Odyssey 2: Under Appreciated?

[retrocon]

I can't believe nobody here has mentioned Monkeyshine? I used to play this game for hours.

 

It's a game of tag you play against a bunch of monkeys. And the monkeys move around like just like, uh, real monkeys. They would swing around on bars and chase you across the screen. It was a hoot to watch, much less play I'll tell ya.

Edited June 24, 2005 by retrocon

[BassGuitari]

Odyssey 2 is the system that got me hooked on classic gaming for life...this was probably close to ten years ago now, when I was in 6th grade (gawd!). I happened to mention my interest in archaic video games to a friend at school, and he said he had an Odyssey. Turns out he actually had two Odyssey 2 systems (one was formerly kept at his grandparents' house) and close to 30 cartridges, with The Voice and The Great Wall Street Fortune Hunt (I don't know if it was complete).

 

Anyway, we used to go to his house after school and play UFO, Basketball -which was strangely captivating- KC's Crazy Chase, and other games. I thought (and still think) the keyboard on the console and the handle-equipped cartridges were the coolest things ever. Without too much arm-twisting, I got him to trade me one of the systems and some cartridges for some Playstation titles (Tekken 2, Alien Trilogy, and Porsche Challenge, I believe).

 

At the time, the only classic console I had was the Odyssey 2 (I had an NES, but that wasn't considered "retro" yet). I had really wanted an Atari -any Atari, didn't matter- but when I got my Odyssey I didn't think an Atari could really be that much cooler. Of course, when I eventually got a 2600 and an ever-increasing library of games, I did begrudgingly admit it's a more playable system than the Odyssey overall.

 

But, I have many fond memories of playing Odyssey 2 as a kid with my friends (in 1996, no less), and although I now recognize that most of its games aren't that hot, it does have a few gems like UFO, Smithereens, Monkeyshines, Killer Bees, and the KC games (yeah, the usual suspects). It doesn't get as much play time as my Atari, but it's nonetheless a personal favorite of mine. I still need to try the Odyssey 2 homebrews...

 

 

 

I'd say the system is at least worth a shot. They're not hard to come by, and they're typically inexpensive. And if you don't like it, give/sell it to someone who hasn't played an Atari yet To me, the Odyssey's only major drawback is that many of its games are for two players only.

[ozyr]

Man, talk about the 'I hate the O2' thread.

 

As for the folks who hate this system, well, it's just your opinion, and nothing else.

Personally, I love this thing. I've had an O2 for years (well, actually about 6 of them), and play them on a regular basis. I'll aggree that some of the games suck, but a vast majority of the Challenger series are just great.

 

As for the person who 'doesn't understand Pick Axe Pete', I would figure you don't understand Donkey Kong either! This is one of the best games for the O2.

 

Well, as I've always said, you either love it or hate it. There are very few people in the middle.

 

All I have to add is:

 

UFO vs Asteroids (2600) = UFO wins!

KC Munchkin vs Pac-Man (2600) = KC wins!

Pick Axe Pete vs Donkey Kong (2600) = PAT wins!

 

Ah, you guys just don't get it...

[Cybergoth]

Hi there!

 

I dunno... I'll play 2600 Pac rather than K.C. any time. (Krazy Chase is admittedly better though)

 

Also, everyone is just listing the same 5-6 titles as their favourites...

 

I think the system takes away way too much room for its handful of playable titles.

 

Greetings,

Manuel

[MosDN]

The Odyssey 2 was the machine that got me hooked on videogames, playing UFO at the local electronics shop, together with my younger brother.

When we finally had enough money to buy one, they were sold out.

 

All they had left was an Atari 2600 woody, still in my possession.

 

I bought a Videopac 7000 a few months back (same as Odyssey 2) with about 8 games including some US releases (no PAL/NTSC problems) and I must say I still like it, about the same as Atari.

 

UFO still rules..

 

BTW Look at these different models.

[MosDN]

I can't believe nobody here has mentioned Monkeyshine? I used to play this game for hours.

 

It's a game of tag you play against a bunch of monkeys. And the monkeys move around like just like, uh, real monkeys.  They would swing around on bars and chase you across the screen. It was a hoot to watch, much less play I'll tell ya.

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Yeah, funny game

[classicgamingguy]

I can't believe nobody here has mentioned Monkeyshine? I used to play this game for hours.

 

It's a game of tag you play against a bunch of monkeys. And the monkeys move around like just like, uh, real monkeys.  They would swing around on bars and chase you across the screen. It was a hoot to watch, much less play I'll tell ya.

879940[/snapback]

 

Oh yeah....why that title didn't come to me in the first place is strange. I played this game with my friend on his O2 for hours and hours. Those damn monkeys...the ones that would turn red (as in ticked off), then the other monkeys swinging around the screen....yeah, that's one game that any O2 owner should get, if he/she doesn't have it already.

 

Steve

[Stingray]

As for the person who 'doesn't understand Pick Axe Pete', I would figure you don't understand Donkey Kong either! This is one of the best games for the O2.

 

Well, as I've always said, you either love it or hate it. There are very few people in the middle.

 

 

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Well it's been a very long time since I played it. I don't remember what the confusion was, just that I didn't understand what I was supposed to do. Like I said, I don't have the instructions. I was kind of hoping someone would give me a quick run down on it. And for the record, I'm a rabid Donkey Kong fan.

 

I like the O2 quite a lot, I just feel like it doesn't have a huge number of first rate games. It does have a lot of neat features that you don't see on other consoles of it's generation. One of my favorite memories of playing the O2 as a kid were of my friend and I playing KC Munchkin. We had as much fun setting up our own mazes as we had actually playing the game.

 

-S

Edited June 24, 2005 by Stingray

[joeybastard]

As for the person who 'doesn't understand Pick Axe Pete', I would figure you don't understand Donkey Kong either! This is one of the best games for the O2.

 

 

Nonsense. DK has an obvious objective besides being a high score game: get to the girl. It's easy to figure out what is happening and why.

 

PAP is a high score game only. Going thru the doorway changes nothing in terms of game play. Without reading the book, it's mess of just breaking rocks and grabbing random crap for no apparent reason. It doesn't hold a candle to DK in any shape or form. Even the VCS version of DK.

[GrizzLee]

I gotta say, I really like the O^2 with the Voice and Keyboard Creations (at least that is what I think it is called). It is a type of Speak 'n Spell program with neat phonetic voice. We always type in our requests to keyboard and play them over the intercom to my wife at the main house. She gets a real kick out of that. And the younger kids really dig playing the O^2 at my place. I don't know why, but something about the Keyboard/voice and funky looks of the system keep them dazzled... at least for a little while.

 

The Voice module games are excellent. The multicart with the hacks is a hoot. KC's Crazy Chase is a must have for Voice owners and I turn it one for ambience in my game room. I wouldn't discount the O^2. Yeah, it only has a handfull of stellar titles, but the wierdness of the system makes very cool, especially when you look at the standalone versions from Europe.

 

 

Just my 2 cents worth in defense of the O^2

-Lee

[Numan]

War of Nerves is a hoot.

[SteveW]

I bought one at last year's Oklahoma Game Expo, and I had never played one before until the console was hooked up to be tested. And the games just don't do anything for me. I don't have Monkeyshines, but I have UFO and Pick Axe Pete, along with one of the KC Munchkin games. They left me cold. I don't like or hate them, they just leave me indifferent.

[Stingray]

One of these days I need to pick up the voice module.

 

-S

[DanBoris]

Having written the first O2 emulator, I know the hardware inside and out, and would be hard pressed to call the O2's hardware "superior" to the 2600s.

 

You are correct that the video chip in the O2 does all the work of drawing the display, but the downside of this is that it reduces the flexibility of the hardware. The O2's video hardware can draw three types of "objects", a grid which is limited to a series of horizontal and vertical lines used to create mazes and such, 12 character object that must come from the internal character set of the chip, and four user defined 8x8 pixel sprites. The result of this is that's it's really hard to create a game with a lot of custom graphic shapes. This is one of the reason you don't see many arcade ports for the O2, and the ones that where done don't look to great.

 

The other problem with the O2 is the 8048 processor. This chip is intended to be used and a microcontroller and is not as well suited to developing game programs as the 2600, 6502 is.

 

I am not sure if you meant "technical docs for the O2" in your final paragraph. The O2 did use an Intel graphics chip, but I believe it was created specifically for the system and was not an off-the-shelf part. You an get some tech info on the system from my page, http://danb.atarihq.com/

 

Dan

 

The O2 is in some ways technically superior to the Atari 2600, but it never had the benefit of third-party support.  From what I understand, the O2's display design is based upon the notion that the processor sets up a display during the vertical blank and then lets the display chip draw it.  This is distinct from the 2600 where the CPU is responsible for generating the display "on the fly".  The O2 display chip allows much more powerful graphics than anything Atari seemed to have in mind when they designed the 2600, but because the latter is designed around (in fact relies upon) on-the-fly display modifications, it can do things the O2 generally can't.

 

I would be curious to see technical docs for the 2600 if anyone knows of any.  I think the video chip was an off-the-shelf Intel part, but even in ancient data books I've never found it.

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[classicgamingguy]

I gotta say, I really like the O^2 with the Voice and Keyboard Creations (at least that is what I think it is called). It is a type of Speak 'n Spell program with neat phonetic voice. We always type in our requests to keyboard and play them over the intercom to my wife at the main house. She gets a real kick out of that. And the younger kids really dig playing the O^2 at my place. I don't know why, but something about the Keyboard/voice and funky looks of the system keep them dazzled... at least for a little while.

 

The Voice module games are excellent. The multicart with the hacks is a hoot. KC's Crazy Chase is a must have for Voice owners and I turn it one for ambience in my game room. I wouldn't discount the O^2. Yeah, it only has a handfull of stellar titles, but the wierdness of the system makes very cool, especially when you look at the standalone versions from Europe.

 

 

Just my 2 cents worth in defense of the O^2

-Lee

880166[/snapback]

 

Great input, everyone. Thanks for the opinions and hard facts about this system. I don't regret doing the swap I did to obtain one. Now, I just need the GAMES..lol

 

Steve

[ZylonBane]

To me, what crippled a lot of the O2's better games was the utterly needless limitation of one life per game. That was just so stupid and arbitrary.

 

I think another problem was that, IIRC, most of the O2's games were written by the same guy, and this guy apparently had a strange idea of what made a fun game.

[supercat]

Having written the first O2 emulator, I know the hardware inside and out, and would be hard pressed to call the O2's hardware "superior" to the 2600s.

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Thanks for the information. The 2600 is clearly superior in terms of its playfield support (40 pixels wide), color output, and audio. The Odyssey has more independently-movable objects, however. The Atari's ability to 'clone' objects means that even without 'tricks' it can support a grid of 36 space invaders while the Odyssey cannot, but the Odyssey can let objects move without restriction, while the Atari is limitted to two freely-movable custom-shaped objects per scan line.

 

If one views the Atari's abilities only as being those which Atari programmers demonstrated prior to Activision's appearance on the scene, I think the Odyssey fares quite decently in the comparison. The only real places the O2 would fall flat would be in the playfield graphics and in the support for a large grid of enemies (e.g. Space Invaders). If Adventure were coded on the O2, the mazes would be different but there could be up to four shaped objects on screen without flicker (as opposed to two) and not all objects would count against that (the player and the sword could be "character" objects instead of sprites).

 

The real downfall of the Odyssey is not the hardware, but rather the quality of programming. The best games on the O2 are entirely beyond the abilities of the 2600. Of course, the best games of the 2600 are entirely beyond the abilities of the 2600. The biggest problem with the O2 is that developers have generally failed to push it to its potential.

 

BTW, do you have any idea how "Killer Bees" is implemented? I'd think the player and enemy swarms are sprites, but what are the beebops and tombstones? Does the program do something tricky to use parts of different built-in character shapes to form them?

[Emehr]

I picked up an O2 about 2 years ago at a yard sale and have since amassed 15 games for it. Unfortunately it's more of a conversation piece than anything else. The problem with having over 500 video games is deciding which ones you want to devote playing time to. After all, that's precious time you're taking away from the other games (not to mention normal "life" activities like "working" and "taking a shower"). Unfortunately what this all boils down to is...the keyboard is *not* the key. Compelling game play? *That* would have been the key.

 

- Jason

[supercat]

Compelling game play? *That* would have been the key.

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Well, most of the games for the O2 were pretty feeble, but there were a few real gems out there. I think my personal favorite is Killer Bees, but other great ones include UFO and Pick Axe Pete (I forget exactly how one plays PAP, but if you can find some instructions that would probably greatly enhance your enjoyment of the game.

[ozyr]

As for the person who 'doesn't understand Pick Axe Pete', I would figure you don't understand Donkey Kong either! This is one of the best games for the O2.

 

 

Nonsense. DK has an obvious objective besides being a high score game: get to the girl. It's easy to figure out what is happening and why.

 

PAP is a high score game only. Going thru the doorway changes nothing in terms of game play. Without reading the book, it's mess of just breaking rocks and grabbing random crap for no apparent reason. It doesn't hold a candle to DK in any shape or form. Even the VCS version of DK.

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Sure DK has an objective, but the 2600 version just plain sucks. Sorry, but that is what I think of it. I've played that version, and I really don't care for it.

 

As for PAP being a high score only game, that is what you think of it. When I really get into this game, I do not watch the score. I concentrate on staying alive for as long as possible - which can be rather challenging. (kind of like asteroids - no big objective other than staying alive a getting points)

 

Quess we just dissagree on this game. That's the way it is.

Edited June 25, 2005 by ozyr

[ozyr]

and for the people who keep saying there are only about 5-6 good games for the O2, here's my list of game that I think are good:

 

Alien Invaders - Plus! (yes, I like this one)

Amok!

Atlantis

Attack of the TimeLord!

Cosmic Conflict!

Freedom Fighters!

K.C. Munchkin!

K.C.'s Krazy Chase!

Kill The Attacking Aliens

Killer Bees!

Monkeyshines!

P.T. Barnum's Acrobats!

Planet Lander

Pong (yes, this new compilation is rather good - just my opinion)

Quest For The Rings

Smithereens!

Turtles!

UFO!

 

that's more than 5. Sure, it's not a ton, but there were only about 50+ games made for this system (in the states).

 

As the title of the post says, the Odyssey2 in underatted. No, I don't think it is the best system, not by a long shot. But it still has it's share of good game, and is a system I think is worthy of collecting.

[Famicoman]

I think its under rated. It has some great games.

[MosDN]

Does anyone have the chess module?

[BassGuitari]

With all this talk about how bad 2600 Donkey Kong is, I wonder if anyone remembers the Intellivision port...

 

2600 Donkey Kong is like your favorite ice cream, where Intellivision Donkey Kong is like a raw clam and egg smoothie.

 

Pickaxe Pete, incidentally, is like your favorite ice cream, but in a smaller portion and without sprinkles.

[ozyr]

Does anyone have the chess module?

880810[/snapback]

 

Yes! It's plays a pretty good game of chess. Graphics are ok, but not great.