Hey Odyssey 2 Owners....

[YarsRevengeFan]

I have a few questions:

 

1. How much actual play time does your Odyssey 2 get? I am thinking about getting one from evil-bay, as they seem to be dirt cheap, and with the multi-cart you can buy for $50.00 with 128 games, that's about all I will need.

 

2. How many of you have played a full game of The Quest for the Rings? Did you enjoy playing it, and if so or if not why? I think it looks like a cool game, a cross between the console and board game. It reminds me of old-school PC games that came with all kinds of cool extras in their big boxes!

 

Thanks for your inputs!

[Stingray]

1. Not very much I'm afraid. It's a neat system, but I just don't hook it up very often.

 

2. I don't think I've ever played Quest for the Rings. If it's on the multicart, I'll have to give it a go next time mine is hooked up.

 

-S

[joeybastard]

I just finally got a working one after having boxed carts lying around for years. I've been playing it off and on. KC Munchkin and Demon Attack are the only good games I have at the moment. The others are in the Out of This World/Helicopter Rescue catagory. I have a deal with someone from AA for Pick Ax Pete so, I hope that's good.

 

Man does OoTW/HR suck. The only good thing is the cool way the helicpoter turns.

 

After my work situation settles, I'm going to order the multicart.

[Flojomojo]

Quest for the Rings really needs 2 or 3 players to be fully enjoyed. It would be worth it if you have a bunch of like-minded retro-game hobbit-dork buddies to enjoy it with. In fact, why hasn't anyone remade this nice little game?

[tillenterprises]

I hook mine up about once a month or less, and when I do, it's usually KC Munchkin, KC's Crazy Chase, Alien Invaders Plus, or Pick Axe Pete. I think the voice module is hilarious- you should pick one up.

[NovaXpress]

There's not a lot of great games, but some are as playworthy as a good 2600 title. There are still few I haven't played, the European and Parker releases.

 

Here are the must-have shooters: UFO, Attack of the Timelord, Freedom Fighters, the Imagic games.

 

The must-have non-shooters: KC Muchkin, KC's Krazy Chase, Pick Axe Pete, Turtles.

 

Aside from those, I don't go back to ANY other O2 game. The Master Startegy Series was just hype, a merger of two genres that do not mix. The first two are as fun as your average VCR-board game combo. Even when it was released, I didn't know anyone who played a full game of Quest for the Rings more than once. The Great Wall Street Fortune Hunt looks like a cool idea but I never played that one.

[joeybastard]

I have The Great Wall Street Fortune Hunt that someone I know had a s a kid and gave me.

 

The little bags of pieces are still sealed. I don't think this person ever plugged this cart in

[ScottHuggins]

Like many here have already said, I hook mine up about every 2-3 months thinking "this time I will enjoy it!" only to box it back up within 20 minutes of turning it on.

 

I wish I could say I enjoy it, but I just don't.

[christianscott27]

i used to like screwing around with "the voice" and making it say stupid things, sad but thats probably the most use my O2 collection has seen. its kinda ironic since my 02 collection is so close to complete, i'm still waiting for someone to come over and show how fun the thing is. perhaps its like intellivision where it really shines with two-player games.

[joeybastard]

perhaps its like intellivision where it really shines with two-player games.

 

I'm still waiting for someone to show me the INTV shines on 2 player games. It's the only system I play less than my O2 and Jaguar.

[BydoEmpire]

I haven't played it in five+ years. If I remember correctly, one of the joysticks is broken, and they're not removeable so I'm kind of up a creek. KC's Crazy Chase was great, though. I have a LotR cart, but it was loose.

[BydoEmpire]

Gah, no edit. Lotr = QftR.

[Hydian]

I plug mine in as often as anything else. I had one as a kid so I have fonder memories of it than most people probably do. The O2 takes a lot of pounding from people, but really it wasn't that bad compared to other machines of the time.

[Cassidy Nolen]

Never hook it up to play, and thats why its for sale with all the games (all have boxes).

 

LMK if you decide you want one. I will be happy to make you a good deal.

 

C

[Recycled]

I haven't played on O2 since the early '80s. I loved KC Munchkin at the time; I'm thinking about getting one just for that game. The only other one I remember is Cryptologic (or whatever it's called) and it sux.

[Jess Ragan]

This was my first game system (as embarassed as I am to admit it!). There are some pretty good games for the console if you're willing to look for them, however... KC Munchkin and its sequel KC's Crazy Chase are both definitely worthwhile. Not much else on the Odyssey2 is, however.

 

Quest for the Rings is a pretty advanced game for the time... like a really scaled-down Gauntlet with board game elements. I sat down and played the game with some friends of the family when I was pretty young, about eight or nine. I don't know if we played Quest for the Rings straight or with the board game pieces as the designers intended.

 

One thing I know for sure is that I have both that game (with most of the pieces missing) and The Great Wall Street Fortune Hunt. Like JoeyBastard's copy of the game, mine was in near mint condition, with none of the pieces taken out of the bags. I guess it was so completely boring that even the original owner didn't want to play it!

 

JR

[SteveW]

I bought one at the Oklahoma Game Expo last year, along with about 14 games, and I plugged it in and played it a couple of times, then put it on a shelf and haven't touched it since. I think I have Pick Axe Pete, and it was okay for a little while, but I got bored and tried something else. I don't really have a lot of the "must have" games, anyway.

[ozyr]

Man, not too many O2 folks in this post - at least those who like the system.

 

Myself, I play games on it every week. Just love the system! Why, I just do - even the new KTAAA, Planet Lander, and Pong. It has a fairly decent amount of good games (later ones), and they are cheap enough to come by. Heck, they have homebrews for this thing finally, 3 or 4 in 2004.

 

As for Quest for the Rings, I don't play that too much. I used to, but it really needs two or more people - and I just don't get that chance much lately.

[minorleagueguy]

I love my O2. And the 128-in-1 multi cart rocks! Best $50 I ever spent.

 

minorleagueguy

[Mendon]

I like the O2 and play it frequently, though maybe not every week or month. I go thru spells where I play nothing but the 2600 for a week or more, then the 7800, then the 8bit, then the Jag...etc etc. But the O2 gets a good workout at my house on a regular basis and I enjoy it.

 

It has its share of clunker games (like any system) but also has some very very good ones:

 

Turtles (one of the BEST arcade conversions, IMHO, for any system)

Killer Bee's

Smithereens (love the Voice with this game)

K.C. Munchkin

K.C.'s Crazy Chase

Pick Axe Pete

Attack of the Timelord

U.F.O.

Amok (GREAT Berzerk clone)

 

I never really played any of the three board games; can't explain why but I never have.

 

A few thoughts I have about the O2:

 

1) They were very, very creative in their conversions of arcade games. For example, they could have just made a Pac-Man clone where you ate dots and avoided monsters but instead they put a twist in it where you had to chase the dots to eat them. U.F.O. was another game that used a twist: supposed to be an Asteroids clone but was almost a combination of Asteroids and Robotron (because of the control of the ship & firing). People may disagree but I think the O2 had some very creative titles.

 

2) I bought one new (after I had my 2600 for awhile) and my 7yr old son thought it was sooooooo much cooler than the 2600 because he could put his name on the screen when he had the high score on a game. Of course it disappeared when you took the cart out but for the time that he played against Mom & Dad and had his name on the high score screen, it made him feel proud. Wonder if others had similar experiences?

 

3) The Voice was a neat add-on but I don't think that it was incorporated into the games very well. In fact, it becomes downright annoying after a few seconds on some games... I wont even use The Voice when playing Turtles.

 

4) If you want to get into the O2 at all, I highly recomend the Multi-cart. Like minorleagueguy said, its the best $50 investment you'll make and gives you almost the entire O2 library on one cart.

 

Mendon

[iguana]

I never seem to hook mine up. WHen I do I play KC Munch. and Choperlifter (is that the right name, I have not palyed for a long time) I thought I lost my whole collection in a flood, but after drying it all out, it seemed to work again (not that I played it much) I do have to say though, of all the classic game systems it looks the coolest!

[thegamezmaster]

I've got one with games but no controllers. Does anyone know a good place to get them and are the multicarts still available?

[christianscott27]

one of the great quirks about the O2 is that unlike the atari 2600 which saw hundreds, possibly thousands of monkeys typing code, the O2 library is almost entirely the work of one man. ed averett wrote 24 games for the 02, an amazing feet of creativity even with the O2's limited appeal.

 

theres a good short interview with him here

 

http://www.dadgum.com/halcyon/BOOK/AVERETT.HTM

[moycon]

I honestly don't think I've played mine since I've moved into this house...about 7 years.

 

I have a few games including a complete in box TQFTR but the O2 games always got boring quick.

[Flojomojo]

That was great, thanks for that link! I found a link off the main page with a list of everything he designed. Definitely an awesome designer.

 

Take the Money and Run (1979, O2, Magnavox)

I've Got Your Number (1979, O2, Magnavox)

Invaders from Hyperspace (1979, O2, Magnavox)

Showdown in 2100 A.D.(1979,O2, Magnavox)

War of Nerves (1979, O2, Magnavox)

Alpine Skiing (1979, O2, Magnavox)

Hockey/Soccer (1979, O2, Magnavox)

Volleyball (1980,O2, Magnavox)

Electronic Table Soccer (1980, O2, Magnavox)

Pocket Billiards (1980, O2, Magnavox)

Pachinko (1980, O2, Magnavox)

Casino Slot Machine (1980, O2, Magnavox)

Blockout/Breakdown (1980, O2, Magnavox)

Alien Invaders Plus (1980, O2, Magnavox)

UFO (1981, O2, Magnavox)

Monkey Shines (1981, O2, Magnavox)

Quest for the Rings (1981, O2, Magnavox)

Conquest of the Worlds (1981, O2, Magnavox)

Great Wall St. Fortune Hunt (1981, O2, Magnavox)

K.C. Munchkin (1981, O2, Magnavox)

Freedom Fighters (1981, O2, Magnavox)

Pick Axe Pete (1981, O2, Magnavox)

K.C.'s Crazy Chase (1982, O2, Magnavox)

Attack of the Time Lord, with Linda Averette (1982, O2, Magnavox) aka "Terrahawks" (1983)

Power Lords (1983, O2, Magnavox)