Hello all, longtime lurker and fan of the site who finds the VCS both fascinating and disappointing.
Here's where I am with this: I have nearly dropped the money down for this thing twice. Honestly I still might. But I think the thing that is keeping me hesitant is the idea that this *might* motivate Atari to develop something better with possibly more funding in, say, 2-3 years. Again, purely a hunch. But we know the response outpaced expectations via IndieGoGo, and while TurboBlaster's review is hardly encouraging, it is clear this thing is veeeeeery beta. No, that's not fair for a $350-400 product. But I get it. The sandbox element of this thing was always part of the allure.
All told, I don't think these issues are show stoppers. It's not like the thing doesnt turn on or is capped in terms of its projected use. In fact it feels the opposite. Part of me wonders how the VCS would have landed if it wasn't competing with 2-3 other highly anticipated consoles. I think it probably would have spurred a little more attention. But honestly, the saturated market may play in Atari's favor. The backlash is muted. Everyone is discussing how crappy Cyberpunk is, or lamenting a PS5 that can only be bought for the same price as a down payment on a car. In that space, they could pivot quickly and develop the ever-loving hell out of the VCS firmware as this thing launches.
I am a sad optimist. I am a brand fan who wants this thing to work. I owned Nintendo, Sega, and Atari products from the 80s to now, and see this era as a potential space Atari could reemerge in. I am still watching this launch closely. I know people see this roll out as a dumpster fire, but honestly watchibgg these unboxings and reading about the software slowly but surely being developed is making me want it more.
Again, thanks to all the mods and posters for this phenomenal site.