atari 2600
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iFixit continues its retro gaming rampage, reduces an innocent Atari 2600 to bare components
iFixit, is no device safe from the scars of your screwdriver? These eyes have been scarred, forced to witness the destruction of yet another childhood icon. Previously it was the RCA Studio II and the Magnavox Odyssey 100 before that. Now it's the rather more memorable Atari 2600 going under the scalpel, four simple screws removed to reveal an eight-bit, 1.19MHz processor featuring 128 bytes of RAM (yes, a massive 1,024 bits) and a graphics adapter capable of 192 x 160 resolution with 128 colors -- though only four could be used on any given line. Through these humble beginnings the cartridge-based console was born... and now here it rests.
Atari mines its 2600 catalog for 'Atari's Greatest Hits: Volume 1' on DS
Atari released a collection of classic games on DS way back in 2005. The publisher has announced a second DS collection of 2600 classics -- this time, without any "remixing." Atari's Greatest Hits: Volume 1, out this November, is a compilation of fifty Atari 2600 and arcade games, ranging from the legendary (Centipede, Tempest) to the somewhat obscure (the Swordquest series, Human Cannonball) to Math Gran Prix (Math Gran Prix). Twenty of the titles (including Pong, Space Duel, and Outlaw) will have single-card multiplayer for up to four, which makes sense given how little data would need to be transmitted to send the whole game ROM out over wireless. Check out the full game list and a trailer after the break. Something tells us that the footage in the trailer isn't authentic DS gameplay. Something like the fact that the screen images are wider than actual DS screens and aligned incorrectly. This is great news for retro gaming enthusiasts -- except for the ones releasing Intellivision Lives!, who we imagine didn't expect to be competing with the 2600 again.
Centipede crawls out of latest Game Room update
Some good news for patient Game Room fans today, as Game Pack 008 has been released -- and Centipede along with it. Joining Atari's classic segmented shooter are three other Atari 2600 titles: 3-D Tic-Tac-Toe, Beamrider and Cosmic Commuter; in addition to Intellivision's Thin Ice. As usual with Game Room updates, the remainder of Game Pack 008, which includes six more Atari 2600 games and four more Intellivision titles, will be released over the coming weeks. Xbox.com: Add Game Pack 008 to your Xbox 360 download queue (free to install)
Former Microsoft VP brings Halo to the Atari 2600
Sometimes you just can't stop a man and his dream. In this case, the man is Ed Fries, the former vice president of Microsoft's game publishing division, and the dream is a version of Halo for the Atari 2600. That actually started out simply as a way for Fries to learn to program for the 2600, but quickly turned into a full-fledged, Adventure-style game that made its debut at this past weekend's Classic Gaming Expo -- in cartridge form, no less, and with a label that'd look at home in any shoebox full of 2600 carts (check it out after the break). Just as impressive as the game itself, however, is the story behind it. Here's just a sample: It's around this time that I discovered the existence of what I call "Magic Land". I was working on a bug with the boss encounter and accidentally found myself completely outside the 64 room map. I was wandering through memory that was never intended to be interpreted as part of the map but the code was doing the best it could to interpret what was being thrown at it. Strange, misshapen monsters attacked me in even stranger ways as I wandered through this bizarre land that I had unintentionally created. I left a bug or two in the final game to allow others to find and explore this strange landscape as I did. Oh, did we mention you can play it right now? Hit up the source link below and prepare to forget that Halo Reach even exists.
Promise you'll play Halo 2600 (that's a covenant we can get behind)
Have you ever wondered what Master Chief's intergalactic adventures would look like if rendered by an Atari 2600? Neither have we -- and now that the folks over at Extra Guy have shared their find of "Halo 2600," we don't have to. Bizarrely, ex-Microsoft VP of game publishing Ed Fries is credited on the game's cover as the creator (as seen on the game's Facebook page). Halo 2600 was playable at the Classic Gaming Expo in Las Vegas, which came to an end today. Sure, it's playable online right now, but apparently we missed out on 500 real-life Atari 2600 cartridges containing the game (check out a photo of them all lined up). How's that for a limited edition? [Thanks, Anthony!]
The Daily Grind: What Atari 2600 game would you like to see as an MMO?
For many of us old school gamers, the Atari 2600 was the first gaming console on which we cut our teeth -- literally. Mom said that chewing the wood panel sides would cause splinters, but oh! How good it did taste! Of course, there were games on the system to be enjoyed as well, and many of us have fond memories of plugging away at Space Invaders, jumping the crocodiles in Pitfall, running from Evil Otto in Berzerk, and assembling the phone in E.T. OK, I lied, nobody has fond memories of E.T. Still, Atari 2600 titles (and other games from that era) had a certain bizarre lunacy to them and a charm that couldn't be denied. Perhaps this is why they endure through retro gaming to this day. Engage with us on a flight of fancy, then, and tell us: What Atari 2600 game would make for a fine -- or, heck, interesting -- MMO? Would it be the thrilling vistas of Adventure? The heated PvP battlegrounds of Warlords? The fruit-stained corridors of Pac-Man? Or even the elegant simplicity of Combat?
Game Room 'Game Pack 007' now available
The 007 update for Microsoft's Game Room is available for download right now, and will enable 15 new games in total: three Konami Arcade games; nine Atari 2600 games; three Intellivision titles and zero James Bond games. However, not all of the games are available right now -- the Game Room Facebook account lists the first five, and a message posted further down the thread notes that the rest will trickle out over "multiple weeks." Here's what's available as of right now: Barnstorming Fishing Derby Gyruss Hover Force Quadrun We'll update you on the rest of the games as they're made available.
Game Room adds Asteroids, Time Pilot and more
Game Pack 004 is now available for Game Room, featuring seven new titles. The two standouts are Asteroids and Time Pilot, classics of the arcade days of yore. Also in the pack are a handful of Activision Atari 2600 games, including Stampede, Grand Prix and Demons to Diamonds. Rounding out the pack is the arcade game Space Duel and the Intellivision title Shark! Shark!. The pack itself is free, while individual games run 240 ($3) to 400 ($5) depending on the license. Xbox.com: Add Game Room Game Pack 004 to your Xbox 360 download queue
Canon DSLR shutter remote hacked into Atari joystick
Just point and shoot. Video after the break.
C64 creators also bringing Amiga, Atari 2600 emulators to iPhone
I just posted at the end of last week about Manomio's decision to go free with its licensed C64 emulator for the iPhone, but today it let us know that there are even more plans in the works. Given the success in porting C64 games (with official licenses) over to the iPhone, Manomio is working on two more emulators right now, including the Atari 2600 emulator seen above (Frogger! Space Invaders!) and an Amiga 500 emulator as well. Both apps are simply tech demos at the moment, and while Apple generally hasn't been very friendly to emulators on the iPhone, Manomio has put in its dues -- the company sorted out the emulator code in such a way that it's Apple-approved, and it's already worked with C64 license owners to make sure the games can be legally released on the iPhone, some free and some as in-app purchases. Of course, chasing down the Atari licenses might be a little tougher than the more obscure C64 titles, but if it's possible to get these old gaming gems on the iPhone, Manumio will probably pull it off. Stay tuned -- when you can play the original Frogger on your iPhone, we'll let you know.
Auctioned Atari game may be rarer than Stadium Events
With all the attention over boxed copies of the NES game Stadium Events, this eBay auction for a boxed copy of the Atari 2600 game Air Raid seems even more noteworthy than it might otherwise ... not that it needs any help. Already considered one of the hardest-to-find 2600 games, a boxed copy of the game has never been found. Until now. AtariAge forum member Tanner claims to be the original owner of this copy of Air Raid, even offering specifics of the location and date of its purchase. For the last couple of decades, it's been quietly hanging out in his garage, being awesome. After reading an article on CNN, he realized what he had and put the cartridge on eBay; later, when he found the box, he cancelled the original auction and relisted it. It's currently going for $6,500. Even if you don't plan to bid on Air Raid, you should really look through the auction images. The box, with the rainbow logo of its publisher "Men-A-Vision" and its thrilling back-of-the-box text, is entirely worth seeing. "Can you save Manhattan from your loan command post?" [Via GameSetWatch]
Mega Man demo released for Atari 2600
If Mega Man 9 isn't retro enough for you, you might enjoy the enormous, jagged pixels found in the Atari 2600 demo version of Mega Man created for 2007's I Am 8-Bit show. David Galloway has finally released the demo on Atari Age's forum, which means that you can download the game and play it on an Atari 2600 emulator right now.The brief demo is an impressively faithful translation of the NES game's mechanics, with Mega Man running, jumping and shooting just as you'd expect (though shooting is mapped to down on the joystick, because the 2600 only has one button). The demake ends at the Elec Man fight, which is even harder in this version than it is in the original. A playthrough of the entire demo follows after the break.[Via GameSetWatch]
Students create CRT emulator, hope to recapture that analog gaming vibe of yesteryear
The retro gaming insurgence seems as strong as vinyl these days, but you don't see as many people looking for a CRT monitor to complete the set. More likely, they're playing a HD remake or the original title on a digital screen in more detail than the developers ever anticipated or intended. A group of Georgia Tech students are looking to change all that by modifying open-source Atari 2600 VCS emulator Stella to give players that good ole fashion analog vibe. As highlighted by associate professor Ian Bogost, key attributes such as color bleed, "burned" afterimage, RF-engendered signal noise, and texture created by the phosphor glow have been imitated here in recreating the effect. Hit up the gallery below for pictorial examples while we wait anxiously for video and / or the mod itself to rear its blurry head.
How to make Atari games look better by making them look worse
You might find it comical that someone's concerned with the graphical presentation of emulated Atari games -- after all, they're pretty much beyond help, right? It might be even more amusing to think that emulation (and modern TV technology) makes Atari games look too good. But it's true! Atari VCS games running in Stella or other emulators don't look like they look on a CRT, and artificial scanlines alone don't make for an authentic presentation.Ian Bogost presented the challenge to a team of Georgia Tech computer science students, who then modified Stella to simulate the characteristics of a CRT -- texture, afterimage, color bleed, and noise. The results can be seen above, compared with the pixel-perfect original. Enduro really demonstrates the advantages of an authentic display: when the colors blend properly, the sunset actually kind of looks impressive. These features will be added to the public releases of Stella soon. Maybe they can be integrated into the next-generation Atari Flashback console -- if another one ever happens.[Via Kotaku]
Jenny McCarthy has been gaming longer than you
When she's not busy appearing in Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 or starring in commercials for amazing PS1 games, Jenny McCarthy is a gaming mom. Speaking to WhatTheyPlay this week, McCarthy says she started playing Pac-Man at the age of eight. "I even made my own Atari glove because I had blisters all over my hand from playing Pac-Man," she notes, saying her own mom bought her the game with an Atari 2600 as a reward for getting a vaccination shot.While she claims she fell out of gaming because of "cheerleading and boys," gaming also apparently helped to keep her marriage to Double Dragon film star [actor] John Asher alive. "That's all we basically did; we just played video games. That saved our marriage -- playing video games." Her current significant other, Jim Carrey, reportedly has a Wii, though McCarthy says she's doing less gaming and more writing these days (having penned "six books in four years"). "I can't compete with these kids now. They've grown up with this kind of technology ... I'm like the brains behind the guy who's using the controller."
Ben Heck crams Xbox 360 controller into Atari 2600 joystick
As we've seen, a little Atari 2600 is a sure way to liven almost anything -- cakes, candles, landfills -- and it looks like the Xbox 360 is no exception, as none other than Ben Heck has proved with his new so-called 3600 controller. As you might expect, Ben didn't exactly take the expected route to wind up at this creation, instead opting to use the guts of a Guitar Hero 3 controller, which he somehow managed to squeeze into the base of everyone's favorite one-button controller (even leaving room for a guide button and ring of light on the underside). Be sure to hit up the link below for a must-see video of the controller in action and, of course, plenty more pics.[Via Xbox-Scene]
Atari 2600 stuffed into Game Gear, Sega Nomad seen casting envious glances
Oh sure, there's bound to be some protrusion when shoving a retro console into a gaming handheld, but inelegant styling was a way of life for Sega back in the mid-90s. Modder Chris Koopa has achieved the impossible by stuffing an Atari 2600 (or the important parts, anyway) along with 40 games into a hacked up Game Gear and enabling it to operate for nearly a full workday with just five AA batteries. And yeah, there's totally a 2600 cartridge slot to allow for playback of original titles. You know you're oddly interested in seeing more, so tap the read link for a few shots from the rear / side.[Via technabob]
Adventure released for the iPhone
Part of me just wants to post this screenshot, link this app, and say "go get it," but I have a feeling that my blogging overlords here would think I was just being lazy -- they might not understand that this is a screenshot from Adventure, which is available for free on the iPhone. Anyone who ever played an Atari 2600 and owns an iPhone won't need any more explanation than that to install this.But I don't want to be seen as lazy (any more than I already am), and so I'll also say that Adventure basically pioneered the action-adventure genre of games, and that though its art is spare and its noises are little more than bleeps and bloops, both are classic and coated with pure nostalgia. While Adventure is currently controlled on the iPhone with tilt controls, its designer will add touch controls as well in the future.Other than that: go get it. It's free.
Atari Hero mod lets you rock out with ET
Those of us old enough to remember crap games like E.T. and Sssnake have every right to be thrilled by the relative quality of modern gems like Guitar Hero. We're guessing modder Conner Flynn over at SlipperyBrick feels that way too, melding the old with the new by inserting an Atari 2600 console into the body of a faux-Gibson from Guitar Hero. This meant adding two controllers to the body (an eight-way joystick plus a paddle-style controller for Breakout), wiring up the green button on the neck, and adding a small screen where the strum bar would normally reside. It's a layout that makes this axe best suited for play Jeff Healey-style, and with a pocketful of AA batteries you can game your Angel Eyes out wherever you like. No, it's not the most ergonomic portable 2600 we've ever seen, or most practical, but is certainly is the most badass.[Via technabob]
Super Genintari project is finished and ready to make you envious
DIY game consoles are hardly the rare occurrence they once were, but this so-called Super Genintari project (previously known as Leviticus) is definitely a step above most, and more than enough to make us a little green with envy. As you may be able to discern from the project's name, this behemoth of a console brings the Atari 2600, NES, SNES and Genesis together at long last, with each system available at the push of a clickety-clackety button and ample controller ports provided for each. What's more, while there's quite the mess coming out of the front of the console with all the controllers attached, the rig does at least neatly connect to a TV with a single AV cable. Be sure to head on over past the break to check out a video of it action, and hit up the link below for the fully story and plenty of pictures.[Thanks, Jenn]
