Well, good news for 5200 owners.

[Aswald]

Recently, I've built a working 5200 light gun.

It is an NES Light Zapper, but rewired and modified to work on a 5200.

So far, every test has been favorable, but the final test would be a simple 5200 test cartridge. I'm hoping someone can quickly program one for me over at Atari Age. A pity my Commodore-64 no longer works. Hell, even the Vic-20 would do.

If it passes those final tests, then a whole new genre of homebrew games will be possible for 5200 owners.

I'm also working on a CV light gun, but such a thing is much trickier, due to the fact that the CV is an all-digital system. I'm trying a few designs with op-amps, and am getting closer.

It's always surprised me that, except for the Coleco Telstar Arcade, no well-known console, before the 7800/NES/SMS era, had one. For the 2600 and 5200, at least, it would not have been overly difficult.

[Leo_A]

I thought the 2600 had a couple lightgun games using the XE lightgun?

[Steve W]

Are there some Atari XE/XL computer games that had lightgun input or possibly light pen input that might be converted to run on the 5200? Maybe they could all be compiled on a multicart or something. At least, just for testing purposes, someone could dump one of the Atari XEGS lightgun games that have a small enough memory size (or at the least a single level from a game) and convert it to the 5200 with a flashcart or something.

[MrSparkle]

oh man thats pretty cool. Make a version of adventure where i can shoot that damned bat and my hats off to you ;)

*edit* ohhh 5200 :( no backwards compatibility :( lol oh well.

[aaron7]

5200? You mean you have one that WORKS???

Pics or it didn't happen. :p

[Aswald]

5200? You mean you have one that WORKS???

Pics or it didn't happen. :p

Yes, I have built one. No, I do not have a photo- yet.

If I do get one, it'll be at Atari Age, like my 5200 digital joystick plans. But if I ever do find someone who can program that test cartridge, then, well, once I fine-tune it, I'll lend the thing to him.

[Pantechnicon]

An Atari 5200 lightgun....Just what a world of darkness and negativity, period, needs.


5200? You mean you have one that WORKS???

Pics or it didn't happen. :p

QFT, but good luck. We've been down this road already with Aswald and his purported 5200 paddle controller (http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=114182). All we've ever seen of that are hand-drawn notes. They're very good-looking notes, mind you, but not finished products.

Go figure. Aswald has the technical savvy to build his own hardware peripherals, but finding and using a working scanner is totally kicking his ass.

[AB Positive]

Folks I think the joke was that aaron7 didn't believe there was a working *5200*.

Jus' sayin'

[Cryomancer]

I'm always glad to hear of another lightgun coming into existance. I wish you luck.

[GarrettCRW]

Nice, but where's the light gun that works with my HDTV? I want that more than a light gun for my 5200.

[MrSparkle]

working 5200 no problem, working 5200 controllers.... now theres your problem lol.

[Superman]

working 5200 no problem, working 5200 controllers.... now theres your problem lol.

That's the truth. I pieced together my 5200 and the controllers were the last pieces I found (in working condition) after many broken ones.

[Graham Mitchell]

working 5200 no problem, working 5200 controllers.... now theres your problem lol.

This is the whole reason I've avoided buying one. It's unfortunate because it has some great games that aged pretty well--see the Dreadnaught Factor. It's still kind of scarry, even by today's standards.

If somebody starts manufacturing their own 5200 sticks for sale, I'll probably get a little tingly feeling in my pants.

[Pantechnicon]

If somebody starts manufacturing their own 5200 sticks for sale, I'll probably get a little tingly feeling in my pants.

Maybe the next best thing would make you tingly, i.e. - a gold contact controller refurb kit, available from Best Electronics California, or already refurbed units available from 4Jays using the same thing. I've had one for four and-a-half years now and it hasn't failed yet. Either way is completely worth the investment.

[Aswald]

An Atari 5200 lightgun....Just what a world of darkness and negativity, period, needs.



QFT, but good luck. We've been down this road already with Aswald and his purported 5200 paddle controller (http://www.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?t=114182). All we've ever seen of that are hand-drawn notes. They're very good-looking notes, mind you, but not finished products.

Go figure. Aswald has the technical savvy to build his own hardware peripherals, but finding and using a working scanner is totally kicking his ass.

Pantechion, I don't know where YOU live, but I live in the middle of NOWHERE. At least half of the storefronts in the nearest town are empty, as are most of the plants and industries. Almost all dead and gone. It makes the 1990s look like prosperous times.

Nobody around here has a scanner. I've asked. And even if there was a commercial place I wouldn't do it, because how do you know that they aren't gaining access to your passcodes?

When I sent those plans over to BigO, I also sent a photo- but it evidently was of such poor quality, he could not scan it.

Tell you what, pal- my neighbor can take a few digital photos of those controllers, the digital and paddle for the 5200. (The lightgun control may need an adjustment knob (or maybe not), so until I get that test cartridge and can make sure, nobody sees it.)

PM me your mailing address, and YOU can see the joystick controller and paddle controller and then scan them.

Your move.

[Pantechnicon]

Pantechion, I don't know where YOU live, but I live in the middle of NOWHERE. At least half of the storefronts in the nearest town are empty, as are most of the plants and industries. Almost all dead and gone. It makes the 1990s look like prosperous times.

You've got a Wal-Mart Supercenter in the town of Herkimer with at least two Fuji photo/scanner kiosks. And If that's too far for you to travel by moped, then you also have numerous Eckerds and Rite-Aids all around the county (http://de.lirio.us/find/herkimer-county-ny/pharmacies-and-drug-stores/), which I assume have kiosks as well.


And even if there was a commercial place I wouldn't do it, because how do you know that they aren't gaining access to your passcodes?

:? What does that even mean? :roll: The last time we went through this you said all you had was a Polaroid camera. Fine. You scan your Polaroids, copy them to a floppy disk or a flash drive, and pay cash. They® won't even know who you were.

And if you're so worried about them®, here's a list of your local libraries (http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/localList.php?local=22477&locTGroup=Libraries&direction=down&sec=0&qty=13&stateName=), one of which I assume you're sitting in while reading this, which means they (as opposed to they®) have computers, internet access and probably a scanner. Your local community college (http://www.herkimer.edu/hccclibrary/index.htm) might help too.

There...two non-commercial resources for you. After all, if you can't trust the corporations with your "passcodes", you can always trust your government.


Tell you what, pal- my neighbor can take a few digital photos of those controllers, the digital and paddle for the 5200. (The lightgun control may need an adjustment knob (or maybe not), so until I get that test cartridge and can make sure, nobody sees it.)

PM me your mailing address, and YOU can see the joystick controller and paddle controller and then scan them.

I'm not sure what you're driving at...either your neighbor can take digital pictures and email them to me, or you can send prints to my snail mail address. So in the interest of covering all the bases I'll provide you with both my private email and physical address. Then you can show the DP world your prototypes.


Your move.

PM sent. More like...your move.

[Graham Mitchell]

Maybe the next best thing would make you tingly, i.e. - a gold contact controller refurb kit, available from Best Electronics California, or already refurbed units available from 4Jays using the same thing. I've had one for four and-a-half years now and it hasn't failed yet. Either way is completely worth the investment.

Dammit! Now I'm gonna generate more credit card debt!!

No, seriously, I didn't know 4Jays refurbed these things. When I'm able to moonlight and have expendable cash, this may be worth doing. That and modding all my older machines for S-video or components or something.

[Cryomancer]

So we really need to get on Aswald's case in *every* topic he makes, regardless of it's relevance? Even if he jumps back onto it as well, baiting him to do so isn't going to help the situation.

Dude's developing stuff for classic systems. That's cool. I hope he finishes them, but if he doesn't, it's not like he's the first person to not finish a project posted about on the internet.

/minirant

[MrSparkle]

I don't have a 5200 YET but a few people had told me the refurb kits on average got you no longer than the original controller which was described to me as working well (for having a non centering joystick on a system whos games would mainly be better played with a centering joystick that is) for a period of several months to a year before it would be trashy and need another refurb kit.