Collecting for the 2600+

[Ben from Plaion]

54 minutes ago, Lord Thag said:

Yeah everyone always credits Activision as having the best game library on the 2600 (and they ARE great) but my money is, and always was back in the day, on Imagic. About half the Activision titles fall under the 'looks great, plays ok' umbrella (Barnstorming, Boxing, Fishing Derby, etc), whereas Imagic only really has one meh game: Fire Fighter. Everything else is good to great. Even their rare games (unlike everyone else) are actually excellent. Subterranea and Laser Gates are in my top 20 VCS games.

 

You can't go wrong with imagic. And with the rarest game, Subterranea, only being an R6 or so, it's quite doable, even now, to collect a full set of these.

 

I'd love to see them re released for sure. Sadly, I think Activision has the rights to them now so ... dream it is lol

Yeah an imagic boxed set reissue, what a cool thing to conceptulise.

[chad5200]

4 minutes ago, Ben from Plaion said:

Yeah an imagic boxed set reissue, what a cool thing to conceptulise.

 

 

[Ben from Plaion]

12 minutes ago, chad5200 said:

 

 

I wish it was that easy.

[KainXavier]

On 12/13/2023 at 12:08 PM, MysticSword said:

Out of my collection so far, a couple of my fav SHMUP type games are Galaxian and Demon Attack. And I suppose Asteroids might fall into that category as well.

All good choices!  Excluding homebrew, Turmoil and Laser Gates are my favorite shoot-'em-ups for the 2600.  If we include homebrew, Juno First hands-down.  It's an excellent port of an excellent arcade game that flew under my radar for 30 years.  Galagon and Gorf Arcade are also in my top five.

[tradyblix]

Okay.

 

I just got Spy Hunter. and it is freaking amazing. I mean if you are a fan of arcade games in the last 30 or 40 years, you probably enjoyed playing Spy Hunter for like the 15 Seconds that you're able to not like be run off the road.

 

And this is game is just like that. you even have a use of the second controller for smokescreens and oil slicks which is just super cool.

 

The only negative I found is that you can't shoot and destroy your own truck once you offload your sports car from it. Something I enjoy doing in the arcades.

 

The iconic music is preserved, at least on the title screen. and all of the different car types are there. and the action is just frenetic, and just lots of fun. just lots of fun.

 

Gosh, I wish I had known about this one back in 83.  

 

Edited December 15, 2023 by tradyblix

[+Intellivision Master]

15 hours ago, Ben from Plaion said:

Yeah an imagic boxed set reissue, what a cool thing to conceptulise.

That would be great.  

[+swlovinist]

I made this video for people looking for some cheap Atari carts for the 2600+.    There are many more out there but the games I mention in the video are some of my favorites.   I love seeing others collect for Atari and everyone have a great Christmas!

 

 

[scifidude79]

59 minutes ago, swlovinist said:

I made this video for people looking for some cheap Atari carts for the 2600+.    There are many more out there but the games I mention in the video are some of my favorites.   I love seeing others collect for Atari and everyone have a great Christmas!

 

 

I'm a longtime fan of your channel, John. I absolutely love your content. Your enthusiasm about retro gaming and you reminiscing about your personal gaming history is always great. I've gotten some great advice from you over the years. But, not so much in this video, but that's no fault of yours. I own 9 of the 10 cartridges you recommended in the video. 😁 In fact, I cannot agree more that they're some of the best inexpensive cartridges for the system. The only one you mentioned that I don't own is Phoenix, so it's on the shopping list now. 😎

[MarcinJ]

I never had an Atari 2600, I used to play arcade games a lot - Donkey Kong, Xevious, Moon Cresta and of course Pac Man. 
 I grew up in Poland and my first computer was a Commodore 64 (bought second hand, there was no official way to buy it). I also played Atari games on my friend's computer. This is how I discovered River Raid and H.E.R.O.

Fast forward almost 35 years: My first contact with the Atari 2600 was a Lego set I saw in a Lego shop a few years ago. It looked great, but didn't play any games, which was disappointing. Imagine if you had a console made of Lego bricks that allowed you to play Pac-Man. 
Then a few months ago I saw an advert for the Atari 2600+ and I knew I had to have it, but I needed games!
Collecting carts in Europe is not as easy as in the US. For me it is mostly EBay and you have to be lucky to find good games at a reasonable price. I did not have any carts before I pre-ordered 2600+, so I started hunting as soon as I pre-ordered.  The result is shown in the photo. Some of the games I bought were based on recommendations from people like @swlovinist, some I knew quite well from the past. Nowadays you can hardly find a cheap Atari 7800 game on German eBay. Donkey Kong Junior costs 100 EUR. I am glad that I was quick enough to get it at a reasonable price.

 

Atari 2600+ is my Christmas gift my wife got me. So I still need to way a week before I will be able to officially unbox the console and play the carts. There will be some Christmas game session with my family.  

[+Intellivision Master]

22 hours ago, Dr Karnov said:

but never heard of Worm War 1.

I've played the ROM of it.  They should make a Worm War 2.  Maybe it could be a homebrew.

[Brad_from_the_80s]

1 hour ago, MarcinJ said:

I never had an Atari 2600, I used to play arcade games a lot - Donkey Kong, Xevious, Moon Cresta and of course Pac Man. 
 I grew up in Poland and my first computer was a Commodore 64 (bought second hand, there was no official way to buy it). I also played Atari games on my friend's computer. This is how I discovered River Raid and H.E.R.O.

Fast forward almost 35 years: My first contact with the Atari 2600 was a Lego set I saw in a Lego shop a few years ago. It looked great, but didn't play any games, which was disappointing. Imagine if you had a console made of Lego bricks that allowed you to play Pac-Man. 
Then a few months ago I saw an advert for the Atari 2600+ and I knew I had to have it, but I needed games!
Collecting carts in Europe is not as easy as in the US. For me it is mostly EBay and you have to be lucky to find good games at a reasonable price. I did not have any carts before I pre-ordered 2600+, so I started hunting as soon as I pre-ordered.  The result is shown in the photo. Some of the games I bought were based on recommendations from people like @swlovinist, some I knew quite well from the past. Nowadays you can hardly find a cheap Atari 7800 game on German eBay. Donkey Kong Junior costs 100 EUR. I am glad that I was quick enough to get it at a reasonable price.

 

Atari 2600+ is my Christmas gift my wife got me. So I still need to way a week before I will be able to officially unbox the console and play the carts. There will be some Christmas game session with my family.  

That's a nice collection you've started there!  Given the challenges collecting in Europe.  Just a word of warning, don't give up on the Activision carts if a few don't want to work.  Clean contacts, insert multiple times or try to gently tilt them left or right.  With patience they will probably work eventually and likely even work better over time.

[+swlovinist]

Love seeing the collections, keep them coming.   Nice to see people getting into collecting physical Atari releases again.  

[tradyblix]

4 hours ago, swlovinist said:

I made this video for people looking for some cheap Atari carts for the 2600+.    There are many more out there but the games I mention in the video are some of my favorites.   I love seeing others collect for Atari and everyone have a great Christmas!

 

 

Yeah I got to get a Qbert although I was hoping for the 7800 Homebrew to be working.

Edited December 15, 2023 by tradyblix

[MysticSword]

I got a Qbert cartridge recently to add to my 2600 games collection. It looks cool and works.

The problem is, I can't get a feel for the controls. No matter how much I try, I just can't seem to properly figure out which way to push the controller for jumping a direction I hope to go. So many times I'm at the top starting block, and I think I'm going to jump down, and that #%@! Qbert jumps off the whole dang mountain! Then just when I do think I'm going where I want, it doesn't. I can't even complete the starting level. I'm sure it's just me though. It's just one of those games my hand-eye-brain coordination just can't seem to get the feel of it to make it do what I want it to. Well, maybe I'll give it another go sometime and try to 'git gud'. 😛 

[+LS650]

3 minutes ago, MysticSword said:

I got a Qbert cartridge recently to add to my 2600 games collection. It looks cool and works.

The problem is, I can't get a feel for the controls. 

I found it frustrating at first, but what I find works well is to hold a regular CX-40 and turn it clockwise about 45 degrees.  Then lining up the jumping with the steps is no problem.

[Brad_from_the_80s]

24 minutes ago, tradyblix said:

Yeah I got to get a Qbert although I was hoping for the 7800 Homebrew to be working.

I lucked into finding this trio as a set.

4 minutes ago, ls650 said:

I found it frustrating at first, but what I find works well is to hold a regular CX-40 and turn it clockwise about 45 degrees.  Then lining up the jumping with the steps is no problem.

This is the way.  For Q-bert I rest the controller in my palm, fingers wrapped around the front edge, thumb around the back edge, and turned at an angle, the red button pointing at the screen.  Then it's literally move the joystick in the direction you want to go.  Up-Left, Up-Right, Down-Left, Down-Right.  Simple.

Edited December 15, 2023 by Brad_from_the_80s

[scifidude79]

23 hours ago, MarcinJ said:

I never had an Atari 2600, I used to play arcade games a lot - Donkey Kong, Xevious, Moon Cresta and of course Pac Man. 
 I grew up in Poland and my first computer was a Commodore 64 (bought second hand, there was no official way to buy it). I also played Atari games on my friend's computer. This is how I discovered River Raid and H.E.R.O.

Fast forward almost 35 years: My first contact with the Atari 2600 was a Lego set I saw in a Lego shop a few years ago. It looked great, but didn't play any games, which was disappointing. Imagine if you had a console made of Lego bricks that allowed you to play Pac-Man. 
Then a few months ago I saw an advert for the Atari 2600+ and I knew I had to have it, but I needed games!
Collecting carts in Europe is not as easy as in the US. For me it is mostly EBay and you have to be lucky to find good games at a reasonable price. I did not have any carts before I pre-ordered 2600+, so I started hunting as soon as I pre-ordered.  The result is shown in the photo. Some of the games I bought were based on recommendations from people like @swlovinist, some I knew quite well from the past. Nowadays you can hardly find a cheap Atari 7800 game on German eBay. Donkey Kong Junior costs 100 EUR. I am glad that I was quick enough to get it at a reasonable price.

 

Atari 2600+ is my Christmas gift my wife got me. So I still need to way a week before I will be able to officially unbox the console and play the carts. There will be some Christmas game session with my family.  

You've got a fantastic collection going on so far. Even some classic cartridge in boxes, which is always nice. It looks like you and your family are going to have a really fun Christmas, and I'm happy for you.

[scifidude79]

19 hours ago, Brad_from_the_80s said:

I lucked into finding this trio as a set.

Nice! Those look like they're in great shape.

 

I got all three of those in a lot too, but with a lot of other cartridges. I was happy, as it saved me from having to get Q*bert and Frogger separately.

[MarcinJ]

On 12/15/2023 at 6:02 PM, Brad_from_the_80s said:

That's a nice collection you've started there!  Given the challenges collecting in Europe.  Just a word of warning, don't give up on the Activision carts if a few don't want to work.  Clean contacts, insert multiple times or try to gently tilt them left or right.  With patience they will probably work eventually and likely even work better over time.

Thanks for the info. We’ll see how they work.  

[+LS650]

I think that Parker Brothers has some of the best 3rd party games.  I know most folks more highly of Activision, but Parker Bros did a great job with a lot of arcade conversions: Frogger, Q*bert, and Popeye are great, as well as Empire Strikes Back.  I just recently acquired Amidar, and while that's not on the same level, it's a pretty decent game.

[MysticSword]

On 12/12/2023 at 8:38 AM, Sean_1970 said:

Some of the prices people are asking on eBay are completely bonkers. I mean I can see what looks like a copy of HERO with box and instructions in the UK for over £60, which is a bit high, but some are hundreds and a couple are asking THOUSANDS of £s (apparently sealed, but 7 grand?!?). I cannot imagine this game is that rare.

 

DK Jr. for 7800 and Mario Bros 7800 are two other games I’d like, but I’m not prepared to part with hundreds of £s for that 😅

Browsing Ebay again, seeing what new 2600 / 7800 games might be available. Seen this insane price for HERO: EUR 7500 (or over $11,000 CAD where I'm at after shipping). Like is there a gold bar that comes with it? Sheesh! 

And even loose copies are so darn expensive (cheapest one I've seen is more expensive than buying a new 2600+ console).   Yeah, I don't think so! Maybe one day I'll get lucky at some bargain bin in a thrift store. 

 

[Sean_1970]

11 hours ago, ls650 said:

I think that Parker Brothers has some of the best 3rd party games.  I know most folks more highly of Activision, but Parker Bros did a great job with a lot of arcade conversions: Frogger, Q*bert, and Popeye are great, as well as Empire Strikes Back.  I just recently acquired Amidar, and while that's not on the same level, it's a pretty decent game.

I got Amidar and Tutankham. Whilst not remotely as good looking as the arcade, the latter even attempts the startup music, which is quite the dedication!

 

I seem to recall owning Empire Strikes Back, so definitely going to try to acquire that again and Reactor, but that one I’m not sure if I played all that much. Parker Bros was definitely one of the better 3rd parties and CBS Electronics did some decent arcade stuff too. Those two, Activision and Imagic are my main third party carts. I also have Dark Cavern from M Network. Might have to try hunting down Tron Deadly Discs. I remember playing it on a friends’s Intellivison, but don’t think I had it for the 2600 🤔

[Rodney Hester]

9 hours ago, Sean_1970 said:

I seem to recall owning Empire Strikes Back, so definitely going to try to acquire that again and Reactor, but that one I’m not sure if I played all that much.

You just triggered me hard.  ESB was quite good if repetitive, but I played Reactor until I had 'Atari claw' from the original stick many, MANY times.

 

Much later in life, I discovered it was an arcade port, but VASTLY prefer the 2600 version to the arcade (for controllability, if nothing else).

[tsgthesportsgamer]

Do we know of any new IPs or re-issues/special editions that Atari plans to release for the 2600 catalog going forward now that the 2600+ is out (right now we have the 10-in-1, 4-in-1, Berzerk Enhanced and Mr. Run and Jump). 

[Brad_from_the_80s]

My (almost) full collection so far.  Hard to believe I have almost 70 carts already, and a handful more on the way.  But I did pickup a couple of larger lots.  Ima probably slow down now, but still the occasional pickup here and there.  Definitely enough to put 2600+ through its paces