RE: The AVGN 2600 video, it's just a joke. He does that on purpose, just watch it as a comedy video - don't take the guy seriously. I actually liked the 2600 video because it was pretty stupid... I found it to be almost a parody of how "modern" gamers would see such a system.
(For the record, I didn't get to play a 2600 back in the day because I was a baby. I started to play on a NES and aren't into the Atari systems but I still respect them, aheh.)
And here I disagree with you. While I LIKE watching these videos, speed runs bore me because they're so -perfect-! I like to watch people play like a normal person would, not as a machine. But that's just me, though.