The Colecovision remains my all-time favorite system. Video games were all about the arcade back then and the Coleco faithfully recreated so many popular arcade games at the time. All of my friends had it too so we had a large collective library. Smurfs grew on me once I got the jumping rhythm down. The MiSTer has re-invigorated my love for the system. Great compilation John!
If you want arcade a Sega genesis is the system. I remember arcades back then starting off in bars, convenient stores. The was no like arcade places that were huge until like late 80's or 90's.
Arcade games are fine if you care about beating high scores. Personally I find those games entertaining for a few minutes at a time, but get bored quickly.
Loved my Colecovision. Oddly enough, my dad, who had NOTHING to do with video games, LOVED Ladybug and used to play it all the time. My jam on Coleco was borrowing my buddy's copy of SPYHUNTER. Amazing. Also liked Bump N Jump, Antarctic Adventure, Frontline, Super Action Baseball and Donkey Kong Junior.
My parents were the same when it came to DK Jr. They would kick us out their bedroom, where the console was.hooked up, with wine glasses complete with wine in it, and battle each other. They would even bet each other money.
ColecoVision was one of my fondest Christmas gifts. Smurfs was actually one of my faves as a kid - coming from the Atari 2600, the graphics were incredible at the time. (The control may have been wonky, but there weren't a lot of platformers to compare it to at the time.) B.C. Quest for Tires was another game I loved because of the cool graphics and early platformer gameplay. Donkey Kong Jr. and War Games were my other fave games on the platform.
My Colecovision arrived here yesterday and it's working perfectly. It came with Mr. Do, Donkey Kong, Lopping, Donkey Kong Jr, Lady Bug, Q*Bert and Zaxxon. The game cartridge Mr. Do was not working, but it was ok after I used a spray that cleaned the contacts. After a 40 year wait I am very pleased with this Colecovision!
I still love playing games on the Coleco. My favorite launch title is Zaxxon. My later favorites are War Games, Fathom and Wing War Thank you so much for this video.
That was the first console in my house that I grew up with it belonged to my big brother! I never forget when I came home from school I could hear him playing donkey Kong! It was the game that came with the system! I was also playing it nonstop for hours on end that night!
I had the Colecovision slightly after launch, and soon acquired all of the “launch” titles. Donkey Kong was great, but Venture, Cosmic Avenger, and Ladybug got the most screen time from me. I’m still playing those same cartridges in 2022…….along with about sixty others. On a modded Adam with an Edladdin CV controller. Gaming was great in the early 80’s. Early 80’s gaming is even better two decades into the 21st Century……….
After seeing all the games you featured, I had forgotten one major element, the ARCADE! Zaxxon, Muse Trap, etc. All of those games you showed had been great fun in arcades but until the ColecoVision no system had arcade type graphics. Donkey Kong was spot on. Not 100% perfect but 95%. I loved Zaxxon as well. I remember this memory as well. I was allowed to ride the bus with my friend alone for the first time ever! Where did I go? Where else, Toys R Us! The Atari 2600 Donkey Kong had just been released and I had saved for it. Needless to say it wasn't close to what ColecoVision showed later on. But still, I played it for days! Weeks! These older consoles may not be PS5's or even PS1's but they were huge parts of our lives. Now games are so vivid there is no need for any type of imagination. Even games on phones 📱 are insanely detailed. I miss these older games, systems, and times! So much slower, better, more fun!
I purchased or better my parents did purchase the Collecovision system in 1982 for me which I still have in my collection. I have Smurf, Zaxxon, Donkey Kong and Lady Bug as well! And I fully agree with you that Lady Bug is the best Arcade port for the system! I simply love it! Thank you so much for this video! 👍👍👍
ColecoVision was my 1st system and will always be near & dear to me. DK & Venture were and still are my favorites, as far as original era launch titles. 👍
Without ColecoVision, no Sega SG-1000. Without Sega SG-1000, no Master System. Without Master System, no Mega Drive (Genesis). You actually find some of the ColecoVision tech inside the Mega Drive for back compatibility with the Master System.
I can't agree more with you for Ladybug. That game got played by me back in the day more than any other. In the faster levels you'd close yourself in safely behind a gate just to catch your breath and let your hands work the cramps out before continuing.
All our friends had the 2600 but when we finally got into the game it was the ColecoVision. I don’t know who recommended it or made the choice, it didn’t matter because it felt like the arcade came home and it was awesome. So many food memories. Enjoyed Smurf rescue but my favorites were DK, Mousetrap, Mr. Do and Pepper II
Same here. One friend had intelivision but most had a 2600. The Colecovision was awesome. And my Atari 800xl later. The beginnings of my criminal activity hocking pirated games on floppies and downloading them from Europe with hacked long distance calling card numbers from my phone phreaking BASIC program 😂. I remember it took like two hours to download 64k on my 300 baud modem.
The first gaming system I ever played. It was my older brother's and it was we played before the NES. Other people around my way had the Atari 2600, but Coleco is what we had. We had the module where you could play Atari games on it. We also had the module that had the steering wheel and pedal.
@@tonyp9313 Really...most people myself included think of it as the greatest time in human history to be a child. Then again if you happen to be going through rough times or had problems back then it wouldn't have been great I suppose.
@@thisisrob8750 No. I had an awesome time as a kid growing up in the 80's or 90's. However you can't ignore the fact of technology & things existing now that I didn't have as a kid. The only thing I like better where the video games Nes, Arcade, Video rental stores. That's it really.
I played Colecovision back in the 1980's as a small child, my dad had one. I remember having mixed feelings about the Smurfs game. I liked the graphics and the music, but the sound effects when the birds come out absolutely terrified me.
Had Colecovision. I think what sold my parents on it was that it could also play Atari games with the adapter and I had the 2600. Otherwise I bet they would have balked at it. My first game was Time Pilot. Also had the steering wheel and the four button controllers. you could play bump and jump with steering wheel
1980 through '84 I was obsessed with arcade games. I was always looking for a new arcade game that I had never played. The ColecoVision was my favorite system. It had a lot of popular arcade games but it also had lesser known games like space fury, looping, cosmic Avenger, etc. The graphics were amazing compared to the Atari 2600 and even the intellivision. It was the PlayStation 5 of its time
The ColecoVision was my first home console. I loved it. I eventually had most of the good games for it. I didn't mind the controls at all. You could hold the controller flat in one hand and control the games with the thumb of your other hand. I actually enjoyed it. But of course I had hundreds of hours of practice with it, so that was part of it. (It was WAY better than the Atari 5200 controller.) I would have rated Smurf rescue higher. I enjoyed that game. On higher difficulty levels it has more stuff, like flying enemies. That of course makes it even more difficult. I also would have put Venture higher. I loved that game. I liked the ColecoVision version of Zaxxon better than the arcade version. It was easier and had cleaner graphics IMO. Great video overall.
It's so fun to see these reviews from someone who lived in this time frame- I had a 2600, but I loved going to my friend's house to play their Colecovision just for the visuals.
John, I've watched you since...I still had hair before my first wave made me pull it out... How Dare you Hate on SMURF Rescue!!! My older Cousins had a Coleco and an Apple ][, I still have and treasure my 7800, but when I got to hang out with them, we rocked the Coleco 24/7 on the weekends, and we loved Smurfs LOL. Cabbage Patch was a Lazy Cheap RIPOFF! Keep Rocking!
Great video, John! Coleco was my first video game system. Hours spent playing Space Fury, Mousetrap and others (Congo Bongo, Looping). I had Smurf, but even as a kid I thought it was pretty boring - walking up to an obstacle and pushing up on the controller. For that generation, I think Coleco has the best home versions of arcade ports (like Popeye and Donkey Kong).
Wow, this was my first video game system back in (IIRC) 83.... I was 5 at the time. My father brought this home from work one day, I wasn't even into video games then so I have no idea what prompted him to buy it, but what a surprise. Came with Donkey Kong, Mouse Trap, Empire Strikes back and a SHMUP whose name I can't recall.
My Favorite Colecovision Game is VENTURE as a 10 yr ok’d kid I thought the game was Creepy... Smurf was pretty good too I played the game so much I got used to the controller... Zaxxon and Donkey Kong are TOP Games too.....👍🏼👍🏼
My Grandfather had a Colecovision in his camper and I used to love firing this thing up playing Donkey Kong, Bump'n'Jump and Zaxxon. So many great memories!
I remember the Colecovision launch. My relative bought one and brought the system over and I was floored by games like Donkey Kong, Venture, Carnival,Mouse Trap and Smurfs. I also remember going to Toys R Us and always comparing (the Colecovision, Atari and Intellivision versions ) on the back of the boxes of Coleco produced games
Great system for it’s short time in existence. It’s strongest feature were the arcade ports which they had help with from Parker Brothers. My favorite at launch was Zaxxon. Later on I played a lot of Front Line (not a launch title) which used the 4 button super controllers.
Space Fury gets really fun and intense the longer you play. Venture and Donkey Kong Jr. were always my favourite, but I also put a lot of time into Carnival because it was one of the games my mom also got addicted to.
Colecovision was my 2nd game console I owned (1st was Odyssey 2). I recently picked up a Colecovision a few years ago and it still is a blast to play. Definitely an underrated console.
Oh man, I just ordered a Colecovision and a flash cart about an hour ago, I am so excited, the Coleco was my first video game system and I haven't played one in almost 20 years. Wish I had been able to afford the Atari expansion too, but that's got to wait till next month I suppose.
I had Smurf Rescue when I was a kid. I remember the difficulty I had wasn't with the controls, at all, but knowing where to stand before making a jump. The actual execution I don't ever remember being a problem at all. Given the awful Colecovision controller, I'd say they made the right call. It would have given tiny hands more control if they were able to grip the controller higher up, where the buttons are.
My first console was the Radofin Tele-sport IV in the 70's I think. I remember paying £20 for a top down F1 game which just meant dodging cars, as soon as I first played it, I realised I had wasted my money and that was a fortune in them days particularly on my pocket money of £1 per week but the variations of pong games that came with it were fantastic for the day. The first computer which played games was the TRS-80 and loved that even though it had only 2 colours....black and white! lol
I was exactly the right age when this came out, and I absolutely flogged Ladybug and Mr. Do so that I could *own* the high scores at my favorite pizza place. I also loved Pepper 2 and its Alfred Hitchcock theme. Looping, Subroc, Space Panic, and Space Fury were also in my high rotation, along with a bunch of 2600 games I played on the emulator expansion. But man, did those joysticks blow! Their only redeeming quality was that they didn’t break as easily as Atari 2600 joysticks, although my Super Controllers broke, and MAN was I pissed! 🤣
Thanks for the Blast from the past! Coleco was Awesome! Venture was very Complex, and I almost wanna rank it with Einhander for being worth the trouble I was eleven when this launched, so I don't remember which games were launch only. Time Pilot was such a good port to practise on that I went to"Land of Oz, (local arcade) and won $30 in tokens by having the highest score in May (Of 88,fyi) Cosmic Avenger was one of my favorites at that time as well .but Zaxxon seemed (even in arcade) like it was boldly trying something it shouldnt try yet.
I never had a Colecovision, but, one of my friends did. Myself, and just about everyone else I knew, had the Atari. Funny thing was, my friend, who had the Coleco, had the 2600 adapter, and almost all of his games were for the Atari. I think a big part of it was how hard Colecovision games were to get in small towns and rural areas, where we grew up. You could get a small sampling of Atari games at local stores. For Coleco games, you had to go to the city.
I never sell games or consoles these days. I've kept my first computer (a Nascom), I've kept my Atari, Spectrum and so on. Yet I sold my Colceovision when I needed a motorbike. I misss that more than anything and I've never had the right opposrtunity to get one again.
Could not agree more on your #1 pick, not just on original but #1 ever released, I still play Ladybug on a regular basis on my Coleco! My list of top 6 for the originals would have Venture in 2nd, Donkey Kong in 3rd, Zaxxon 4th, Cosmic Avenger 5th and Carnival in 6th.
Growing up we had a 2600 and I loved it but when I saw graphics looking arcade-level on Colecovision I really wanted it. However, I never got one until a few years back when I starred collecting retro systems- not a launch title but one of my favorite on the system is Jungle Hunt.
Great video , John !!!! I was an Atari 2600 kid growing up but I got my first Colecovision a little over 6 years ago and I love it . I am also a proud owner of a Collectorvision Phoenix . That thing is AWESOME !!!!
Of the pre-NES/Famicom era this is my favorite console. I went from a Mattel Intellivision as my first console to this and my mind was blown by how much better the graphics were than the Intellivision or the Atari VCS/2600. This is hands down the best golden age of arcades game ports consoles. The fact that the Expansion Module #1 allows you to play the entire 2600 library (minus Masters of The Universe and Kool-Aid Man) made this the only console you really needed of that era.
Zaxxon was mindblowing when it came out, and to see it appear on a home console was just crazy. I think I first played it on a C64 but my memory is a bit mashed.
My first console when I was a kid. We had the extensions (wheels & baseball remotes). There's so many good games like Q*Bert, Baseball, Choplifter, Mr. Do! or Destructor (this game gave me so much anxiety!!). I was good at Smurf 😉!
Great video, John. I always wanted a Colecovision when I was a lad, but I was an Atari and Intellivision kid. I would love to see some of these games in an Evercade collection. Thanks for the video.
Loved my Coleco Vision! My main games on that system were Donkey Kong, Popeye, Montezuma's Revenge, and Gorf! Ahh, sweet system! If they hadn't put everything into Adam we'd probably still be playing Coleco's!
I really liked the Colecovision back in the day. Some friends had one, along with a good collection of games. Looking back I am always struck by how similar the visuals are to the TI994/A, especially the text and the colour choices.
Me and my sis grew up with a Coleco. It was our first game system. Me, my sis and dad all loved playing it. I'd say out of the list you gave, Cosmic Avenger, Zaxxon and Venture were my favorites. I'd play the crap out of Cosmic Avenger. It would get pretty challenging with the higher difficulties. Later games. I absolutely LOVED Frenzy and Montezumas Revenge! Other noteworthy ones I loved playing.... Minor 2049'er, Rock'n Rope and Fathom. I've still got about 45 games or so with the controllers and PS. Unfortunately many years ago a cat decided to mark it's territory on my CV and completely ruined the insides of it. Finding another is going to be a challenge without paying someone a mint for it on eBay.
That port of Donkey Kong was the main reason I bought my CV back then . Other games for it that I bought new were Cosmic Avenger (yes my love of Scramble was why), Mouse Trap, Venture and Zaxxon. I remember Zaxxon costing around $15 more than the rest, which was a considerable increase at the time. Had to have it though since I really sucked at that game in the arcade so that was the only way to get to play it for any amount of time more than a minute or so.
Good ol days. I had the Smurf game and Zaxxon but didn’t care much for either. The game I spent the most time with was probably Miner 2049er, along with Rocky, one on one and QBert
I remember as a kid I was in the hospital for surgery. My tonsils was one surgical procedure, as well as another two. Also had a concussion from Hockey 🏒, back then our medical / insurance company wasn't at war for treatments. Anyway our pediatrics floor had a playroom for kids and it had a video game, the Mattel Intellivision. They had football, baseball, etc. It was eh, but when I came back and saw the ColecoVision system I was in shock. I didn't get to play it just got to watch it for a few minutes. I never saw it there again so I'm guessing a parent brought it in for their kids, also another reason why nobody else played it. The Rocky Boxing was on and the graphics were amazing, considering I was a Atari 2600 kid. Which BTW I still love! But I can remember the graphics that system had and how that one game stuck with me. Funny I made it look better in my mind than the reality-based actual game....lol. But kids are kids. This memory has both good and tough times in it. But it was the dawning for me anyway of always looking forward to the new and better systems.
I just love to see this. Funny how Smurfs is much better looking that a game that I used to play called Air Sea Battle for the Atari 2600 and the challenge and playability was so much better, I remember playing hours on that game and its several different modes, despite its much simpler graphics (I played on a B&W TV back then). Cosmic Avenger was on Vectrex as well, right? And Zaxxon, what a fantastic game to have on a budget console back then. And I had no idea that Zaxxon was the villain. That explains some tendency of that time to have the villains in the games' titles, like Space Invaders, Donkey Kong, heck, even Enduro, the race itself was the enemy!
Retro gaming hippie approves! Great insights and production. Colecovision was way ahead of it’s time. Great graphics, price and the expansions. Ladybug and bug and carnival would have been my top 2 here. Great games!
1. Only reason I wanted to play Smurf only to see if that easter egg of getting Smurfette naked. 2. Slightly bummed that Space Fury didn't actually have voice. But still a solid port. 3. I played Cosmic Avenger at a movie multiplex in the 80s. The CV port was okay, but arcade was better. 4. Never got Space Panic due to it being 10 buck higher than other CV games. After the crash, the price was still too high. Same with Zaxxon. 5. Venture was fun, one of the first games I bought with my CV, which was after the crash. Along with Gorf and Carnival. 6. Mousetrap, I first played at the World's Fair at Knoxville. First game that took the Pac Man concept to the next level. The CV gave me many great gaming memories. Too bad many didn't get to play these great games.
The first Sega console is basically a Colecovision released in Japan. Whith their own exclusive games. Any Sega or Colecovision fan should check it out. Here in west we barelly know that.
The only games I had on this list were dk and smurfs..always wanted mouse trap and zaxxon ..we had rocky, slither , dk ,Star Wars , not sure which if they were Atari but Popeye and qbert.. parents bought us expansion #1 , and slither also had the roller ball expansion, but their logic was “ well we have all those Atari games to play “ so getting all the coleco games wasn’t an option.. I’ll just say this, the early 80s were such a fun time especially during the holidays for me anyway.. my dad and uncle would lease space in the mall and bring in a few of their kiddie rides ( long story but yes I was a carny lol) , so from Black Friday until January 2nd I got to spend time after school and on the weekends.. there was a game store, they had everything from Vectrex to Atari 5200, and there was a kiosk that not only had Every Nintendo game and watch, they had all the coleco tabletop games,and themed wristwatches, and the huge arcade.. I miss those days
The Coleco was a totally underrated system. To this day, most people I mention it to have no idea what the hell I'm talking about. We got one for Christmas...in '83, I think...maybe '84. We played the shit out of Smurf...lol. We never had many games...but we at least had some winners. Zaxxon was probably my favorite...but Ladybug, Turbo (with the steering wheel and gas pedal) and Donkey Kong were great as well.
I can't find any flaws with in your rankings specifically because Ladybug was my most played cart followed by Donkey Kong even though I didn't care for that one in the arcade! My friends and I used to refer to Mousetrap as Cat-trap because you could cage the cats and sort of breeze the the beginning levels. All in all my Colecovison was a very good purchase hat I never regretted. I honestly miss those early days of console wars but I'm thrilled to have experienced them first hand. Thanks!
Colecovision had better graphics and Nintendo was more fond of the Colecovision instead of the Atari. So you have to think about Coleco in that perspective.
For some strange reason....., I now have a relentless urge to watch some A-Team, Knight Rider and Cheers episodes, while wearing my Members Only jacket and doing the dance of safety in the danger zone.
Agree with most of your comments…… but dude…..Smurf definitely takes the number 1 spot. I remember playing it at a friends house. We had a 2600 at home, and Smurf was like being in a cartoon - graphics were amazing, and the music just blew me away. Still love it to this day.
@@johnhancockretro Have you tried pressing up twice to jump over obstacles? Don't press a direction. Just line up the jump then press up twice. Sometimes it will do the short jump forward on the first press but most of the time it will jump up once then forward the second time and do the long jump.
I played that Smurfs game a lot as a kid and I don't remember having any issues with the controls. I think maybe that's because platform game controls weren't really standardized yet (controls in general weren't, as demonstrated by Colecovision and Intellivision having such wildly different controllers from the Atari 2600 and home computers of the time) and pushing up to jump didn't feel weird. Somehow it never entered my mind that one of the buttons would have made more sense!
Really like the Colecovison. I had an Adam computer back in the 80's for a short while, though it died on me after about a year of use. I actually use one of the controllers I had hung onto from that computer on the Colecovison I use today, it was still in better shape than the ones that were with the console when I got it. A shame the way this console's life was cut short by the crash.
Me and my friend both had the NES but than he told me he also had a black Nintendo. It was the COLECOVISION, but we called it black Nintendo for a very long time😅im talking around about 1989 or so.. Defenitly one of my favourite systems. Top 5 for sure
For me, the CV had two Achilles heels: 1) the choppy scrolling and 2) and a controller chip that is so sensitive to static electricity that it gets blown far too easily. I’ve had three consoles and they all developed that same problem. Otherwise, it’s a killer machine with great graphics and sound as well as a decent library of top games.
I wish I could have experienced having this myself on launch. My uncle did and I went over there played smurf and it was by far a superior experience compared to the Atari other than the control. Awesome video as always
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The Colecovision remains my all-time favorite system. Video games were all about the arcade back then and the Coleco faithfully recreated so many popular arcade games at the time. All of my friends had it too so we had a large collective library. Smurfs grew on me once I got the jumping rhythm down. The MiSTer has re-invigorated my love for the system. Great compilation John!
Thank you for watching and the comment!
If you want arcade a Sega genesis is the system. I remember arcades back then starting off in bars, convenient stores. The was no like arcade places that were huge until like late 80's or 90's.
Arcade games are fine if you care about beating high scores. Personally I find those games entertaining for a few minutes at a time, but get bored quickly.
Loved my Colecovision. Oddly enough, my dad, who had NOTHING to do with video games, LOVED Ladybug and used to play it all the time.
My jam on Coleco was borrowing my buddy's copy of SPYHUNTER. Amazing. Also liked Bump N Jump, Antarctic Adventure, Frontline, Super Action Baseball and Donkey Kong Junior.
My parents were the same when it came to DK Jr. They would kick us out their bedroom, where the console was.hooked up, with wine glasses complete with wine in it, and battle each other. They would even bet each other money.
My mother passed away 2 years ago. Ladybug was the only game she ever played in her life. Cheers, mom!
My Mom too!!!
ColecoVision was one of my fondest Christmas gifts. Smurfs was actually one of my faves as a kid - coming from the Atari 2600, the graphics were incredible at the time. (The control may have been wonky, but there weren't a lot of platformers to compare it to at the time.) B.C. Quest for Tires was another game I loved because of the cool graphics and early platformer gameplay. Donkey Kong Jr. and War Games were my other fave games on the platform.
My Colecovision arrived here yesterday and it's working perfectly. It came with Mr. Do, Donkey Kong, Lopping, Donkey Kong Jr, Lady Bug, Q*Bert and Zaxxon. The game cartridge Mr. Do was not working, but it was ok after I used a spray that cleaned the contacts. After a 40 year wait I am very pleased with this Colecovision!
I still love playing games on the Coleco. My favorite launch title is Zaxxon.
My later favorites are War Games, Fathom and Wing War
Thank you so much for this video.
That was the first console in my house that I grew up with it belonged to my big brother! I never forget when I came home from school I could hear him playing donkey Kong! It was the game that came with the system! I was also playing it nonstop for hours on end that night!
The SpaceFury intro bring back so many good memories of Saturday mornings with my brothers playing games...that and the Omega Race pause screen music
I had the Colecovision slightly after launch, and soon acquired all of the “launch” titles. Donkey Kong was great, but Venture, Cosmic Avenger, and Ladybug got the most screen time from me. I’m still playing those same cartridges in 2022…….along with about sixty others. On a modded Adam with an Edladdin CV controller. Gaming was great in the early 80’s. Early 80’s gaming is even better two decades into the 21st Century……….
After seeing all the games you featured, I had forgotten one major element, the ARCADE! Zaxxon, Muse Trap, etc. All of those games you showed had been great fun in arcades but until the ColecoVision no system had arcade type graphics. Donkey Kong was spot on. Not 100% perfect but 95%. I loved Zaxxon as well. I remember this memory as well. I was allowed to ride the bus with my friend alone for the first time ever! Where did I go? Where else, Toys R Us! The Atari 2600 Donkey Kong had just been released and I had saved for it. Needless to say it wasn't close to what ColecoVision showed later on. But still, I played it for days! Weeks! These older consoles may not be PS5's or even PS1's but they were huge parts of our lives. Now games are so vivid there is no need for any type of imagination. Even games on phones 📱 are insanely detailed. I miss these older games, systems, and times! So much slower, better, more fun!
I purchased or better my parents did purchase the Collecovision system in 1982 for me which I still have in my collection. I have Smurf, Zaxxon, Donkey Kong and Lady Bug as well! And I fully agree with you that Lady Bug is the best Arcade port for the system! I simply love it! Thank you so much for this video! 👍👍👍
ColecoVision was my 1st system and will always be near & dear to me. DK & Venture were and still are my favorites, as far as original era launch titles. 👍
Without ColecoVision, no Sega SG-1000.
Without Sega SG-1000, no Master System.
Without Master System, no Mega Drive (Genesis).
You actually find some of the ColecoVision tech inside the Mega Drive for back compatibility with the Master System.
I can't agree more with you for Ladybug. That game got played by me back in the day more than any other. In the faster levels you'd close yourself in safely behind a gate just to catch your breath and let your hands work the cramps out before continuing.
Ah, the “Coleco cramp”
All our friends had the 2600 but when we finally got into the game it was the ColecoVision. I don’t know who recommended it or made the choice, it didn’t matter because it felt like the arcade came home and it was awesome. So many food memories. Enjoyed Smurf rescue but my favorites were DK, Mousetrap, Mr. Do and Pepper II
Same here. One friend had intelivision but most had a 2600. The Colecovision was awesome. And my Atari 800xl later. The beginnings of my criminal activity hocking pirated games on floppies and downloading them from Europe with hacked long distance calling card numbers from my phone phreaking BASIC program 😂. I remember it took like two hours to download 64k on my 300 baud modem.
The first gaming system I ever played. It was my older brother's and it was we played before the NES. Other people around my way had the Atari 2600, but Coleco is what we had. We had the module where you could play Atari games on it. We also had the module that had the steering wheel and pedal.
What a time to be alive. Who would need more than 12 games for a system??? :) Thanks for the video.
Umm, it was the launch. The Famicom opened with three games.
What a time not to be alive. Unfortunately I was alive in the 80's
@@tonyp9313 Really...most people myself included think of it as the greatest time in human history to be a child. Then again if you happen to be going through rough times or had problems back then it wouldn't have been great I suppose.
@@thisisrob8750 No. I had an awesome time as a kid growing up in the 80's or 90's. However you can't ignore the fact of technology & things existing now that I didn't have as a kid.
The only thing I like better where the video games Nes, Arcade, Video rental stores. That's it really.
I played Colecovision back in the 1980's as a small child, my dad had one. I remember having mixed feelings about the Smurfs game. I liked the graphics and the music, but the sound effects when the birds come out absolutely terrified me.
My eyes have been opened. I sort of slept on Colecovision as a retro console but most of those games look great for the time.
I owned most of those games. Zaxxon was great, also enjoyed venture
John, thanks for another informative and entertaining video. I never had a Coleco vision growing up, but I was always fascinated by it👍
Had Colecovision. I think what sold my parents on it was that it could also play Atari games with the adapter and I had the 2600. Otherwise I bet they would have balked at it. My first game was Time Pilot. Also had the steering wheel and the four button controllers. you could play bump and jump with steering wheel
And when the expansion module one came out, Atari 2600 was dead so you could get games for A dollar in the toys r us bargain bin.
Colecovision was my first game console. My #1 game was Venture.
1980 through '84 I was obsessed with arcade games. I was always looking for a new arcade game that I had never played. The ColecoVision was my favorite system. It had a lot of popular arcade games but it also had lesser known games like space fury, looping, cosmic Avenger, etc. The graphics were amazing compared to the Atari 2600 and even the intellivision. It was the PlayStation 5 of its time
The ColecoVision was my first home console. I loved it. I eventually had most of the good games for it.
I didn't mind the controls at all. You could hold the controller flat in one hand and control the games with the thumb of your other hand. I actually enjoyed it. But of course I had hundreds of hours of practice with it, so that was part of it. (It was WAY better than the Atari 5200 controller.)
I would have rated Smurf rescue higher. I enjoyed that game. On higher difficulty levels it has more stuff, like flying enemies. That of course makes it even more difficult.
I also would have put Venture higher. I loved that game.
I liked the ColecoVision version of Zaxxon better than the arcade version. It was easier and had cleaner graphics IMO.
Great video overall.
It's so fun to see these reviews from someone who lived in this time frame- I had a 2600, but I loved going to my friend's house to play their Colecovision just for the visuals.
space panic made that farting noise when you ran
John, I've watched you since...I still had hair before my first wave made me pull it out...
How Dare you Hate on SMURF Rescue!!! My older Cousins had a Coleco and an Apple ][, I still have and treasure my 7800, but when I got to hang out with them, we rocked the Coleco 24/7 on the weekends, and we loved Smurfs LOL.
Cabbage Patch was a Lazy Cheap RIPOFF!
Keep Rocking!
Great video, John! Coleco was my first video game system. Hours spent playing Space Fury, Mousetrap and others (Congo Bongo, Looping). I had Smurf, but even as a kid I thought it was pretty boring - walking up to an obstacle and pushing up on the controller. For that generation, I think Coleco has the best home versions of arcade ports (like Popeye and Donkey Kong).
Wow, this was my first video game system back in (IIRC) 83.... I was 5 at the time. My father brought this home from work one day, I wasn't even into video games then so I have no idea what prompted him to buy it, but what a surprise. Came with Donkey Kong, Mouse Trap, Empire Strikes back and a SHMUP whose name I can't recall.
My Favorite Colecovision Game is VENTURE as a 10 yr ok’d kid I thought the game was Creepy... Smurf was pretty good too I played the game so much I got used to the controller... Zaxxon and Donkey Kong are TOP Games too.....👍🏼👍🏼
My Grandfather had a Colecovision in his camper and I used to love firing this thing up playing Donkey Kong, Bump'n'Jump and Zaxxon. So many great memories!
I'm 43. I remember dreaming about that Smurfs game. I'm not sure why, but I do recall how hard it was, even just to jump.
We had almost all those games back in 82 83. I love the cartridges.
I remember the Colecovision launch. My relative bought one and brought the system over and I was floored by games like Donkey Kong, Venture, Carnival,Mouse Trap and Smurfs.
I also remember going to Toys R Us and always comparing (the Colecovision, Atari and Intellivision versions ) on the back of the boxes of Coleco produced games
Great system for it’s short time in existence. It’s strongest feature were the arcade ports which they had help with from Parker Brothers. My favorite at launch was Zaxxon. Later on I played a lot of Front Line (not a launch title) which used the 4 button super controllers.
Fun to get a look at all the launch titles. The Colecovision is a system I wanted desperately as a child, and these days I find myself wanting one.
Space Fury gets really fun and intense the longer you play.
Venture and Donkey Kong Jr. were always my favourite, but I also put a lot of time into Carnival because it was one of the games my mom also got addicted to.
Colecovision was my 2nd game console I owned (1st was Odyssey 2). I recently picked up a Colecovision a few years ago and it still is a blast to play. Definitely an underrated console.
Oh man, I just ordered a Colecovision and a flash cart about an hour ago, I am so excited, the Coleco was my first video game system and I haven't played one in almost 20 years. Wish I had been able to afford the Atari expansion too, but that's got to wait till next month I suppose.
I had Smurf Rescue when I was a kid. I remember the difficulty I had wasn't with the controls, at all, but knowing where to stand before making a jump. The actual execution I don't ever remember being a problem at all. Given the awful Colecovision controller, I'd say they made the right call. It would have given tiny hands more control if they were able to grip the controller higher up, where the buttons are.
My first console was the Radofin Tele-sport IV in the 70's I think. I remember paying £20 for a top down F1 game which just meant dodging cars, as soon as I first played it, I realised I had wasted my money and that was a fortune in them days particularly on my pocket money of £1 per week but the variations of pong games that came with it were fantastic for the day. The first computer which played games was the TRS-80 and loved that even though it had only 2 colours....black and white! lol
I was exactly the right age when this came out, and I absolutely flogged Ladybug and Mr. Do so that I could *own* the high scores at my favorite pizza place. I also loved Pepper 2 and its Alfred Hitchcock theme. Looping, Subroc, Space Panic, and Space Fury were also in my high rotation, along with a bunch of 2600 games I played on the emulator expansion. But man, did those joysticks blow! Their only redeeming quality was that they didn’t break as easily as Atari 2600 joysticks, although my Super Controllers broke, and MAN was I pissed! 🤣
Everyone needs to try Pepper Ii now, there are many others like Mr. Do!, Mr. Do's Castle ete. but that one really stands out.
Woo!
Thanks for the Blast from the past! Coleco was Awesome! Venture was very Complex, and I almost wanna rank it with Einhander for being worth the trouble I was eleven when this launched, so I don't remember which games were launch only.
Time Pilot was such a good port to practise on that I went to"Land of Oz, (local arcade) and won $30 in tokens by having the highest score in May (Of 88,fyi)
Cosmic Avenger was one of my favorites at that time as well .but Zaxxon seemed (even in arcade) like it was boldly trying something it shouldnt try yet.
I never had a Colecovision, but, one of my friends did. Myself, and just about everyone else I knew, had the Atari. Funny thing was, my friend, who had the Coleco, had the 2600 adapter, and almost all of his games were for the Atari.
I think a big part of it was how hard Colecovision games were to get in small towns and rural areas, where we grew up. You could get a small sampling of Atari games at local stores. For Coleco games, you had to go to the city.
I never sell games or consoles these days. I've kept my first computer (a Nascom), I've kept my Atari, Spectrum and so on. Yet I sold my Colceovision when I needed a motorbike. I misss that more than anything and I've never had the right opposrtunity to get one again.
Could not agree more on your #1 pick, not just on original but #1 ever released, I still play Ladybug on a regular basis on my Coleco! My list of top 6 for the originals would have Venture in 2nd, Donkey Kong in 3rd, Zaxxon 4th, Cosmic Avenger 5th and Carnival in 6th.
Growing up we had a 2600 and I loved it but when I saw graphics looking arcade-level on Colecovision I really wanted it. However, I never got one until a few years back when I starred collecting retro systems- not a launch title but one of my favorite on the system is Jungle Hunt.
Great video , John !!!! I was an Atari 2600 kid growing up but I got my first Colecovision a little over 6 years ago and I love it . I am also a proud owner of a Collectorvision Phoenix . That thing is AWESOME !!!!
Played the Colecovision for years until the NES came out. Didn't even know about the video game crash!
ColecoVision has the best strong launch that few people talk about.
Of the pre-NES/Famicom era this is my favorite console. I went from a Mattel Intellivision as my first console to this and my mind was blown by how much better the graphics were than the Intellivision or the Atari VCS/2600. This is hands down the best golden age of arcades game ports consoles.
The fact that the Expansion Module #1 allows you to play the entire 2600 library (minus Masters of The Universe and Kool-Aid Man) made this the only console you really needed of that era.
In smurf you just press up twice to jump forward. Don't press a direction besides up.
Zaxxon was mindblowing when it came out, and to see it appear on a home console was just crazy. I think I first played it on a C64 but my memory is a bit mashed.
I never knew the keypad overlays could be stored on the backside of the cartridge. Thanks for showing that!
Insta like on this video just because Coleco Vision is in the title!
My first console when I was a kid. We had the extensions (wheels & baseball remotes). There's so many good games like Q*Bert, Baseball, Choplifter, Mr. Do! or Destructor (this game gave me so much anxiety!!). I was good at Smurf 😉!
Great video, John. I always wanted a Colecovision when I was a lad, but I was an Atari and Intellivision kid. I would love to see some of these games in an Evercade collection. Thanks for the video.
That would be cool to see on the Evercade for sure.
Loved my Coleco Vision! My main games on that system were Donkey Kong, Popeye, Montezuma's Revenge, and Gorf! Ahh, sweet system! If they hadn't put everything into Adam we'd probably still be playing Coleco's!
It was the Video Game Crash that killed all the consoles of that era.
Donkey Kong, Venture, Mouse Trap, Zaxxon and Cosmic Avenger were favorites of mine as a teen when the Colecovision launched.
I really liked the Colecovision back in the day. Some friends had one, along with a good collection of games. Looking back I am always struck by how similar the visuals are to the TI994/A, especially the text and the colour choices.
Because they both used the graphics processor.
My first system! Some great memories watching this video, Carnival, Zaxxon, Cosmic Avenger and Mouse Trap were big favourites of mine.
My favorite Colecovision titles are Jumpman Junior, Dragon fire, and War Games
Me and my sis grew up with a Coleco. It was our first game system. Me, my sis and dad all loved playing it. I'd say out of the list you gave, Cosmic Avenger, Zaxxon and Venture were my favorites. I'd play the crap out of Cosmic Avenger. It would get pretty challenging with the higher difficulties.
Later games. I absolutely LOVED Frenzy and Montezumas Revenge! Other noteworthy ones I loved playing.... Minor 2049'er, Rock'n Rope and Fathom. I've still got about 45 games or so with the controllers and PS. Unfortunately many years ago a cat decided to mark it's territory on my CV and completely ruined the insides of it. Finding another is going to be a challenge without paying someone a mint for it on eBay.
That port of Donkey Kong was the main reason I bought my CV back then . Other games for it that I bought new were Cosmic Avenger (yes my love of Scramble was why), Mouse Trap, Venture and Zaxxon. I remember Zaxxon costing around $15 more than the rest, which was a considerable increase at the time. Had to have it though since I really sucked at that game in the arcade so that was the only way to get to play it for any amount of time more than a minute or so.
Good ol days. I had the Smurf game and Zaxxon but didn’t care much for either. The game I spent the most time with was probably Miner 2049er, along with Rocky, one on one and QBert
Steering controller also was supported on the Colecovision versions of “Bump’n Jymp,” “Destructor,” and Epyx’s “Pitstop.”
I mention destructor but forgot the other two. Thanks!
Smurf rocks, as an adult I play it, no issue. When it was released there was a sense of total frustration, but I eventually got to the castle…
I absolutely love your content you put out. Always interesting and informative!!!!
I appreciate that!
My mom and her best friend would play Ladybug for hours. I have a good library and the Phoenix. Definitely my favorite of the early classic systems.
I remember as a kid I was in the hospital for surgery. My tonsils was one surgical procedure, as well as another two. Also had a concussion from Hockey 🏒, back then our medical / insurance company wasn't at war for treatments. Anyway our pediatrics floor had a playroom for kids and it had a video game, the Mattel Intellivision. They had football, baseball, etc. It was eh, but when I came back and saw the ColecoVision system I was in shock. I didn't get to play it just got to watch it for a few minutes. I never saw it there again so I'm guessing a parent brought it in for their kids, also another reason why nobody else played it. The Rocky Boxing was on and the graphics were amazing, considering I was a Atari 2600 kid. Which BTW I still love! But I can remember the graphics that system had and how that one game stuck with me. Funny I made it look better in my mind than the reality-based actual game....lol. But kids are kids. This memory has both good and tough times in it. But it was the dawning for me anyway of always looking forward to the new and better systems.
I just love to see this. Funny how Smurfs is much better looking that a game that I used to play called Air Sea Battle for the Atari 2600 and the challenge and playability was so much better, I remember playing hours on that game and its several different modes, despite its much simpler graphics (I played on a B&W TV back then).
Cosmic Avenger was on Vectrex as well, right?
And Zaxxon, what a fantastic game to have on a budget console back then. And I had no idea that Zaxxon was the villain. That explains some tendency of that time to have the villains in the games' titles, like Space Invaders, Donkey Kong, heck, even Enduro, the race itself was the enemy!
Retro gaming hippie approves! Great insights and production.
Colecovision was way ahead of it’s time. Great graphics, price and the expansions. Ladybug and bug and carnival would have been my top 2 here. Great games!
1. Only reason I wanted to play Smurf only to see if that easter egg of getting Smurfette naked.
2. Slightly bummed that Space Fury didn't actually have voice. But still a solid port.
3. I played Cosmic Avenger at a movie multiplex in the 80s. The CV port was okay, but arcade was better.
4. Never got Space Panic due to it being 10 buck higher than other CV games. After the crash, the price was still too high. Same with Zaxxon.
5. Venture was fun, one of the first games I bought with my CV, which was after the crash. Along with Gorf and Carnival.
6. Mousetrap, I first played at the World's Fair at Knoxville. First game that took the Pac Man concept to the next level.
The CV gave me many great gaming memories. Too bad many didn't get to play these great games.
Man you took me down memory lane! I spent hours and hours playing Mouse Trap! Thank you man! 🙏🏻💛✨
The first Sega console is basically a Colecovision released in Japan. Whith their own exclusive games. Any Sega or Colecovision fan should check it out. Here in west we barelly know that.
The only games I had on this list were dk and smurfs..always wanted mouse trap and zaxxon ..we had rocky, slither , dk ,Star Wars , not sure which if they were Atari but Popeye and qbert.. parents bought us expansion #1 , and slither also had the roller ball expansion, but their logic was “ well we have all those Atari games to play “ so getting all the coleco games wasn’t an option..
I’ll just say this, the early 80s were such a fun time especially during the holidays for me anyway.. my dad and uncle would lease space in the mall and bring in a few of their kiddie rides ( long story but yes I was a carny lol) , so from Black Friday until January 2nd I got to spend time after school and on the weekends.. there was a game store, they had everything from Vectrex to Atari 5200, and there was a kiosk that not only had Every Nintendo game and watch, they had all the coleco tabletop games,and themed wristwatches, and the huge arcade.. I miss those days
The Coleco was a totally underrated system. To this day, most people I mention it to have no idea what the hell I'm talking about. We got one for Christmas...in '83, I think...maybe '84. We played the shit out of Smurf...lol. We never had many games...but we at least had some winners. Zaxxon was probably my favorite...but Ladybug, Turbo (with the steering wheel and gas pedal) and Donkey Kong were great as well.
I can't find any flaws with in your rankings specifically because Ladybug was my most played cart followed by Donkey Kong even though I didn't care for that one in the arcade! My friends and I used to refer to Mousetrap as Cat-trap because you could cage the cats and sort of breeze the the beginning levels. All in all my Colecovison was a very good purchase hat I never regretted. I honestly miss those early days of console wars but I'm thrilled to have experienced them first hand. Thanks!
Colecovision had better graphics and Nintendo was more fond of the Colecovision instead of the Atari. So you have to think about Coleco in that perspective.
Nintendo studied ColecoVision when developing their console.
For some strange reason....., I now have a relentless urge to watch some A-Team, Knight Rider and Cheers episodes, while wearing my Members Only jacket and doing the dance of safety in the danger zone.
Agree with most of your comments…… but dude…..Smurf definitely takes the number 1 spot. I remember playing it at a friends house. We had a 2600 at home, and Smurf was like being in a cartoon - graphics were amazing, and the music just blew me away. Still love it to this day.
That opinion is very subjective for that game.
@@johnhancockretro Have you tried pressing up twice to jump over obstacles? Don't press a direction. Just line up the jump then press up twice. Sometimes it will do the short jump forward on the first press but most of the time it will jump up once then forward the second time and do the long jump.
@@duckfield2520 this is what I did in the video to progress.
Mr. Do!, Carnival, Q-Bert, Mousetrap, and Fury on this Coleco for me. Best hours of my childhood.
My first console and still second favourite only to snes. Saved up weeks of paper route money to buy and it was worth every cent.
I played that Smurfs game a lot as a kid and I don't remember having any issues with the controls. I think maybe that's because platform game controls weren't really standardized yet (controls in general weren't, as demonstrated by Colecovision and Intellivision having such wildly different controllers from the Atari 2600 and home computers of the time) and pushing up to jump didn't feel weird. Somehow it never entered my mind that one of the buttons would have made more sense!
Really like the Colecovison. I had an Adam computer back in the 80's for a short while, though it died on me after about a year of use. I actually use one of the controllers I had hung onto from that computer on the Colecovison I use today, it was still in better shape than the ones that were with the console when I got it. A shame the way this console's life was cut short by the crash.
Me and my friend both had the NES but than he told me he also had a black Nintendo. It was the COLECOVISION, but we called it black Nintendo for a very long time😅im talking around about 1989 or so.. Defenitly one of my favourite systems. Top 5 for sure
Grew up with the system my mom worked for coleco loved this system and the adam. Also the smurfs was great as a kid
One hundred percent right with the jumping. I remember thinking the game was broken because I couldn't get it to jump high.
Great video. I loved the ColecoVision and had no problems with the Smurf controls back in the day.
For me, the CV had two Achilles heels: 1) the choppy scrolling and 2) and a controller chip that is so sensitive to static electricity that it gets blown far too easily. I’ve had three consoles and they all developed that same problem. Otherwise, it’s a killer machine with great graphics and sound as well as a decent library of top games.
I always wanted to collect for this system. I haven't run into one yet but you definitely gave me some great games to consider. 👍
I wish I could have experienced having this myself on launch. My uncle did and I went over there played smurf and it was by far a superior experience compared to the Atari other than the control. Awesome video as always
You hit the nail on the head with LadyBug. Many fond memories.
These are the games I grown up with. So many great memories.
Wow, lots of memories coming back. Thanks for this.
Venture, ZAXXON & Ladybug my personal trifecta. My 1st and only gaming system.