Anyone grew up with both an NES & 7800 Back in The Day?

[ZippyRedPlumber]

And if so, share your memories. I'd love to hear them.

[envytomdead2]

I had a SMS and 7800. I got my 7800 in 87. I didn't have a ton of games back then. There were so few games coming out for the 7800 that I upgraded to the SMS and never really touched my 7800 much until 2005 when I started collecting games for it again. I do remember that right after I got my Master System, games started coming out for the 7800 like Rampage (which I did get when it came out), Double Dragon, Commando, etc. I also remember thinking maybe I should have just stuck with the 7800 but that didn't go beyond me buying Rampage. Ironically the 7800 is now my favorite system and I am glad I never sold it. 

[sirlynxalot]

Circa 1990 I owned a 7800 and played NES a bunch at friends houses.  I envied the NES and smooth platformers like Mario hard. I felt that the 7800 was very inferior to the NES and didn't really think of it as a competitor or peer at all, I didn't think that the graphics, sounds or depth of the games were similar at all. For example almost all NES games had background music while the vast majority of 7800 games didn't. Many NES games had multiple levels with varied graphics that would keep you interested in the game for hours at a time, while 7800 games seemed shallower in that regard, like replayability was just based on the game getting progressively harder such as enemies moving faster or shooting more bullets while the graphics and presentation felt about the same.  NES had a bunch of games that felt like you were going on a lengthy adventure through a big and interesting world, like Mario, Zelda, Metroid etc. 7800 didn't really have that, I didn't know scrapyard dog and impossible mission existed at the time but I don't think they would have impressed me compared to the NES stuff.  NES also had all the games that were getting TV commercials and press at the time. Amongst kids I'd say stuff like super Mario Bros was way more popular and a much bigger draw to a system than early 80s arcade games such as asteroids pac man and centipede. For example, we talked about Mario at school all the time and watched Mario cartoons on TV and never talked about the early 80s arcade games. NES was also getting all the popular media tie in games like ninja turtles and Terminator, which were of big interest to my generation as kids.

 

I was also envious of the control pad that was horizontal and used a d pad. It felt modern and was just fun to play with in a way that the atari 7800 and 2600 joysticks weren't. It was a breakthrough when I discovered, still as a kid, that I could use a Genesis controller on my atari systems. That became my preferred controller for atari games instantly.

 

Owning the 7800 provided me with 0 social capital at school. I never met another kid who owned one at my school, and kids I had over to play were kinda lukewarm about it when we played on it.

Edited September 2, 2022 by sirlynxalot

[Silver Back]

I had both. My mom had a 2600 and stayed loyal to Atari with the 7800. But she ended up getting an NES shortly afterwards and loved it. So the NES was in the living room for her to play while dad was at work and we were at school and we played it together as a family a few nights a week. But dad didn't care for games like the rest of us and when he was home the living room TV was his. 

 

So the 7800 was plugged into the old console TV in the basement. The basement was my sister and my playroom. We would spend hours playing Mario Bros, Ms pacman, pole position 2, keystone Kapers, pitfall and more. But we all wanted to play the nes as much as possible.  There was honestly no comparison. Mom even ordered rampage and double dragon out of some sort of catalog for the 7800 because we loved the NES version (of double dragon that is) and she thought they would increase our enjoyment of the 7800 and stop us from bugging them for more NES time. It kinda worked but it wasn't the same. 

 

Eventually we grew older, the 7800 went into storage and then the NES as we graduated to other consoles and things in life in general. When I uncovered the 7800 many years later in the late 00s fond memories and nostalgia was brought to mind. I then stored it at my house and it remained until the pandemic.  That's when I  really uncovered my love for the 7800. I love both but the Atari was ours, and I think because of that I have more of a personal connection with it.  But without that connection it's hard to convince others that it's worth a look as much so as the nes or even sms. I find most people that get into the 7800 love that era of gaming and have all the NES and SMS games they want but still have the collecting itch. 

 

I found this community very late but it was the first time I found people that love the 7800 as much as I do.  And I'm very late to the homebrew scene but the things that have been done and released are incredible. I would've literally shit my pants if I seen Rikki and Vikki in 1988-1991, or Bentley Bears crystal quest, or almost any of the incredible homebrew titles that have been produced. It's all I ever wanted for my console. It's lame but I like to pretend that it's still the good old days and I'm getting these homebrews for my 7800. I imagine how it would've felt to have comparable games to the NES and how excited I would've been. 

 

But yeah, I'm not sure what information your looking to gain but I'll provide what I can as a kid who had both consoles!  And the only kid in my school (it seemed) who still played an Atari. 

 

 

[Atariboy2600]

Yes I got all console when they first came out from 76 with Super Pong

Edited September 2, 2022 by Atariboy2600

[MrMaddog]

No, but I wished I did...

 

Not only I would have like to have the 7800 for playing the old 2600 carts I keep seeing in yard sales but there were new games, like Alien Brigade & Ninja Golf, that I've read about in GamePro.  And yes GamePro was just about the only magazine that covered other systems besides the NES without constantly disparging them like EGM did.

 

But I did had a 130XE computer that was pretty much the XEGS so, sorta?

 

BTW, I did enjoy playing the NES games back then and would constantly rent them every weekend like VHS tapes.  But there was just something more special about Atari systems for classic arcade style games which made the 130XE computer my first retro-gaming system.

 

[tkarner]

I didn't own either at the time but I sold both (and the Sega) in the late 1980s. During college I had a part time job working the video game booth at the Toys R Us in Paramus, New Jersey. I'd say we sold about 75% NES cartridges, 20% Sega, and 5% Atari (7800 and 2600 combined). For consoles it was about 80% NES, 20% Sega, and I sold a grand total of one 7800 console in my time there. I still remember the guy who bought it. He was in his 20s. He told me before college he had a 2600 and liked going to arcades so he chose the 7800 to play those games again. So even back then the 7800 was already a retro console.

 

At this time Atari was getting beaten badly in the market. But keep in mind this was northern NJ, in the so-called New York test market. We had the 7800 since 1984. I guess it was old news by this time.

 

Also, anecdotally, it seemed to me that on average the kids buying/browsing/playing the NES games in the store were younger than the Sega kids.

 

Not exactly scientific data but direct observations from the front lines of the 8-bit wars.

[Synthpopalooza]

I traded my 2600 for a 7800 back in the day, and then got an NES in 1988.  Still played both regularly, mostly Joust on the 7800.

[+darryl1970]

I remember reading about the 7800 in 1984. When I saw that it was available, I went to Children's Palace and Toys R' Us. It was out of stock at both stores. I was a little bummed.

 

There was a new system, the NES. I was a HUGE Donkey Kong, Mario Bros, and Popeye fan growing up. I checked the back of the boxes for both systems. The NES had true arcade-like graphics, which I never thought I would see in a home system. The 7800 games were all games that I already had for my 5200, and they didn't look much better, based on the boxes.

 

I took a gamble and got the NES. From the moment I powered up the system, I was blown away. I truly never thought I would see graphics like that in my home. Sound is really important to me, and the music sounded very closely to the arcade counterparts. I was blown away by the speech in Kung Fu (Master) and Karate Champ, the sampled drums in Mario Bros, and the bright colors and music of Ghost N' Goblins. I still find it very impressive for the time period. Everything needs to be put in perspective of time, and it was pretty ground-breaking.

 

I still wanted a 7800, because I was still a huge Atari fanboy. When I finally saw the games and heard the sound, I was highly disappointed. Joust was pretty good, and Ms Pac-Man was smoother than my A8/5200 version. I just couldn't justify even trying to get one at that point. The most common 160A mode didn't seem much of a step up to me, even with more colors and less flicker. The sound absolutely killed the system for me. Comparing NES Galaga to the 7800 version led me to completely write the system off as under-powered trash.

 

The home-brew scene really changed my perspective of the 7800's power. It is great to see that the system had untapped potential, which would have never been discovered by the "New" bargain-bin Atari. I imagine things might have been different with GCC still on board, a new sound chip in development, and a high score cartridge. It's really great to see that the Atari I loved (the old Atari) was starting to steer the ship in the right direction. It's sad that they didn't get the chance, but that's life.

 

I now own two 7800's, two NES's, and an NES clone. Both have their strengths. I do play the 7800 more, but that is all credited to the home-brew community. I can't stomach many commercial release games.

[mbd39]

First we got an Atari 7800 around when it came out because of its backwards compatibility and then several years later we got a NES.

 

We only had a few actual 7800 cartridges. Pole Position 2, Ms. Pac-Man, Dig Dug and Food Fight. I never got to play the more impressive NES-like stuff, so my impression was a minor step up from 2600 and the same sort of games. One of my best friends had a NES and it blew me away.

 

I've seen people here say that they had Atari as a kid and then checked out the NES and weren't impressed. It was total opposite for me.

 

 

 

 

[Laner]

I was all about the Commodore 64 at the time.  But my brother got the 7800 for Christmas one year, then the NES the next year.  The 7800 more or less collected dust after the NES entered the picture.

[Silver Back]

12 hours ago, Laner said:

I was all about the Commodore 64 at the time.  But my brother got the 7800 for Christmas one year, then the NES the next year.  The 7800 more or less collected dust after the NES entered the picture.

That seems to be the unfortunate reality and would've been mine had I been allowed to play the nes more often. I remember begging my parents to play the nes but since it was my mom's system and my dad didn't like to watch games I settled for the 7800 in the basement more often than not.  To those who weren't around then you have to realize the NES was just different, it was a cultural phenomenon. I only grew to love my 7800 more as an adult with nostalgia goggles. 

[+x=usr(1536)]

Just now, Silver Back said:

To those who weren't around then you have to realize the NES was just different, it was a cultural phenomenon.

That depends largely on where you were at the time

[Silver Back]

20 minutes ago, x=usr(1536) said:

That depends largely on where you were at the time

That's true. To clarify in the Midwest United States where I grew up, every kid seemed to live and breath Nintendo, Mario and their favorite games on the NES. When I'd tell people we could play Atari at my house they would look at me like an alien. 

[Flyindrew]

In 1986/87, among us 13-14 year olds, Nintendo was the hottest new thing and Atari was yesterday's news. While Nintendo had all the cutting edge games at the time (Zelda,Super Mario, Metroid), from what we saw, Atari was publishing titles that were in their prime 4-7 years earlier (Asteroids, Centipede, Pole Position, Karateka, Hardball ,Choplifter).

 

To make a music analogy, Atari in 1987 was like what the Beach Boys and Chubby Checkers represented to people in 1967. Like Nintendo in the late '80's, people were tuning  into cutting edge stuff like "The Doors, Jefferson Airplane, and not into "The Twist", "Surfing Safari" or what was popular 5 years earlier (like what Atari represented in the late 80's). 

[sirlynxalot]

3 hours ago, Flyindrew said:

In 1986/87, among us 13-14 year olds, Nintendo was the hottest new thing and Atari was yesterday's news. While Nintendo had all the cutting edge games at the time (Zelda,Super Mario, Metroid), from what we saw, Atari was publishing titles that were in their prime 4-7 years earlier (Asteroids, Centipede, Pole Position, Karateka, Hardball ,Choplifter).

 

To make a music analogy, Atari in 1987 was like what the Beach Boys and Chubby Checkers represented to people in 1967. Like Nintendo in the late '80's, people were tuning  into cutting edge stuff like "The Doors, Jefferson Airplane, and not into "The Twist", "Surfing Safari" or what was popular 5 years earlier (like what Atari represented in the late 80's). 

I fully agree.  Atari was trying to market the 7800 as a way to play great versions of the "oldies", many of which had already been released across multiple formats.  That was not a winning strategy against the NES and its large library of games that had countless new concepts and great graphics.  Regardless of the NES, it was also probably not a good marketing campaign to attract children, who were the key video game demographic in that time.

Edited September 9, 2022 by sirlynxalot

[Nightbringer]

I had both. Parents got us a 7800 for Christmas one year and one of our Aunts got us an NES either the next year or the year after. I don't remember when we got them, but the 7800 had the larger, original box and I remember drooling over the games on the back. Once we got an NES the 7800 got put away and only taken out once or twice after. Both consoles disappeared sometime in the 90s when I was in college.

 

I was pretty much in to PC gaming and didn't buy another console until I got a used PS2 slim!

[theoakwoody]

I owned both as a kid.  My grandma had got us a Sears arcade ii with 30+ 2600 games from a garage sale around 1986 or so.  I remember watching my dad be able to beat pitfall ii and it seemed impossible.  The system broke so we got a 7800 thinking it was just a replacement and had no clue it played better games as pole position ii never really made me think it was that much different.  The only new games we bought were 2600 games (Pac-Man jr, skateboardin’, Mario’s bros, realsports football).  
My brother got an NES for his bday in 1988 and I pretty much never played the  7800 for years.  We didn’t get Super Mario with the system but we picked up castlevania and mighty bomb jack with Zelda being our 3rd game I think. 
 

if I would have known better as a 7 year old I would have picked up robotron and found a way to bolt down both controllers for some dual shooter action.  

[sirlynxalot]

I also primarily used the 7800 to play 2600 games.

[Feralstorm]

I'd wanted a 7800 since around 1984 when Electronic Games magazine did a big preview article on the system. Not much came of it back then, and I ended up getting an NES when they were new (after all, it played games almost exactly like those Nintendo VS arcade cabinets. )

 

My 7800 interests rekindled in the early '90s, when Atari was liquidating stock, and you could buy Atari systems and games at Big Lots for super cheap. I never found a 7800 console there, but grabbed a 2600jr, and many carts for both systems. Not long after, I found a friend who was selling a 7800, so I bought it from him, and haven't looked back.

 

I don't do a lot with NES nowadays, aside from the occasional emulation. My primary gaming platforms are Atari 26/7800 and Amiga/CD32. 

[+jeremiahjt]

I had both and played both. I got my 7800 at Kay Bee Toys for my seventh or eight birthday. The worker and my sister tried to push me towards an NES, but I said nope. We did not have a 2600, but a cousin did so I was familiar with Atari. Also picked up Asteroids at the same time.

 

Either that Christmas or the one after I got an NES and Tiger-Heli. I got an Action Max somewhere in there too.  I played both regularly. I bought new NES, 7800, and 2600 games during that time. Picked up some used NES and 2600 games too. I never came across a used 7800 game back then.

 

I had about 20 NES games and 7 or 8 7800 games along with a dozen or two 2600 games when I stopped buying for those systems back then. Eventually my 7800 power adapter went out and I did not find a replacement for about a decade.

 

Nobody else had a 7800, but my friends still played it when they came over, even the new 2600 games I bought. My friends and I played games, but video games were always the after dark activity. If there was light outside then we were outside. Even at school when we talked, video games were usually not the main topic, but they did come up sometimes.

[Smidge]

I hadn't even heard of the Atari 7800 until I started getting into emulation and wanted to explore the games that came out from before my time. I started the 1st grade in 1995, and I had an NES I inherited from my brother, and many of my classmates had a Genesis or SNES. No one ever mentioned the Atari 7800 or the Sega Master System; it was like they didn't exist. Most of us had heard of "the Atari" as a game console from before our time, but that was definitely in reference to the 2600.

[Flyindrew]

It's funny but from the 1984-1987 time period I never even knew the 7800 existed and cant recall seeing it anywhere. I do remember in the summer of 1987 seeing reviews and ads for the XEGS

[Ecernosoft]

On 9/1/2022 at 3:25 PM, ZippyRedPlumber said:

And if so, share your memories. I'd love to hear them.

Ok, I know technically I don't count, being only 14, but I do have a 7800 and really appreciate it.

Last christmas I got one and it came with 80 games. Yes, 80 games.

I've really enjoyed programming it for fun. 

[Ecernosoft]

5 hours ago, Flyindrew said:

It's funny but from the 1984-1987 time period I never even knew the 7800 existed and cant recall seeing it anywhere. I do remember in the summer of 1987 seeing reviews and ads for the XEGS

is in 7800 forum