Classic Game Room - ATARI 5200 Console review
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Classic Game Room HD reviews the ATARI 5200 video game system from 1982, the successor to the Atari 2600. This is the 4 controller model which is the size of a container ship and uses the most absurd power/tv switcher hookup ever created. There are many things to loathe about this unique game console and one thing to love, its an ATARI!!! It plays hundreds of Atari 5200 game cartridges, many of which are slightly upgraded versions of popular Atari 2600 games like Missile Command, Vanguard and Space Invaders. Others are awesome games which look like early NES action games like Buck Rogers Planet of Zoom and The Dreadnaught Factor. There are some Atari 5200 exclusives as well. Collecting for the 5200 is not terribly expensive, even though the Atari 5200 is considered a commercial failure there are still many out there and they are such an amazing pain to own that people want to get rid of them. Collectors benefit from this as 5200 games and consoles on eBay are easy to find, but working controllers are not. The Achilles heel of the Atari 5200 is the terrible, analog, non-self-centering controller which is difficult to replace because of the keypad. You can buy refurbished Atari 5200 controllers or the expensive Wico aftermarket Atari 5200 controller if you are really ambitious. The fact is the Atari 5200 has some great games, is a joy to collect for and is so large that it demands respect. It looks like a Laserdisc player combined with a dishwasher and is hard to miss when taking up your entire living room.
I remember one Christmas my mom and dad took me to my aunt and uncle's house and my cousins got an Atari 5200 for Christmas and my Atari 2600 was at home (I received a few games for Christmas for my 2600.) I was instantly jealous. The system was set up in one of my cousins' bedrooms and they were playing when I got there and I was amazed at the graphics. But then it was my turn to play and all I was thinking was "what is wrong with these damn controllers?!" They also got 5 games for Christmas and my cousins and I sat there and played the thing all day, until it was time to go home, and nobody could get anywhere on any of the games because of the shitty controllers. I was no longer jealous and was happy to go home to my Atari 2600.
andyauthor2007 The lesson is, never underestimate the importance of good controllers on your gaming system
*mum
But just imagine if this was the case with the supernintendo, would it have been the same story as the 5200??? (Would most people would,ve decided to not buy a snes anymore if those included controllers were fragile and broken,even not if it had a top game included with it???)
It makes me just curious when i think about that,because i remember once i came to my causin and i saw his rented snes,i because immediately jealous on him and since then i wanted a snes sooo bad,i no longer wanted to play on nes anymore BUT just imagine if my parent bought us a snes but then returned it back and to never get another one,because of it’s included “fragile and broken” controllers well believe me then i would,ve cryed like a baby🤣
I almost bought one of these back when I was about 12 years old. I was a paperboy delivering newspapers and I saved up enough money to get one. My parents, on the other hand, talked me into getting and Atari 800XL computer instead. So I did, and I don't regret it. Most of the games if not all the games were basically the same thing just in a different sized cartridge. Later that year I received a floppy disk drive, a 300 baud modem, and a printer which open the system up to much better games on floppy disks like adventures and RPGs Games which were not possible on those early consoles.. The modem opened me up to the world of BBSs (Bulletin Board Systems) which got me connected to other Atari enthusiasts. So, looking back at the failure of the 5200, I can see why my parent diverted my decision.
And U don't hate missing your chance to get a 5200?
The 5200 was basically an Atari 800 without a keyboard. The 800 was originally going to replace the 2600 but Atari decided to get into the home computer market and compete against Apple and Radio Shack. IMHO, the Atari 800 was superior to both machines. I had friends who had Apples and when I got my Atari and the Basic owner's manual said it could only put 4 colors on the screen at the same time, they laughed at me saying that I couldn't play any good games on it. A little while later, when more information game out (plus a new graphics chip that add about 5 more graphics modes) and they found out I could put 128 colors on the screen, had re definable character sets, built in scrolling, and sprites, suddenly they claimed that Apple was a business computer, not a game machine. Which is funny because the Atari could have been a better business machine. It has the same CPU (6502) but ran 80% faster than the Apple. It could also put 64K of programming on a cartridge but only take up 16K of RAM. On the Apple, their word processor took up around 40K leaving only 8K for documents.
By ‘82/‘83 , a home pc like the 800 or c64 would have been a much better choice for gaming vs any console available at that time for the reasons you mentioned plus “file sharing” 😉
I like how Mark stored a PSP, DS and a tape measure in his storage compartment on the 5200.
You could also store a beer in there
if the controllers worked, this would have been my favorite system back in the day. We went through maybe 9 controllers.
I’ve always been a bit curious about the 5200 but after watching this I’m glad I stuck with the colecovision
While Atari wasn't doing well in the console industry after the 2600. Atari did make successful computers and that's how atari lived.
You know what I love about these reviews?
The video's are always in perfect full screen quality, even without HD. And the review covers everything, from the size of the thing to the connectors and the booklet. You now know everything that you would if you owned one of these.
I bought an Atari 5200 Super System four controller ports console in 1982. I discovered that the real problem with most of the original 5200 joystick controllers are that the flexible circuit boards tend to oxidize, when that happens you either clean the contacts or replace the circuit boards. Because of this I have bought a couple Atari 5200 DB15 To DB9 Adapter With Keypad from RetroGameBoyz for it allows one to use the original Atari 2600 joystick controllers on an Atari 5200.
Sega started as a third party publisher to become a third party publisher at the end.
This is Atari
D3rpyTh3W0lf have you watch the whole review?
I just realized what you meant I'm sorry
M3rtyville sega didnt started as a third party publisher and didnt ended as one
@@reesebenedict6648 begone bot
I am the only person alive seemingly that loved the feel of this controller in the hand and I thought the joystick moved smoothly and I am a fan of how it did not center only thing is the buttons in the side always break and maybe the joystick itself but feel wise this was my favorite controller.
I just got one for $30 complete in the box with 20 games mostly in boxes with manuals. Not bad. Going to try and fix the controllers tomorrow.
try and flip it you might get over $100 for it online
no - nothing is
Not a single reply in 12 years? What do lgr fans not watch cgr?
Such sweet memories-this is the first console my mom bought for my brother and I, upon release.
If he used an emulator, he would never know the sheer bliss that can only be achieved by experiencing the Atari 5200's phenomenal controller.
4:19 Where are the sparks!? xD
the avgn's was plugged in the outlet when he put in the wire
Propane
He didnt plug it in the wall
And a few decades later, usb-c finally realized the idea of having video, audio and, power go through a single cable.
but with more than a 2-lead cable of which 2 lead goes to the return common ground...
I loved my 5200! That was my first video console!
this video made me 😢. because i just literally bought one today. but it's cool because i got it for $50 and with 10 games.
Did the controllers break when it came?
It's a good lookin system with cool games. Only issue are those controllers.. and it's sadly a big issue. But I found out about a controller made by Matrix that looks much better, you can use your thumbs and its analog.
Mark flipping off the 5200 controller was AWESOME!
That's because Atari 5200 controllers were made a LOT more cheap than fast or good.
This is great video quality for a video from 2009.
Well yeah because of the 1080p whatever camera he used
I love the Atari 5200! Atari rocks!
-David O3O
i loved my 5200. I never really played it but that big holder in the back was a great place to stash my weed back in highschool... Thanks Atari
Lmao, that’s cool. Reminds me of how the nerd would stash a rolling rock in a 5200
I finally own an Atari 5200 (2 controller port version) and I gotta say that I'm loving it. The controller it came with mostly works. It's not the best controller. It does have it flaws and I got to do a little bit of fixing, but people saying that it's one of the worst controllers of all time is over-exaggerating in my opinion. The games for the 5200 are really fun. I'm proud to own this system.
I have so many Atari systems I lost count. I use to buy em up at the flea market back home. Plus I would buy up all the games to. Most I ever paid for a game was 2 bucks most of em were just a buck. The systems cost no more than 30. I have several hundred game cartridge's to go along with the game systems. I also got my moms Atari stuff as well. Before she passed away, she wanted my word, that I would hold onto em. I gave her my word & I'll always keep em. She wanted me to have em for some reason. What THAT is, I have no idea. In fact, I don't even play em anymore. I cant recall the last time I did. I'm more into my baseball game these days. But my favorite Atari system is STILL my 7800 The Asteroids on that system is flat out awesome!!!
You can plug in the RF unit you showed off earlier into the 5200. The screw terminals on the side look like you can screw it into that box's prongy shaped input..
I think the automatic switch-box on the 4-port 5200 is actually nice.
i grow with this unit we bought this 1984 & still have this
that one cable thing is BRILLIANT
I had one of these as a kid. It was a 2-port model my grandmother picked up for me at a garage sale. I can attest to the crappy controller. Though I didn't mind the directional controls much at the time, the bottom left and right button on both controllers didn't work. This was a BIG problem as many games required you to use them even when they shouldn't have been necessary. For example, Q*Bert required you to hold one of those buttons down to move, making it completely unplayable. I also got REEEEALLY good at Kangaroo without using the punch button.
Some of the functions of that damned button shouldn't have even been necessary. (Looking at you again, Atari 5200 Q*Bert)
Also, I can verify that Buck Rogers was, in fact, AWESOME.
Woo, nice one, I love hardware reviews and you uploaded two in one day.
This was my best Xmas gift ever!!!!
If anyone wants to play Atari 5200 just use the Atari 5200 emulator and game roms. That's why we have emulators so game consoles that we love could live forever and it is easier to use on computer than purchasing the system and using those outdated hook ups.
Ok
I agree and disagree because the consoles have better controls and it is just cool to have the consoles(: bet emulators are good because they introduce people to old consoles
well what happens when you are going to buy an atari game rom then your internet brokes hu?
+Leeli ville Say that controller line again with the atari 5200 in your mind.
Boy, if I have a Sega Genesis, I'm gonna damn well use my Sega Genesis.
I had a 5200 back in the day (was so stuck on Atari back then that I even got a 7800 after that, but I digress.) I loved it. It was the 2 controller system, so I thankfully didn't have that insane power supply/AV box combo!
Was worth it for me since it had Space Dungeon (along with the neat accessory that locked two controllers together, Robotron style!) and Sega's Star Trek game. I think I got up to level 70 in Space Dungeon before it just got so insanely hard. Thanks 4 the wayback trip!
My dad owned this. I grew up playing frogger , pole position , and jungle hunt
Finally, a video game reviewer who doesn't just focus on the negatives.
The 5200 is the best for me, because it carries all the titles I played in the arcade at that time. I had one as a kid, and don't mind the problems. I am good at controller maintenance.
I had one of these games as a kid. Everything this man says is true.
Btw, the controllers that don't center came that way new. One great thing about it that was new at the time-- a pause button!!
It's in a closet somewhere.
God I love your show
I still have the four port model that I got for Christmas 1982 and the original Power/TV switch box with it. I always thought that was a neat idea just poorly executed. I also have many carts for it and a multi-cart. The controllers were the worst part of this whole system. I have a WICO controller that I purchased after market which makes certain games much more playable. Your review is spot on. You cover the highs and lows very well.
I Only Had My Atari 5200 Until Last September I Think! So I Got The 7800 Prosystem Instead!
i grow with this unit we bought this 1984 & still have this - Q.Bert / Pac-man. Karate Champ / Space Dungeon etc...just great game of the 80's
At least Pac Man actually looks like Pac Man.
Good job
I got a 2 controller one and my controller was refurbished and actually works pretty well.
ZablatReviews it was about £60 and came with about 10 games, also the refurbished controller broke again so I looked for a after-market controller and got one for £15.
Actually, I had the 4 port and I really liked the out-of-the-box thinking and trying something different as far as the hardware goes. I liked only having one wire going from the console over your floor. kinda forward thinking.
This was my first game console. I only had Pac-Man, Centipede, and Real Sports Football. My all time favorite is Centipede. I remember flipping the game or looping it however the term is used. Thank you for an in depth review. I do not recall this system being a hassle to hook up, but then again i had the 2 port console. I will try and get one again. Mainly for revenge on football lol I lost every time against the computer or another person. Lol.
Am glad i own the 2 port model of the atari 5200 along with 2 controllers and exciting games such as pac man,moon patrol,buck rogers,mariobros,popeye,pole position and more etc,,,
It’s just awesome to know that despite the 5200 was a failure,it didn’t stop sega and nintendo to put their games on it either too😁
just picked one up on ebay, it was local pick, i bought a 5200 the same model as this, and a 7800 she threw in an Atari Track Ball controller, still in the box,,,never openned...now that's hardcore! Just played some pac-man on the 5200,,,,the 5200 is one bad mo'fo!
H.E.R.O. is one of the best early Activision games!
I can't wait until you review that. Very nice!
A few reasons why I bought one is because I was barely born when it came out, I had to hold the controller in my hand to give my own judgment about it, and I really wanted a Vectrex but I'm not ready to pay $300 for that and a huge lot of games and overlays. I was lucky enough to get a good deal with a two port system with two controllers and 11 games most with overlays. When I planned to get it I looked specifically for the 2 port system thanks to warnings like Mark and the AVGN.
Yeah! another video! Thanks Mark
This way of connecting is strange but when you consider how the Sega 32x cd would require daisy chaining the video as well as three power bricks, I can see why some companies would want to minimize the number of chords coming out of a console.
Just got to love the design of all model Atari carts,i love that H.E.R.O label.
Nice video. Also no end labels on the 5200 games was a bad design too. Would have been nice to have some game footage in this review as that is really important.
kudos on the surf rock in the audio
The strange power supply was a work around to automatically switch the signal from TV to game when the system turned on. Which gets rid of the need to manually switch it.
i had one when i was a kid and i was lucky to have a controler (2 to be right) that worked. even when the controlers worked, they where hard to get used to.
great review!!! I was one of those kids that didn't have the 5200 :'(
I'm going to go play my 2600..
Those controllers were so fragile.
Me and my brother became experts on repairing them.
agreed the AVGN also did it if you want to try to find that vid
I remember getting this for christmas back in the day
I got a 5200 when they came out. I am now 43 and bought another one off ebay a couple years ago. I have the trak-ball controller too. It is still my favorite home video game. In fact, I'm gonna go home and play it tonight. + Bongwyre2112 ...I think my weed is in there :)
Lord Karnage. I just wanted to say I love your reviews. But I wanted to say maybe their idea was to simplify the issue with the tv and power supply. How ever I do agree I hate that little device. But I love the 5200 I grew up with it and it is ultimately my favorite game console. More so then my Xbox 360 or my PC. I love this console more then I did the NES. I too am a retro game collector so I have a passion for videos such as these. Anyway Thank you for the video and keep it up. I will be looking for your future video's.
I remember when AVGN reviewed the 5200, he was able to put a beer in that storage case on the console.
I remember the time well, I was a young kid and I had a 2600, with 100 games, pretty sure most kids had one in the 80's. I wanted a 5200 but by the time I had enough money the 7800 came out, now stores were selling 2600 games 5200 games (very few) and a few 7800 games. The NES came out with some awesome launch games and it was game over for Atari. The NES was so much better in the Sound/Graphics department and the Nintendo controller was light years better than anything Atari had.
Thanks for your quality review.
one of my older cousins who went off to college gave me one of these last year, ive played it like 3 times lol its HUGE
Short answer for the RF/Power cable: multiplexing.
Longer answer: Signals that are filtered out at each end by their frequencies, of which will be different.
yay mark! all i did today was lay down for about 8 hours strait and watch your videos on my laptop! i LOVE your reviews! keep up the good work!
ps please review super mario galaxy and super mario galaxy 2 for the Nintendo wii!
I had a 5200, loved it
It was the 2 model?
Awesome storage unit that plays
video games. That's a whole keg
of beer!
Just picked up a two-poet CIB Atari 5200, unit is pristine.
I had one. I bought 4 replacement controllers. The first home console with a pause feature.
I don't play games anymore. I watch these.
Classic Game Room watched AVGN's Atari 5200 Review!
The 5200 is strangely attractive. It has a dark sloped and shiny contour marked by deep grills along its top. It was like a DeLorean of the mid-1980s--the design of the future. It has such a dominating presence next to any TV or console. Too bad most can't see one hooked up to their TV.
This was my first system and one that is dear to me. Yes the controllers suck ans i do believe if they had better controllers this system would have longer lifespan. There are people who hand make controllers for 5200, colecovision, and intellivision that are great and breathe new life into the 5200.
Lol I love how he flips the birdie at the controller.
Apparantly 5200 sticks ARE self centering, they just used a rubber lip to center them (which would break after a week), rather than a spring just to save money.
You forgot that it was the first system, that I knew of at the time, to offer a game to pause. It was a hardware feature at the time but it is so common-place now that you tend to forget where it came from.
Love your reviews man!!!
Oh and also on top of that in terms with Atari, I have a Atari 2600 as well. One of the most rarest models. I believe its the sears telegames one otherwise known as the Darth Vader model which is worth a hell of alot more cash than the original model in which i will purchase this week.
when you realize that 5200 is 25th best selling home video game system of all time
I was really hoping for a review of the other version of the console too.
The reason for the weird interface box was to have the console only require a single cable going around to the back of the TV. It automatically switched the signal from antenna passthrough to the 5200 when the console was turned on. No having to fumble around for that cheesy, cheap switch all other consoles used, which most of the time caused noise in the TV picture.
You still need to buy a gamepad and a T.V. HDMI cord if you want to play it like a console, and even then you need to have an expensive giant T.V., and the gamepad people use is mainly the xbox 360 controller usb so some games won't play as they were intended.
The reason and the advantage for the weird switch box is that it automatically switches between TV and the game when you turn the console on.
I never have had any problems with my controllers.
Sorry you had a bad experience and seemingly went through a lot of trouble.. All I did was buy a small and simple rca adapter off of Amazon for like five bucks and I was in business. That adapter by the way also works for the 2600 and 7800.
The reason why the Atari 5200 is designed this way is because it was trying to compete against the colecovision which created an adapter that made the Atari 2600 completely pointless to buy. I don't think the Atari 5200 would be the way it is now if not for the Colecovision adapter IMO.
Yeah, Atari was tired of the Colecovision eating its lunch by using their cartridges, so they made the 5200 cartridges incompatible with the adapter (and the 2600, unfortunately.)
The 5200 was released at the same time as the CV. When they were designing it, they didn't even know that the CV was being designed. It was a response to the Intellivision, and their ad campaign which focused on how much better its graphics were.
I believe certain pongs and the RCA Studio II used the "two signals on one wire" gimmick.
3 ATARI CONSOLES, THAT MY FRIEND, IS VERY HISTORICAL!
I have an original 4 port Atari 5200 that I got for Christmas 1982. Luckily I have never had a days trouble with the Unicable system for the power and tv signal. I did purchase an extra one back in 1985 or so on clearance at Target. There are some great games for the 5200 but the controllers are not well designed at all. If you are lucky enough to find a Wico joystick and keypad then you are in business.
Vlad, your close, but you are thinking of the 2600, 7800, intellivision, and genesis all working with the exact same controller port. It was just something that was a standard at the time. I think there is another console as well, maybe the Adam omputer, but I am not quite sure at the moment. It would be insane to imagine using a PS3 and a 360 controller interchangeably today, despite the fact that they are almost identical in basic design.
Rebuttal...
I'm surprised at the amount of hate for the switch box. It was the first and only (as far as i know) auto-switcher. Meaning you didn't have to get behind the tv to slide it from tv to game every time you switched from watching tv to playing your Atari. When you turned on the Atari, it automatically switched to game mode. and when you turned it off, it switched back. Also it cleaned things up with only having one cable going from the tv to the console.
awesome ending
Nice video. I have a Atari 7800 and I have been looking at a Atari 5200 for awhile. Would you recommend getting it if I have a Atari 7800 already. Or would you recommend getting a 3DO instead
Very good review.
@0M9H4X I think the goldstar 3do 's tray alone can eat the 5200. it just ejects the whole disc reader.
I just picked one of these up the other day, for $40, with 8 games. I prefer the 7800 or the XE game systems. I'm an Atari fan, and I can't help myself when it comes to these old machines.
I had to comment!
I originally bought the 2600 for 200.00 then I shelled out 150.00 [both brand new] for the 5200 from my full time job.
I loved this thing for the games it had, but was disappointed about backwards compatibility, poor controller design & that TV power cord assembly.
I rebuilt the controller several times & had many hours of enjoyment.
I sold it a long time ago. Would I re-buy it today? No I don't think so.
Thanks for the review!