ColecoVision -- how much would you recommend it?

[Bixler]

Hello,

 

I posted a topic about a week ago about the Atari 7800, because I was (and most likely still am) planning on getting one.

 

However, I have started to become very fascinated in this older era of video games (picked up a Genesis Model 2 as an impulse buy a couple days ago dirt cheap with a CRT TV and I am having the time of my life in-between study sessions) and I have begun doing quite a bit of research.

 

I hope to maybe pick up a 7800 in the future, but due to financial constraint I cannot afford the $125 for one from Best Electronics for quite some time (if ever; I only have so much I can really spend on this hobby while in college). Thus I was thinking of starting off with something like a ColecoVision. Do you think that this is a good idea? I am very interested in playing 80's arcade titles. Is there a homebrew scene like the one for the 2600? Does the ColecoVision have a following comparable to that of the 2600?

 

I posted a similar topic in the 2600 forum asking about the 2600 vs. 7800, but I felt that this half of my question would be better for this forum.

 

Thank you!

 

EDIT: If mods feel that my question is completely redundant and a waste of space, feel free to delete it.

Edited October 13, 2013 by Bixler

[ColecoDan]

Well unfortunately if you are still in college the colecovision hobby can be a little expensive especially if paying $125 for a 7800 is too much for you.

 

Colecovision consoles can be just as expensive. Yes you can also find cheap ones the problem is that there is usually something wrong with them and you need to fix them. I guess if you can find a cheap one somewhere and they will let you try it out to prove that it works then you are ok otherwise it can cost you another 100 bucks or so to get it fixed.

 

You can get an atarimax SD cart in order to play all the games but that is also going to cost you over $100 bucks.

 

There is a big homebrew scene but it is not like the atari 2600 homebrew scene. Most developers create CIB (Complete in Box) which is going to cost anywhere from 40 - 60 dollars a game. More and more are releasing the rom years after initial release but it is still a very small number.

 

Hopefully this doesn't scare you away but there are emulators out there if you want to try some games out to see how cool the system is. It is worth it but does cost money for this hobby.

[Manoau2002]

As much as i hate to say it i think emulation is your best bet. Its free and you can try each of those systems and decide which one is best to pursue.

[retroillucid]

Emulation seem the best for you

 

However, if you can always get the real deal for great price, go for it!

[NIAD]

As others have mentioned, emulation might be the way for you to start with the ColecoVision and rom files of the carts are easily found... even a lot of Homebrews that have been made from 1996-2013.

 

You should be able to acquire a tested and working stock CV system for at most $50 and then your next purchase should be the AtariMax SD Cart (www.atarimax.com) which allows you to play all those roms files on a real CV. The only drawback is that not all of the Homebrew releases are available in rom format, but you will still have a crazy amount of games to keep yourself busy with and this is a great "no clutter" way to get started with the real hardware.

[Rhomaios]

As we mentioned in the other threads, go instead for a cheaper 7800 (just avoid Best Electronics, they're sitting on stock and hoping a sucker will buy). You'll have the small but excellent 7800 library available to you, all of which are cheap, except just a couple, plus the entire 2600 library, which is likewise dirt cheap. I'd say start there and then work your way to ColecoVision. If you're digging Genesis, you might want to also look at the NES, SNES, and Saturn, which are increasingly more expensive respectively.