The Atari 2600+ is live for preorders!

[digdugnate]

I gotta admit, $129.99 is right in the 'I'd be willing to buy it' price range for an electronic novelty.  

[Thomas Jentzsch]

1 hour ago, Dire 51 said:

I'm torn on this at the moment.

 

On the plus side, it seems to be compatible with a lot more games than the Retron 77.

No, the compatibility seems identical (maybe they got the pins right). Like for the R77 port, only games >4K using Atari's standard bankswitching are listed as compatible. Carts >4K using a different bankswitching are listed as "untested". What a coincidence!

 

And since there is no SD cart slot, there is no easy way to play these games (or the modern ARM games) using the ROMs. 

1 hour ago, Dire 51 said:

However, there are still too many games listed as "untested," and a couple of big ones, at that. It's like, they tested Custer's Revenge but not Pitfall II? How does that make any kind of sense?

See above. Makes perfect sense.  

 

And even the CPU is no better than the one in the R77. And almost 10 years old. Plus it is overpriced compared to the R77. I am quite the opposite of impressed. 

Edited August 22, 2023 by Thomas Jentzsch

[Mockduck]

No issues with any of the pricing, really, given 2023 prices, seems fine to me. Of course I ordered one of everything except for the extra Joystick (for now...)

[m.o.terra kaesi]

I agree with some votes here: if this thing doesn't work with (enhanced) homebrews it's garbage.

The HDMI connectivity is to less for a buying argument.

 

But if it does support homebrew and the picture quality is accurat, this will appeal to many here!

I would look forward to an Atariage AND Atari.com coexistence. Win-Win for all!

[atarifan88]

2 hours ago, jgkspsx said:

https://atari.com/products/atari-2600-plus

 

So Atari is releasing their own HDMI 2600/7800 emulation box:

 

 

It comes with a 20 in 1 multicart.

 

Here’s the compatibility list: 

Correction: It's a 10 in 1 multicart.

https://atari.com/products/atari-2600-plus?fbclid=IwAR08_tezN7phJ0nj9aRi2cJfzXbyfys21-1ulTu-loWrx5N_ZxnEKymCw1Y

[+jgkspsx]

1 minute ago, atarifan88 said:

Correction: It's a 10 in 1 multicart.

Oops, fixed!

[Thomas Jentzsch]

2 minutes ago, m.o.terra kaesi said:

I agree with some votes here: if this thing doesn't work with (enhanced) homebrews it's garbage.

There is no "if". 

[Dire 51]

4 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

No, the compatibility seems identical (maybe they got the pins right). Like for the R77 port, only games >4K using Atari's standard bankswitching are listed as compatible. Carts >4K using a different bankswitching are listed as "untested". What a coincidence!

 

And since there is no SD cart slot, there is no easy way to play these games (or the modern ARM games) using the ROMs. 

See above. Makes perfect sense.  

 

And even the CPU is no better than the one in the R77. And almost 10 years old. Plus it is overpriced compared to the R77. I am quite the opposite of impressed. 

Well, that's disappointing. I already have an R77 (with the community build installed) that I barely ever use. Guess I'll stick to my 7800.

[m.o.terra kaesi]

2 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

There is no "if". 

than it's garbage for real!

 

 

[Thomas Jentzsch]

6 minutes ago, Mockduck said:

No issues with any of the pricing, really, given 2023 prices, seems fine to me.

The R77 goes for less than $80.

[stirrell]

15 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

The R77 goes for less than $80.

For 7800 compatibility, the CX-40 type joystick (hopefully it is actually built-to-last as claimed), and the style make the extra $50 seem reasonable to me. Of course, if you are only interested in 2600 games that would change the equation.

[Albert]

1 minute ago, stirrell said:

For 7800 compatibility, the CX-40 type joystick (hopefully it is actually built-to-last as claimed), and the style make the extra $50 seem reasonable to me. Of course, if you are only interested in 2600 games that would change the equation.

It also comes with a 10-in-1 2600 cartridge.  I know most of us here who are into the 2600 and have a nice collection will already have all of those games, but outside of our hobby, that's certainly a nice addition.

 

 ..Al

[+sramirez2008]

I’ll pass. I have an R77 (with the community build installed) too and a VCS 800 that I primarily use for emulation (Stella, Altirra and A7800).

[Hwlngmad]

I think if the 2600+ was $100 it would be an easy sale for lots of people.  Though, I wish they would have done a six-switch model rather than a four switch one.  While I won't be picking one up, I think the concept and thoughts behind it on pretty on target.  However, it looks like it could be executed a bit better.  Still, hey, I think it is solid enough.

[Flojomojo]

1 hour ago, alex_79 said:

The multicart simply uses physical switches on the cart itself to select the game.

When I saw this image on the box art mockup, I thought, "how cute, the label pays homage to physical dip switches on old multicarts." But they're not actually going to do that, are they? Are they? 

 

It looks like a very nice Atari Flashback. I hope the build quality is as good as what we see in the animated webpage header. For $129 I wouldn't raise my hopes too high. I'd love to be wrong!

 

Innards are very Flashback-like, this is definitely emulation. 256MB storage is more than enough for every Atari 2600 and 7800 game in the past, present, and future: 

Quote

Featuring a Rockchip 3128 SOC microprocessor with 256MB DDR3 RAM and 256MB eMMC fixed internal storage. Wired CX40+ Joystick with serial port connector.

The compatibility list (hosted on the same Shopify page as the preorders) has some odd holes for "untested" cartridges but I'm sure this community could help them fill that in very quickly. Here's a copy of what it looked like today, August 22, 2023 in case something happens to it. 

Atari-2600Plus-Compatibility.pdf

 

A few years ago I would have bought this sight unseen. I don't have my older cartridges anymore, so this isn't for me. I have high hopes that Atari is back with the fun. 

[alex_79]

3 minutes ago, Flojomojo said:

When I saw this image on the box art mockup, I thought, "how cute, the label pays homage to physical dip switches on old multicarts." But they're not actually going to do that, are they? Are they? 

The bank of 4 dip-switches is visible in one of the pictures of the console:

Edited August 22, 2023 by alex_79

[Flojomojo]

2 minutes ago, alex_79 said:

The bank of 4 dip-switches is visible in one of the pictures of the console:

OMG wow 
insert appropriate Planet of the Apes quote here, "you maniac, you blew it up," etc

Definitely a hobbyist product then!

Not that there's anything wrong with that!!!

[+wongojack]

Yeah, mixed reaction from me.  I want this, but I also want something better.  I'm going to hold off buying for now.

[outflank]

Any idea if a Cuttle Cart 2 would work on it? (I'm guessing it won't) I'm one of the original CC2 owners, and it would be nice to have an HDMI out instead of my old 7800  

[SegaSnatcher]

Looks cute, but I'm assuming this just dumps the carts in ram like the Retron 5.  

[Flojomojo]

1 minute ago, SegaSnatcher said:

Looks cute, but I'm assuming this just dumps the carts in ram like the Retron 5.  

I doubt anyone could put together an FPGA with a dedicated Atari cartridge slot, controller ports, period-accurate switches, and HDMI out for $129. But Analogue Pocket has nice cores for Atari 2600 and 7800, all that's needed is a cartridge port. Simple as that! 

https://store.analogue.co

[chilistudios]

I just found out about this thing thanks to YouTube. I like how it's compatible with both the original controllers and cartridges, and I was pleasantly surprised by the 7800 compatibility. However, I'm put off by its 129.99 price tag. And only 10 games packed in? I got my Genesis Mini from Target for way-y-y-y cheaper and it came with over 4 times as many games packed in. Hell, those old AtGames consoles had more games packed in. Honestly, I think a used 7800 from Ebay is a better deal than this.

[jerseystyle]

This looks great for the price. Tempted for sure, especially with the paddles!

[Bakasama]

1 hour ago, Zonie said:

 

1. No second button to the Joystick. If it is good, and had both buttons, it would be a seller. Missed Opportunity.

 

It's odd they are not offering a two button controller since they claim it can play 7800 games and there have been two button hacks and homebrews for the 2600 for a while.

[Flojomojo]

6 minutes ago, chilistudios said:

I just found out about this thing thanks to YouTube. I like how it's compatible with both the original controllers and cartridges, and I was pleasantly surprised by the 7800 compatibility. However, I'm put off by its 129.99 price tag. And only 10 games packed in? I got my Genesis Mini from Target for way-y-y-y cheaper and it came with over 4 times as many games packed in. Hell, those old AtGames consoles had more games packed in. Honestly, I think a used 7800 from Ebay is a better deal than this.

It's a good price for 2023, everything is more expensive nowadays, and it has the cartridge support that "everyone" says that they want.

 

Maybe they should put out another Atari Flashback with 100 games on board at the same time? Oh wait -- I just remembered that they are https://www.timeextension.com/news/2023/01/atari-and-myarcade-are-launching-a-new-home-console-this-year

 

Do you think this will confuse people? There's 

Atari VCS (mini PC, mostly dead)

Atari MyArcade (standalone plug and play and portable)

Atari 2600+ (enthusiasts only?)

Atari 50 (software on consoles)

 

Is there such a thing as too much Atari?