hex65000 Posted August 4, 2005 Share Posted August 4, 2005 Another 'me too' here on the true 'cool factor' of the Vectrex. This is the system I use as my weapon of choice when I show my friends the might of 'old school gaming' I have a few carts and overlays with my system. I got the system itself and a second controller boxed and complete for around $50 One of the record dealers at the flea market knew I was into retro stuff and when he showed the boxes to me and said, 'make me a good offer' I did just that. He seemed pleased and I got a pretty swingin' system to boot. Save up, bid, snipe, falsify timestamps, you will want this machine, to me it's the holy grail of the 8-bit era as the Neo Geo is the grail of the 16-bit. Hex. [ Secretly knows that the holy grail of this generation of games will be simply a system that works. ] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB Posted August 4, 2005 Share Posted August 4, 2005 Another 'me too' here on the true 'cool factor' of the Vectrex. This is the system I use as my weapon of choice when I show my friends the might of 'old school gaming' I have a few carts and overlays with my system. Yah. I've used Minestorm's intro sequence to make many a jaw drop. Hex.[ Secretly knows that the holy grail of this generation of games will be simply a system that works. ] It's funny 'cuz it's true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chadtower Posted August 4, 2005 Share Posted August 4, 2005 It launched long enough before the crash that it could have made a bigger impact. I remember standing in Toys R Us looking at it in the glass case, that glass case of unobtainable items because we couldn't afford them. It was awesome, and IIRC, it was $400. That $400 was the big problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB Posted August 4, 2005 Share Posted August 4, 2005 It launched long enough before the crash that it could have made a bigger impact. I remember standing in Toys R Us looking at it in the glass case, that glass case of unobtainable items because we couldn't afford them. It was awesome, and IIRC, it was $400. That $400 was the big problem. 904480[/snapback] Which was due in large part to the integrated display. They couldn't get the price down too far because of the screen, which prevented them from taking the rest of the market on directly Mine was bought when they wenrt on clearance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mayhem Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 It launched at $199 so no idea where the store got their price from if it was that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caveman Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 The Vectrex was a great system, but I understand that the monitor has a lot of problems with it. The only reason it didn't take off was bad luck and bad timing of the crash. It was really ahead of its time, and I can see that clearly through playing through MacMESS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveW Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 I have to wonder why Atarisoft didn't port some of Atari's vector games over to it. Atarisoft ported games to so many other platforms, it seems suprising that they wouldn't put their games onto a console that could really do the vector arcade titles justice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard H. Posted August 5, 2005 Share Posted August 5, 2005 Might try to email this guy, too. FYI my VecFlash cart will be available again soon (there might also be the option of having it built into a clear case ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaggy the Atarian Posted August 8, 2005 Share Posted August 8, 2005 I picked up a Vectrex two weeks ago at a local thrift store for $6 but I have yet to experience it's coolness for two reasons: It doesn't power up I didn't come with any controllers It looks like it had been in storage for a while and I looked around the place to see if they separated the controllers and games (which they seem to do all the time and is really annoying) but no luck. Of course, until I can figure out why it won't power up I guess it's a moot point. I love vector games though, they are a blast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sphereman Posted August 9, 2005 Share Posted August 9, 2005 I think the Vectrex is really cool. It will live on forever in the world of video games. I really like playing Cosmic Chasm, Mindsweep and Armour Battle. I just started collecting for my system. Currently I have 10 games, but it's still growing in my collection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottHuggins Posted August 9, 2005 Share Posted August 9, 2005 Please, Sphereman, get the Protector homebrew...along with ALL the John Dondzilla homebrews. Wow. I think the Vectrex is really cool. It will live on forever in the world of video games. I really like playing Cosmic Chasm, Mindsweep and Armour Battle. I just started collecting for my system. Currently I have 10 games, but it's still growing in my collection. 907245[/snapback] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard H. Posted August 9, 2005 Share Posted August 9, 2005 It doesn't power up You've checked the internal fuse ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Mitchell Posted August 9, 2005 Share Posted August 9, 2005 Do you vector?902290[/snapback] George: You are so humble! Your two homebrew Vectrex games are cool! I can hardly wait to see what you have been programming for the Vectrex recently! Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Mitchell Posted August 9, 2005 Share Posted August 9, 2005 (edited) It doesn't power up You've checked the internal fuse ? 907458[/snapback] The Fuse is to the right bottom .. You have to remove the back cover to access (five screws) .. and then you have to remove the fuse cover. Unfortunately the fuse is soldered in place which makes replacement more of a project. CAUTION: The Vectrex should be considered a major appliance .. Appropriate safety precautions should be practiced at all times to avoid electrical shock! Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA Edited August 9, 2005 by Rob Mitchell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FURY Posted August 10, 2005 Share Posted August 10, 2005 George: You are so humble! Your two homebrew Vectrex games are cool! I can hardly wait to see what you have been programming for the Vectrex recently! Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA 907471[/snapback] Thanks Rob. I'm still working on it...progressing s-l-o-w-l-y. I know I've announced everywhere that it will be out by the end of this year, but probably not. I may still release a small game in December, and then this larger project will surface early-to-mid 2006. George Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveW Posted August 10, 2005 Share Posted August 10, 2005 I picked up a Vectrex two weeks ago at a local thrift store for $6 but I have yet to experience it's coolness for two reasons: It doesn't power up I didn't come with any controllers 907074[/snapback] John Dondzilla sells rewired Sega Genesis controllers that'll work with the Vectrex. My first Vectrex was bought in a thrift store without controllers. Mine only cost $5, a fact I like to brag about a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chadtower Posted August 11, 2005 Share Posted August 11, 2005 Hrm... I have tons of spare Genesis controllers around, I should hack them for Vectrex and sell them off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fellow Atari Man Posted August 12, 2005 Share Posted August 12, 2005 So far all I have is the included game Mindstorm, but all I can say is 'Wow'. If you take the console as a whole package including style, monitor, controller, the fun of playing and the closeness to an arcade experience, I would say hands down this is best console ever. I mean seriously, it plays so much better than the other consoles (2600, intellivision, etc) of that era. Yah. And I think the Minelayer seeding the field probably counts as the first "cinematic" cutscene in video game history Oh, no way. There were games way before that that had those. I don't recall the name of one game I played, but it was some old, old black and white racing arcade game from a bunch of ROMs a friend of mine sent me (maybe Laguna Racing, or something like that) that had one: you crashed your car, and either a guy came running out, or some road crew guy ran to the car to help, or something. Forgot what, exactly. It came out in the late 70s. Wow, how did it possibly fail? It was built like a tank too. I mean really they don't build things like this anymore, not for $200 or whatever it retailed for. Well... it launched right before the crash. 904050[/snapback] Yep, plus there were a good DOZEN other gaming consoles and computers of all types on the market to try to choose from as well. So that didn't help. Other than a few of the early games to avoid (even though Star Hawk was a near exact port of the arcade game, it gets boring fast, Hyperchase totally sucks rocks, etc.), there's several good games, and the homebrew scene is what I'd describe as "near incredible", there's a lot of very good ones for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB Posted August 12, 2005 Share Posted August 12, 2005 So far all I have is the included game Mindstorm, but all I can say is 'Wow'. If you take the console as a whole package including style, monitor, controller, the fun of playing and the closeness to an arcade experience, I would say hands down this is best console ever. I mean seriously, it plays so much better than the other consoles (2600, intellivision, etc) of that era. Yah. And I think the Minelayer seeding the field probably counts as the first "cinematic" cutscene in video game history Oh, no way. There were games way before that that had those. I don't recall the name of one game I played, but it was some old, old black and white racing arcade game from a bunch of ROMs a friend of mine sent me (maybe Laguna Racing, or something like that) that had one: you crashed your car, and either a guy came running out, or some road crew guy ran to the car to help, or something. Forgot what, exactly. It came out in the late 70s. Key word being cinematic. Sure there were intro/intermission animations before(PacMan being a very notable one), but they didn't have the movie "feel" to them. I do admit that MineStorm's intro is an exception on the Vectrex library, but it's a damn nice one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MegaManFan Posted August 12, 2005 Share Posted August 12, 2005 If you're a retrogamer, you're already halfway to being a Vectrex player anyway. You have to ask yourself - do I like Star Castle? Do I like Asteroids? Do I like Defender? Then realize there are versions of these games on the system that are far superior to any other system out there. Sure the system has a few duds (Spinball, Spike) but with a vibrant homebrew scene and an incredible look and feel unlike any "pixellated" system, it's really tough to beat. It's hard to say whether it's "better" or "worse" than any other classic console, but it's certainly one-of-a-kind and a hella lotta fun to own and play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB Posted August 12, 2005 Share Posted August 12, 2005 If you're a retrogamer, you're already halfway to being a Vectrex player anyway. You have to ask yourself - do I like Star Castle? Do I like Asteroids? Do I like Defender? Then realize there are versions of these games on the system that are far superior to any other system out there. In the case of Asteroids and Star Castle , this includes a PC running MAME. Well, depending on how you feel about how pathetically weak the emulation of a vector display on a raster video screen is. And I think that qualifier makes my opinion on the subject clear. Personally, I always liked RipOff. And no Vectrex is complete without Cosmic Chasm. First game to go from console to arcade, it was so good. And like so many things(including the above-mentioned Cinematronics titles), it's a Vectrex exclusive. Sadly, however, Vectrex Star Trek is NOT the arcade game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard H. Posted August 16, 2005 Share Posted August 16, 2005 Sadly, however, Vectrex Star Trek is NOT the arcade game. Shame that, the arcade version would have made a much better conversion. BTW I know someone who's doing Sinistar for the Vec Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mayhem Posted August 17, 2005 Share Posted August 17, 2005 Well he hopes he can pull it off I actually got to meet Alex at the weekend at CGE UK... nice to meet you finally mate He had MGD for 2600 and Berzerk Arena on play on his little mini stand. And got plenty of fan attention too He also mentioned another possible project, but I won't say anything on that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phaxda Posted August 23, 2005 Share Posted August 23, 2005 Well, I finally got my Vectrex and I love it. It's great and brought back many many memories. My cousin had the system in 1983 and I was so jealous of it. He had an insane collection of games, too--it must have been all of them. He sold it a liong tiem ago, I think. Anyway, I have been playing Mindstorm nonstop for 2 days. And I still stink at it. Very jealous to hear about all the $5 finds and the like, but even getting it from eBay, I think it was money well spent. It's quite something to see the prices come down--I remember when you couldn't get one for under $100 on eBay. If any has any loose carts for sale or trade, let me know. I have plenty of 5200 carts I'd be willing to swap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeerGnome Posted August 24, 2005 Share Posted August 24, 2005 yep.. finnaly got one myself the other day.. I'm amazed at the price dropping on fleabay lately onthese things.. I always wanted one as a kid.. and its been something I've been hankering for as a grown up colelctor. no external games yet... but I'm working onthe mindstorm and those magnetic fireball mines are a pain in the ass! the joystick on the croller is however missing its little nub at the end and the up down axis on the stick is just floating there... or is it actaully supposed to be like that? na.. of course it isn't I need to crack it open and take a look.. thankfully it doesn't effect the game play of mind storm... now all I need to do is get the light pen.. - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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