Atari 7800 with CC2

[Paranoid]

I'm having a blast with it. For awhile, I was feeling a little um, underwhelmed... even with the 7800 library, I had about 80 titles total... and I found myself thinking, "Hell, the Flashback 2 has 40 titles... was this really worth the expense"...

 

Then I realized I had gotten so wrapped up in the 7800 titles I hadn't really explored the 2600 options. I also hadn't hacked anything in that wasn't in the romdb file... or added anything that I already had on cart or the FB2...

 

And although a lot of the games aren't even worth having, it is nice to be able to at least experience some of the titles I heard about as a kid but could never find, or didn't have access too (Custard's Revenge, heh). And some of the oldest classics are just that... classic.

 

You know, Custard's Revenge, I remember the articles saying, "Although kids can't get their hands on these titles, it is ok, because the adult games are generally so bad they wouldn't want to play them, anyhow"... Actually, compared to some of the games that were coming out there at the end, the play mechanic of a few of these porn games is mildly amusing and challenging. They're definetly not on par with any of the real classics, but they're better than some of the crap that was floating around.

 

And the *hacks* and homebrews really kick ass, and for the ones that aren't available on cart, being able to play them via CC2 on the original hardware is fantastic. Hack 'Em is an absolute masterpiece for the limitations of the 5200. The Indy Jones version of Pitfall should have been released instead of Raiders of the Lost Ark. And the more Adventure, the better.

 

Yeah, it is really the 2600 angle that makes the CC2 worth the price. The 7800 stuff is either medicore or just gravy (30 or so more titles that look really good). I mean, the good ports are almost ALL available on the 5200 and it is a 50/50 split between the strengths of the 5200 and 7800 for the home ports (better sound and more engaging gameplay on the 5200... better graphics on the 7800). And for ports, I've got a MAME cabinet. I can hardly justify playing Joust or Ms. Pac Man on the 5200 when I've got the "real" thing on MAME right behind me... The only reason I play ports on the old console ports is for the nostalgia factor... I never had a 7800, so, there isn't a lot of nostaliga there in playing a port of an arcade original on it. "Yup, this looks like joust, sounds like joust, feels like joust. I suppose I should just play joust..." Heh.

 

If I didn't have a MAME cabinet and a 5200, the 7800 library would be far more exciting, though. If I had to have ONE classic console, it would be a 7800 with a CC2, I think. Although I'd miss Countermeasure.

[as_the_gavel_falls]

So... what are the "must have" 7800 titles? I really don't see anything that knocks my socks off as an exclusive title that really stands out (ala Countermeasure).

 

Ms. Pac Man for the 7800 is a must have.

[Paranoid]

I would have to agree. 7800 Ms. Pac Man is an excellent version of the game.

[frank_c]

Well... I picked one 7800 up on a BIN and forgot I had set up a snipe service to bid on another 7800, which I won... so I've got two on the way now. Heh. Oops.

 

i sniped a 7800 on Sunday...won it for $20.50. only one controller though, and four 2600 games. it's a start, i guess.

[Feralstorm]

I picked up a spare 7800 at the Cinciclassic for $20. It was a pretty excellent deal, coming with two controllers, power supply, and 15 2600 games (though 3 of them were Combats)

 

A Cuttle Cart 2 makes one think about having backup hardware.