Jump to content
IGNORED

Anyone who bought the Switch Atari-collection?


Giles N

Recommended Posts

I'd say it is quite good, the  ability to add intensity glow on vectors is a nice attempt to emulate the real thing though not nearly as good

I think if it is ever really cheap digitally I buy it digital as well as I like owning the physical cart, but could go for all those games 

though I could go for the 80s music of the activision anthologies

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's technically great -- I like the emulator and appreciate Code Mystics' work. The game lineup is a bit stale but they can only release what they have rights to. The Switch version is the best of these recent collections, because everything is in one volume.

 

I'm over "Atari" as a company, they're lawsuit-happy and creatively bankrupt, so this may be the last thing I buy from them with their name on it. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've only played the Vita version and the three PS4 volumes, but my complaints are few and far between (I do own the Switch collection, but haven't yet bought the system).

 

The only issue I ever found with the games themselves was that Red Baron doesn't retain the high score and the default stick sensitivity was much too high (The latter is easily fixed in the options). I can't recall ever taking issue with anything else.

 

And I'd of liked a few more video options. While not a particular problem for me since I like the artwork, I still didn't like that turning off the arcade artwork stretches the games. And while an effect I normally don't go for, I surprisingly liked the fake scan lines with several of the arcade games (Especially the black & white games). So I'd of liked a game specific scan line toggle so that I could customize each game the way I'd prefer it to appear, rather than the all or nothing scan line option that affects every console and raster arcade game.

Edited by Atariboy
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@Atariboy I don't have it in front of me, but I think you can set the bezel art to black so the screen isn't stretched. I know I haven't had that same problem, because I don't like playing with side art or a stretched screen view either. 
 

Worth a mention: this collection includes some real oldies from the 1970s, such as the black and white Football, Basketball, Fire Truck, and Dominos, which I don't think are anywhere else (except Volume 3 on Xbone/PS4 and the Atari Vault, of course). 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Personally I love it. Got arcades, and 8 bit console games galore. The vector effect for arcades are great, and it has a decent amount of graphical mods for the consoles from flicky crt to sterile lcd. AND, vertical play for games that originally were.

 

Bummed it's missing battlezone (in all formats)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, Flojomojo said:

@Atariboy I don't have it in front of me, but I think you can set the bezel art to black so the screen isn't stretched. I know I haven't had that same problem, because I don't like playing with side art or a stretched screen view either. 
 

Worth a mention: this collection includes some real oldies from the 1970s, such as the black and white Football, Basketball, Fire Truck, and Dominos, which I don't think are anywhere else (except Volume 3 on Xbone/PS4 and the Atari Vault, of course). 

It may be an issue exclusive to the Vita version, since I remember noticing it when I got the Limited Run Games release of Atari Flashback Classics. I can't swear with 100% certainty that I've tried turning off the bezel art on the PS4 collections, but I know it caused the screen to stretch on the Vita. 

 

Only Sprint 2 is on Atari Vault, since it lacks the 50 games of volume 3 where most of the older arcade games were included. The quality of the black & white games is very good and has accounted for much of my time on these collections. Have spent many an hour on games like Super Bug on my PSTV and PS4. :)

Edited by Atariboy
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, NE146 said:

Are we talking about the Atari Flashback Classics that was available on the switch since 2018 or is there a new one out?

This one. December 2018, 150 games. 

https://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/atari-flashback-classics-switch/

 

To answer the original question, I would rate it as "Good." 

Here's a review of it that I really like.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

If I could find a physical version, I’d bought it already, but at this point I’m not even sure if it’s out in Europe. (I never buy digital games at full price, so if I never find a physical copy, I’ll buy it at a discount or not at all.)

 

One thing I wonder is how the controls are, especially for games that use trackball etc. And do anyone know of any way to use original Atari 2600-controllers or the 2.4 wireless controllers that come with the Atari Flashback 8 Gold?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been waiting for the digital version to go on sale. I've felt $39.99 is a bit steep considering I've owned a lot of these games in other compilations before. That being said I don't think I've ever seen it on sale. 

I would also love an Activision/Imagic collection. Not sure why they will license their catalog to Atgames for their hardware but won't allow a software rerelease.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, OscarGungan said:

I've been waiting for the digital version to go on sale. I've felt $39.99 is a bit steep considering I've owned a lot of these games in other compilations before. That being said I don't think I've ever seen it on sale. 

I would also love an Activision/Imagic collection. Not sure why they will license their catalog to Atgames for their hardware but won't allow a software rerelease.

If you "heart" it in the eShop, they'll send you an email when it goes on sale. The PS4/Xbone versions went on sale a lot, I don't see how this should be different. The physical version might no longer be in print, I see that scalpers are raising the price. This works just fine as a digital release in my opinion. 

 

Not sure where I saw it, I think it might have been @JeffVav (the developer of this collection who hangs out here) but someone said that Activision/Imagic are more likely to put their stuff in plug-n-play units like the Atari Flashback dedicated unit so they can hold their titles like Pitfall and Enduro back for themselves. It's been a while since Activision has put out a software collection on existing platforms. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On tracball/paddles. Switch controllers great for tracball, and decent on paddle/rotary, though it takes some getting used to. Rolling the stock works well, but seems a bit oversensitive.

 

Yes mine's the 2018 150 title physical cart.

Edited by Video
Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, Sinton said:

One thing I wonder is how the controls are, especially for games that use trackball etc. 

Code Mystics did good work getting the games with novel control schemes working well.

 

For instance, the overhead racing games use an absolute steering system and are very playable. Essentially if you want to steer towards the top left corner of your television for an example, you just point the analog stick towards the 9 o'clock position and the car will steer towards that direction. I don't know why compilation developers never thought of this before since it would've done wonders with the playability of Super Sprint, Championship Sprint, Badlands, and Super Off-Road in various Midway compilations. 

 

Even Night Driver for the 2600 is playable, which really surprised me. As a paddle game it was virtually unplayable on Atari Anthology for the Xbox/PS2 from Digital Eclipse and on the DS collection from Code Mystics. But on the Atari Flashback Classics line, it almost feels like cheating since it controls so well. The simple act of mapping the controls so that releasing the analog stick automatically centers your paddle transformed this one.

 

Of course there's still only so much they can do, so I personally don't bother playing some games like Warlords and Super Breakout. But quite a few games that I thought would be write-offs due to the style of their original controls have ended up some of my most played games on these Atari Flashback Classics compilations from Code Mystics/AtGames.

Edited by Atariboy
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...
On 3/6/2020 at 3:12 PM, Atariboy said:

Of course there's still only so much they can do, so I personally don't bother playing some games like Warlords and Super Breakout. But quite a few games that I thought would be write-offs due to the style of their original controls have ended up some of my most played games on these Atari Flashback Classics compilations from Code Mystics/AtGames.

What slightly annoys me is that they didn't allow you to use gyro/motion controls for paddle emulation -- twist the joy-con in circles.  It seems like it would work fairly well, and allows for an analog control scheme.

(Hold a single joycon somewhat like a dart, and turn it like a doorknob.)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

That would make sense. Switch does do dl patches so it could still be a possibility. I prefer the rolling the stick over the original l/r scheme other versions do, but it's still to sensitive for me. I can kind of play breakout, but nowhere as good as a real paddle, but it's at least possible.

 

Love that it's portable. If 3ds wasn't dead, I'd have liked to see a version on there, her the touch screen would make a decent paddle / trackball too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

i finally picked the game up last Friday.  it's a really good collection, i think! 

 

the vector-graphic games look really sharp and play really well.  like other folks have mentioned, the paddle controls are floaty and dont translate well i don't think to the thumbstick/d-pad.  i was able to get around this some by lowering the paddle sensitivity and it made the games more playable for me.

 

overall, Code Mystics (if I'm remembering right) did a really good job with the game set.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 3/5/2020 at 3:17 PM, Atariboy said:

Only Sprint 2 is on Atari Vault, since it lacks the 50 games of volume 3 where most of the older arcade games were included. 

Reread the thread since it had been bumped, and saw that I had said this.

 

While not about the Switch collection, I'm happy to say this information is now incorrect. At some point very recently, a 50 game DLC pack composed of the games from Atari Flashback Classics Volume 3 was made available for Atari Vault. I think I paid $5 for it on Steam. 

Edited by Atariboy
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...
On 3/6/2020 at 9:47 AM, OscarGungan said:

I've been waiting for the digital version to go on sale. I've felt $39.99 is a bit steep considering I've owned a lot of these games in other compilations before. That being said I don't think I've ever seen it on sale.

It's on sale for 19.99 now.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

I just wanted to say.. I gave this collection another go and think it's much better than my first impression was. I like the fact that they included so many B&W Atari arcade games. The varied analog controls for those games were always a challenge to port to modern gamepads, but I think the control options (including touchscreen) really give you some flexibility to play them somewhat decently. I also like the display options. This is a worthwhile collection overall.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...