Official Atari 2600 Thread

[digitalpress]

We tried this once with ColecoVision awhile back, it worked well but then the board crashed and we lost it. Now that there are safeguards against that kind of thing, let's back up and try again for another truly memorable system.

I'd like everyone's input on this.

It wasn't the first system, but it was certainly the first BIG system. It was the first system to make people call video games by the company name that produced them "Let's all go play Atari! (even if it's actually an Odyssey2)". And the console introduced many other "firsts" to home gamers. So tell me:

- What is your favorite game on this system?
- What are some of your other favorites?
- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
- How many games do you have for it?
- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

Go time! Have fun with this, but by all means, share your thoughts!

NOTE: to jog your memory, here's our complete list of US games:
http://www.digitpress.com/lists/atari2600.pdf

[asharru]

- What is your favorite game on this system?

That's easy... MazeCraze

- What are some of your other favorites?

Pitfall, Pitfall II, Haunted House, Superman, Fishing Derby, Circus Atari, River Raid, god I could go all day...

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

Heh, Superman used to piss me off when the helicopter guy used to steal parts of my bridge. I remeber spending hours wandering around in ET as well. I hate wandering!

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

My cousin chris's house. He was playing Missle Command, and I was just blown away.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Yep, and yep...

- How many games do you have for it?

heh, well, one game(pitfall II) and a cuttle cart ;)

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

This was the first video game system I owned. I played it constantly, and even my mom loved the games for it. I remember getting it for christmas in like 81, maybe 82(lol, about the same time we bought the GIANT 600lb VCR with knobs to change the channel), and not stopping play until school started back up again. As much as I love video games in general, I will always have the fondest memories of my 2600. The system that popped my cherry! :P

[Neo-Jorge]

Frogs and Flies and Demon Attack rule the floor.


Favorite game was plaque attack,


Most Frustrating moment : trying to change into superman.


Funniest 2600 moment the 2600 Jr commercial Under 50 bucks.




Thanks

[toddst]

- What is your favorite gameS on this system?

Damn, that's hard...ummm, Pitfall, Kaboom, Ms. Pacman, River Raid, SCSIcide (yeah, I'm kissing your arse Joe G.)

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

When my brother saved up for Pac-Man, got it home, plugged it in, and realized that it sucked!

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Yes and Yes

- How many games do you have for it?

about 175+

[Sylentwulf]

Honestly, I had a Colecovision BEFORE I ever played an atari, so nothing really impressed me :)

Favorite games would be the few that I played when I was younger:
Spider Fighter
Riddle of the Sphinx
Pacman (Sorry! I didn't play it in the arcade, too young!)
Cosmic Ark
Atlantis


Infuriating? Swordquest.

[Raedon]

My fav would be demon Attack. but I've always liked Empire strikes back, freeway, warlords, kaboom!, Video Pinball

Games I hated.. I can't think of any, but I didn't own the system when I was little so I never spent $30 for junk.


I first saw the machine displayed at Sears running Combat, I was hooked but my parents wouldn't buy it.. and in fact I didn't convence them to get a system for me and my sister until the INTV came out. but now I've got a mint 4 switch wood and mint 2600 vader and a couple of ragged 6'ers that I'll sell as they are not collection worthy.

I have around 110 of the worst looking 2600 carts out there.. and I love them all! I probably have 125 with dupes.

I may not have owned a 2600 in my youth but I had plenty of friends who owned them. Pretty much early on I'd play 2600 with friends of my parents' kids and they would come over for INTV. Later in the 80's (well after the 2600 was dead) when I'd visit my Grandparents, who lived in a small West Texas town of 4000 people; the kids in the area were poor and they all had 2600's. I played more 2600 then than at any time as that was all there was to do except swim and ride bikes. They also tended to have large 2600 collections as it was all hand-me-down equipment by then.

[ClubNinja]

- What is your favorite game on this system?


I'd never be able to answer this, it's always changing...

- What are some of your other favorites?


HERO, Laser Gates, Enduro!, Room of Doom, Kaboom, and others...

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?


I was surprised that I actually managed to figured out how to play London Blitz. Then I never touched it again ; )

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?


Yeah, a friend was showing off Laser Blast and I was moderately impressed. It wasn't until I played Enduro that I began to feel fuzzy about the 2600. I *never* saw any of the competition until many years later when a new aquaintence pulled the Colecovision out of the basement, so I thought the 2600 was the greatest until the NES popped up.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?


No - my father was very firm on computers only, no consoles. So, while I did have an Atari Video Pinball and a Coleco Telstar, everything else was a straight forward computer until I picked up my own Genesis.

- How many games do you have for it?


As of right now, 317 unique carts. 12 more in the mail, and various others pending - just the way I like it!

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

An old friend and I, to this day, still hold Hardcore Activision Tennis Tournaments when she's in town. This involves a standard game of Tennis, with the additions of pushing, shoving, trash talking, cussing, and joystick throwing. It gets messy, but it's all in good fun. We usually attract an audience too - in fact, her fiance seems to get a kick out of cheering me on. I'm sure he pays for that later on though...

[Savedman]

What is your favorite game on this system?
Toss up between Adventure, Pitfall and Kaboom! I remember going wild over the mouth change after reaching 10,000 points!!

- What are some of your other favorites?
I'm with SYLENTWULF on Pac-Man! I am old enough to have played it in the arcades but I still played the 2600 ver. for HOURS!!!!

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

I also agree with him on Swordquest (earthworld). I hated that game but I could JUST NOT PUT IT DOWN!!!!!

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action?
What game was it? What was your reaction?

I was probably 11 or 12 when my brothers and I opened up a brand new Atari 2600 on Christmas morning. I was in shock! I had never seen one in the stores and all we had until then was PONG. The pictures on the box of the different games had me drooling!!!!

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Yeah, I gave it up for many years but I have 7 or 8 2600's now.

- How many games do you have for it?

About 250

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us

Just the chrismas story and of course the countless stories of my brothers and I fist fighting because the other was taking WAY too long on Pitfall!!!

[CrazyImpmon]

- What is your favorite game on this system?

Let see... I think it's still Adventure.

- What are some of your other favorites?

Pitfall and Pitfall 2, Solaris, Yars Revenge, and Euchure

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

Surprised: Pitfall 2. The first time I played it the game area was *huge* compared to any games I've played before.

Infuriated: that would be the last part of Pitfall 2 where you have to climb ladders and dodge all the bats and condors. I've died in that stage more often than any other pre NES games.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

Yes, my grandparent's house on Christmas '78. One of my older cousin bought the console over to play and I played some. I can remember a few games like Combat and Outlaw. My parent had to get one for me and my brother because we had a vice like deathgrip on those controllers when they wanted us off the system so we could go home. LOL LOL LOL

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Technicially the family owned the system back then. I took over the entire lot about 15 years ago when my brother lost interest and stiopped playing outright in favor of SNES, Genesis and evenetually PSX. He still hadn't touched the Atari controller to this day. And yes, I still have the original console I got back then along with the very first 3 games: Combat, Circus, and Pong Sports.

Off the track, I got Atari Lynx for my birthday('91 I think, maybe '92?) with California Game and Blue Lightening. Got Rygar for Christmas a few days before my birthday... longest week with a Lynx game and no system to play it on :P LOL I also got Atari 5200 and 7800 at various yard sales and such from as early as '91.

- How many games do you have for it?

Counting unique carts only (excluding label variations), around 400 for 2600, 15 for 5200, and 32 for 7800.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

Yeah. My parent regretted getting the Atari system because before then, sibling rivalary had never happened. I was 8 then and my bro was 6 and we had gotten along quite well until Atari came in then we always fought over which games to play, etc. My parent had to hide Super Challenge Baseball because it was too rough (not the game itself, my and my bro.)

[Lady Jaye]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
Solaris

- What are some of your other favorites?
Commando, Tomcat F-14, Moon Patrol, Ms. Pac-Man, Asteroids, Defender, Stargate

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
What infuriated me was when there was a bug in Donkey Kong and the fireballs would cross over the gaps in the rivets level; trying to figure out how to play Reactor without any instructions.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
My first memory of the 2600 was back in 1984-85 at my friend's house. The first game I saw was probably Asteroids or Defender, which I loved then as I do now (incidentally, I later bought these games and some more from that same friend).

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
My first 2600 was the Coleco Gemini clone. I got it in 1987. Earlier this year, I got a 2600 Jr. from SlyDC.

- How many games do you have for it?
I own about 20-25 games, mostly must-have games that I want to play.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?
When I had the Gemini, the controller often pinched the skin of my right hand (there's a gap between the fire buttons and the joystick of the Gemini).
When I was 12 or 13, my friend Seb and I spent countless hours trying to beat Donkey Kong. We got to over a million points, but the game is an endless loop.
Finally, I liked Moon Patrol so much I wanted to tape it on my VCR. Nowadays, this is an easy task to do with modern consoles. But I never found a way to connect the Gemini to the VCR.

[ROBOTRON]

Favorite Game: Turmoil

Other Favorites:

Phoenix
Demon Attack
Burgertime
Cosmic Ark
Atlantis

What game suprised me? Demon Attack
Infuriated me? E.T. Piece of crap-ola

First time I saw the console was at Sears...I was blown away. It was Combat.

Had one then, got one now. (Thanx Ubersaurus)

I used to have over a hundred games for the system...funny story? 2 days after I sold the system, I tried to find the buyer to get it back. I was unsuccessful. :cry:

[scooterb23]

- What is your favorite game on this system?

Journey Escape

- What are some of your other favorites?

Yars' Revenge, Keystone Kapers, River Raid, Activision Decathlon

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

Lost Luggage surprised me, it was a really fun game, I didn't expect it to be...
Super man and Adventure infuriate me...I don't know how to do what I'm supposed to be doing...still dislike both games.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

Yes, Video Olympics, hey cool - you can play Pong in color at home!!

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Yes on both

- How many games do you have for it?

260 different, about 350 with dupes.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

Me and my pal Jimmy pulling 2 hour shifts on Defender...I think we had one game last close to 26 hours...we had a big box fan blowing hard on the 2600 to keep it from overheating again...

My mom and I had an epic Pac-Man fight one day, we both hit over 350,000!!!

I've bowled a 300 on Game 1 of Bowling twice.

[neschampion]

What is your favorite game on this system?


MegaMania would have to be my favorite.


What are some of your other favorites?


Spider Fighter, Kaboom!, Frogger, Adventure, and many more. Basically all the ones that I had as a kid I still think are great.


What games surprised you? Infuriated you?


Nothing I can think of off hand.


Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

I first saw the system in action in the early eighties when I was VERY young. That was so long ago that I could never remember what game was being played and even though I can't remember my initial reaction either, I would have to wager that it was that I wanted to play.


Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?


I didn't own one back in the day but my parents did so I could play it whenever I wanted. The first system that was acutally *mine* was the NES. I do own an Atari today, more than one actually.


How many games do you have for it?


Two months ago I didn't have a single game for that Atari but back in September I began to actively collect for the 2600 with the goal of getting every unique title with the exception of most of the super rare titles like Video Life, Magicard, Eli's, Air Raid, Gauntlet, and a couple others.

Today I have 238 unique games in my collection with a few very nice titles like Malagai, Lochjaw, and Stronghold.

[Captain Wrong]

- What is your favorite game on this system?

Hmm...choose one? Pitfall 2.

- What are some of your other favorites?
Anything Activision, Circus Atari, Bowling, Pengo

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

Suprized, The Epxy "Summer/Winter/California Games" series. Damn, I didn't know you could do all that on a 2600! and how much of Tapper was in the 2600 version.

Infuriated? Swordquest. Put a lot of time into that one back in the day. And the fact that I shelled out all my birthday money for DOnkey Kong and it only had 2 crummy levels! (Yes, I'm still bitter.)

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action?

When pops brought it home (1978).

-What game was it? What was your reaction?

Breakout I beileve. I didn't see it as that much on an improvement over the Telstar Arcade aside from having more colors. Then Space Invaders came out...

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Yes and yes.

- How many games do you have for it?

Including label variations, about 250 or so.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

None that I haven't sharde already.

[ventrra]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
Data Age's Ssnake

- What are some of your other favorites?
Star Fox, Amidar, Sea Hawk, Fire Fly, Cosmic Corridor

- What games surprised you?
Race / Indy 500. Different controllers. Different playing style.

-Infuriated you?
Missile Command. The Joystick control and this game don't work well together.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action?
Yes. My Uncle had one.

-What game was it?
Pac-man

-What was your reaction?
I thought, "THAT's supposed to be Pac-man?!?!?"

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
I didn't get one until 1985, but now I have 4 of them.

- How many games do you have for it?
Er...Something like 150, not including my Cuttle Cart library.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?
Not really. Most of the experiences I've had with the system have been rather sedate. The only oddity was the 2600 that I owned that literally made Pac-man and the ghosts into squares.

[YoshiM]

-What is your favorite game on this system?-

Toss up between Cosmic Ark and Spider Fighter

-What are some of your other favorites?-

Spy Hunter, Keystone Kapers, Circus Atari, Star Master

-What games surprised you?-

Spy Hunter: I never had to play a game with two controllers until I got that.

-Infuriated you?-

Dragster. I could never figure out how to play that game. Which is probably why I drive an automatic car.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action?-

Actually, no. Probably the only time I saw it in action was on a TV commercial before my parents won a system at a K-Mart Moonlight Madness sale.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?-
Yes and No. My tastes have changed and the classics, though I respect 'em and liked them, don't do much for me anymore.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?-

For a while I would play act some sort of adventure, using the games as various "scenes". I'd race to my "rocket ship" in my car in Enduro for a few minutes, stop, swap the cart out and pop in Star Master then pretend I'm flying it. Stuff like that to keep the games interesting.

[Nature Boy]

What is your favorite game on this system?

I'd say Adventure. It's the first of it's kind. It's a genre I love. And back then it was what I thought a home video game should be.

What are some of your other favorites?

River Raid. Asteroids. Berzerk. Dodge 'Em. Ms. Pac-Man. Space Invaders.

They're not as flashy as their counterparts but when I want a quick five minute twitch fest these are the games I go to.

What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

Pac-Man suprised me. I've never really understood why people got so angry that it wasn't more like the arcade version. None of the 2600 stuff was like the arcade version. Sure they took more liberties and it was rushed, but it was still Pac-Man and I still liked it.

I bet my infuriated answer isn't unique: E.T. Falling down pits and never being able to get out just didn't make any sense to me.

Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

Totally. I don't remember the year though but it was shortly after it was released. The game was Combat and my dad and sister were playing it. I was just totally blown away - we had no idea dad was going to pick up the system. The worst part was that I was late getting home and I was 'grounded' from playing the system for a day because of it.

Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Well, my dad did, but yup. I have no idea what happened to that system though. Sold it at some point I guess.

I reacquired one maybe four years ago. At a thrift store. As I was looking for some clothes to wear to a Disco Party.

How many games do you have for it?

56 and counting today. Back then we had, at most, half that.

Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

Yup - two of them:

-----
I asked for Dodge 'Em for Xmas and bragged to my parents that I'd know I'd gotten it without even opening the wrapper because of the shape of the box.

Xmas comes and I don't see a 2600 box wrapped under the tree. I open a gift and its ... vanilla wafer crackers?!? Needless to say I'm a little stunned at this point. My parents tell me to try one and low and behold - Dodge 'Em!
-----
My dad was a big game player (still is actually), but was frustrated that he was never able to beat me at anything (still can't actually). Ahhh, the advantages of youth...

Well, for Xmas the following year I asked for Defender. Xmas finally comes and I start playing against him he's *totally* killing me. For the life of me I couldn't figure out what was going wrong. Turns out he had bought the game two months in advance, taken it out of it's wrapper, and played it when I was asleep or not at home. Hours and hours of practice later and he put his cocky son in his place. Again...

[Stark]

If I had to pick a favorite it would have to be Pitfall.

A few of my other favorites are Berzerk, Missle Command, Keystone Kapers, River Raid.

I remember trying to play Raiders Of the Lost Ark with a friend and we threw the controllers at the wall and never finished or played that sucker again but I can't remember why!

My parents bought us the 2600 for Christmas 1978 and sometime afterwards they also got us an Odyssey2 which I remember having more games for. My Mom and Dad hogged the Odyssey and played KC Munchkin and Slots forever so I became an expert at Berzerk and Missle Command.
I still have the old 2600 and all of the carts I played as a kid.
How many games do you have for it?- At last count I have 6 Atari 2600 systems and 276 different games with just as many duplicates.

[boatofcar]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
River Raid, for some reason I always liked the pastoral setting :)

- What are some of your other favorites?
Defender, Frogger, Pac-Man

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
I always remember thinking how awesome it was that you could pick up the people in Defender and bring them back down.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action?
I was around 6, so that would've been 1987 or so...

What game was it? What was your reaction?
Pac-Man, it rocked my world.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"?
No, but my friend down the street did. I had an Atari 1200XL, though...for some reason I always thought the 2600 was cooler though...probably because it was hooked up to a bigger tv...

How about now?
Just got one a few weeks ago...

- How many games do you have for it?
7 or 8

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?
It's amazing how when you're small the games seem so much cooler...I think mame really ruined a lot of the nostalga for me when I rebought the 2600. I think that I projected the mame version of defender onto my memories of playing it back in the day, so I was a little disapointed with all the flickering. Aside from that, I think that the 2600 is a great system, although my Combat locks up once every 5 minutes and my Pac Man gives random 40 or 60,000 point bonuses.

[RJ]

1. Favorite: Crystal Castles- got through ALL castles!
2. Adventure, Superman, Asteroids, Maze Craze, Demon Attack, Dolphin, Ice Hockey vs. friend
3. Crystal Castles is a really good game, even better than the XL/XE version in some respects. 2 games I got really pissed at were Raiders/Lost Ark & SwordQuest: Earthworld
4. At a friend's house in 3rd grade Missile Command- I didn't get you're SUPPOSED to move the cursor! A kid on my street got one later on & I was HOOKED!
5. Yes, I "quit" for awhile but got a 2600jr for a birthday
6. Had 80 at one time but 20 now through sales/trades (I don't consider myself a collector)
7. Just that I played it EVERY DAY!!!

[Kid Ice]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
- What are some of your other favorites?
- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
- How many games do you have for it?
- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?



Favorite game - Space Invaders. I still prefer this version to the arcade.

Other favorites - Demon Attack, River Raid, Spiderman, Berzerk

Surprised me - Maze Craze, so much fun w/ two players!

Infuriated me- ET and those goddamned holes

First time - My cousin's house in 1979. He was totally ho-hum and casual about showing it to me, and I was in shock. It was the best thing since Star Wars. I couldn't sleep that night, I thought it was so cool, and I just kept thinking about having one. The games were Surround, Combat, and Casino (or Blackjack).

I got mine- Christmas of 1980. Came w/ Combat and Space Invaders. Then we went to my uncle's house, and he gave me Asteroids. Ultimate Santa score!

Today-I have 5. One is the heavy one, one is a Jr., then 3 regular ones. I also have a 7800.

Games- more than 200

Story- This kid in my 5th grade class had his birthday party the day Pac Man came out. Of course his mom got him Pac Man and everyone at the party freaked out about how cool a present it was. The kid puts it in his Atari, and SMOKE COMES OUT OF THE SYSTEM.

the kid

[o2william]

- What is your favorite game on this system?

That's a tough choice. Probably Pressure Cooker. Haunted House ranks a close second.

- What are some of your other favorites?

Adventure, Crystal Castles, Missile Command, Spacemaster X-7, Frankenstein's Monster, H.E.R.O.

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

Solaris surprised me. Who'd have thought the 2600 could do all that?
Swordquest infuriated me. It seemed such a cool concept, but... wasn't.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action?

Nope. I can remember the first time I played a home video game system (dedicated Pong machine), but for some reason I can't recall my first 2600 experience. I was rather young at the time.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

No, but my best friends (they were twin brothers) did, and I could play it whenver I wanted, since we were also neighbors. I "owned" their 2600, just like they "owned" my O2. :)

Now, I own a 2600, a Gemini, a Coleco Exp. Module #1, and a 7800.

- How many games do you have for it?

About 350.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

My 2600-owning friends moved away when I was about 12. They were a few years older than I was, and were becoming more interested in things other than video games. So they gave me their 2600 and about 10 games before they left.

Also, back in the day, my friends and I made the difficult decision to trade away Pac-Man. It was the only version of the game we had, and we didn't realize that it sucked (I couldn't get K.C. Munchkin then because it had been pulled from store shelves). The game we traded for? Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator. I wish I could make a trade like that today!

[robot717]

Believe it or not,my favorite Atari 2600 game is ET.
It's not hard once you figure it out and I never had problems with the holes.I liked the exploration aspect of the game and outsmarting the Scientist and FBI agent was fun.I was able to beat it on the hardest level.

[gamingguy]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
- What are some of your other favorites?

TIE: Space Invaders/ Missile Command/ Berzerk/ Pitfall2/ Jr. Pac-man/





- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

Bright colors of Ms.Pac-man & Dig Dug amazed me. Perfection of Jr. Pac-man too.
SwordQuest sucked. Wished I didn't buy it.
1st Time: Combat and Breakout. I was amazed by being able to control pictures on my TV screen! I played until 2 am! Now I see that same fascination from my little nephew when I play RealFlight on the PC!





- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
- How many games do you have for it?

Yes. Yes. 50+ all originally bought pre-85!

[vampyr643]

Fav. Game breakou or super breakout

others that i liked : DK jr., mario bros, & yar's revenge.

games that infuriated me was raiders of the lost ark that game made me rip my hair out for hours.


first time i saw the system was at my uncle's house just before he gave it to me admittedly alll my friends had NES but for me watching laser blast that first time was awesome.


did i have the system back in the day yes do i still have it yeah.


how many games do i have somewhere near 40.

[Arqueologia_Digital]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
Difficult question, but maybe Berzerk

- What are some of your other favorites?
Burgertime, Yars´revenge, Pitfall, Pepsi invaders & Pac man

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
Pitfall

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
Yes, i saw it in a TV programme some years ago, then i played in emulator and it was very nostalgic for me

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
No & Yes

- How many games do you have for it?
Really DK, but a lot

[123forever]

- What is your favorite game on this system?

Adventure. I never get tired of it, and it seemed like a massive quest back in the day.

- What are some of your other favorites?

Pitfall, I love trying to "beat" it, Pitfall II, Circus Atari, Superman, Human Cannonball, Sky Diver, and Raiders of the Lost Ark, I still feel like that game is keeping secrets from me.

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

I couldn't get the hang of the SwordQuest games.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

My parents traded our black & white TV to another family in exchange for a 2600. I assume Combat was the first game I saw. I was 4 or 5, so they were only 25, and they loved video games as much as I did. My mom and grandma kept their high scores in a notebook. My grandma would play Slot MAchines for hours on end.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Yes and yes.

- How many games do you have for it?

67, more at my mom's house.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

I remember being completely stoked by the Jr. commercial. I had missed Atari greatly and wanted it to come back. I remember pouring over the catalogs. Those goofy illustrations really fired my imagination. I remember longing for LOTR: Journey to Rivendell to come out. I remeber noticing that the artwork for Demon Attack contained a rubber monster I owned, painted silver. Or was that Demons to Diamonds?

[atarifan]

-What is your favorite game on this system?
adventure- most inivative game for its time

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Yes and yes.

-How many games do you have for it?
333+ 4 systems + contolers out the wazoo

-game that i liked but most others didn't
circus atari everyone else thought it was a nerdy game but i rolled the counter 3X

- game that ticed me off
swordquest, Et,

-best software company
activision cheaper, better games atari sold at 54$ but activion sold at consumer distribiting for 35$

-1st time saw the system
i had bought the ody. but it kept over heating so i returned it and saw the atari fellin love with it from the get go. invaders was playing at the time
i have had every major system at one time or the other but atari

Happy classic game to you all

[fergojisan]

C'mon everyone, there should be a lot more replies than this! Let's ramp it up!

- What is your favorite game on this system?
Adventure, most definitely.

- What are some of your other favorites?
Hoo boy. The Pitfalls, Frankenstein's Monster, Warlords, Circus Atari, Kaboom, Miniature Golf, Sky Diver, Jr. Pac Man, etc.

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
Pitfall was the first Activision game that I saw. I couldn't believe the way it looked (I didn't know the word "graphics" at the time). Pac Man made me pretty mad. I remember plunking down 37.99 for that bastard.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
Yeah, we had a 6 switch with 17 games at the end. I have a few more now, including a 2600 Jr.

- How many games do you have for it?
315, not counting variations or Sears carts (Except the three exclusives)

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?
You shouldn't have asked!
-My dad's friend from high school had the Sears version, and a ton more carts than we had. We used to go over there quite a bit and play Atari on his extremely large (for that time) projection TV! It was awesome. Space Invaders as big as your head.
-I don't remember why, but a friend's mom was invited by her work to go to the East coast Atari Headquarters, which was nearby to us. He asked me to go with him. I don't remember much about it, but I do remember a table in the middle of a room stacked with new games, and I bought Maze Craze and Warlords for $10 each. I think it was 1982 or 1983.
-I got a lot of my games at a local toy chain in central NJ called Tiny Tots. It was a huge building next to the Pathmark, so I would go over there while my mom grocery shopped. They had the 2600 kiosk set up and I would drool over all the games they had. They eventually subdivided and put a Consumer's next door (remember them)? I bought games from them also. Later, that particular Tiny Tots was subdivided out of business. About 10 years later, when I started collecting, I went to the last remaining Tiny Tots, which was down the street from where we moved after we got married. When I walked in, it smelled exactly the same as the old one had, and the memories came flooding back. Unfortunatley, they didn't have any games leftover. Foo.
-When I started working at KayBee in 1991 (way before I started collecting), they still had overstock stuff way at the top of the shelves. We were cleaning it out before Christmas, and we found two or three boxes filled with Atari stuff, that was marked down to under a dollar. You know what's coming, right? I was in the throes of Nintendo, and those boxes were all full of junk to me. Right in the friggin' dumpster. I still think about that to this day! Stupe.

Ferg

[FooFighter]

aaaahhh the good old days..... :)

My favorite game??? Probably Adventure!

Other Favs: Missle Command, Raiders of the lost ark, H.E.R.O., Riddle of the Sphinx and lots more.

Infuuriated me: Pac-Man "Dude why doesn't he face up or down......this sucks"

Games That Suprised Me: Ms. Pac-Man "Hey this doesn't suck like Pac-Man"

First time I saw the System it was playing Combat. What did I think????? IT WAS THE COOLEST THING I HAD EVER SEEN!!


I got the system when I was about 9 for my birthday.

I own 7 of them now :D

I currently have 104 unique games and a whole pile of duplicates :)

I remember spending hour in the basement playing this with my friends. It was so great back then because your mind filled in where the graphical quality left off. And there was someting called GAMEPLAY. Those Adventure dragons dont look real now :(
but back then the were real for us!

Anyone who isn't at least 30 now will NEVER understand......

/ bows to pay homage to the great Atari 2600

[ubersaurus]

My 1st system I ever owned, or played. Wow.


- What is your favorite game on this system? Hmm...that's a hard choice. I think I'll go with Starmaster.
- What are some of your other favorites? Space Invaders, Yars Revenge, Beamrider, Turmoil, Ms. Pac-Man, Frogs n Flies, Armor Ambush, Cosmic Ark, Vault Assault, Thrust
- What games surprised you? Infuriated you? Probably Starmaster for both. It infuriated me because it was a pain on the ass to get running on our system, but when I did, the graphics just blew me away, especially for such an old system.
- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction? I honestly can't remember, since I played that thing since I was like 3. The first conscious memory of the games on it were either Space Invaders, Journey Escape, or Cookie Monster Munch. I think it was Cookie Monster, but it's hard to say. All I know is that as a kid I loved that freaking thing.
- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now? I owned it back in the day, until I broke it from playing it so much. We ended up buying a 7800, and my broken 2600 wallowed in the basement until an attempt at repair a year or two ago, which, well, coulda gone better. I've got my grandmother's 2600 now though, which I have probably more nostalgic memories about.
- How many games do you have for it? 196 unique games, 268 if you count multiples. The number used to be higher, but I gave alot of my multiples to my parents along with a 2600 I got through work, since they were the ones that introduced me to it and all.
- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us? Well, there was me breaking it from switching controllers so often and puttings games in and out so much, and the purchasing of a 7800 as a result. I also remember going up to my grandparents every summer in the country, and playing their 2600 jr. My grandmother was an absolute beast at river raid until she had a stroke, but to this day, games like Plaque Attack, Fishing Derby, Jr. Pac-Man, and well, pretty much every 2600 game she had up there, remind me of those days.

[qbertandernie]

What is your favorite game on this system?

demon attack

- What are some of your other favorites?

china syndrome, cosmic ark, atlantis, pac-man(too young to have played in arcade)

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

more of 'infuriated'... any of the paddle games after my paddles got jiggily... i never knew you could buy replacements, and by the time i had a job the atari was long dead. as a result, games like super breakout got very little use in the latter days

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action?

earliest childhood video game memory is dad playing frogger and dig dug..i thought him superman those days, he could go FOREVER.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"?

Yes. sadly, when i got into collecting i mixed my original system with all of the new systems i got, so i have no idea which one was mine growing up. the cord was chewed on by my cat, but after the first few systems i got after collecting i replaced my original with a different, effectively making it impossible to trace.
now i have several, with several variations and several different manufacturing plants thoroughout asia....wonder how many subcontracting companies made the system?

- How many games do you have for it?

only 253... :(

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

nothing interesting i havent relayed in the past. this was the system that got me into collecting after i brought it out sometime in high school. i began 'borrowing' friends atari carts and then started into NES when i realized atari games were hard as hell to find in 2000.. then it snowballed

[VinnyT]

What is your favorite game on this system?

Solaris

What are some of your other favorites?

Dig Dug, Frogger, Frogs and Flies, Donkey Kong,Defender

What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

Kangaroo always got me irritated because it seemed so damn simple, but I always had a bit of a struggle.

Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

Atari was our my only gaming experince from my birth until '93. As far back as I can remember, my dad always gave me that little joystick and told me to "Shoot those green things". I liked being able to control what was on the tv.
Defender was the first game that I played. It became the game we (me and my dad) always played first when we did.

Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

My dad bougt the system and a few games in it's heyday, but most were bought post-crash, making for some cheap games. It's sitting in the basement, hooked up to an old B&W tv.

How many games do you have for it?

I'd say only about 30:o

Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

Almost every morning, my dad and I would go up to his room and start playing Atari. We put my brother in his play pen and let him sleep.The first game we always played was Defender. Then it just became a free for all for about an hour. Soon, my dad would either go make or order a pizza, depending on his mood. When it was ready, the 3 of us ate pizza until my dad left for work.

One time, I left the Atari on for a whole day, without a cart in it, and busted it. Luckily, we lived in Cleveland, and it was summer. Finding a new Atari was easily done. I still feel bad about it somwaht to this day.

[RetroYoungen]

Fave game on the system? HAS to be Warlords. First time I played it on an actual VCS was at CGE, where we had our little competitions (and I lost so horribly!). Also, H.E.R.O. and the port of Missile Command are just excellent.

Did I own it "back in the day?" Nope. I was born about seven years after it was released, so I couldn't own it "in the day," but I did get to play it some when I was a little kid. My parents used to get private services with a minister and I would go upstairs and play video games with his son, and he had an NES and a VCS. So those were my first memories with the system until I bought my own in 2001/2002.

How many games have I for it? Only about 12. But I'm working on it. :D

[Flack]

I thought I'd break up the formality of this post and post my own history and memories of that little woodgrain box we love so well.

In 1978, my dad replaced our home Pong system with an Odyssey2. We all loved it and I have fond memories of it (and still own it), but the problem with it was that we couldn't find games for it (according to my father, at least). After sitting by and watching the Atari 2600 library grow, the next year ('79) we sold the Odyssey2 and bought an Atari 2600.

Some of my earliest Atari memories involve playing Bowling, Space Invaders, Gunfight, Air Sea Battle, and of course Combat. I can remember going to sleep and hearing my dad playing Space Invaders, Breakout, and (later) Pinball from the living room.

We also did a lot of gaming as a family back then. One thing I specifically remember is the four of us playing Warlords, which we did semi-regularly. My dad and I also played a lot of Race. My sister and I were more into Frogger, Pac-Man, and Donkey Kong.

I missed the NES when it was popular -- I went from the Atari 2600 straight to the Commodore 64, around 1985 (long after most everyone else had packed up their 2600's). The result of that was we ended up getting a lot of games very cheaply, either from bargain bins or from other friends or school mates who were getting rid of their collections. I'd say around the time we finally boxed up the Atari, we had around 40 games or so.

My original 6 switch stayed boxed up for almost a decade. Around '94 or so I started hanging out with a lot of people online that were also fans of retro gaming, and I ended up unpacking my Atari. Being a fan of the 2600 was great back then. It was not uncommon to find stacks and stacks of 2600 games for a buck, rare or not. I also picked up several spare 2600's around that time for five bucks or less. I still have lots of joysticks, cables and stuff that I got from around that time that I still use as spares. All my friends had a great time stopping by my house and playing Atari 2600 and thought I was old school THEN - 10 years ago!

In '96 we moved into an apartment where I had no space for everything to be hooked up, so back into storage it all went. There it stayed, until 2002, when we moved into the home we're in now. With a game room all to my own, everything came back out of storage boxes and back up. Through a combination of switchboxes, I finally got everything (including my 2600) hooked up to my projector in my game room, playing Atari with pixels as big as my fist.

One of the things I enjoy best about my collection is that quite a bit of it is the same stuff I owned as a little kid. Everything from our original Atari to tons and tons of my carts are the ones I've had forever. I've never outgrown the 2600 -- I just bought 20 games today for it. It's the system that started it all for me really, and I'm sure I'll never truly part with it.

[The Insomniac]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
Dig Dug. I just like it :D

- What are some of your other favorites?
Mrs. Pac Man, Pitfall, Pole Position, Breakout, Donkey Kong, Mario Bros., River Raid, Warlords, Yar's Revenge, Zaxxon.

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
Many.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
I don't even remember, but I though it was cool.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
I wasn't born untill 1986, but my dad had one.

- How many games do you have for it?
44.

[Rogmeister]

- What is your favorite game on this system?

As with several others, a bit of a toughie. Possibilities include Kaboom! and Berzerk...and I have an unhealthy attraction to Circus Atari.

- What are some of your other favorites?

Demon Attack, Stampede, Chopper Command, Pitfall, Adventure, Fast Eddie (don't ask me why on that one!) and Activision's Tennis.

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

Those Swordquest games (is that what they were called) and Riddle of the Sphinx kind of infuriated me because I just didn't "get" them. Surprised me? Maybe Kaboom! How could something so simple be so addicting?

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

I don't think my memory goes back that far anymore...

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Yes to both...though I did sell my original 2600 after I got my 5200. I got a replacement for it only about 5 or 6 years ago.

- How many games do you have for it?

Not sure...probably about 110 or so. I should get some more.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

Not really, except that I did bother to get many of those Activision patches. Wish I still had those...and I wish some of today's companies did something like that in these days.

[Vigilante]

I must have been 7 or 8 years old. I saved my allowance for 6 months to buy my first atari. At $3 a week, it was arround $150. I gave the money to my mom and she also got me pacman and asteroids for my birthday. I was really disappointed with pacman but looking back it rocked. My fourth game was circus atari, one of my favs now.

Ultimately, my favorite is Kaboom. Very simple, completely addicting! I did the video/audio mod so I can have a clear screen, no more wavy lines.

I still purchase newer homebrews when I can like Pacman Arcade and Skeleton. Keeps the old system "new." I have arround 80 games, several systems, joysticks and paddles. I might mod a unit into a portable some day.

[Dangerboy]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
KABOOM, hands down. Till the end of time. And for all the reasons, the most important: No matter who you are, your age, sex, race, skills, talents, etc, after a certain point everyone uses the EXACT same strategy: Spinning the wheel like like there was no tomorrow with your tongue hanging out. LOL

- What are some of your other favorites?
Pac-man (reason specific in final answer), Dodge'em, Berzerk, Bowling, Haunted House (did the guide for it!)

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
As far as surprising, any of the pornographic games, mainly because if you're that hard up for some porn, you need help. THat said, Gigilo is a hysterical game. Never before have I been forced to blush while movine a joystick up/down up/down etc...

As far as infuriate, I can't really think of any at the moment.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
No, to be honest...I don't even recall the commercials, and I Used to watch cartoons like MAD on a daily basis back then.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
Yes to both. My father brought home the Pac-Man version when it came out. Still remember sitting in Orland's old Carson Pierre Scott Eatery, holding a copy Dodge'em and Haunted House thinking how cool HH's box looked. The lighting always made me smile. Wonder if I can blame HH for my love of thunder/rain storms...

- How many games do you have for it?
More than 100, less than 250....they're packed away so I can't check on them right now.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

Two actually.

"Curse Invaders"
1. A game of Space Invaders with my father presented the first time I ever swore in front of my parents. I think I was in first grade, and over the usual 1st grader speak was curse words. Well, I found out a new one to use, and during a heated Space Invaders match, I lost my last ship just as I was about to overtake my dad's score, and what comes out of my mouth but a high pitched, sqeuaky "F______________CK!"

My dad simply and calmly turned to me and said, "What did you just say?" in the most curious voice tone ever. I must have did the 100 yard dash in about 2 seconds because I thought I was done for. He just laughed and told me not to do it again...and we finished up our game and moved on to others.

Oddly I swear like a sailor now-a-days, but all in good Robin Williams like fun ^_^

"You can not destroy my destiny"
2. I already explained this in another forum a while ago, but just a quick recap.

My father, with a single question set in stone my career, hobby, and passion for this life. Having played Pac-man in the arcade several times, imagine my surprise when my father comes home with the system and Pac packed in! I was stoked, he hooked it up to our giant wooden Zenith TV (which had 'ON TV' cable, odd side memory...), plucked in pac-man, and there it came in all it's glory. "Dad!" I squealed, "I am so awesome at this game!"

Well, there is no pride like a father's, so he handed me the controller and told me to show him how it's done. The restart button was pressed, the sound effect came up, I pressed left, and after only eating two pellets, I was swallowed by a ghost. Laughing a fatherly laugh, he looked at me and joked, "Jason, I thought you said you were GOOD at this?"

24+ years later, I am a co-editor of the Digital Press Advance PSX section, have been crowned Biggest PSX Fan ever, worked in the industry for 3 years, worked gaming retail for 7+ years, ran a monthly 40 page fanzine for 4 years that had subscribers in 4 different countries and received accolades in 3 different magazines, own 4000+ games, and more.

None of which would have ever happened it weren't for the day my father brought home the 2600.

Go dad. :D

Jason

[SegaAges]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
It used to be pitfall, until I read about how everybody loved Yar's Revenge. That game is awesome. I love it.

- What are some of your other favorites?
I am a arcade game nut (I buy consoles with games so that I don't have to spend $200 a pop for arcade machines)
Pitfall
Ms. PacMan (Pacman sucked balls)
Space Invaders
Missile Command
Frogger
Empire Strikes Back (I have no clue if this is arcade, but it rocks)

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
Yar's Revenge surprised me. I honestly didn't think it would be that fun.
E.T. infuriated me just because I still can't figure it out for the life of me. The stupid little secret agent snags me and that is about all that happens when I play it. Adventure is like that too. I still can't figure out that game.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
My brother bought it from the local game shop for like $10. He had Empire Strikes Back and some Indiana Jones game. We played ESB for at least 6 hours straight. My reaction was that it was awesome, and I wished we could have played it longer.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
I never owned it "back in the day". I am only 21, it was way before my time. Now, hell yeah I own it now. I have no clue how my collection would be without it. It is one of my centerpieces right beside my Virtual Boy for my collection.

- How many games do you have for it?
Counting duplicates, 46.
Not counting dupes, 35.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?
I got my system for free. It was some out of the blue type deal where I remembered that my bro still had his 2600, but it was in a random box in our basement (we still had yet to completely unpack everything since our first move). He told me that if I could find his 2600, it would be mine. I took at least 2 hours going through his boxes alone, and then...
I came across a shoe box. I opened it up, and there stood a 2600 with 12 games. It rocked.

[Sotenga]

Great games include both Pitfall games, Yar's Revenge, Mountain King, Haunted House, Riddle of the Sphinx, and Krull, among many, many others. Tax Avoiders sucks.

...

Heh, to be honest, I can't think of any outstandingly bad 2600 games. I would denote Pac-Man and E.T., but those are so obvious that they have a sort of cult following in my eyes, and I get some degree of sick enjoyment out of them... though, I will have to agree with some of you and say that Raiders of the Lost Ark sucks. I can't figure out for beans what to do in that game, and I always die. Justice was not done for an excellent movie in the early 80's.

[mezrabad]

Favorite game: Adventure - I'll never stop enjoying this one and take it out about once a month for a quick game of #3, quick dragons that run from the sword. Oh, and for the sake of reverence, it's the only game I actually take the Cuttle Cart 2 out of the 7800 for. Well, until I get Pitfall 2.

Others: I can't believe no one's mentiond Escape from the Mindmaster and DragonStomper. God I loved those games! I didn't even have a supercharger back in the day I just borrowed one for a weekend and played my heart out. I also dug Pitfall, Circus, Combat and believe it or not I now have a blast playing Human Cannonball with my kid. We love to see the guy get smushed. Come to think of it that's why we enjoy Sky Diver, too. Maybe we're just sick. Too many other games to mention.

Surprised me: Adventure made my jaw drop first time I saw it in a Sears. It was the killer app that made me want the system. Wow, it's a little world inside there! I don't think I'd ever seen a multiple screen virtual "land" set up inside a computer or video game before then.

Infuriated me: Video Chess and Basic Programming. I was so dissappointed by both of them. Basic Programming made me envy my friend who had an Odyssey^2 (can you imagine?). Video Chess dissappointed me because of the length of time it took the Atari to move and the seizure inducing screen graphics while it was "thinking".

First game I saw on it was Target Fun on demo at Sears. I thought that it beat the heck out of my Odyssey 300, but the VCS was waaaay too expensive for my family at the time. I was reading Stephen King's book, The Stand, at the time. I remember thinking how cool it would be if civilization fell and I could loot my local Sears for an Atari and whatever carts were available for it. (I also wanted some of those Mattel handheld games, but only if I could carry them with my imagined vast haul of VCS loot.) My grah'mom gave us a VCS the Xmas of '80. I broke my leg in February of '81 and had to spend an entire week sitting on the couch playing my half a dozen carts (I became an Adventure pro that week.). It's memories like this that make me want to break something and have an excuse to sit and play games for a week. Hey, I have a hernia operation in December, maybe that will lay me up for awhile! Woo-hoo!

Owned it back in the day. I don't know what happened to it. I think I called my parents seeking it back in 1989 and it had already been discarded. The Cretins! I have two 2600s now, 4-switchers. I use the Cuttle Cart 2 with the 7800 mostly.

I don't know how many carts, been a while since I took a census. Probably between 50 and 70. Only Adventure comes out, out of reverence. Oh, and sometimes my supercharger along with the Stella got a new Brain CD, just for kicks. The automated loading of the Cuttle Cart 2 isn't as authentic as having to press play. (yes, I know there weren't any CDs back in the day but we roll with the changes.)

Stories:

We made a Dragonstomper tape set. After we loaded the game, we'd stick in a tape that was a compilation of themes from pretty much any movie John Williams had ever scored. We had a different set of themes for the countryside, the town and the dragon's cave. I think the only poor choice on the tape was the theme from "lost in space" out in the countryside. It just didn't work in that setting. Star Wars seemed to work just fine for some reason.

My dad used to practice Space Invaders when I was asleep because he couldn't beat me. I never knew it (because he never beat me) until my mom told me about two years ago. It was one of those moments where I thought "hey! my Dad was a gamer at heart!" but it turns out he was just really competitive and it was the first thing he couldn't beat me at.

I remember hearing there was something called an "easter egg" in Adventure and almost knowing immediately where it had to be. I was wrong! But got it right on my second guess. Then it took a friend to figure out where to put the thing to find the message.

I remember, after feeling burned over Earthworld, vowing to never buy a brand new full priced Atari 2600 game ever again. I think I actually kept that vow. It helped that my parents gave me a C64 not long afterwards. I guess that makes me an active participant in the crash!

I'm just glad I can still enjoy these games for themselves and apart from a feeling of nostalgia. I'm noticing that if the games for any system aren't great, the nostalgia only lasts for so long before I'm plugging in another system. I have NEVER turned off the VCS to play something else on another system. If the gaming session starts with the VCS, it ends with the VCS. It usually ends much later then I intended, I might add.

[kainemaxwell]

My first gaming system and something I would play for hour son end, loved all my games. Still do and wish I knew if my machine still worked, or get it hooked up.

[rick weis]

What is your favorite game on this system?
i have 2 and it's hard to just have 1 when both of these are so close to being my #1 favorite.
adventure, pitfall,


- What are some of your other favorites?
asteroids, backgammon, bowling, casino, canyon bomber, carnival, chess, circus atari, combat, decathlon, demon attack, donkey kong, dragonstomper, fast food, frogger, frogs and flies, halloween, indy 500, kaboom, montezuma's revenge, missile command, miniature golf, mr.do, ms. pac-man, no escape, phoenix, space invaders, submarine commander, super breakout, tapper, video pinball, warloards, X-man, yar's revenge.


- What games surprised you?
dragonstomper, this was my first true role playing game. excellent game.

X-man, well if you have played this game to some of the screens you will know why. :)

beat'em an eat'em, just the title alone did it!


-Infuriated you?
atari video cube (aka rubik's cube) i never could understand these damn things!

dragonstomper could NEVER beat the darn game. grrrrr...


- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? i only seen it "action" on tv the store where i got my games did not have any atari system displayed. the very first time was getting on christmas (77)


-What game was it? can't remember which game i played first, i only had a few games with it.. too long ago to remember..



-What was your reaction?
i thought it was the best christmas present EVER!! and still do!! Thanks mom and dad!



- Did you own the system "back in the day"?
YES!


-How about now?
YES!


- How many games do you have for it?
over 1200 and about 700 of them boxed



- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?
playing slots with my dad. (only game he like on it) and it's the only reason why i liked the game.

playing space invaders for around 16 hours straight. would have been longer but my dad made me go to bed.

Rick

[Slate]

1: Keystone Kapers.
2: Pitfall, Space invaders, Demon attack, Centipede, MS. Pac man, Plaque Attack, Fast food.. The list goes on.
3: Tank brigade. (Read on)
4: The first time i saw an atari 2600 in action was in September 03. I didn't see it on for long, though, since i didn't have the correct Power supply - Too little voltage. The first time i Really saw one working without any porblems (Well, except for some RF issues) was in Febuary 2004.
5: I didn't own one back in the day, But i own 4 of them now. It is a very good system.
6: I own 87 atari 2600 games, Not counting duplicates.
7: Stories? Well, once i went into a goodwill and found 5 BNEW & Sealed (4 shrinkwrapped) Atari 2600 games. I could only afford the cheaper ones ($5 total - The rest were $5 apeice) I ended up getting Night driver And Tank brigade. (Tank brigade was the one not shrinkwrapped, but still sealed) I didn't even check the DP Guide until weeks - Or a month - After i bought them. To my astonishment, Tank brigade was an R7 - USED!

[ozyr]

Ah, the old classic that I didn't get till year later.... :embarrassed:

- What is your favorite game on this system?

Robot Tank, by Activision. I've always like Tank games, the 1st person style ones. To this day I can't believe how good this game is, on an Atari 2600! It can get a bit annoying - I hate the snow - but I still play this game today (and they put it on the GameBoy Anthology!)

- What are some of your other favorites?

Frogger, for the SuperCharger - this game is exactly like the arcade game.
Millipede - so fast and so much fun. I never saw this in the aracades, but when I got the 2600 version, I was just blow away.
Solar Fox - this game is just plain fun. Fast and addictive gameplay.
Warlords - one of the best multi-player games on the 2600!

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

Tunnel Runner - such a strange looking game that is rather fun to play. And that weird replay/flashback/whatever that happens when you finish each level.
As for the infuriating one - that would have to be Miner 2049 (both versions). I find these game so hard to play, that I just don't get anywhere in them. I kind of like them, but they are just not working for me.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

Sears. The usual game was playing (I can't remember the name), where you have the little guns at the bottom and you shoot things above you. (sorry about not knowing the name, but it's not important at the moment). I really was not too impressed with the system, to be honest (at the time).

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Yes and No (see below).

I do own a bunch of units now. Some are in various stages of repair, but I always have one setup upstairs, ready for play at any moment!

- How many games do you have for it?

189 at this point in time, and that is slowly increasing year by year.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

This was the 2nd gaming system I bought (RCA Studio II was the first - my mom got that because the place she worked at gave them employee discounts on it). However, as for the Atari, I only had the 2600 unit for 1 day! I bought it, brought it home, hooked it up, and had some fun. That lasted about an hour, when the thing stopped working. Hard as hell to believe, as these things usually last and last. I was so disgusted that I took it back and got my money back. I then went and bought an Odyssey2 (which to this very day is my favorite system). :D

[Kroogah]

Found this while trying to get a list of 2600 games in .csv format. 2 pages? Srsly.

- What is your favorite game on this system?
Bowling. Seriously.

- What are some of your other favorites?
Berzerk, Asteroids, Space Invaders, Pitfall!, Fast Food, California Games, Demon Attack, Venture, Crystal Castles, Halloween, Frostbite, Super Breakout, H.E.R.O., Warlords, Jr. Pac-Man

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
Halloween surprised me by being actually kind of a fun game. Raiders of the Lost Ark infuriates me because I have NO IDEA WHAT TO DO.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
The first real memory I have of the system was playing Donkey Kong on it in 6th grade and thinking "Wow...this is old"

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
Naw, I'm an NES kid, I gots one now though.

- How many games do you have for it?
30-something? Used to have over 100, you'll read why.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?
2, actually.

1. As previously mentioned, in 6th grade dad dug one up from the basement to put in a garage sale. Naturally I didn't let him. Carried it back down to the basement, plugged it in, and discovered the joys of games like Pitfall, Kaboom, Night Driver, Warlords, Asteroids, Super Breakout, Carnival, and..uh..Pac-Man?

2. One of my best finds and biggest brags. I don't know if it was an estate sale or what but my mom and I turned up 3 boxes of Atari 2600 stuff. Weird thing is, one of the boxes was a Sears Video Arcade II box. The total amount of stuff was:

3 systems (4 switch, 6 switch, Sears)
A whole pile o' joysticks, paddles, and keyboards
74 games, some with manuals

Cost? $10.

[VG_Maniac]

- What is your favorite game on this system?

It's hard to say. Probably Pitfall.

- What are some of your other favorites?

Berzerk
Ms. Pac Man
Dig Dug
Asteroids
Kangaroo
Freeway
Frogger
Adventure
Missile Command
Bowling
Super Breakout
Kaboom!
Tennis
Jungle Hunt
Maze Craze
Yar's Revenge

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

E.T. I never expected a game could be that bad.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?

It was probably about 15 years after it was first released (I grew up during the NES days). I had a friend who owned one. I played it the first time I went over to his house. Yeah, I could instantly tell the graphics were VERY outdated...but I actually had some fun playing the games, at least most of the games. He let me borrow the 2600 for a week or two. A couple years later...another friend of mine got an Atari 2600 with about 20 games, his dad had picked it up at a garage sale. So, I played it every now and then over at his house.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?

Nope, I wasn't even born yet when it was released. And by the time I was born...the video game crash was taking place. I grew up during the NES era, and that was the first system I was introduced to. I didn't even know what an Atari was for a very long time. I do own one now...although I only play it now and then when I feel like some real "retro" gaming.

- How many games do you have for it?

50 games exactly.

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

Didn't play an Atari 2600 till about 1992. Didn't buy my own until earlier this year. I got a four switch woody off of ebay complete with the original box and booklet

[Jumpman Jr.]

See, with me, I grew up as a NES guy, so I never had a 2600 until I started collecting. Nonetheless, I'm going to fill this out:

- What is your favorite game on this system?
I think I'm going to have to go with Pitfall II

- What are some of your other favorites?
Pitfall, Warlords, Frogger, Missile Command... you know, the classics

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
E.T. Kinda rubs me the wrong way.

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
The first time I ever saw one being played was when I bought one when I started collecting. Of coarse, I knew the graphics would be crude. I think I laughed.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
I own a 2600 Jr. now, but I never owned one back in the day

- How many games do you have for it?
I'd say somewhere around 50

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?
Meh, not really... I bought mine for 49.99 from a Microplay because I thought they were rare. Big noob mistake.

[20eyes]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
Pole Position

- What are some of your other favorites?
Phoenix, Off The Wall, Defender, Ms Pac Man, Cosmic Ark, Demon Attack.

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?
Pac Man

- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
I just remember playing the one we had when I was young, we used to play pole position alot.

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now?
Yes, my dad had a vader system. I have 4 systems now but not that original one.

- How many games do you have for it?
Between 100 - 200

- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?
A guy I work with just recently gave me a sealed copy of Galaxian from a store that closed a long time ago. Nothing spectacular but it was nice of him.

[kidkool]

- What is your favorite game on this system?
Hmm. Kaboom Might be it. I can play that for hours and never tire of it. I love how fast the little bomber moves. And it was pretty even being so minimal.

- What are some of your other favorites?
Pitfall- Duh :P

Mario bros- I think they did a fine job on this one. I could sit in front of my 2600 for hours and never ever tire of it

Bezerk- With all those levels! Despite the idiotic AI I really enjoyed this one loads. I love the fact you get an extra man every 1000 points. Made it last for hours :D

- What games surprised you? Infuriated you?

The first time I played Adventure I was pleasntly suprised by the game (they need to make more maze homebrews in my opinion) It delivered what it said. And being such an early title it did very well. (now to find that easter egg again)

Pac-Man - Again...duh :P worthless Piece of garbage


- Do you remember the first time you saw the system in action? What game was it? What was your reaction?
I loved the way Pitfall was played on it. I was amazed by all the things it could do with just one button

- Did you own the system "back in the day"? How about now? I did not. I was not alive when it came out sadly. I own that and a Colecovision expansion module #1 now as well. I have about 100 games too.

I love this system...
- How many games do you have for it?
- Any stories surrounding the system that you can share with us?

[googlefest1]

favorite game :
Solaris

Other favorites:
Bezerk , Combat, many others

games i didnt like:
games like sky diver and 2 player games when you have no one to play with

what games surprised me:
None

Infuriated me:
None realy - but i did get "upset" in ET and how many games didn't match up to the arcade versions - i liked the original games much more becasue of this

First time in action:
Cousins house - asked me if i wanted to play - i had no idea what an atari was - i was blown away by the idea of having video games at home

did i own one:
NO - but i wished and wished

do i own one now :
YES

how many games - some where around 100

stories about the system:
one year i begged my father for an atari - he on the other hand decided that haveing a computer (so i could learn about them was better) and asked me if i agreed - dismaly i agreed he was right (even though i didnt want to learn i wanted to have fun) - if i said no i could have gotten the atari but i had to make the "right" decision like an @ss - I got a comodore 64 -- I hated that event then but today i apreciate my father's decision. On a side note - during the same time my other cousin begged his mother for an atari - she not knowing what it was, aksed my father and he talked her into getting a commodore 64 - that it would be better for his developement. he was pissed at me for that -- even though he got a disk drive and had a plethora of superior games (superior to atari) it wasnt the cool thing to have -- i, on the other hand was stuck with the programmers guide. I had to sleep over firends and cousins houses to play atari and other systems.