The Atari 2600+ is live for preorders!

[Thomas Jentzsch]

5 hours ago, MikeM_ said:

Brand New on the forum, but long time Atari gamer. 

 

This hits the nail on the head. What makes this system stand out from all the other emulators and 'all in one' collections is its simplicity and similarity to the original 2600/7800 experience. The majority of my carts are working great in the 2600+, and I have stopped using my 7800 as my primary since getting this. I like that the improvements called out in the upcoming FW update are more about compatibility and performance rather than unneeded bells and whistles. 

Why would an optional UI change anything here?

[Sean_1970]

39 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

Why would an optional UI change anything here?

From various posts thus far my sense is that being optional might be a temporary state of affairs, but given this isn’t an internet connected device I don’t think there should be any concern about that; just don’t update if that day arrives 🤷‍♂️

[Thomas Jentzsch]

12 minutes ago, Sean_1970 said:

From various posts thus far my sense is that being optional might be a temporary state of affairs,

Why would there be any reason to bother the user with an UI if he doesn't actively opens it?  

[Sean_1970]

1 minute ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

Why would there be any reason to bother the user with an UI if he doesn't actively opens it?  

Oh I don’t think optional would be a concern, but I can see merit in the notion that any accessible UI could become part of the boot process in a future update. I can’t really see that happening - at least not without an option to turn it off, but I understand some folk could be concerned about that part.

 

Personally I’d rather they had just built new 6502 processors and ran everything “native” to HDMI, but using Stella does bring a lot of advantages like not having to worry about being able to play PAL or NTSC carts (talking 2600, obviously), so I totally respect the decision to use an emulator.

[Electric-Dreams]

On 12/29/2023 at 5:37 PM, scifidude79 said:

The 10-in-1 manual exists:

 

https://atari.com/pages/ten

 

The link is on the order page for the 2600+.

Many people insist on having the most authentic gaming experience with the Atari 2600+. 
I've said it before, but I'll repeat myself: Printed manuals are part of the Atari gaming experience. 
Why would you want a console that looks like the original 2600? Why would you want new game cartridges that are still compatible with the original model? 
Why play with replicas of the CX40 and CX30 controllers? 
The answer : Authenticity.
I don't want to pull out my smartphone or laptop to search for the game manual in PDF format while I'm playing. 
I want to consult the manual exactly as it was back in the days.
We need printed manuals. Period.

[dashv]

43 minutes ago, Electric-Dreams said:

Many people insist on having the most authentic gaming experience with the Atari 2600+. 
I've said it before, but I'll repeat myself: Printed manuals are part of the Atari gaming experience. 
Why would you want a console that looks like the original 2600? Why would you want new game cartridges that are still compatible with the original model? 
Why play with replicas of the CX40 and CX30 controllers? 
The answer : Authenticity.
I don't want to pull out my smartphone or laptop to search for the game manual in PDF format while I'm playing. 
I want to consult the manual exactly as it was back in the days.
We need printed manuals. Period.

I have all my original printed manuals.

 

but for those new to the scene or folks that have long since said goodbye to their original kit, I get you.

 

I remember as a kid getting Yars Revenge.

 

But I could not play it right away for one reason or another. So I read the included comic book and it got me and my imagination so psyched for the game.

 

The cartridge labels were also full on masterpieces that really got the imagination going.

 

Digital is just not the same.

 

On the topic of UIs, I like some of the toggle methods folks have suggested.

 

I also understand that some folks would rather all effort go into compatibility but I think that’s misguided. Eventually the path to 100% compatibility leads to a necessity to change some behaviors of the emulator for special circumstances.

 

The easiest way to do that is with a menu.

 

Something worth considering, would be having the menu pop up not only when toggled, but also when an unrecognized cartridge was detected. In that case it would also be useful to display the hash of the dump (if completed) or a specific error code related to why the dump did not complete if failed.

 

another reason for a menu would be, a soft virtual numpad could potentially be rendered in the lower right hand corner of the screen with some opacity and control of the virtual numpad could be done with the second joystick. If a 7800 controller is used, the second button could be used to toggle the virtual numpad on and off.

 

As much as I like keeping things simple. I also need bathroom breaks and only have time for short playing session now days.

 

Which means, I actively avoid anything that could lead to a long unpausable/unsaveable playing session.

 

Panky the Panda is another game that would be great to have passwords, pause, or save state.

[Thomas Jentzsch]

In between, this can help to close some gaps. I hope someone finds the time to continue it.

AtariManualTomeV151.pdf

[Gamma Ray]

27 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

In between, this can help to close some gaps. I hope someone finds the time to continue it.

AtariManualTomeV151.pdf 2.8 MB · 12 downloads

This is fantastic! Thanks! I saved it to my phone. I like how you can click/tap on the title of the game in the table of contents and the PDF viewer takes you to that page. Very useful.

[Sean_1970]

38 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

In between, this can help to close some gaps. I hope someone finds the time to continue it.

AtariManualTomeV151.pdf 2.8 MB · 12 downloads

Pretty awesome, I must say 👍

[chad5200]

1 hour ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

In between, this can help to close some gaps. I hope someone finds the time to continue it.

AtariManualTomeV151.pdf 2.8 MB · 20 downloads

Here is the website link to the original download file of the Atari Manual Tome:

 

http://www.westg8.com/atari.html

 

[Thomas Jentzsch]

3 minutes ago, chad5200 said:

Here is the website link to the original download file of the Atari Manual Tome:

 

http://www.westg8.com/atari.html

Thanks, I didn't know it still exists.

[tradyblix]

"Printed manuals are part of the Atari gaming experience".

 

Never read a single manual as a child. Probably why I never beat Raiders.

 

Let's face it printed manuals are a waste and most people will toss them or lose them and look it up online anyway. 

2 hours ago, Sean_1970 said:

Pretty awesome, I must say 👍

 

Now THiS is what I want. Thank you !!!

 

Now to assemble my own Spy Hunter controller using Hyperkin Rangers lol

 

Edited December 30, 2023 by tradyblix

[+LS650]

2 hours ago, tradyblix said:

"Printed manuals are part of the Atari gaming experience".

 

Never read a single manual as a child. Probably why I never beat Raiders.

Let's face it printed manuals are a waste and most people will toss them or lose them and look it up online anyway. 

Umm, no.  I read the manuals.  I might give the game a quick play-through when I first got it... and then I would sit down and read the manual to find out more about the game and how to play it.

 

[Electric-Dreams]

1 hour ago, tradyblix said:

Let's face it printed manuals are a waste and most people will toss them or lose them and look it up online anyway. 

 

 

Yes, i know that many people think this way, but i can't disagree more.  I hate PDF manuals when a printed manual is a possible option.

To play Atari 2600, you'll have to get up from the couch, go to the shelf, grab the box, take out the cartridge, and insert it into the console.

What could be more convenient than taking out the manual from the box instead of bothering to download the PDF and view it on an ill-suited smartphone screen?

The manuals for Atari 2600 games are sometimes useful. It's a shame to throw them away...  even if I know that children (and parents !) often do silly things

I have carefully kept the ones that my parents didn't throw away

I would even go further, saying that some manuals help to learn more about the game's lore, and are even entertaining. 
For games with simpler graphics, they help to stimulate the imagination just like the cover illustration. 
When I was younger, every time my parents bought me a game, I used to read the manual in the car before getting home and then rushed to my bedroom to test the game.

Some manuals are even beautiful. Ask @Albert what he thinks about the manuals of the Ultima series. And their fabric maps. 
Ask people what they think about the manuals of Infocom games. Ask them about manuals of the Gold Box SSI game series .

Yes, I know, you can play most of the basic Atari games without the manuals. You're right. I get it.
But they are still pieces of Atari video game history, just like the boxes, the illustrations, the CX40, and the Atari 2600. 

We have brought back the console (why? we have Stella !), the controllers (a PS4 controller on my PC work just fine), the cartridges (we could just toss them like the manuals and use rom files instead), even though it's technologically complex and expensive. 
Why deprive ourselves of bringing back the manuals? It's just a matter of printing them. We've known how to do that since year 1453 and Gutenberg

Hehe nostalgia probably plays a major role here. I'm becoming sensitive and sentimental again !

Long live to the Atari manuals ! (I am running out of arguments)

Sorry again for my clumsy expression in English ... 
It's challenging to convey my sentiment-laden arguments in a language that is not my native tongue.

It's time for me to go to bed (and dream about receiving the 1.1 beta update  😇 )

 

Qa Pla' !  

So say we all !

[Slider271]

18 minutes ago, Electric-Dreams said:

Yes, i know that many people think this way, but i can't disagree more.  I hate PDF manuals when a printed manual is a possible option.

To play Atari 2600, you'll have to get up from the couch, go to the shelf, grab the box, take out the cartridge, and insert it into the console.

What could be more convenient than taking out the manual from the box instead of bothering to download the PDF and view it on an ill-suited smartphone screen?

The manuals for Atari 2600 games are sometimes useful. It's a shame to throw them away...  even if I know that children (and parents !) often do silly things

I have carefully kept the ones that my parents didn't throw away

I would even go further, saying that some manuals help to learn more about the game's lore, and are even entertaining. 
For games with simpler graphics, they help to stimulate the imagination just like the cover illustration. 
When I was younger, every time my parents bought me a game, I used to read the manual in the car before getting home and then rushed to my bedroom to test the game.

Some manuals are even beautiful. Ask @Albert what he thinks about the manuals of the Ultima series. And their fabric maps. 
Ask people what they think about the manuals of Infocom games. Ask them about manuals of the Gold Box SSI game series .

Yes, I know, you can play most of the basic Atari games without the manuals. You're right. I get it.
But they are still pieces of Atari video game history, just like the boxes, the illustrations, the CX40, and the Atari 2600. 

We have brought back the console (why? we have Stella !), the controllers (a PS4 controller on my PC work just fine), the cartridges (we could just toss them like the manuals and use rom files instead), even though it's technologically complex and expensive. 
Why deprive ourselves of bringing back the manuals? It's just a matter of printing them. We've known how to do that since year 1453 and Gutenberg

Hehe nostalgia probably plays a major role here. I'm becoming sensitive and sentimental again !

Long live to the Atari manuals ! (I am running out of arguments)

Sorry again for my clumsy expression in English ... 
It's challenging to convey my sentiment-laden arguments in a language that is not my native tongue.

It's time for me to go to bed (and dream about receiving the 1.1 beta update  😇 )

 

Qa Pla' !  

So say we all !

I’d like to add that I completely agree with this post! While PDF manuals are great as an option to download when buying games off eBay for example, when buying a new game I’d love to have a wee physical manual included, especially where a game has multiple options (looking at you, Berzerk).
 

I understand the financial implications but it would be nice to at least have the game options included physically (as many others have said on here). Most modern games have some kind of tutorial included in-game, so where you’re playing “old” games with no in-game help, I do think there an onus on the publisher to include some kind of instructions

[Jake67]

When I was a kid, my mom and I used the manuals to record high scores. I lost them somewhere along the way and it never fails to make me a bit sad that a part of our gaming history is gone forever.

 

For us, the manual was a record of our game-playing time together... in addition to helping keep track of games that had tons of game options.

 

When I went on an eBay game-buying spree earlier this year in anticipation of the 2600+, an included manual was a must.

[r_type2600]

Great to see so many newcomers to the scene, passionate about the right and full 2600 experience.

It may have got lost somewhere in this (or another) long thread, but I believe Ben from Plaion has already acknowledged the manual issue, and indicated that one will be included with all future 2600+ game releases from Atari.

[Slider271]

Just now, Jake67 said:

When I was a kid, my mom and I used the manuals to record high scores. I lost them somewhere along the way and it never fails to make me a bit sad that a part of our gaming history is gone forever.

 

For us, the manual was a record of our game-playing time together... in addition to helping keep track of games that had tons of game options.

 

When I went on an eBay game-buying spree earlier this year in anticipation of the 2600+, an included manual was a must.

I’ve still got a notebook with my hiscores from my 80s ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC games, and since getting the 2600+ I’ve been noting down my hiscores on a sheet of paper  (since I lost the one with my original VCS scores!)

[Sean_1970]

Space Invaders has, what, 120 game choices? Some of them are kinda obvious, but I really want some kind of manual so I know what the options are or to explain possible difficulty switch behaviour. And then there’s the games where you cannot tell what you’re supposed to be doing or what’s what just playing the game. Save Mary is one I couldn’t understand at all without reading the manual. Although I download PDFs I have gotten lucky enough to buy some games that came with manuals so I printed my PDFs off to keep them all together rather than look in two different places. Activision games don’t often have different game modes, so usually I’m just looking for stuff like game modes in Breakout, Asteroids or Berzerk.

[MikeM_]

10 hours ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

Why would an optional UI change anything here?

For me, it’s more about resource allocation. 
 

I’d rather see developer time and effort put into making the 2600+ as smooth an experience as possible and Atari can instead focus the Atari 50 team (which i’d make a confident guess is not the same team) on those kinds of changes to the experience. 
 

Changing focus to UX could divert attention away from the good work they are doing right now and start making it difficult to keep up. 
 

I’ve got experience with small dev teams with too many deliverables on their plate. 
 

keep it simple and you get better results. 
 

besides, we have Atari 50 and the modern VCS that have all the UX changes listed already. Why do we need them on the 2600+ also?

[scifidude79]

5 hours ago, tradyblix said:

Never read a single manual as a child.

I didn't either. But, I've seen the error of my ways. I bought Superman for the 2600 as a loose cart with no manual when I was a teenager. I never knew until two days ago what I was supposed to do in that game because I bought a cartridge off of Ebay with the manual and I actually took time to read it. Now I know what to do and I love that game.

 

RTFM for the win.

[tradyblix]

6 hours ago, Electric-Dreams said:

Yes, i know that many people think this way, but i can't disagree more.  I hate PDF manuals when a printed manual is a possible option.

To play Atari 2600, you'll have to get up from the couch, go to the shelf, grab the box, take out the cartridge, and insert it into the console.

What could be more convenient than taking out the manual from the box instead of bothering to download the PDF and view it on an ill-suited smartphone screen?

The manuals for Atari 2600 games are sometimes useful. It's a shame to throw them away...  even if I know that children (and parents !) often do silly things

I have carefully kept the ones that my parents didn't throw away

I would even go further, saying that some manuals help to learn more about the game's lore, and are even entertaining. 
For games with simpler graphics, they help to stimulate the imagination just like the cover illustration. 
When I was younger, every time my parents bought me a game, I used to read the manual in the car before getting home and then rushed to my bedroom to test the game.

Some manuals are even beautiful. Ask @Albert what he thinks about the manuals of the Ultima series. And their fabric maps. 
Ask people what they think about the manuals of Infocom games. Ask them about manuals of the Gold Box SSI game series .

Yes, I know, you can play most of the basic Atari games without the manuals. You're right. I get it.
But they are still pieces of Atari video game history, just like the boxes, the illustrations, the CX40, and the Atari 2600. 

We have brought back the console (why? we have Stella !), the controllers (a PS4 controller on my PC work just fine), the cartridges (we could just toss them like the manuals and use rom files instead), even though it's technologically complex and expensive. 
Why deprive ourselves of bringing back the manuals? It's just a matter of printing them. We've known how to do that since year 1453 and Gutenberg

Hehe nostalgia probably plays a major role here. I'm becoming sensitive and sentimental again !

Long live to the Atari manuals ! (I am running out of arguments)

Sorry again for my clumsy expression in English ... 
It's challenging to convey my sentiment-laden arguments in a language that is not my native tongue.

It's time for me to go to bed (and dream about receiving the 1.1 beta update  😇 )

 

Qa Pla' !  

So say we all !

My position is well known on the forums. I dissent! I raise the flag of the eco conscious !

[Zoyous]

9 hours ago, tradyblix said:

My position is well known on the forums. I dissent! I raise the flag of the eco conscious !

Simple solution: print the manuals on hemp-based paper. That also brings things full circle with the reported open use of marijuana among some of the original developers at Atari.

[Spanner]

On 11/2/2023 at 1:10 PM, Ben from Plaion said:

I never tire of watching the robots work...here's another this time screwing the CX40+ joysticks

Cool...

The Atgames CX40 Joysticks work too plus there Paddles..  the buttons on the side of it don't.

[Thomas Jentzsch]

To me it seems absurd to first create the imagination of the classic console. And then force the people to read the manuals online.