View Full Version : Old Atari systems
Rev. Link
10-26-2003, 09:46 PM
My first gaming experiences came back when I was 4 years old on an Atari 400/800. I no longer have that system, my younger brothers have it now. But one thing I've always wondered is this:
Was the 400/800 its own system? Or did it just play 2600 games? Please help me clear this issue up! Thank you!
Balloon Fight
10-26-2003, 09:50 PM
I never had a 400/800, but i am pretty sure it had its own games.
Dire 51
10-26-2003, 09:51 PM
It did. In fact, I have a copy of Qix sitting around somewhere for it that I don't want because I don't have a 400/800, and I'm willing to GIVE it to the first person that wants it.
Daniel Thomas
10-27-2003, 04:15 AM
When people refer to the Atari 400/800, they are refering to their line of home computers in the early '80s. The Atari 400 was the lesser model, featured 16K of memory, one cartridge slot, and a wierd touch-pad keyboard that grew old fast. The 800 offered 48K memory, two cartridge slots (although I can't remember the right slot ever being used for anything), and a real keyboard.
The cartridges for the Atari computers were a little blockier, and ran on both machines. The computers weren't compatible with the 2600, but, really, one look at Star Raiders and Pac-Man in 1982, and you were hooked.
And, hey, what's the deal with the 400/800 version of ET? Doesn't that game have the creepiest voice ever?
Nature Boy
10-27-2003, 09:53 AM
And, hey, what's the deal with the 400/800 version of ET? Doesn't that game have the creepiest voice ever?
It's the home version of E.T. that doesn't outright suck - that's the deal with it :)
(The voice never creeped me out - then again, back when it was new, any voice in a game was neat, even if it wasn't perfect).
IntvGene
10-27-2003, 11:01 AM
I loved the 400/800 machines because of that cartridge slot and how it was totally enclosed in the system. And yes, the 400's keyboard is probably the worst keyboard ever designed.
I love the voices on E.T. Well, at the time I did. When I recently tried the game again, it's funny to hear all the static. I swear you can hear them pressing the record button on the tape recorder. But, as Nature Boy pointed out, this version is at least playable.
Sunmark has some multicarts here... I've never tried them, but they seem to offer a lot of games on a single cartridge for a fairly reasonable price:
http://www.sunmark.com/