should i buy a 5200

[ericaesop]

I'm a big fan of atari i have been since was 8. heres a little back story, when i was 8 i was living with my aunt and uncle, and one day before we moved out of our old house we cleaned out the crawl space, (and at that time i didnt care what system it was if it had games i wanted to play it). we dug out two heavy sixers and a box of one hundred games, as an 8 year old boy i went apeshit at a new video game system. so we hooked t up and my uncle ( he was n his 50's) was getting pissed off that the pcture was all fuzzy. long story short he chucked it. i have snce then been searching for atari systems and games, last week i happent to obtain an atari 7800 and 19 2600 games. and for just one second i was 8 again playing freeway and pitfall. anyway now i am completely in love with atari and anything related to classic games (side note i have a vic 20 c64 c128 and 8 diskdrives, that i got for 20$). I have been looking at an atar 5200 for awhile, have heard nothing bt bad reviews about it( at places other than here), but somthing just draws me to it , many atari 5200 owners wll probably know what im saying. want to know what a fair price for a system is, what the games price rang is , and iff there are better controller alternatives. I am 16 and i hope to help keep the atari legacy alive for generations to come.

 

 

 

thanks

~~eric

[AtariTexas]

You cant go wrong with a 5200. Games for the most part are pretty cheap (most got for for 2 bucks or so at flea markets).....systems if you shop around you can find a good deal. It's a fun system, easy to collect for, and has some nice hard to find rare gems

[bohoki]

if i didnt already have one i wouldn't buy one today sure it has great games but good controllers are hard to find and unless you got my mad skillz to make your own controller you may get frustrated

[Atari2008]

I bought one a few months back, and I do think the games are cool but the controllers are a bit of a pain. I think it all depends on personal preference, since some people do like the 5200 controllers, but I'm not one of them. I'm very glad that I got a Wico Command Control which provides accurate control. As bohoki mentioned, it is a bit hard and expensive to find alternatives. Unless you geta keypad and a y-cable you'll still need the stock 5200 sticks for basic game functions (start, pause, reset) and that means that you'll still need to have original joysticks in working order. Repairing joysticks and buying alternatives might make a 5200 much costlier than a 2600 or 7800.

 

Still the games are great. Berzerk with the voice synthesis is one of my faves, as well as its unique version of Pac-Man. Pole Position is good as well as Kangaroo. My library is very small but so far I haven't bought a game I didn't like.

 

Also, many people find an Atari 8-bit computer as a good alternative to the 5200 since most of the games are similar, I believe. But I can't speak to that, I'm sure others will.

[Rik]

Plus,5200 Pitfall has an extra level/stage in it not found in any other version.I would get a 5200,but i no longer have room,since i collect for almost everything i own,comics,pc games,etc.Atari sure was good at screwing up something with their consoles,if it wasnt the controllers(5200),it was crappy sound(7800),it was always something.But then again,no console is %100 perfect.

Edited January 13, 2009 by Rik

[mimo]

I know this is the 5200 forum, and I really wanted to like the system, the sticks are not too hard to fix with the right parts (Best Electronics) and a few hours to kill, but the 5200 system I found to be flaky. I have had 4 in the last 18 months and they have all crapped out on me. I have given up, it cost me a small fortune to get the stuff in the first place as I live in the UK, and Atari never sold the 5200 in Europe.

If I were you I would get an Atari 800XL or an XEGS, it has a MUCH bigger software library and you can get joysticks that last 20 years!

[Atari2008]

Plus,5200 Pitfall has an extra level/stage in it not found in any other version.I would get a 5200,but i no longer have room,since i collect for almost everything i own,comics,pc games,etc.Atari sure was good at screwing up something with their consoles,if it wasnt the controllers(5200),it was crappy sound(7800),it was always something.But then again,no console is %100 perfect.

 

I think the 2600 is 100% perfect.

[bohoki]

Plus,5200 Pitfall has an extra level/stage in it not found in any other version.I would get a 5200,but i no longer have room,since i collect for almost everything i own,comics,pc games,etc.Atari sure was good at screwing up something with their consoles,if it wasnt the controllers(5200),it was crappy sound(7800),it was always something.But then again,no console is %100 perfect.

 

 

pitfall 2

 

regular pitfall for the 5200 only works on the 4 port unit and i think that is a gift since 2 port system owners don't have to suffer

[mimo]

Plus,5200 Pitfall has an extra level/stage in it not found in any other version.I would get a 5200,but i no longer have room,since i collect for almost everything i own,comics,pc games,etc.Atari sure was good at screwing up something with their consoles,if it wasnt the controllers(5200),it was crappy sound(7800),it was always something.But then again,no console is %100 perfect.

 

 

pitfall 2

 

regular pitfall for the 5200 only works on the 4 port unit and i think that is a gift since 2 port system owners don't have to suffer

Unless you install a 4 port OS into a 2 port

[Rik]

Plus,5200 Pitfall has an extra level/stage in it not found in any other version.I would get a 5200,but i no longer have room,since i collect for almost everything i own,comics,pc games,etc.Atari sure was good at screwing up something with their consoles,if it wasnt the controllers(5200),it was crappy sound(7800),it was always something.But then again,no console is %100 perfect.

 

 

pitfall 2

 

regular pitfall for the 5200 only works on the 4 port unit and i think that is a gift since 2 port system owners don't have to suffer

Unless you install a 4 port OS into a 2 port

Oops!,that was Pitfall2,with the extra level,not the 1st one,sorry.Thanx for correcting

Edited January 14, 2009 by Rik

[Rik]

Also,doesnt one of the machines(2port,or,4port)need a special switchbox that only Atari made?I remember hearing about that a while back.

[Rik]

Plus,5200 Pitfall has an extra level/stage in it not found in any other version.I would get a 5200,but i no longer have room,since i collect for almost everything i own,comics,pc games,etc.Atari sure was good at screwing up something with their consoles,if it wasnt the controllers(5200),it was crappy sound(7800),it was always something.But then again,no console is %100 perfect.

 

I think the 2600 is 100% perfect.

I agree.When i come to think off it,IMO, Atari got the 2600 right,right off the bat.If there is anything bad about the 2600,i cant think of any!

[ymike673]

Also,doesnt one of the machines(2port,or,4port)need a special switchbox that only Atari made?I remember hearing about that a while back.

 

 

The 4 port requires the special switchbox but they are easy to find. I've seen them sold on E Bay for $10-$15.

[shadow460]

Well, I might draw some ire from the 5200 crowd, but oh well.

 

I'd stick to the 7800 for a while. Not to say which console is better, 'cause I'd make the same comment even if you'd started with something besides a 7800.

Get some 2600 and 7800 games and see if you're really wanting to get back into classic gaming. If you're still interested, download an emulator and try some 5200 games out. Even better, if you now someone locally who has a 5200, get together and play a few games on it.

Why all this? Because the 5200 can cost you quite a chunk of money to get going. You're looking at getting the console, then maybe looking all over for the switchbox (or just modding the console like I did), then paying up to $50 a pop for parts to repair the stock controllers. Right there you could spend $150 to get a system that works, and that's before you buy any games. If the 5200 library isn't your thing, that's a lot of money to spend on a console.

 

On the other hand, you might get hooked on what you play in emulation and decide the expense is worth it.

[segasaturn]

I love my Atari 5200. It has good arcade ports, and it has fun, quility games too.

[bohoki]

I love my Atari 5200. It has good arcade ports, and it has fun, quility games too.

 

 

oh yea space dungeon

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Dungeon

[BydoEmpire]

I'm fairly new to the 5200 - I finally picked one up 2-3 years ago. It's been my most-played classic console since then, and I totally love it. I did get a rebuilt controller from Best Electronics, though the controller that came with my unit (from a Flea Market) worked. The 5200 has a certain uniqueness and charm that makes it appealing above and beyond just getting an XEGS or 800xl or something, although that's a great option, too. I'm surprised how well some games like Pac Man, that I've played a billion times on so many different consoles, are still so fun on the 5200. And some games like Space Invaders are very different on the 5200 than the 2600 (or arcade). So I would say YES, it's worth buying, particularly if you get a rebuilt controller from Best Electronics. You might be in for a bit of frustration otherwise, though it's still a great system. Getting an XEGS or 800xl would be another very good option.

[ninermaniac]

Also,doesnt one of the machines(2port,or,4port)need a special switchbox that only Atari made?I remember hearing about that a while back.

 

 

The 4 port requires the special switchbox but they are easy to find. I've seen them sold on E Bay for $10-$15.

 

Extremely easy to make one also. Just need an RF switch to go with it.

[tisaperfectdayelise]

So....did you buy it??

[cybercylon]

If you haven't bought it yet, be patient and wait for a good deal. I got mine on the cheap on Craigs list.

 

Brace yourself with having to work on the controllers though. Either a rebuilt one from Best or one that you rebuild yourself with the gold plated flex 9 circuit will be the cheaper route. The 3rd party controllers are expensive, but appear frequently on ebay if you want to shovel over the cash.