The 20 Greatest Atari 5200 Games of All-Time

[@kenwheeler3637]

The much improved version of Pac-Man was the main reason I bought the system. Fortunately I waited until they decided to include it, along with Super Breakout, with the system.

[@johnathanstevens8436]

Pacman, Pengo and QIX were my favorite. Realsports Baseball was cool at the time since it used digitized effects.

[@SlippinnnJimmy]

The 5200 hosts the very best version of Pitfall II, by far. The real challenge doesn't even start on the 5200 until the end of the normal map.

[@shaggy791]

And Jungle Hunt, Pole Position, Frogger, Wizards of Wor and some others!

[@cabbitkisser2620]

back in the 80's i never knew that atari made the 5200 or the 7800. until the 90's when i found a couple of atari 5200 at goodwill for cheap. i bought both of them & i found a lot of game's thru goodwill at the time. this was before the internet & ebay was a thing.

[@jacobwebb2623]

Great video!!!!! I always loved the 5200 games, I just couldn't get the controllers to last very long.

[@mrmojorisin8752]

Best “Best Of” list I’ve seen. For me, Dreadnaught Factor, Space Dungeon, Robotron, and Defender are the top of the top.

[@malcolmar]

Agreed!

[@Mrshoujo]

Oddly enough, all 5200 games just needed a patch & could have been re-released on the XEGS since it was just an Atari computer underneath. A vote for the 5200 is a vote for Atari 8-bit computers. The main reason Centipede for the Atari 8-bit / 5200 sounds like the arcade is they use the same sound chip!

[@johnathanstevens8436]

It was insane that there was supposedly such competition between the home computer and console divisions of Atari.

[@JosephLuppens]

Missile Command with the track ball was amazing, as was Pac-Man. Another amazing 5200 port that doesn't get enough love is Pengo.

[@taylora8845]

Great list! I really loved Moon Patrol also Super Cobra also, being side scrollers that also had "endings" preceding Super Mario Bros. Keep up the great work! 😎

[@MrMegaManFan]

A very underrated console, but it really helps if you have the joystick adapter.

[@b.o.4492]

I loved my Atari 5200 with sticks made in their MEXICO factory. Those were the best. Love the games.

[@themadmoderator8465]

had some great conversions on the 5200

[@kevinstrade2752]

Best of all time for me, Star Raiders. I mastered that game as a kid and poured 1000's of hours playing it. But a newer release is a close second, Blaster, hypnotic to me and an amazing story behind it.

[@TheLairdsLair]

Yeah Blaster is amazing, very underrated.

[@jessietomich8043]

My dad bought me one in the 80s. I played it a lot. My mom gave that switch box for the TV away at a garage sale making it unuseable because it back fed the power through the video cable.

[@billyg8614]

Had the 5200 back in early '83. We had Missile Command, Pac-Man, Ms. Pac Man, Joust, Pole Position, Star Raiders, Star Wars, Qix, and a few others. The games seemed closer to the arcade originals than my neighbor's Atari 2600 VCS.

[@jeff-ds2pr]

HERO, Gremlins, Wizard of Wor, Blueprint, and Pitfall 2 were some great games for the system as well.

[@Hologhoul]

I've enjoyed checking out the 5200 in recent times via emulation. Some great ports, nice to see the console get some respect despite the controller issues! What impresses me with arcade conversions generally is how many times the feel of the game is recreated, not only the visuals and sound. Defender, for example, has dozens of great versions across a plethora of systems.

[@mikewest6569]

To give you an example about how powerful and ahead of its time the Atari 8-bit systems were, most of these games were ports from the Atari 800. A machine that was developed in 1977 and released in 1979. The chip set was so powerful it continued into the early 90s.

[@VdrummerStixx777]

Real Sports Baseball is my personal favorite, batting was excellent and pitching with the key pad was a stroke of genius so much fun

[@buffalodebill1976]

I played all these games on the Atari 800XL with the 7800's ProLine joystick (the CX-24). Very ocassionally, I could use friend's 2600's TrakBall (the CX-22), which, as I recall, made Super Breakout actually playable (and in a result, super enjoyable - even more than using paddles). I do not recall playing other games with it, but I'd assume that its clones and games like Missile Command (which this video inspired me to do a playthrough of), Centipede & Millipede & co. and a few more may have been much more playable & enjoyable, as a result of having more control over the "cursor" position. BTW considering that the 5200 had only some 70 games released during its life, I think that these 20 ones seem to be a nice showcase of what this system (and the whole line of Atari 8-bit home computers, for that matter) was capable of. Thumbs up.

[@nickpalance3622]

Sad to see that Mario Bros. and Moon Patrol and Vanguard did not make the list. Those games, published by Atari, were favorites of mine. For other publishers, I also enjoyed Megamania and Miner 2049er. I played those two a LOT. I did not see Lucasfilm games on the shelves during the prime of the 5200. I played them on my cousin’s C64 and once I had a 1050 disk drive for my 800XL I played them on that. The Eidolon wasn’t even offered on the 5200 but I liked that fractal-y game even more than Rescue!

[@Trenchbroom]

Great video. I would argue that Fire Truck from Atari (1978) was the first cooperative video game. The cabinet had player one sitting at a wheel driving the front of the fire truck with player two driving the rear of the truck from a standing position behind player one (steering the wheel in the opposite direction, just like fire trucks of old). I only got to play this game a few times in the 1970s but I enjoyed it immensely (there was a single player version called Smokey Joe but it wasn't nearly as fun).

[@TheLairdsLair]

Good point, in that you play as the same "character" though, whereas in Joust you are independent - so they both have a claim for different reasons.

[@d.vaughn8990]

Sorry…day late/dollar short. Here are my late pics: 1. Defender 2. Ms. Pac-Man 3. Galaxian 4. Qix 5. Joust These are the games, that I reach for first. But I really enjoy most of the library.

[@techsaverscomputerrepairca2127]

The Atari 5200 should never have existed. We should have gotten something like the XEGS instead, but Atari didn't want to compete with its other divisions, which is the kind of bonehead thinking that killed the Warner Atari. It would have done nothing except make the computer line more popular overall. I have to admit I lusted after the 5200 when it first came out. The hardware looks great, with the sharp profile, metallic badge and rainbow lettering. Beautiful. But then I got one and despised it for several reasons. I didn't keep it long, especially once the ColecoVision and then the 7800 entered my life.

[@drno-xc1yt]

I wonder how much more successful the 5200 would have been if they hadn't made so many head-scratching hardware choices - the legendarily fragile joysticks, the bizarre power brick/RF adapter, and then the 2600 adapter wouldn't work with the earliest 5200 consoles.

[@TheLairdsLair]

Totally agree, the 5200 should have been what the XEGS was.

[@michaelmalak]

Wow, I didn't even know Activision made games for the 5200. My only exposure to the 5200 was playing ports to the 800 done by the late "5200 man" Glenn Botts, whom I knew personally. So if he didn't convert a title, I wasn't really aware of it.

[@TheLairdsLair]

Glenn has done some amazing work porting the 5200 only games across.

[@nickpalance3622]

I had Megamania for (and only for) the 5200. Loved it! Played it to death.

[@guyincogneto8979]

No Berzerk? Criminal. Other than play coming to a stop to announce the Evil Ones entrance, it was a perfect recreation of the arcade. 2 fun notes: with Dig Dug, when it goes to the example screen, you can actually play the pump, but have no control of direction. On PacMan, if you can get to the last key ( 7, I think ), when you eat a power dot, the bad guys stay ghosts until eaten. You can clear the entire maze without them going back to normal.

[@TheLairdsLair]

I agree, would have probably been one of my top picks personally.

[@caeserromero3013]

13:57 early appearance by Baywatch's Yasmine Bleeth...

[@TheLairdsLair]

Didn't know that!

[@patsfan4life]

Run Yasmeen, run!

[@ridiculous_gaming]

I never picked one up until the 2000s, but back in the day,vI enjoyed all of these titles first on my Atari 600xl, 800xl and then later 130xe; very fond memories.

[@TheLairdsLair]

The XL/XE is a better way to play all these games really.

[@ridiculous_gaming]

@TheLairdsLair You are right, most games were not intended for analogue control.

[@Ghost-Chatting]

The 5200 is a gd arcade beast I knew it!, When these became bargin bin fodder in Nz and surprisingly before the Master system even released I had made a solid argument with myself over the next few weekends comparing the high priced Nintendo the outdated 2600 c64 you name it I had convinced myself this is what I wanted and needed all from the pages of darn store flyers convincing someone to purchase this for me however didn't go so well and I soon forgot about it over the coming summer months and year's

[@VIC-20]

NZ - New Zealand? 5200 never made it outside USA

[@awwrelic]

An excellent list (and I have most of these games in my own collection). Very surprised though, not to see Mountain King, River Raid and the excellent Pitfall II. Some mighty fine gameplay in all three, with better graphics than their 2600 counterparts.

[@TheLairdsLair]

Yeah as I said in the intro, the lack of votes for Activision games really surprised me.

[@VIC-20]

People who voted never actually played many of these ports. The results are telling.

[@GCSoundArtifacts]

It was surprising to me to have some titles that I don't see being mentioned with great regard: Dreadnought Factor (which I am familiar with from the Atari 8-bit computer), Space Dungeon... And I should get to know them a bit more! It's also surprising not to see more Activision games, especially considering they did fantastic adaptations of their classic games in the Atari 5200 (I mentioned Pitfall 2 and H.E.R.O.). Seeing Keystone Kapers in the intro made me stunned, asking myself "WHAT?! WHY IT ISN'T IN THE LIST!?". I also missed Vanguard, which I mentioned in my list. It was great to see my comment on my beloved Montezuma's Revenge, though. For as much as I can enjoy a Centipede, Montezuma's Revenge is the very kind of game that makes me want to play more and more. It was also great to see the editing improvement: watching the game itself while you talk and, afterwards, the text commentary. My suggestion for the Greatest Games of All Time: Is there any ColecoVision video? If not, I think it's time. Thanks!

[@TheLairdsLair]

Quite a few Activision games in the Top 40 with Vanguard, but I thought at least H.E.R.O. and Pitfall II would make it in. ColecoVision is certainly on the list, this time round it was a toss up between the 5200, CV and Vectrex.

[@uhf7618x]

Played Mario Bros, Popeye, Pengo and Vanguard most when we had our system. Surprised Berzerk didn't make the list

[@TheLairdsLair]

Yeah I was shocked at the lack of votes for Berzerk, the 5200 version is amazing.

[@AgentM79]

I’m surprised at some of the top picks here. 5200 Galaxian pales in comparison to the Colecovision port. The animation is jerky and the screen feels “squashed”. 5200 Frogger requires the fire button to be pressed for each jump. I find it unplayable. And in what universe doesn’t 5200 Berzerk, complete with voice, not make the Top 5?????? Lot’s to agree with, of course. Star Raiders and Defender benefit greatly from the multi-button 5200 controller, and Ms. Pac Man, Qix, Pac Man (ESPECIALLY Pac-Man), Missile Command, and Centipede are SUPERIOR to their 400/800/XL counterparts. Additionally, with a WICO controller, properly calibrated, the 5200 out-plays my 800 and 800XL on these games. Great vid, of course, but I’m scratching my head on some games that made the list.

[@TheLairdsLair]

Yeah, I agree 100%, I thought Berzerk was nailed on for a top spot and 5200 Galaxian disappointed me too.

[@williamadams516]

Oh I always loved keystone kapers, was always my favorite Activision games, I'll try it on retroarch, never had or knew anyone with 5200, I had 2600 and colecovision.

[@TheDuke013]

I remember seeing it at the store, but it wasn't there very long, but the graphics looked so much better. But the claim of playing every atari game is not quite accurate.

[@minimoe2807]

I grew up with the 800. Are the games on the 5200 and 800 the same? I can't tell if there is a difference from this video. Like Frogger, Mrs. Pacman, Joust. They look the same, are they?

[@TheLairdsLair]

Pretty much yes. A few have slight differences, Qix and Centipede for example, but you probably wouldn't notice unless you put them side by side.

[@minimoe2807]

@TheLairdsLair ok, thanks. I've always wondered about that. Good video!

[@tidepoolclipper8657]

While Atari 5200's ports feel sloppier than Atari 2600's and 7800's, it's surprising Centipede 5200 is as good as it is. Pac-Man was also given better treatment on the system as well.

[@jeff-ds2pr]

Not sure why you'd think the ports were sloppier. The graphics and sounds were lightyears better than the 2600. The controllers were sloppy for sure, but the games themselves were great ports for the time.

[@Alianger]

Space Dungeon and Montezuma's for me

[@emunews]

There are couple things I don't understand. 1) Why would anyone choose Pac-Man over Ms Pac-Mac? Ms Pac-Man is arguably better or equal to Pac Man in every single way. 2) How did Ballblazer not make this list?

[@TheLairdsLair]

I agree, but this is what people voted for.

[@markwood3440]

5200 was a really good system tons of good to great games, just needed a better controller.

[@TheLairdsLair]

Totally agree

[@majorhemroid]

We've had a 5200 since it came out. The controllers are definitely the problem point of the system. (Edit: except the trackball. still got it and it works.) Thankfully, there's a guy who makes controllers. Did a video on it.

[@johnathanstevens8436]

Ah yes, it could actually support Star Radiers with the built in controller

[@skywarp727]

The only game I've ever played on the 5200 was Pole Position. A girl I had a crush on had the system and I remember going over to her house and playing it.

[@gregjarvis1232]

Funny you made mention of a 4 player game yet the only system model you show is the one with 2 controller ports

[@jeremycline9542]

Do you think Atari should have re-released the 5200 to compete with Nintendo instead of the 7800. I realize that would not have likely succeeded but what a fun thought and these games look much better than 7800.

[@TheLairdsLair]

They kinda did, the XE Games System is a 5200 done right.

[@mrmojorisin8752]

7800 games improved on 5200 versions in every way.

[@VIC-20]

@@mrmojorisin8752except sound

[@jon-paulfilkins7820]

No Europe, you can't have an Atari 5200, you have one at home (its brown and cream with a brushed aluminum strip down the side and is marked 800XL).😉 I know, some differences but on screen, who can tell?

[@TheLairdsLair]

Indeed, the 800XL is the much better machine to own, one of the best systems every in my opinion.

[@ClassicTVMan1981X]

There was also the earlier 800 (codenamed "Colleen") produced from 1979 to 1983.

[@TheLairdsLair]

The 400 and 800 didn't sell that well in Europe, but the 800XL did and was released around the same time as the 5200 too.

[@2112dorf]

No Berserk? Travesty….

[@guyincogneto8979]

Right?!

[@Joe-qy1hv]

Space Dungeon should be 1

[@johneygd]

Pac man is my number one game. However am surprised that mario bros and popeye didn’t make into this list but hey atleast ms pac man made it into the list as well😁 My only wish is that atari did put in a keyboard and pheripheral connector along with a cartride adaptor sothat you could,ve play all your atari 400 games on it. Am sure it would,ve sold more units. Am mean both hardware systems are basically the same.

[@billcook4768]

It’s an interesting system from a modern gamer standpoint. Almost impossible to play on original hardware. And not particularly interesting enough to emulate.

[@f.k.b.16]

Man that commercial at the start... 😂 So cringe 😂

[@gabrielvampyre]

I don't know what the rules of the voting were. I don't see any homebrews or prototypes, so I guess those were excluded? I am forced to agree with one of the commenters that it seems many voters had never played the games. That's certainly the only way I can comprehend that Pac-Man would be at the #2 spot or that Defender wouldn't even make the top 10. Yes, Pac-Man is definitely a top 20, but second best game on the 5200? Then there's Super Breakout. There's no way that Super Breakout should make it on a list of top 20 games for the system. Me being a judgemental, my opinion is the only one that matters, jerk aside, here's my thoughts as a kid who got an Atari 5200 in summer of 83, played it as my primary console until 1992 and the Genesis, and still plays 5200 games on actual hardware to this day. Tempest is probably the absolute best game for the system. It was a prototype completed and polished up in the 2010s and released via AtariAge. Played via the trackball controller, it is second only to its arcade counterpart in sheer awesomeness. It is probably one of the best arcade to home ports of all time. Centipede on the 5200 with a trackball is the best way to play the game other than the arcade game. It definitely deserves to be high up on anyone's top 5200 games list. Star Raiders is absolutely incredible on the 5200, and probably actually better due to the 5200's controller and having all the functions in the palm of your hand. Defender on the 5200 is another absolutely amazing port. It's only flaw is that it's too easy, but it plays like a dream and the sheer amount of stuff it throws around on screen was impressive not only for the time, for even compared to systems from a decade later. Space Dungeon is another absolutely amazing game. I'd say the 5200 port beats the arcade game. Honorary mentions to Countermeasure (absolutely baffling that it isn't on Atari 50), Joust, Ms. Pac-Man, Pac-Man, Jr. Pac-Man, Super Pac-Man, Pac-Man Arcade, Qix, Missile Command, Galaxian, Rescue on Fractalus, Berzerk (just about arcade perfect), Pole Position, Popeye, Adventure II, Blaster, Millipede, Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator, Beef Drop, Moon Patrol.

[@TheLairdsLair]

I explain the rules at the beginning of the video, no games were excluded at all and indeed quite a few homebrews got votes, but none got enough to make the top 20. I think Pac-Man is a case of a pack-in pick, everyone had it so everyone remembers it fondly.

[@UGABrother]

Although in this case, "all-time" only covers 1982-1986...

[@TheLairdsLair]

Given that was the 5200's commercial lifetime it's hardly a surprise! That said there was one homebrew in the wider top 40 list.

[@mortimore4030]

They’re Atari 8-bit computer games.

[@TheLairdsLair]

Not all, in some cases the 5200 versions are different - Qix and Centipede for example.

[@VIC-20]

That compatibility could have been a winner for Atari and publishers but the controllers were terrible and it never was released in PAL countries

[@basrover6544]

Screw Patreon

[@seany84uk]

I never a owned a 5200 or a 7800 but im glad i didnt back in the day as being a child i wouldnt seen them as a major upgrade from the 2600 compared to the nes or master system. Its crazy the 5200 didnt have better sound either as it just sounds like a tweaked 2600 sound chip.

[@TheLairdsLair]

The 5200 has a really good sound chip, you probably don't hear it at its best here though. It has the same POKEY chip as the Atari 8-bit computers and many Atari arcade games. Listen to some of this, especially Panther at 5:28 kzbin.info/www/bejne/gHXIh2qtp6dlmZI

[@VIC-20]

The 7800 had the same sound as the 2600. I think you are confused

[@EricFraga]

Take a listen at Star Wars: Death Star Battle. The millennium falcon engine sound, the shot sound effect, the 'black hole' sfx and, specially, the initial explosion sound when death star blows up. It is amazing on the 5200 pokey! And, after that, fire up the original 2600 version and listen to it: you will hear the very best, top #1, sound effects ever created to an Atari 2600 game!