Name: Atari 2600 VCS
Manufacturer: Atari/Time Warner.
Developer: Atari
Release Date: 1977
Description: Long ago in the late 70s early 80s, if you were playing video games at home,odds are it was on the Atari. Anyone who was paying attention to video games knew there were better systems, but Atari was the item, the known quantity with the public. The first Atari console to use a cartridge was the 2600 after the unit part number CX2600. It was originally called the Atari Video Computer System or VCS. It had tons of games and lots of accessories to boot.
My family had a heavy sixer, so named due to the extra heavy case design and six switches on the front. The newer versions of the Atari looked similar but with lighter cases and 2 of the 6 switches were moved to the back of the console. Toss in some wood grain finish and that baby was hot stuff. My household got a late start with Video Games. I remember when my mom bought it for my brother back in 1980. We had no clue what it was. My memory goes something like this.... What is that!? How do you play? What games does it play? (30 minutes later) Are there any other games to play? No nononono no WAIT! Mom of course we LOVE the games you chose Mom! Please don't turn it off!
And so on....
Our household hadn't really focused on home video electronics until the early 80s. My first memory of a Home Video Game system was when my good friend Derek Johansen invited me to play a game on his Odyssey². I was baffled, and had no idea what it was I was looking at. Sure, I had seen a talking picture box before, but what is this curious humming case with cable tethered boxes festooned with buttons and knobs? How does it somehow interact with what is happening on screen? Ok, I wasn't that out of touch, but it was pretty close. The game was called "Quest for the Rings" and had lots of cool graphics that were totally wasted on me. As far as I could tell, the Hero was a set of dots, and the Dragon was a blob with legs. Later on I discovered the graphics on my friends Odyssey² were state of the art. The Atari game equivalent was "Adventure" which featured the Hero as a single dot, and the Dragons looked like overfed ducks. I don't remember criticizing the graphics at the time, it was more of an observation. Controversy over what the graphics were supposed to represent was a pass time.
Typical Atari Infused Conversation....
-Me: Is the arrow a sword or an arrow?
-My Brother: Its a sword.
-Me: It looks like an arrow. Why not call it an arrow?
-My Brother: The booklet says its a sword.
-Me: Is this the same booklet that claims the ducks are dragons.
-My Brother: You mean the sea horses? Yeah those are dragons.
-Me: I guess the arrow can look like a sword if you hold it on the left.
-My Brother: What you mean to the left of the dot, er..hero?
-Me: Yeah whatever. Will you just let the duck or the sea horse or whatever eat you? I want it to be my turn already. Ooooh look out for the bird. He's gonna grab your arrow.
-My Brother: You mean a the bat is gonna grab my arrow. I mean sword. I mean....go away!
There were other consoles around back then, like Intellivision, and Colecovision but honestly the games were all the same. It was the Dawn of Home Video Games. It was the Atari Age. Men were brave. Women were bold. Somewhere in a dark office late at night, a programmer, a pioneer if you will, programmed the visage of an arrow, and dubbed it a sword. Huzzah!
Classic Game Society Pages
-Atari Age
Manufacturer: Atari/Time Warner.
Developer: Atari
Release Date: 1977
Description: Long ago in the late 70s early 80s, if you were playing video games at home,odds are it was on the Atari. Anyone who was paying attention to video games knew there were better systems, but Atari was the item, the known quantity with the public. The first Atari console to use a cartridge was the 2600 after the unit part number CX2600. It was originally called the Atari Video Computer System or VCS. It had tons of games and lots of accessories to boot.
My family had a heavy sixer, so named due to the extra heavy case design and six switches on the front. The newer versions of the Atari looked similar but with lighter cases and 2 of the 6 switches were moved to the back of the console. Toss in some wood grain finish and that baby was hot stuff. My household got a late start with Video Games. I remember when my mom bought it for my brother back in 1980. We had no clue what it was. My memory goes something like this.... What is that!? How do you play? What games does it play? (30 minutes later) Are there any other games to play? No nononono no WAIT! Mom of course we LOVE the games you chose Mom! Please don't turn it off!
And so on....
Our household hadn't really focused on home video electronics until the early 80s. My first memory of a Home Video Game system was when my good friend Derek Johansen invited me to play a game on his Odyssey². I was baffled, and had no idea what it was I was looking at. Sure, I had seen a talking picture box before, but what is this curious humming case with cable tethered boxes festooned with buttons and knobs? How does it somehow interact with what is happening on screen? Ok, I wasn't that out of touch, but it was pretty close. The game was called "Quest for the Rings" and had lots of cool graphics that were totally wasted on me. As far as I could tell, the Hero was a set of dots, and the Dragon was a blob with legs. Later on I discovered the graphics on my friends Odyssey² were state of the art. The Atari game equivalent was "Adventure" which featured the Hero as a single dot, and the Dragons looked like overfed ducks. I don't remember criticizing the graphics at the time, it was more of an observation. Controversy over what the graphics were supposed to represent was a pass time.
Typical Atari Infused Conversation....
-Me: Is the arrow a sword or an arrow?
-My Brother: Its a sword.
-Me: It looks like an arrow. Why not call it an arrow?
-My Brother: The booklet says its a sword.
-Me: Is this the same booklet that claims the ducks are dragons.
-My Brother: You mean the sea horses? Yeah those are dragons.
-Me: I guess the arrow can look like a sword if you hold it on the left.
-My Brother: What you mean to the left of the dot, er..hero?
-Me: Yeah whatever. Will you just let the duck or the sea horse or whatever eat you? I want it to be my turn already. Ooooh look out for the bird. He's gonna grab your arrow.
-My Brother: You mean a the bat is gonna grab my arrow. I mean sword. I mean....go away!
There were other consoles around back then, like Intellivision, and Colecovision but honestly the games were all the same. It was the Dawn of Home Video Games. It was the Atari Age. Men were brave. Women were bold. Somewhere in a dark office late at night, a programmer, a pioneer if you will, programmed the visage of an arrow, and dubbed it a sword. Huzzah!
Classic Game Society Pages
-Atari Age
Flash Versions of Classic Games
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