be with twin stick controls. 2) Mike talking about he had enjoyed the twin stick controls for the NES SMASH TV port and how he had forgotten that it was a thing. 3) Mike not knowing or realizing that Robotron: 2084 for 7800 supports twin stick controls.

[@retrogamingknight]

From what I understand, only 1 button 7800 games and 2600 games will work with a Sega Genesis controller. You can apparently mod a Genesis controller to work with all the games though.

[@crt_rex]

I record playing on old tubes for the aesthetic as well, Mike. I'm a big fan of yours, and I love watching your streams, especially the rare ones like this! You did a great job matching the refresh rate and avoiding moire patterns, well done.

[@mikematei]

crts are best

[@crt_rex]

@@OriginalMasters I know, I lost a lot of sleep at night thinking about this, felt into a deep depression, ended up jacking it in in San Diego - but eventually, I recovered from Mike Matei's lack of acknowledgement of my existence, then went back to just watching his streams in the shadows.

[@robertdecrescenzo1057]

I just saw this. @Mike Matei - I am the author of Asteroids Deluxe... Two things: - If you hold the fire button down, Asteroids Deluxe will repeat fire. Granted, not as fast as you probably would like, but it will repeat fire. - The reason why some games don't work with a Genesis controller, is because of the 'auto detect' code that attempts to tell the difference between the CX-40 (Atari single Button Joystick) and the Pro-Line controller (two button controller that we all hate). The Genesis controller causes the auto-detect code to mis-detect the type, and you get the 2nd button "held down" like you show there (In Asteroids Deluxe it forces the shields on - and you cannot fire while having the shields on). Off the top of my head, Asteroids, Asteroids Deluxe, and I *believe* Xevious have the auto-detect code in there. There are a few others I think, including some of my homebrews, that use this auto-detect code. Some of my other homebrews let you alternatively force select the type with the difficulty switches (i.e. Bentley Bear's Crystal Quest) I hope this helps!

[@ebgepicbadassgamer7295]

Looks like fun Mike nothing I'd better than playing atari 7800 on the crt with the original controllers with the sounds of crickets lol

[@tripperjoe1699]

I bought the 7800 back in 87? I was around 12 or 13 with birthday money. I was kinda out of the loop of video games at the time, and saw the Master System NES & 7800. All I knew was the name Atari and bought the 7800, shortly after I played both the nes and MS. I got a NES next Christmas. I use to borrow a Master System from a spoiled friend of mine. I loved all 3 systems, never knew anyone with a turbo grafx

[@erogin7187]

The first occurrence of ‘ginormous’ I know of is Jazz in The Transformers movie, when he sees Unicron.

[@dan_evilrobot]

I miss playing video games on CRT Television. Someday I'll eventually buy myself a CRT TV in the future or soon. Also great camera work for the stream.

[@KartKing4ever]

I was born in 1996 and have seen none episodes. I'm here because I found AVGN when I was 11-12 and the rest is history. I've collected since 2009 because of you guys. The entire shelf of bullshit behind me is thanks to you guys. Pepper jack.

[@BoozyBeggar]

Desert Falcon is actually pretty good, you just didn't know how the came works. You can fly in the game, but you were on the ground the whole time. If you noticed, there were enemies flying over you, so you alternate between ground and air combat, and flying is much faster than walking on the ground. My brother had the game, but I was terrible at games when he was playing, so I can't really help on how it works. You might even need an actual 7800 controller or something, idk, maybe the analog stick is necessary. I don't know much about 7800 apart from enjoying my brother and his older friends playing it.

[@Mephianse81]

My girlfriends kids complain about a loud buzz when I play on my old CRT. I know this is a frequency or whatever adults can't hear but I never recall hearing this in my youth. I mean I remember the humm of a crt, but I still hear that.

[@mikematei]

I didnt hear it back then either. Watched tube tvs since i was born. I call bullshit.

[@AgainsaidBen]

I think you get the hum on "old" TVs. They weren't old back then. There was probably a light hum before but the sound from the TV covered it up.

[@Mephianse81]

@@mikematei thats what I've been sayin!

[@robertthrelfall2650]

It's usually 30k hertz. I used to hear it as a kid, not so much anymore.

[@unlovableshinshin]

@@robertthrelfall2650 15.7khz, only PC CRTs would have been at 30khz

[@warchild9381]

1:34:00 there is no component mod for the 2600, but as you mentioned, if the Atari 2600 is RGB modded, then you can get the Retrotink rgb2comp transcoder. You can either use it just using the console going from scart --> component, or use it like how I use it, with the transcoder in my setup going from my gscart out to a CRT (I use a D-Series JVC because it has component inputs). It looks great!

[@warchild9381]

1:41:24 oh, and also, if you use a Genesis controller, only one button will work on that controller. The 7800 as you know, uses two seperate buttons, and unless you mod the Genesis controller you won't be able to use both buttons, which makes 7800 games unplayable. Hope this information helps even though this video was a month ago. EDIT: Just saw @ 1:58:07 that you point out that you wish there was a Genesis controller that could work with all 7800 games.

[@tripperjoe1699]

Desert Falcons better if you actually tried to fly

[@DigitalNomad765]

Wow very nostalgic Atari 7800 love the old school games

[@Kaos1989]

Its worth mentioning the retrotink 5x has different scanlines modes you can use on a direct capture, not sure how it would come across on twitch or youtube tho.

[@subtledemisefox]

The 7800 was my first experience with gaming, and Food Fight is one of my favorites as well!

[@DanielBurapavong]

This was my first video game console, the Atari 7800. Then the NES. I'm 40.

[@mikematei]

I'm 42. We had Atari 2600, then I got C64 and NES. As a kid I did not have 5200 or 7800. Got them later on probably once ebay happened around 99-2001

[@DavidBirchphoto1.]

Enjoyed this stream, you can really appreciate the charm Atari games have.

[@golden_eldorado]

I like the TV angle. Back in the old times, if you were playing video games at a friend’s house you would never get to be in front of the TV. You would sit on one side of the couch and you would be in an angle, just like this 🙂

[@yarunibun]

Hey Mike, about component on the 2600, the creator of the rgb board created a component adapter-board that can be installed in his nes and 2600 rgb boards! Its a very small piece and port that gets installed into the system, so it shouldnt be too much to have it installed, and youll be able to play the 2600 on your wega! Hope that helps!

[@mikematei]

Know where to get?

[@yarunibun]

@@mikematei I think my comment got hidden because it had the link in it, but its on Tim Worthingtons store, out of stock for now. Its nice thought since its just a small addon board to the rgb mod and doesnt nesd a whole new mod

[@crt_rex]

@@mikematei Hi Mike, I know where to get it that is in stock right now, from a store called Old Skool Consoles. I got mine from there and it works perfectly with your RGB modded 2600, NES, all that. I have in all my RGB consoles, as I have a YPbPr-only Trinitron. He's Tim's official distributor in the UK, and he ships worldwide. Shipping would be even quicker than Australia. I cannot link it here as KZbin will remove the comment, but just google these words: "kit add-on nes rgb component out oldskoolconsoles" - and it should be the first result. Very cheap and very easy to install.

[@LPCC]

at the very end of the stream around (3:51:00) you invent your own calendar... does this ever happen again on stream? if so plz share the stream. the gregorian calendar we use is equivalent to rocky & bullwinkle on nes no matter how you slice it, ask Carlin via Carson the next time you time-travel in a DeLorian but don't forget the GigaWatts.

[@mamefan]

I did a video of Crossbow with MAME and an AimTrak gun. I never understood the color paths but made it to the final boss somehow. I remember seeing the cabinet as a kid and wanting to play it, but I think I was too young.

[@tripperjoe1699]

Some 7800 games aren't compatible with the Sega controllers

[@KrunchyTheClown78]

I have my 7800 connected through RF with that little simple adaptor, and it looks almost as good as composite.

[@possumgrits825]

Seagull 78 controller adapter turns Genesis controller into a 2 button 7800 controller.

[@possumgrits825]

Love the 7800. Great show. Thanks.

[@datassetteuser356]

Nice stream, love the 7800 and Atari in general. As for Tower Topler: I had the same issue with my game. It seems you have to try the A and B switches in the front in a certain position and switch the system on. Forgot what the game was looking for specifically but then it will start with the difficulty switches in a certain position. Strange stuff.

[@madmax2069]

I love Atari for what they've done, and I hate Atari for what they've done.

[@TheTogoRojo]

The fn master of variety. I love this. Your streams with erin on her secondary channel are underrated. I really liked the dreamcast stuff.

[@P__114]

What’s that channel called?

[@HiNRGboy]

@@P__114 Erin_Plays Extras I think?

[@Rubberneck1965]

1:03:51 1:04:25 1:12:42 1:14:44 1:43:48 ... I still enjoy introducing people to that song 3:01:30

[@willweisgerber245]

Sorry Mike late to the party, and I’m sure this has been mentioned, but your sega Genesis controller is the problem. Not compatible on the Atari 7800 games that require the second fire button.

[@DannyDeVoid]

Hey Mike late comment but I found an adapter that corrects some of the issues you were having with your Genesis controller. Checkout the Seagull 78 Controller adapter on Atari Age. It makes the genesis controller %100 compatible with the 7800. You dont need the adapter for 2600, but as it turns out quite a few 7800 games "freak out" with other controllers. Hope this helps!

[@golden_eldorado]

My favorite cheese? Edam, Gouda, "Mahonés" from Menorca and Cheddar. When I go to the States I always have some Jack Cheese and some American Cheese.

[@cannedworms1814]

Commando is supposed to have music that comes from a POKEY audio chip inside the cartridge. It was one of two games that had an extra chip for higher quality sound (the other is Ballblazer). Either the POKEY in your cartridge is faulty or something to do with the connection to your TV. EDIT: Just watched the Ballblazer bit and there was no sound as well so I suspect it is the connection to your TV

[@anavash]

God darnit I can't believe I missed this stream. Good stuff!

[@btr3k]

Ballblazer actually has the best audio of all the 7800 games, and is a fun game, too bad about the experience here. It's basically one on one soccer, and auto-aims you toward the ball/opponent, or toward the goal when you have the ball. It works pretty well for a one-joystick control method, but takes some getting used to as your camera auto-aims in 90 degree increments. Not really a pick up and play game that lends itself well to livestreaming though.

[@mikematei]

even if i learned the game off stream im not big on soccer

[@btr3k]

@@mikematei Ha! Fair enough - at least you know it's a style of game you don't like. Still, shame the sound wasn't working right (Commando, the other game with an extra sound chip should have music too, come to think of it). Well anyway

[@knowwon3658]

@@btr3k My brother used to play this game religiously on the C64. I would sit there and watch with NO IDEA what was going on lol.

[@EliteEleven11]

Thanks for streaming then putting these out quick on YT.

[@robertcatania1120]

Hey Mike is there a controller (with dongle) that you recommend for these ROM systems? I know you mentioned that you were using a Genesis one is that the one you would recommend buying? The ones I use, all the buttons end up sticking and are basically crap. Really would like to buy a good one I can use for multiple console platforms.

[@bba935]

Commando is on the NES. I think it was the third game I owned on the NES.

[@Zevis48]

How about streaming Conkers Bad Fur Day? Would also make for a good James and Mike session, or even, an AVGN episode.

[@lukejansen3540]

since you asked, my favorite cheese is camembert cheese. but i most commonly use tasty cheese. do what you want with that information lol

[@charlesbronson4282]

Spider Fighter is one of the greatest games of all time...

[@Zerroth]

Do you have a Sega sg-1000?

[@mikematei]

yeah

[@madmax2069]

Sega Genesis using the seagull 78, or the euro CX78 joypads. I do have a 7800 painline joystick, I just don't use it for obvious reasons.

[@leon_De_Grelle]

Whatever happened to the Atari 10400 and 13000?

[@fazewadkiller666]

I like longer video like this so I chill and relax

[@jasonjones6346]

Sweet I waited so long for this. Thanks Mike 👍

[@Jeff-r2p]

Miss old Atari system 5200 7800

[@cartridgegamer5224]

Hey Mike, I bought a Atari 7800 controller adaptor cord attachment for genesis controller from Ebay months ago for 40 dollar, I hope by now someone told you about this device if not there u go. The product is called the seagull 78 & it's still available I just looked it up.

[@StylixDS]

Do you have at TI-99 computer? That was the console I grew up with before NES came along and I dont usually see a lot of people talking about it

[@pmatt8686]

What sizes are ur crts?

[@panpaletkalg2550]

Mike do you have the Atari CX-78 gamepad? From what i understand you didn't get those in US, they look a bit like NES controller, just a simple rectangle with d--pad, but black. They are kinda crappy but work better then any joystick i had back in the day for my Atari XE

[@mikematei]

Yeah I do have one.

[@philsmith3261]

Great stream Mike, nice to see you cover the less known systems! Looking forward to your Amstrad GX4000 or Casio Loopy Streams soon. Not here to complain, just to compliment! It's a shame that you can't pause 2600 games on a 7800! I thought you could back in the day! I use a regular Sega Master System paid on my Atari with no auto fire and Tower Toppler & Asteroids works fine with it.

[@Steambull1]

Aspect ratio and pixel clarity seem very good on this telly setup. Unlike the NES, the system's display resolutions match the 1.33:1 spot on, at least on NTSC. It's a shame that this system doesn't have more exclusives, but it does deliver really solid versions of many classics. Just like on 2600, I prefer this Ms. Pac-Man over the Arcade for some reason.

[@BoozyBeggar]

Mike, you should consider ONLY streaming classic non-polygonal games on tube TVs with a camera pointed at the screen. I always enjoy these classic games streams more when you do that. Does anyone else even do this? It could be a new trademark for you.

[@mikematei]

Eh. I will sometimes for sure. But I like to mix it up.

[@frankbrousseau322]

wow i actually passed out to this last light...with all the blips and bloops

[@j.d.6915]

Chunky chunky pixels.

[@explosivemonkeys]

Extra old cheddar is my favorite.

[@PaulieBlue]

I wonder if Mike is watching the world cup? I know he is a massive sports fan.

[@mikematei]

realsports vollyball atari 2600. Thats all I need

[@pjbackgammon9266]

methinks Mike is amazeballs at playing videogames

[@kingerikthegreatest.ofall.7860]

Never had a 7800, but played the crap out of 2600.

[@mrben6573]

2:47:52 Incorrect, Mike. Gauntlet ripped off a game called Dandy (later Dandy Dungeon) programmed by John Palevich. He sued Atari for ripping off his game and Atari settled out of court. Later Atari would rework Dandy Dungeon as Dark Chambers for the Atari 2600, 7800, and 8-bit, but Palevich wasn't involved. I assume he got some royalties from the deal. All of the Dandy / Dark Chambers games have the weird quirk of strong enemies transforming into weaker enemies when you shoot them. All of them play pretty similar and have similar features. If you'd like to play a game that (I believe) was inspired by Dandy / Dark Chambers you should play Arkista's Ring for the NES. You tried it out on a stream and said it seemed ok. I've beaten it several times and I like it. You have to beat the game loop 3 times for the real ending and it gets pretty hard.

[@mikematei]

Hmm okay. I dont know the old history of Gauntlet rights so I'll assume you are right on that

[@ProdriveGT]

How big is your crt mike?

[@mikematei]

I have multiple. But the one in this video 27"

[@1200hobos]

More please

[@dontcryy4me]

mike when you run out of consoles to stream you could always do a sports game stream XD

[@panpaletkalg2550]

every Madden version ever

[@modernhockeycards]

Ballbrazer really blazed my balls.

[@scottpiwinski7610]

How about a stream of the Philips CD-I

[@TheTogoRojo]

1230 3:37:29 crazy balloon is better than the newest anything

[@Zonarius]

My favourite cheeses are soft cheeses like camembert.

[@andyauthor2007]

Best 7800 game: Desert Falcon. Both Desert Falcon and Karateka should have been on Atari 50.

[@mikematei]

Like awesome! Like, I bet I'd Like that Atari 50 game. 😏

[@professorpenne9962]

1:04:20 pretty damn accurate

[@jmc9]

Atari (26/52/78) forever! Also zelda 1 & 2 hacks. And, looking forward to the second-half of OG Gameboy A-Z. Many thanks!

[@pinkiesisu]

it is called a SHOOTER

[@professorpenne9962]

1:12:35 on is some good dk jr rage

[@HiNRGboy]

Intellivision stream in the near future possibly?

[@SoyAntonioGaming]

u should try atari 50

[@kawtrone666]

CRT!!!!!

[@Bubba__Sawyer]

Seems like the 7800's only purpose was to upgrade old Atari titles. Funny how a system released 3 years after the NES pales in comparison in every single way. Not 1 title looks like it can compete with even the worst NES titles. You'd think they'd have tried to make a system that was something more akin to the Master System which had much better colors than the NES. The 5200 already proved that Atari owners weren't gonna shell out the cash just for some updated graphics of games they've already played. Then when Atari actually tried to innovate and beat Nintendo and SEGA to the market with 3D graphics, the system flopped hard because the technology for 3D graphics was still in the early experimental stage and nowhere near ready to put out to the consumer yet. The Jaguar was actually a very capable 2D system though. Rayman looked every bit as good as Donkey Kong Country and Vectorman.

[@KrunchyTheClown78]

The 7800 was a victim of super cheap crappy game development, which made the console look grossly inferior to the NES. But have you seen the new homebrews? They look better than the Master System.

[@Bubba__Sawyer]

@@KrunchyTheClown78 I'll check some of them out!

[@KrunchyTheClown78]

Dragon's Havoc is a horizontal shmup, and is gorgeous and colorful with amazing parallax scrolling. That's one you should check out for sure.

[@briangriffin697]

I know this isn't a hack stream but have you thought about doing any super metroid hacks Mike?

[@matthewcasiglio2539]

Personally I've never heard of dick cheese 🧀 but even so my favorite flavors still remain the same(pepper 🫑🌶️ Jack swiss American cheddar mozzarella and parmesan/romano)

[@Spawn3X5]

Now thats old

[@DoubleAAmazin]

sharp cheddar from the Amish

[@diamondking1969]

What about the word Humongous 🤔

[@Kourumeme]

Miss talk about games

[@mikematei]

Hopefully we'll do some streams eventually. He's a busy person which is why we had to stop.

[@Bassmakerboom]

What is up with Alvin and the Chipmunks clips randomly thrown in out of nowhere?

[@mikematei]

🍎

[@mamefan]

Theodore wants to show you his a______.

[@Raw-guitar]

I 💘 Mike.

[@downforwardjab5503]

Smoked Gouda!

[@lordjoeking2434]

You should play trouble dragon on sega master