doctor_shred Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 Hi, I appreciate this has been touched on more than once previously. Now that the 2600+ has been out for a while I'd like to know the real world experience. To put it in context, I grew up with a 2600 VCS 6-er in the 80s, which I still have, I have a composite modded VCS Jr and a Hyperkin Retron 77. I like the idea of 7800 compatibility but does the 2600 + offer anything tangibly more than I already have? I have a large collection of original 2600 carts that work OK with my current set up. I love that Atari is back making hardware again but is it one emulator vs another? The Retron 77, whilst flawed, does pretty well IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorxs Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 In my opinion, the 2600+ offers very little that the Retron doesn't already offer and at the same time offers less. The only thing I can think of that it offers more of is being able to play Berzerk Enhanced, as it doesn't work on the Retron. Otherwise all the games that don't work on my Retron still don't work on my 2600+.and you don't have the work around of loading the ROM. Also there are no save states on the 2600+ and paddle game are hit and miss, Mostly as miss. I also have found the Activision games that do work have a clicking noise that I don't get from my Retron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillDMatt Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 how important is playing 7800 games? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeM_ Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 23 minutes ago, yorxs said: In my opinion, the 2600+ offers very little that the Retron doesn't already offer and at the same time offers less. The only thing I can think of that it offers more of is being able to play Berzerk Enhanced, as it doesn't work on the Retron. Otherwise all the games that don't work on my Retron still don't work on my 2600+.and you don't have the work around of loading the ROM. Also there are no save states on the 2600+ and paddle game are hit and miss, Mostly as miss. I also have found the Activision games that do work have a clicking noise that I don't get from my Retron. I was under the impression that the Retron77 couldn’t play any Activision carts. Has that changed? I don’t own one so I can’t say for sure. Also, the clicking sound in Pitfall! on the 2600+ has been fixed in the experimental FW. It’s only a matter of time before all these fixes get bundled into a proper release. As for my personal experience with the 2600+, out of the 211 cartridges I have (both 2600 and 7800), only 3 are not yet working at all: Zaxxon, James Bond 007, and Pitfall II. And then there are the handful of titles that require the keyboard controller. It is my belief that all these issues will be resolved in the near future. While this doesn’t fix every single reported issue, if/when those fixes come, it will end up being 100% coverage for my games which will permanently move my original 7800 (which I rarely use now) to storage or display only. I also have a RetroPie which I use for playing roms (mostly NES, but I do have a few Atari on it as well. Hoping to find some of the homebrews that aren’t on AA anymore for that since I missed out on them on carts) which makes that capability of the 77 redundant for me. So my experience is that the 2600+ does its job well of being a modern device that gives me the classic ‘pop in a game and play’ vibe. All the hard work that Plaion has done to improve it has only made it better. As for whether or not the OP needs one, I suppose that’s up to them. All I can say is that I very much enjoy mine and it’s getting played plenty. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 If you want to use your classic carts: 2600+ If you want to play all 2600 games: RetroN 77 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rodney Hester Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 Sadly, paddle issues were never _quite_ resolved on the R77. Granted, the state of paddles on the 2600+ is objectively worse. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetmanUK Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 3 hours ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: If you want to use your classic carts: 2600+ If you want to play all 2600 games: RetroN 77 Does the Retron work with all new homebrew? I didn't realise that, I thought it just dumped images too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 43 minutes ago, JetmanUK said: Does the Retron work with all new homebrew? I didn't realise that, I thought it just dumped images too. The dumper is much worse than the one for the 2600+. But unlike the 2600+, the R77 has an SD card and plays everything from it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetmanUK Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 14 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: The dumper is much worse than the one for the 2600+. But unlike the 2600+, the R77 has an SD card and plays everything from it. Ah gotcha. Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+LS650 Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 Some 7800 games are amazing. That is the deciding factor for me. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hizzy Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 Until the 2600+ becomes 100% usable, I'm sticking with Stella and OG hardware. If I didn't have that option, R77. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetmanUK Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 I have the Plus and original hardware, but if its about loading ROMS then I can use my GSP or Flashback 50 Gold. I would not buy a Retron, but I hope others enjoy it. Add my laptop/Stella, and I have five ways to play 2600 games, even so I would love the 2600 Plus to be updated to 100% compatibility and OTG cable USB loading as it would make it the true best in class. I wonder if it will progress that far? I really hope so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spanner Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 (edited) Atari2600 Plus is made by Plaion UK not Atari, even if they are selling it on there website that use to be Hasbro Interactive inc, Atari's last console they made themselves was the Jaguar in 1998 when Jack Tremiel owned it, Atari is now owned by Infogrames(a PC, Console Games Publisher, they have never made hardware only software), Atari went bankrupt(1998) and did not exits for 2 years before Infogrames bought Hasbro in 2001(1998 to 2000) and now use only the Atari IP, thats why there are so many Atari Flashbacks, only way they can make money is to rent out the Atari PI to other companies that want to use it, like Amiga, its happened to all the old companies now from the 70s,80s and 90s. Cloanto have now done the same and now call themselves Amiga Corporation, more money in its copyright then anything else and they own the right now to the C64 too when the kernal was not owned by no one originally after CBM died( the C64 kernal was part of the VICE Emulator at one time, now its not because Cloanto own the right to the C64 kernal) so show its can be a bad thing sometimes, but we have made this happened, we have fed it because we love retro consoles/computers so much. Edited March 13 by Spanner 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doctor_shred Posted March 13 Author Share Posted March 13 Thanks for the replies. I am happy with the Retron 77 for what it is. The HDMI out was the main draw. There's nothing like the original hardware though. The 2600+ caught my eye for the aesthetics and 7800 compatability. I don't own any 7800 games yet but there are a few I'd like to play. Given the 2600 compatability issues reported above and elsewhere I'll bide my time and see how the firmware develops. Or I might buy a used 7800 and put up with the Rf out.🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeM_ Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 15 minutes ago, doctor_shred said: Thanks for the replies. I am happy with the Retron 77 for what it is. The HDMI out was the main draw. There's nothing like the original hardware though. The 2600+ caught my eye for the aesthetics and 7800 compatability. I don't own any 7800 games yet but there are a few I'd like to play. Given the 2600 compatability issues reported above and elsewhere I'll bide my time and see how the firmware develops. Or I might buy a used 7800 and put up with the Rf out.🙂 If 7800 has any draw to you, then the plus is a very good option. I particularly enjoy its HDMI connectivity which allows me to use it without having to make sure I have RF in on my monitor. The compatibility problems only affect you if you have the short list of impacted games and want to play them regularly. As I mentioned above, nearly all of my games work so I don’t run into these issues. I’m sure a lot of people have had the retron or 2600+ choice in their heads. From what I know about the retron, it sounds more limited than the plus with the exception of being able to play Roms on flash. That said, I’m glad I went with the plus over the retron. Since you already have one, I get that it’s a tougher sell because of what is duplicated functionality. in the end, I think that all the work that’s been done to improve the firmware on the plus will make it the better long-term console option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shane857 Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 11 hours ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: If you want to use your classic carts: 2600+ If you want to play all 2600 games: RetroN 77 If you want to play all 2600 games from Roms: RetroN 77 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shane857 Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 For me Personally... Atari 2600+ all the way. The build, the design and the cart compatibility. The only benefit I can see the Retron 77 has is maybe screen filters and save states. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glorkbot Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 If you want to play roms I think you'd be better off with a Raspberry Pi than a Retron 77. If you want to play carts, I think the Atari 2600+ is better because it hits the nostalgia feeling better by looking & feeling authentic. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goochman Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 Dont some of the R77's have a problem with heat and Stella - Not sure if the latest models have what I believe was a memory issue and heat problem. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 2 minutes ago, Goochman said: Dont some of the R77's have a problem with heat and Stella - Not sure if the latest models have what I believe was a memory issue and heat problem. Yes, quite some R77 use(d?) to have pretty bad memory. And it seems that there is no transparency to find out before buying. But you could buy, update the firmware and return if the memory is bad. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeM_ Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 42 minutes ago, Glorkbot said: If you want to play roms I think you'd be better off with a Raspberry Pi than a Retron 77. If you want to play carts, I think the Atari 2600+ is better because it hits the nostalgia feeling better by looking & feeling authentic. That’s my setup. My Raspberry Pi is a great little retro gaming box and covers a ton of systems. It was a particularly satisfying project to build as well. It’s easy to find different usb controllers for it to give you an authentic experience, including 2600 joysticks. Honestly, if emulation is what you are looking for, an all in one like that is way better than something that is limited to just one platform. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chad5200 Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 Is there any chance the Retron 77 cart dumper could get an update and benefit from all the things learned from the 2600+ dumper updates? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BIGHMW Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 You want a REAL, THIRD opinion/option? 1986 2600 Jr. Short Rainbow with TRRS-modded 1988 2600 Jr. Long Rainbow circuitry (due to its superior internal circuitry it being a Rev. A) with a RetroTink 2x (or since I have issues with certain games when using it I use my Insignia composite-to-HDMI converter). If you want 4:3 "fuzzed-out" old-school gaming use your television's onboard controls to do so and designate it for that particular HDMI input on your TV (most TV's nowadays have separate custom settings you can use for each individual input) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Stamos Mullet Posted March 14 Share Posted March 14 11 hours ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: The dumper is much worse than the one for the 2600+. But unlike the 2600+, the R77 has an SD card and plays everything from it. *except 7800 games 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Stamos Mullet Posted March 14 Share Posted March 14 5 hours ago, Glorkbot said: If you want to play roms I think you'd be better off with a Raspberry Pi than a Retron 77. If you want to play carts, I think the Atari 2600+ is better because it hits the nostalgia feeling better by looking & feeling authentic. This. the Retron 77 has that “Dollar Store” knockoff feel to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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