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Thread: My Atari Trakballs in action comparing to Sega's and Coleco's Roller Contoller

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    Default My Atari Trakballs in action comparing to Sega's and Coleco's Roller Contoller

    Thought I'd share my classic games Trakballs comparison here: https://youtu.be/vmE-E0wza0w

    The content of the presentation includes Missile Command being played with various trackball controllers on Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Sega Genesis, and Dreamcast. I also cover information on playing with a trackball on the Colecovision, Playstation, and Atari 800XL (with footage of Centipede, Millipede, Slither, War Games, Tempest, and more Missile Command).

    If you enjoy trackball games, this is definitely worth a watch!

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    My apologies for bumping this up, but I wanted to let Ave and others know how much I appreciated this video!

    As a former VCS/ColecoVision/PlayStation owner...it was unique to see these classics played in unique ways.

    My stepdad briefly had a 5200, but we never owned more than a game or two...so it was like seeing things for the first time!


    The Genesis version mentioned in the clip is the one I have...likewise, I've never owned a Dreamcast/the Atari computers.

    I own six dedicated arcade cabinets{Video Pinball, Omega Race, Zaxxon, Pengo, Punch-Out, and WWF WrestleFest}, and hope to eventually add trackball games to that list{like the aforementioned Crystal Castles or even Simpsons Bowling}!

    Thank you for both a video and a channel that informs and well as entertains.

    I'll definitely subscribe to Wired Up Retro as soon as possible!

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    Great Puma (Level 12) Steve W's Avatar
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    I have an Atari trackball, but my favorites were always Wico trackballs back in ye olden times. I had one for both the Atari 2600 and the Texas Instruments 99/4A (although the TI one needed an external power supply for some reason). I have even used the incredibly rare Odyssey 2 Wico trackball, albeit at a couple of conventions (playing the also rare game, Power Lords).

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    Thanks for the insight, Steve!

    Its always neat to hear about Texas Instruments' computers, as I'm only directly familiar with their current/vintage calculators.

    I wish I still had my Odyssey 2!

    I found it cheaply at Goodwill around 2002-2004, but ended up trading it away{due to lack of space} not long after.

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    Well, honestly, you aren't missing all that much. The Odyssey 2 might have done well if they only had the Channel F and the RCA Studio II to compete with, but the Atari 2600's flexibility made the Odyssey 2 look pretty unsophisticated in comparison. There are a few really solid games on it (Turtles and Killer Bees spring to mind) but most of its library is merely okay. A good Odyssey 2 emulator will suffice.

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    Fair enough point, Steve.

    Since I've never owned/played/seen 'out in the wild' any of RCA's or Fairchild's machines, I appreciated the novelty of the Odyssey 2!

    It also felt neat to own something designed by Ralph Baer, although I've owned various Simons over the years.

    I do/feel similarly with/about the Axlon robots designed by Nolan Bushnell that I own{Petsters}!

    The closest I've came to the Studio II/Channel F would be when I came across Atari's home version of Video Pinball.


    Considering I didn't have the funds at the time/already have the arcade version, I passed on it!

    I enjoyed the VCS when I owned a couple, but never as deeply as either the ColecoVision or NES.

    I respect their statuses as the pioneers of the hobby/industry, but just can't get into them fully.

    Thanks for the heads-up on some of the Odyssey2's "killer aps", maybe I'll come across another someday!

    Although games like River Raid/H.E.R.O./Kaboom/etc. were awesome to play, they just didn't give me "the itch" to commit to the 2600's library.

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    Great Puma (Level 12) Steve W's Avatar
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    Well, that's what emulation is good for. If you don't want to take up room with a console and a bunch of cartridges just to figure out which games suit you, you can always get a 2600 emulator and find your own classics. As far as the Atari VCS goes, I recommend most of the Arcadia/Starpath Supercharger games.

    I've got an Atari Video Pinball. It's an interesting novelty but it's not exactly gripping gameplay now. Look up Youtube videos of it - the engineers were promising more than the technology could deliver.

    I got excited when you mentioned the Axlon/Nolan Bushnell robots, then kind of sad it wasn't an Androbot. That would be my ultimate find, but I've never even seen one in person before.

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    Emulation definitely has a place, for sure.

    I'm just a real stickler for the actual physical copies[of music/TV shows/films, too...not just video games]!

    Thanks for the recommendations, I'll take them under advisement[if I purchase another VCS, that is].

    I agree about the limitations of the Atari handhelds, and thats true for the Coleco-designed ones as well!


    These things being said, the handheld aspect of gaming had to start somewhere.

    Lastly, sorry to disappoint..but no Androbot or AG Bears here!

    Perhaps I'll film video of the Petsters at some point, though.

    Thanks for your continued responses/conversation!

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    Cool video! I recently acquired an Atari 2600 "Pro-Line Trakball" which seems to be different than the one in the video, in that its housing is all-brown instead of brown/white. It also lacks the switch for joystick/trackball mode, though the spot for it is there. At the moment, it only works left/right, but gives no response on up/down. Hopefully, it's a relatively simple fix, since it should be cool with Missile Command and whatnot.

    I also have the Roller Controller for the Colecovision, along with Slither. Haven't done much with it yet, but it seems to be all there. Interesting that Coleco came out with it (and the Driving Controller) as Expansion Modules, yet didn't do much with them.
    -Adam

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