This was my first system as a kid in 1985. I’ll always love it. It’s is easy to call a system shitty after 30 years, but we had HOURS of fun with this thing.
She probably threw it out in frustration, thinking she's too old to figure out these newfangled video game boxes. If only you were there to tell her "no, no, grandma, this time, I swear, it's not you..."
It's so interesting hearing you talk about the 5200. I might be one of the few people who adored this system and spent lots of time with it. My favorite game by far has to be Dreadnaught Factor. I ultimately ended up with 2 four port systems, about 10 controllers (for obvious reasons), the trackball, a wico controller, joystick coupler and 25 games. Only in the last couple months have I started revisiting this gem. I got both systems working and sold one on evilbay. For Christmas, my wife bought me a gold contact controller revision and I got excited to finally play some games only to discover that the second fire button didn't work because of an internal problem with the system itself. (If anybody knows a fix for this, PLEASE let me know.) I now plan to buy a working system and collect for it. The games are cheap and plentiful and in theory, the gold contacts on my new joystick should never corrode. It's also one of the few systems I can't reliably emulate and it doesn't look like AT games is going to take my letter begging them to make a mini system seriously. Keep up the great work. Love your channel.
A few things: The RF/power cable of the original model 5200 was exactly the same. I'm pretty sure the AC adapter was too, it just plugged into the console instead. I bought an aftermarket power supply for my 4-port unit that I got from Goodwill with no power or RF. Years later I found the right RF box at another Goodwill store with no console. "Atari did ultimately release a 2600 adapter for this thing but it..." that would have been a good place to mention that it didn't even work with existing 4-port models. They literally had to send a field service tech out to your house to modify it for you if you bought one! I'm surprised you didn't mention that the analog sticks being of the non-centering variety (mostly stayed where you left it requiring manual centering) made many of its own games almost unplayable. It should probably be pointed out that the Pause button and analog joysticks were both innovations for him consoles, regardless of the poor implementation. I believe that the ports were called "DA15." They're also the same port as the Famicom EXT port, so a Famicom joystick extension cable will also work. Because it's easy enough to get extension cables it's easy enough to splice one up to build your own arcade sticks. It's actually harder to modify an existing controller from another console because you have to make the D-pad simulate the analog stick potentiometers and that's actually hard to do without a double-throw switch (three terminals) for each direction.
dude this is my dad's favorite console as it was what he got for Christmas one year as a kid. will show him this video later. I believe he has two 5200's. also if your wanting to play it more you can sometimes find controllers on ebay made with gold that won't mess up so the controller should always work anytime you decide to play. good video!
i had this Atari. i was a kid and tbh it felt futuristic compared to the 2600. Centipede, pacman,galaxian. They look like their arcade counterpart. My friends look at awed to my console when they saw the graphics.
Back then I didn't know anything about the video game crash. I was about 12 years old. I worked as a paperboy delivering newspapers. I managed to save up enough money to buy an Atari 5200 but my parents talked me into getting an Atari 800XL computer instead. All of the games for it were exactly the same thing just in a smaller sized cartridge. The Christmas of that same year I received a floppy disk drive, a modem and a printer along with a box full of disks with games a and other software. It was to this date and before the best Christmas ever. I learned later why they talked me out of buying an Atari 5200. But despite the video game crash, the home computer market, like the Atari 8-bit and Commodore 64 as well as the Amiga and ST line, took up the slack up until the NES and Geneisis were released. In fact, it was the home computer market that introduced me to RPGs. Something that none of the consoles could do back then.
The Atari 8-bit scene is still pretty impressive. The Ultimate 1MB Upgrade, Stereo POKEY adapters, 65816 CPU upgrades, the VBXE, the Sophia mod, and continued development of SpartaDOS X are all impressive.
I had this system when it came out and it was the best, because the games where almost exactly like the arcade. Compare pac-man 2600 to this 5200 version and it's like night and day. It's different when you review something you had as a child, versus reading about it then reviewing it, your experience is different as an adult. All the games were the most popular in the arcade and this system had them all. Hours of fun.
Get the gold flex circuit and button upgrade, no more cleaning. did mine over a year ago and they still work like new. There is a rather good following of the 5200 over on Atariage. Plus there are two podcasts about it as well. The trakball was highly praised back then and is a arcade quality controller designed by Dan Kramer. Sure the 5200 had its issues, but its not really all that bad, I dont recall having to clean controllers every two weeks back then when I had mine, that only became a problem years later as the system aged, other systems have that same issue as well.
What lol? He discussed many of the shortcomings of the 5200. And the positives (the good games). Watch the video before calling things a massive failure.
Always love/hate ending a sentence on a comma. (It both annoys me and I find it hilarious.) Like the CSNY introduction in the Woodstock: "Please welcome Crosby, Stills, Nash," because Neil had his name edited out.
I've considered getting one of these, but the Atari 400 computer I picked up instead works just as well (and was cheaper!) The original 400/800 also had 4 controller ports, way ahead of its time.
The 5200 is not a bad system if you can get around the controller problem. Today the controller is not a big problem because alternatives exist. You can get a rebuild kit with better parts, or you can use a Sega Genesis controller adapter. There is also a kit available where you can put together a modern style controller for the 5200.
Your videos are fantastic, full of good info and I've actually been able to rescue a few "junked" Atari 2600s (and even an NES!) thanks to your "How To Clean And Restore..." clips. I was delighted to see you'd posted a 5200-specific video -- I think it gets a bad rap, despite its undeniable flaws. I got one this year and unexpectedly fell in love with it, despite those finicky sticks. Thanks for putting in the work to research and shoot this, there's too little good information on these pre-crash systems out there, and it's nice to see something more balanced and academic than strictly comedic! Keep up the good work!
"No third party controllers" - FALSE. Take it from someone who lived through it. WICO made controllers for the Atari 5200. Don't make me pull one out of my storage unit to prove it. It was very similar to the ones WICO made for the 2600, but it had the 5200 plug and the cable split to attach a regular 5200 controller for use of the keypad. (The WICO controller did not have the keypad which is why they had the split cable.) It also had a switch on it so the joystick could be set to self center or to work as analog for Missile Command or the rare few games in which "self centering" was not desirable. It was considered a "must buy" for everyone who had a 5200. I also take issue with calling the 2600 and 5200 part of the same generation. They were released 5 years apart... which was a much bigger leap in technology in those days. Everyone had an Atari (or intellivision) for years before the Colecovision came along.
Well, the VCS [2600] could've been finished up and released in 1976 but Atari Inc had their settlement with Philips/Magnavox which was still active and thus they would've had to share its tech with them had it been announced and released prior to January 1977. Had that agreement had not been a concern, the VCS could've beaten the Fairchild Channel F to market and had been the first console with removable game cartridges. But its designs had been based on a lot of assumptions like very expensive RAM. Once that had cleared up in 1978 and RAM became cheaper, Nolan Bushnell wanted the VCS scrapped by Warner wouldn't agree to it. The Atari 8-bit computers and the 5200 all come out of the R&D Atari did from 1976-79 first as an intended replacement for the VCS and then switched over to be a computer platform to give hell to the Apple II and others for the home computer market.
I've seen SO MANY videos on the 5200 where they say there are no third party controllers or only one out there and it's simply not true. Just shows the bad rap 5200 gets
Good video, just two things. 1) there do exist 3rd party controllers that are very reliable, made by Wico. 2) There is an aftermarket adapter to use 2600/7800/Genesis controllers on the 5200
I never had one of these but it was cool I was around during it's run and knew a few people who had one. It really was a great time back then as these were the best of the best during their run.
I don't know if this is true but I've heard that switch box that was required to play the 4 controller port version was known for setting houses on fire
There do exist third-party controllers for the 5200, made by a company called Wico, but they're rare. When they do show up on eBay, they go for $150 or more.
I had this as a Xmas present in 1983 and I loved it after only having a stunt cycle and pong then the 2600 and getting blisters on my thumb from the 2600 stiff joysticks. The 5200 was a arcade in your room. The games were the closest thing to the real game you could get. The joysticks were soft no more blisters and you could reset start and pause the game from the controller pulse select other options from the keypad that could be overlaid. On top of all this you had a trackball to play centipede and it was like the same feel as the arcade. As a thirteen year old I loved this console. It also had better colors and sound over ColecoVision that came out a year or two later. Growing up I only had pacman, digdug, pole position and centipede with the track ball. The system I had was the 4 port and it came with pacman. After playing it all day as a kid it got too hot and would not display on the tv anymore just a black screen and the fire buttons were not contacting well. But if I could of had eBay back then I would of enjoyed this for more years I'm sure.
When I was 5 my dad bought me the 5200 so that was my console as a kid and I always liked it. Ya the joysticks always brook but I remember playing it for 4 or 5 years maybe I had one joystick that worked for a while. Unlike the 2600 it had every single arcade classic on it that played the same way as the arcade just slightly lower graphics; a few of the games I think are better ports than the arcade version like Joust and Wizards of War .
INVISIGOTH That would short the connections so that the button/switch is always on. There was a gold replacement circuit you could buy and gold never corrodes but it cost a lot of money. There were other replacements before the gold ones and they lasted longer but they wore out too, making me think there's more to it than just corrosion, especially considering other controllers don't seem to have this problem even without special materials. I do wonder if anyone has tried dielectric grease. It's actually made for preventing oxidation and improving conductivity without shorting the circuit. Never saw anyone other than me mention it.
@@emmettturner9452 That's kinda funny I was talking to my boss about that and he mentioned dielectric grease he's a sort of nerd ever tried it I'm curious If it would work
@@smokingunclefrank6037 What's even weirder is that this is the second reply I got about dielectric grease from a years-old comment in 24 hours and they both came right after mentioning dielectric grease again recently (think it was a Big Clive video). The other comments of mine that got a reply hours ago was from over 10 years ago! It's like my comment about it in years caused a flood of interest in the older ones. :) That said, I tried dielectric grease on a 5200 controller for a friend but it turned out his controller was fine and the issue was a chip in the console that so had to replace for him. Works great now, and the dielectric isn't hurting anything. Even contact cleaners like DeoxIT a d FaderLube leave a dielectric grease on electrical contacts. Glad to hear that more people are spreading the word about this stuff because I've seen it work miracles. :)
This is a great system if you upgrade the guts of the controller to the gold plated bits on ebay. Also pick up the Competition Pro adaptor joystick is very high quality. Along with the track ball it's a great system!
I have a friend who bought his 5200 at a Goodwill back in the 1990s and also had a Competition Pro joystick for it. The previous owner had even modded the Competition Pro so that both fire buttons are independent and function as Fire Button 1 and 2 on the 5200. So you turn it sideways and it works incredibly well.
By the way,Adam, an extremely advanced game for the 5200 is called rescue on fractulus, you should certainly check it out, I'm not even going to spoil it for you
When I was a kid I knew about the 5200 and 7800 and when I got my sega master system I was going to get the 7800 instead and I'm so glad I picked what I did because I love my master system but I would be just as happy if I had gotten the 7800 as I've finally gotten one this year.
I've found that my 5200 controllers have to "warm up" for a minute or two before they start working. I pop in Galaxian and mash the buttons for a bit. It always starts to work after a minute or two.
The Atari VCS May have still been in production in 1982 and games being developed for it, but it was not a part of the same generation of consoles such as the ColecoVision and Atari 5200. If you’re going to do that then you might as well include the Sega Master System and NES in there as well since those both existed in Japan during the era of the ColecoVision and the 5200 consoles.
i really want to make a controller for the 5200 & the n64 because i have a few ideas to make a comfortable & functional controllers but how i begin development
Hey Adam! Space Dungeon is the best game on the system because you use two controllers at once to move/shoot (like Robotron/Smash TV) so you don't need functional fire buttons to play. People pop in Space dungeon with no instructions and only one controller and mess around with it for a sec and assume that it sucks, but it's great. Robotron 2084 is also great on the 5200 for the same reason. Both games were packed in with a controller holder that joined two controllers together, but you can use rubber bands in a pinch.
To this day, the 520's Space Dungeon version is the only port of that arcade game, and it is awesome! I think the new VCS should re release this game, it would work perfect on their new modern controller
I had a 5200 growing up. I never had issues with the buttons. The joystick mechanism would always wear out first. I probably went through half a dozen controllers, and it was always the joystick that broke.
DeoxIT restores oxidised connections pretty well. (you might have already used it) I used it on my late 1970's Pioneer amp (which was playing-up randomly), and it been working like a charm for the last 5 years. I've also used it on a bunch of my Super Nintendo carts, consoles, and controllers, to get them schmick. More info: store.caig.com/s.nl/sc.2/category.188/.f
Sorry to keep plugging it, but here's link to what it actually does (in their words): system.netsuite.com/core/media/media.nl?id=66928&c=ACCT113328&h=d15a4569f3d6c7c85aba&_xt=.pdf&ck=8uhHNpElAs_yJbfb&vid=oJsfEpElAtHyJR6I&cktime=140689&promocode=&promocodeaction=overwrite
Adam I love your videos but I'm going to take it to school on a little bit regarding the 5200. first of all the 2600 adapter does not use the standard 5200 controls that actually has plugs on either side of it to use a standard 9 pin control. these are found pretty darn cheap in the wild and not too many people know what they are. second of all there is an upgrade for the 5200 controls now which uses a gold plated circuit board does not oxidize you can purchase them on eBay or there's a guy in Indiana that will do a full rebuild recalibrations and not a whole lot of money. wico did make an aftermarket controller for the 5200 it was a separate and separate keypad and using a wire connector for the two. Unfortunately those can be rather expensive I do not have one but from what I understand they're pretty awesome.
I have one of those WICO controllers for the 5200. I may have to pull it out of storage and make a video. You are correct that the Wico did not have a keypad, so the cable split with an additional plug so you could use the 5200 keypad, but what was really cool about it was the switch that let you choose between self centering and "analog" mode for games like Missile Command and Centipede.
@@TheJeremyHolloway Nice. Didn't know or didn't remember Wico's keypad, probably because I did not have one. I bet it would be sought after since it probably doesn't oxidize like the Atari controllers do!
Hey Adam just wanted to let you know someone has made a new revision of the "board" inside the controller I got it 2 months ago and haven't had to clean my controller yes I use a 5200... mostly to play 2600 via rgb as when I got it 2600 rgb mod didn't exist sadly no 7800 rgb exists :(
I really enjoyed watching the retrospective series of all consoles. I am curious to see a video on the 1st Generation (if you want) And hand held wise, it's not really my gaming either, but it could be interesting. Anyway thanks again for your thoughts and the retrospective of all consoles. Was great to watch.
Great video man! I like how you talk about these different game systems that not many know about. I hope to collect some old game systems in the future.
The other day I came across a 5200 in excellent shape and was tempted to go back and get it today but I decided to watch some review videos to shake me out of my impulse buy mindset I was in. Thanks Adam, you saved me 100 bucks.
Your comment about people not wanting to upgrade their consoles in the second gen is interesting. Those people were pretty much baby boomers, who were used to domestically made appliances and electronics and that everything they owned lasted decades, and you repaired rather than throwing away. I mean, if you were in the early 1980s and you'd had a record player for thirty years that worked decently, and some person came along and said "all new technology today will become obsolete in three years", what would you say back? Massively generalising, baby boomers I believe still have this mentality of buying something and it lasting a long time rather than upgrading. Even if what they buy wasn't super expensive, and was what would then have been made well but is now made for very little in a Chinese factory, they get surprised when it fails quicker or becomes obsolete rather quickly. From what I can work out, the disposable economy blossomed in the 1980s as it became cheaper to buy new than to fix. Also, the rate of change in tech has accelerated it.
Why must you state "Boomer"? The Boomers inherited that view from the WWII generation which had record players for decades. The Boomers at least had gone through 4 and 8 track players and cassette players at the same time video game consoles became popular.
One of the reasons that Atari released the 5200, and ditched backwards compatibility, was that they wanted cartridges that wouldn't work on the Colecovision's 2600 adapter. I really dig these vids, keep them coming.
No. The 5200 was released to be a premium game system to give the Intellivision hell while keeping the 2600 at the lower cost portion of the market. Atari was caught completely off-guard by Coleco releasing the Colecovision. And Coleco did a damn good job keeping the system secret during its "development". If one can call it a development since its made up of off-the-shelf chips.
Atari Corp assembled a lot of them post July 1984 like that in order to clear out their inventory and raise cash for paying off their debts to Warner, keeping their doors open, paying GCC for the rights to finally release the 7800, and fund the development of the ST computer line.
We had a Telstar and then got an Atari for Christmas and I knew there were more innovations coming. We never thought we would play Atari for more than a couple years. Remember, we thought that by the year 2000 we would have flying cars.
Funny, most Activision 5200 games fail today because of the PCBs they used weren't as good as Atari's PCBs. Much like Tengen's PCBs in their Sega Genesis games. Maybe they used the same PCB manufacturer.
I will never understand why people like to claim the Jaguar controller is the worst when this controller is so much worse in function, ergonomic design, and just breaks. I mean, some worst controller list rank this better then the Jaguar controller and that baffles me to no end. I mean, at lest the Jag's controller isn't know for breaking randomly, and can be held like a normal controller. Sure it was a little odd, but many 5th gen consoles at the time had oddball controllers, so why was/is the Jaguar's so hated by people when this seems to get a pass (comparatively speaking)?
I found a 5200 console only at the flea market once on one of those big tables full of random electronics, but I didn't bother with it because I figured finding all the accessories would be a hassle (and probably would cost more than I wanted to pay). Eventually I found the video adapter and 10 games at the same flea market and now im kicking myself for not getting the console, which was probably super cheap. I never found controllers or a power supply but it would've been worth it just for display purposes alone. Oh well
What's worse about this thing is, it's literally just a console version of their 8Bit computers. You are literally better off just getting something like an 800XL or even better, or an XEGS if you want the 'console' experience. The games are the same for the most part, you just have the option of MUCH better controllers. They mostly just have a different type of cartridge as far as I know. I think they're actually more like the 2600/7800 carts in shape.
The Atari 8-bit computers aren't as a good for "couch gaming" as the 5200 because they aren't consoles. They don't natively support multi-fire buttons or Pause/Select/Reset buttons on the controllers like the 5200 does. And the CX22 and CX80 Trak-Balls aren't as good as the 5200's CX53 Trak-Ball Controller.
As far as I'm aware, the Atari 5200 uses the exact same hardware found in the Atari 400 and 800 computers. So that a game for one of them would look and sound precisely like the same game for the other. Amusing when you think that a few years later, Atari rolled out the XE game console which was just an Atari 800XL sans the keyboard and floppy drive.
The XE Game System was a repackaged Atari 65XE and primarily was sold with its detachable keyboard. The Atari 8-bit computer line project started out with the intent of being a console replacement for the 2600. Most of the games that came out for the 5200 did start out on the Atari 8-bit computer line but had enhancements made to them.
Interesting to watch this series and realize we're in the 8th gen. We're experiencing the weirdest generation in some time, I'm not sure where its all going, but looking back on the past could give us some insights.
I used to play the 5200 at my cousin's. I was blown away at how much better it looked than the 2600 (not much better, but I didn't know back then lol). The games I loved playing the most were Popeye and Chopper Command. I totally forgot about the overlays. This video also solved the mystery as to why his controllers died so quickly. He only had it for a couple months and then the controllers stopped working right. I also remember the joystick kinda sticking, not centering perfectly. Showing us Mario Bros. reminds me of the ads for that game in comic books at the time. Edit: Actually it was Super Cobra, not Chopper Command (which wasn't on the 5200, Choplifter was, but I looked that up and that's not what I remember so I looked up every game on Gamefaqs and saw that it was Super Cobra, a tough mofo of a game). Also I learned that the non-centering joystick problem was common.
Probably not hard. But why? The masses, even in retro niche circles, have no desire to have a working 5200 controller. Even if you had a flawless controller that would work until the end of time...you're still stuck with an overall terrible gaming system.
short answer ; brought nothing new to the table. Innovated nothing. Long answer ; Games were not much better from the 2600 era. Competition (like the colecovision) were better options with more variety to the games. Hardly any 3rd party support. No backwards compatibility with 2600 wheras competition DID. Way overpriced for its time with a msrp of $269 (which in 2016 would be $672) I think that 'bout covers it...as for the aesthetics ; Too big, ugly design (hey, it has a built in closet though!) stupid AV and PSU design. Like I said, even with a flawless controller. you have other points to deal with so yeah, terrible system.
I'm guessing of course that Atari took Colecovision to court over the adapter. How long was it until the courts ruled in Atari's favor and Coleco had to stop selling the adapter? Im just wondering how common the adapters are. If Coleco got enough out there I would assume they made some good money off of it before it was stopped.
...also should have mentioned that they consolized the 8-bit Atari computer line again with the Atari XE GS, except this time it actually accepted 2600 joysticks and played original Atari 400/800 game cartridges. It was also using the higher specs of the later model Atari 8-bit PCs. The keyboard on the computer replaces the key pad. Also probably should mention that four ports was another innovation for game consoles. Though the Atari 800 had that first It wasn't originally a game console.
I think I was the only person in the UK that owned one of these, however I moved out and left some stuff (including the 5200) to pick up later, after I came back the landlord cleared out the flat entirely, everything was gone. I still have those joysticks though.
All you would have to do is store the controller in a vacuum chamber or a chamber pressurized with dry nitrogen, then there will be no possibility of oxidation. Problem solved.
Atari make all the right choices given the market research available to the marketing team who would have been responsible to recommend the budget for the 5200
The Atari 8-bit computer line started out as a console replacement for the 2600 slated for 1979. Ray Kassar, CEO of Atari Inc at the time, decided to have the project instead become a computer line after seeing the profit margins Apple was getting out of their Apple II computer line. So the 5200 is the return to the original intent of said project. Atari Inc's engineers wanted the 5200 to be backwards-compatible with the 2600 but the Warner picked managers nixed that, asking "why would anyone want to play their old games on this new superior system?" Atari's engineers protested against the joysticks being released without them self-centering; Warner overruled them. Warner insisted on all of the controller designs, including the mylar flex circuit, so Atari could patent everything. As for the 4-port version having the audio and video sharing the same cable as the power, well, that was from market testing. As kids back then, we all put our consoles on the floor. Mothers across America tripped over those cables so when Atari asked mothers about reasons they'd pay for a new system, one of the things they cited were less cables snaking out from the back of the console to trip over. That cable and the switch box isn't unreliable so long as the box functions. It does spark which scared people. But it never burned down any houses like the original Xbox did. The 2600 Adapter is a 2600 in-a-box and it has DB9 ports on it; it doesn't use the 5200 controllers. There were 3rd Party 5200 controllers back in the day; primarily done by Wico. You kinda scoffed at the 5200's Trak-Ball Controller but it's one of the best accessory controllers of all time even to this date. You mention the joystick itself commonly breaks; no it doesn't. The problem is that it doesn't self-center. Atari never released the CX52L which did self-center because Warner forced them to discontinue the 5200 in favor of the 7800 which was much cheaper to manufacture. Atari Inc released 9 revisions to the mylar flex circuit but gold dots and aluminum foil are commonly used by enthusiasts to make them work. One of the first 3rd party accessories made for the 5200 was the MasterPlay interface which was an adapter that let you plug in 2600 joysticks while keeping the CX52 also plugged in so the numeric keypad and the Pause/Select/Reset buttons could also be used. And ever since then, there's been PC GamePad, 2600, 7800, and Sega controller adapters made by enthusiasts to use with their 5200s. The 4-port original also allows for the cable to be wrapped up underneath the console. And there is an active 5200 community, primarily found on AtariAge and on Facebook. New homebrews and also conversions of games from the Atari 8-bit computers happen. There's also the AtariMax SD Cartridge Adapter available for it. You ask how Super Breakout would work with the CX52 joystick; it's a 360-degree analog joystick. Of course, it works best with either the CX53 Trak-Ball Controller or with the CX52 modded into a Paddle Controller, which is common to do in the community. The 5200 was only officially sold in the US. The sales projections indicated that the 5200 was going to go on beyond the 1.5 million sold and outsell the Colecovision because they had the momentum going for them by late 1983 but Warner ordered Atari to discontinue it in favor of the 7800 which Warner had GCC develop. That also caused the European PAL version not to get released. It caused many completed 5200 games not to get released and also caused others that were being developed - such as Tempest - not to get finished. Luckily for us, Keithen Hayenga decided he wanted to finish Tempest so he returned to doing so on his own and it was released by AtariAge in circa 2012 and it is damn good. Other things that we lost out on due to the 5200 getting dumped was the musical keyboard, the Kids' Controller, the fixed CX52L controller, official Paddles, an arcade stick, the Asteroids button controller, and also Dan Kramer's [the Atari engineer who created their consumer Trak-Ball controllers] 2 next projects which would've been consumer versions of Atari's arcade Pole Position controllers [steering wheel, pedals, and shifter] and a consumer version of Atari's arcade yoke controller used on their Star Wars arcade games. And after all of that, Warner screwed up even more by breaking up Atari Inc into pieces and selling it off which ultimately delayed the 7800's release until January 1986 instead of Christmas 1984. It also caused the Atari Coin/Games Inc/Corp [who later created the Tengen sub-brand] arcade division to be sold off to Namco, the AtariTel division - which developed video phones - to Mitsubishi, and Atari Inc's Consumer Division assets [video game consoles and computers] to Jack Tramiel's TTL company which renamed itself "Atari Corp".
I've only ever had the fire buttons break. Never a problem with the stick, or the keypad....once in a while the start/pause/reset buttons get finicky. It's an easy fix. A pencil eraser, rubbing alcohol, tin foil and elmers glue. Just rub the eraser gently on the circuit, wipe it down with alcohol, then with a tiny dab of glue attach the sliver of tin foil to the black contact dots. I have 4 controllers I fixed YEARS ago. Three still work perfectly. There's also an option to buy the replacement gold contacts, but imo it's a waste of $$. There were no less than 3 alternatives back in the day if you had to go that route. The Wico, the Masterplay interface to use 2600 controllers, and the competitin pro. I had a Masterplay (still do!) for some games where digital is necessary. I do wish the controllers weren't mushy/rubber, but 99% of system controllers have some kind of drawback. 7800 anyone? Colecovision? What genius but the two fire buttons on OPPOSITE sides of the controller??? Intellivision's disc controller took a lot of practice...even the Odyssey2 controllers were lackluster.
Wow I've followed your Dreamcast content for sometime now. Watched your controller cleaning video and this one for the 5200... I think I have a few games you don't have an duplicate copies of them. My 5200 is just collecting dust in the original box in my basement if you are interested in a few more games let me know I'll get them shipped out
This was my first system as a kid in 1985. I’ll always love it. It’s is easy to call a system shitty after 30 years, but we had HOURS of fun with this thing.
I literally watch these once every three months from start to finish then back. These are so entertaining and informative man👍🏻
I wish Microsoft would take some inspiration from Atari on numbering consoles. it's not perfect but it works
he first
why? Xbox 1 seems legit for their third console
LOL sure...
Let's not forget their Windows numbering.
Windows 1.0, 3.0,3.1,95,98,Me/2000,XP,7,Vista,8,8.1,10 -- not including the servers Windows or embedded.
@@evilinsecticon3813 You forgot Microsoft Bob!
I found my 5200 boxed in my grandmothers basement with the styrofoam and everything, except the controller!
She probably threw it out in frustration, thinking she's too old to figure out these newfangled video game boxes. If only you were there to tell her "no, no, grandma, this time, I swear, it's not you..."
It's so interesting hearing you talk about the 5200. I might be one of the few people who adored this system and spent lots of time with it. My favorite game by far has to be Dreadnaught Factor. I ultimately ended up with 2 four port systems, about 10 controllers (for obvious reasons), the trackball, a wico controller, joystick coupler and 25 games. Only in the last couple months have I started revisiting this gem. I got both systems working and sold one on evilbay. For Christmas, my wife bought me a gold contact controller revision and I got excited to finally play some games only to discover that the second fire button didn't work because of an internal problem with the system itself. (If anybody knows a fix for this, PLEASE let me know.)
I now plan to buy a working system and collect for it. The games are cheap and plentiful and in theory, the gold contacts on my new joystick should never corrode. It's also one of the few systems I can't reliably emulate and it doesn't look like AT games is going to take my letter begging them to make a mini system seriously.
Keep up the great work. Love your channel.
Ask around the 5200 forum on AtariAge for assistance with the port issue... Best Electronics still sells replacement motherboards if you need one.
A few things:
The RF/power cable of the original model 5200 was exactly the same. I'm pretty sure the AC adapter was too, it just plugged into the console instead. I bought an aftermarket power supply for my 4-port unit that I got from Goodwill with no power or RF. Years later I found the right RF box at another Goodwill store with no console.
"Atari did ultimately release a 2600 adapter for this thing but it..." that would have been a good place to mention that it didn't even work with existing 4-port models. They literally had to send a field service tech out to your house to modify it for you if you bought one!
I'm surprised you didn't mention that the analog sticks being of the non-centering variety (mostly stayed where you left it requiring manual centering) made many of its own games almost unplayable. It should probably be pointed out that the Pause button and analog joysticks were both innovations for him consoles, regardless of the poor implementation.
I believe that the ports were called "DA15." They're also the same port as the Famicom EXT port, so a Famicom joystick extension cable will also work.
Because it's easy enough to get extension cables it's easy enough to splice one up to build your own arcade sticks. It's actually harder to modify an existing controller from another console because you have to make the D-pad simulate the analog stick potentiometers and that's actually hard to do without a double-throw switch (three terminals) for each direction.
dude this is my dad's favorite console as it was what he got for Christmas one year as a kid. will show him this video later. I believe he has two 5200's. also if your wanting to play it more you can sometimes find controllers on ebay made with gold that won't mess up so the controller should always work anytime you decide to play.
good video!
Thanks Justin!
i had this Atari. i was a kid and tbh it felt futuristic compared to the 2600.
Centipede, pacman,galaxian.
They look like their arcade counterpart. My friends look at awed to my console when they saw the graphics.
Back then I didn't know anything about the video game crash. I was about 12 years old. I worked as a paperboy delivering newspapers. I managed to save up enough money to buy an Atari 5200 but my parents talked me into getting an Atari 800XL computer instead. All of the games for it were exactly the same thing just in a smaller sized cartridge. The Christmas of that same year I received a floppy disk drive, a modem and a printer along with a box full of disks with games a and other software. It was to this date and before the best Christmas ever. I learned later why they talked me out of buying an Atari 5200. But despite the video game crash, the home computer market, like the Atari 8-bit and Commodore 64 as well as the Amiga and ST line, took up the slack up until the NES and Geneisis were released. In fact, it was the home computer market that introduced me to RPGs. Something that none of the consoles could do back then.
The Atari 8-bit scene is still pretty impressive. The Ultimate 1MB Upgrade, Stereo POKEY adapters, 65816 CPU upgrades, the VBXE, the Sophia mod, and continued development of SpartaDOS X are all impressive.
I had this system when it came out and it was the best, because the games where almost exactly like the arcade. Compare pac-man 2600 to this 5200 version and it's like night and day. It's different when you review something you had as a child, versus reading about it then reviewing it, your experience is different as an adult. All the games were the most popular in the arcade and this system had them all. Hours of fun.
Get the gold flex circuit and button upgrade, no more cleaning. did mine over a year ago and they still work like new. There is a rather good following of the 5200 over on Atariage. Plus there are two podcasts about it as well. The trakball was highly praised back then and is a arcade quality controller designed by Dan Kramer. Sure the 5200 had its issues, but its not really all that bad, I dont recall having to clean controllers every two weeks back then when I had mine, that only became a problem years later as the system aged, other systems have that same issue as well.
I agree and this video is a massive failure to properly discuss the merits and short comings of the 5200.
What lol? He discussed many of the shortcomings of the 5200. And the positives (the good games). Watch the video before calling things a massive failure.
Dude I love the cut off audio intro. Don't ever change it.
Always love/hate ending a sentence on a comma. (It both annoys me and I find it hilarious.) Like the CSNY introduction in the Woodstock: "Please welcome Crosby, Stills, Nash," because Neil had his name edited out.
I had one and loved it! I remember being on the school bus arguing about it being better than Coleco! It got heated!!!
I've considered getting one of these, but the Atari 400 computer I picked up instead works just as well (and was cheaper!) The original 400/800 also had 4 controller ports, way ahead of its time.
The 5200 is not a bad system if you can get around the controller problem. Today the controller is not a big problem because alternatives exist. You can get a rebuild kit with better parts, or you can use a Sega Genesis controller adapter. There is also a kit available where you can put together a modern style controller for the 5200.
Your videos are fantastic, full of good info and I've actually been able to rescue a few "junked" Atari 2600s (and even an NES!) thanks to your "How To Clean And Restore..." clips. I was delighted to see you'd posted a 5200-specific video -- I think it gets a bad rap, despite its undeniable flaws. I got one this year and unexpectedly fell in love with it, despite those finicky sticks. Thanks for putting in the work to research and shoot this, there's too little good information on these pre-crash systems out there, and it's nice to see something more balanced and academic than strictly comedic! Keep up the good work!
Thanks!
"No third party controllers" - FALSE. Take it from someone who lived through it. WICO made controllers for the Atari 5200. Don't make me pull one out of my storage unit to prove it. It was very similar to the ones WICO made for the 2600, but it had the 5200 plug and the cable split to attach a regular 5200 controller for use of the keypad. (The WICO controller did not have the keypad which is why they had the split cable.) It also had a switch on it so the joystick could be set to self center or to work as analog for Missile Command or the rare few games in which "self centering" was not desirable. It was considered a "must buy" for everyone who had a 5200. I also take issue with calling the 2600 and 5200 part of the same generation. They were released 5 years apart... which was a much bigger leap in technology in those days. Everyone had an Atari (or intellivision) for years before the Colecovision came along.
Well, the VCS [2600] could've been finished up and released in 1976 but Atari Inc had their settlement with Philips/Magnavox which was still active and thus they would've had to share its tech with them had it been announced and released prior to January 1977. Had that agreement had not been a concern, the VCS could've beaten the Fairchild Channel F to market and had been the first console with removable game cartridges. But its designs had been based on a lot of assumptions like very expensive RAM. Once that had cleared up in 1978 and RAM became cheaper, Nolan Bushnell wanted the VCS scrapped by Warner wouldn't agree to it. The Atari 8-bit computers and the 5200 all come out of the R&D Atari did from 1976-79 first as an intended replacement for the VCS and then switched over to be a computer platform to give hell to the Apple II and others for the home computer market.
I mean what gen would you put this in? 2.5? 7200 was definitely in the third one and the 5200 was long dead by then.
I've seen SO MANY videos on the 5200 where they say there are no third party controllers or only one out there and it's simply not true. Just shows the bad rap 5200 gets
Hey, thank you for taking the time doing videos for the second generation consoles. I enjoyed these videos and also your LIVE Q&A. Great job.
Good video, just two things. 1) there do exist 3rd party controllers that are very reliable, made by Wico. 2) There is an aftermarket adapter to use 2600/7800/Genesis controllers on the 5200
I used to work at a "dig and save" style store in Wisconsin; if you were lucky, you could pick up a lot of games and consoles for next to nothing.
I never had one of these but it was cool I was around during it's run and knew a few people who had one. It really was a great time back then as these were the best of the best during their run.
I don't know if this is true but I've heard that switch box that was required to play the 4 controller port version was known for setting houses on fire
There is a adapter to use a Genesis controller on the Atari 5200.
There's a new one now being made from an AtariAge user in Greece.
still have my orginal from 82' with multi-cart
YES!! been waiting for the atari 5200 video
There do exist third-party controllers for the 5200, made by a company called Wico, but they're rare. When they do show up on eBay, they go for $150 or more.
Sweet! I definitely have at least one Wico 5200 controller in my storage unit! It was far superior.
I had this as a Xmas present in 1983 and I loved it after only having a stunt cycle and pong then the 2600 and getting blisters on my thumb from the 2600 stiff joysticks. The 5200 was a arcade in your room. The games were the closest thing to the real game you could get. The joysticks were soft no more blisters and you could reset start and pause the game from the controller pulse select other options from the keypad that could be overlaid. On top of all this you had a trackball to play centipede and it was like the same feel as the arcade. As a thirteen year old I loved this console. It also had better colors and sound over ColecoVision that came out a year or two later. Growing up I only had pacman, digdug, pole position and centipede with the track ball. The system I had was the 4 port and it came with pacman. After playing it all day as a kid it got too hot and would not display on the tv anymore just a black screen and the fire buttons were not contacting well. But if I could of had eBay back then I would of enjoyed this for more years I'm sure.
When I was 5 my dad bought me the 5200 so that was my console
as a kid and I always liked it. Ya the joysticks always brook but I remember playing it for 4 or 5
years maybe I had one joystick that worked for a while. Unlike the 2600 it had every
single arcade classic on it that played the same way as the arcade just
slightly lower graphics; a few of the games I think are better ports than the
arcade version like Joust and Wizards of War .
Thanks you Adam for this video and for all the series! see you in playload at end of the Month!
Hi. Atari, the coolest name, the coolest logo, it must never fade. The one that pioneered and made gaming famous.
God bless, Proverbs 31
why don't you solder some type of non-corroding metal stuff onto the connectors?
Certainly not a skill I have.
INVISIGOTH That would short the connections so that the button/switch is always on. There was a gold replacement circuit you could buy and gold never corrodes but it cost a lot of money. There were other replacements before the gold ones and they lasted longer but they wore out too, making me think there's more to it than just corrosion, especially considering other controllers don't seem to have this problem even without special materials. I do wonder if anyone has tried dielectric grease. It's actually made for preventing oxidation and improving conductivity without shorting the circuit. Never saw anyone other than me mention it.
@@emmettturner9452 I want a thin PCB design with dome switches. The CX53 Trak-Ball uses dome switches well.
@@emmettturner9452 That's kinda funny I was talking to my boss about that and he mentioned dielectric grease he's a sort of nerd ever tried it I'm curious If it would work
@@smokingunclefrank6037 What's even weirder is that this is the second reply I got about dielectric grease from a years-old comment in 24 hours and they both came right after mentioning dielectric grease again recently (think it was a Big Clive video). The other comments of mine that got a reply hours ago was from over 10 years ago! It's like my comment about it in years caused a flood of interest in the older ones. :)
That said, I tried dielectric grease on a 5200 controller for a friend but it turned out his controller was fine and the issue was a chip in the console that so had to replace for him. Works great now, and the dielectric isn't hurting anything. Even contact cleaners like DeoxIT a d FaderLube leave a dielectric grease on electrical contacts. Glad to hear that more people are spreading the word about this stuff because I've seen it work miracles. :)
keep them coming brother. handheld generations would definitely be cool
emceecaspa I definitely want to see him do handheld consoles
This is a great system if you upgrade the guts of the controller to the gold plated bits on ebay. Also pick up the Competition Pro adaptor joystick is very high quality. Along with the track ball it's a great system!
I have a friend who bought his 5200 at a Goodwill back in the 1990s and also had a Competition Pro joystick for it. The previous owner had even modded the Competition Pro so that both fire buttons are independent and function as Fire Button 1 and 2 on the 5200. So you turn it sideways and it works incredibly well.
By the way,Adam, an extremely advanced game for the 5200 is called rescue on fractulus, you should certainly check it out, I'm not even going to spoil it for you
From Lucasfilm Games, which started out as Atari/Lucasfilm.
When I was a kid I knew about the 5200 and 7800 and when I got my sega master system I was going to get the 7800 instead and I'm so glad I picked what I did because I love my master system but I would be just as happy if I had gotten the 7800 as I've finally gotten one this year.
River Raid and Millipede was my favs on that system.
I've found that my 5200 controllers have to "warm up" for a minute or two before they start working. I pop in Galaxian and mash the buttons for a bit. It always starts to work after a minute or two.
The Atari VCS May have still been in production in 1982 and games being developed for it, but it was not a part of the same generation of consoles such as the ColecoVision and Atari 5200. If you’re going to do that then you might as well include the Sega Master System and NES in there as well since those both existed in Japan during the era of the ColecoVision and the 5200 consoles.
@AdamKoralik; thank you as always for posting these.
I have some overlays for the ColecoVision.
i really want to make a controller for the 5200 & the n64 because i have a few ideas to make a comfortable & functional controllers but how i begin development
Hey Adam! Space Dungeon is the best game on the system because you use two controllers at once to move/shoot (like Robotron/Smash TV) so you don't need functional fire buttons to play. People pop in Space dungeon with no instructions and only one controller and mess around with it for a sec and assume that it sucks, but it's great. Robotron 2084 is also great on the 5200 for the same reason. Both games were packed in with a controller holder that joined two controllers together, but you can use rubber bands in a pinch.
To this day, the 520's Space Dungeon version is the only port of that arcade game, and it is awesome! I think the new VCS should re release this game, it would work perfect on their new modern controller
I had a 5200 growing up. I never had issues with the buttons. The joystick mechanism would always wear out first. I probably went through half a dozen controllers, and it was always the joystick that broke.
DeoxIT restores oxidised connections pretty well. (you might have already used it)
I used it on my late 1970's Pioneer amp (which was playing-up randomly), and it been working like a charm for the last 5 years.
I've also used it on a bunch of my Super Nintendo carts, consoles, and controllers, to get them schmick.
More info:
store.caig.com/s.nl/sc.2/category.188/.f
Sorry to keep plugging it, but here's link to what it actually does (in their words):
system.netsuite.com/core/media/media.nl?id=66928&c=ACCT113328&h=d15a4569f3d6c7c85aba&_xt=.pdf&ck=8uhHNpElAs_yJbfb&vid=oJsfEpElAtHyJR6I&cktime=140689&promocode=&promocodeaction=overwrite
What I learned here is that the AVGN’s video from 2007 about this thing is mostly inaccurate for comedic effect.
Adam I love your videos but I'm going to take it to school on a little bit regarding the 5200. first of all the 2600 adapter does not use the standard 5200 controls that actually has plugs on either side of it to use a standard 9 pin control. these are found pretty darn cheap in the wild and not too many people know what they are. second of all there is an upgrade for the 5200 controls now which uses a gold plated circuit board does not oxidize you can purchase them on eBay or there's a guy in Indiana that will do a full rebuild recalibrations and not a whole lot of money. wico did make an aftermarket controller for the 5200 it was a separate and separate keypad and using a wire connector for the two. Unfortunately those can be rather expensive I do not have one but from what I understand they're pretty awesome.
I have one of those WICO controllers for the 5200. I may have to pull it out of storage and make a video. You are correct that the Wico did not have a keypad, so the cable split with an additional plug so you could use the 5200 keypad, but what was really cool about it was the switch that let you choose between self centering and "analog" mode for games like Missile Command and Centipede.
@@chriscorsello Wico sold a keypad for their controller though. It's highly sought after amongst collectors and enthusiasts.
@@TheJeremyHolloway Nice. Didn't know or didn't remember Wico's keypad, probably because I did not have one. I bet it would be sought after since it probably doesn't oxidize like the Atari controllers do!
Hey Adam just wanted to let you know someone has made a new revision of the "board" inside the controller I got it 2 months ago and haven't had to clean my controller yes I use a 5200... mostly to play 2600 via rgb as when I got it 2600 rgb mod didn't exist sadly no 7800 rgb exists :(
I really enjoyed watching the retrospective series of all consoles. I am curious to see a video on the 1st Generation (if you want)
And hand held wise, it's not really my gaming either, but it could be interesting. Anyway thanks again for your thoughts and the retrospective of all consoles. Was great to watch.
Thanks for watching!
Great video man! I like how you talk about these different game systems that not many know about. I hope to collect some old game systems in the future.
Thanks!
yep
The other day I came across a 5200 in excellent shape and was tempted to go back and get it today but I decided to watch some review videos to shake me out of my impulse buy mindset I was in. Thanks Adam, you saved me 100 bucks.
Your comment about people not wanting to upgrade their consoles in the second gen is interesting. Those people were pretty much baby boomers, who were used to domestically made appliances and electronics and that everything they owned lasted decades, and you repaired rather than throwing away. I mean, if you were in the early 1980s and you'd had a record player for thirty years that worked decently, and some person came along and said "all new technology today will become obsolete in three years", what would you say back?
Massively generalising, baby boomers I believe still have this mentality of buying something and it lasting a long time rather than upgrading. Even if what they buy wasn't super expensive, and was what would then have been made well but is now made for very little in a Chinese factory, they get surprised when it fails quicker or becomes obsolete rather quickly.
From what I can work out, the disposable economy blossomed in the 1980s as it became cheaper to buy new than to fix. Also, the rate of change in tech has accelerated it.
Why must you state "Boomer"? The Boomers inherited that view from the WWII generation which had record players for decades. The Boomers at least had gone through 4 and 8 track players and cassette players at the same time video game consoles became popular.
I would love a handheld retrospective
fyi...the Atari age store has new games for the 5200
One of the reasons that Atari released the 5200, and ditched backwards compatibility, was that they wanted cartridges that wouldn't work on the Colecovision's 2600 adapter. I really dig these vids, keep them coming.
No. The 5200 was released to be a premium game system to give the Intellivision hell while keeping the 2600 at the lower cost portion of the market. Atari was caught completely off-guard by Coleco releasing the Colecovision. And Coleco did a damn good job keeping the system secret during its "development". If one can call it a development since its made up of off-the-shelf chips.
YAY MORE SECOUND GENERATION, PARTY ✊😃✊
Enjoy!
AdamKoralik thanks, I did injoy it. know I need to find a well priced 5200 XD
3rd (1982-1985), only it was cut short by the 1984 crash.
My 5200 has the shell of the release model, but only 2 controller ports, the other 2 ports are empty, and you can look right into the console.
Atari Corp assembled a lot of them post July 1984 like that in order to clear out their inventory and raise cash for paying off their debts to Warner, keeping their doors open, paying GCC for the rights to finally release the 7800, and fund the development of the ST computer line.
I found when storing for a long time use a non acidic modelers clay that dries. It will keep the contacts from corroding
I need a 5200 and a colecovision :/
INVISIGOTH I need all of them...
Omar Mohammed hehe
I wonder if fogging oil would keep it from oxidizing? Keeps engine parts from rusting when in storage🤔
We had a Telstar and then got an Atari for Christmas and I knew there were more innovations coming. We never thought we would play Atari for more than a couple years. Remember, we thought that by the year 2000 we would have flying cars.
And so begins the long wait for the next VideoGame Generation Recap
I love these videos man! This shit is so fascinating
Thanks.
You don't buy River Raid to test a system, you but River Raid because it's awesome.
Funny, most Activision 5200 games fail today because of the PCBs they used weren't as good as Atari's PCBs. Much like Tengen's PCBs in their Sega Genesis games. Maybe they used the same PCB manufacturer.
I have one with the 4 ports and that little box thing you need. Controllers shot it's just sitting in my attic inside the original box
I did a video about cleaning the controllers. Might inspire you to try.
I will never understand why people like to claim the Jaguar controller is the worst when this controller is so much worse in function, ergonomic design, and just breaks. I mean, some worst controller list rank this better then the Jaguar controller and that baffles me to no end. I mean, at lest the Jag's controller isn't know for breaking randomly, and can be held like a normal controller. Sure it was a little odd, but many 5th gen consoles at the time had oddball controllers, so why was/is the Jaguar's so hated by people when this seems to get a pass (comparatively speaking)?
People who rank those controllers as such never even used them. Or they have small hands and routinely disappoint their imaginary girlfriends.
I found a 5200 console only at the flea market once on one of those big tables full of random electronics, but I didn't bother with it because I figured finding all the accessories would be a hassle (and probably would cost more than I wanted to pay). Eventually I found the video adapter and 10 games at the same flea market and now im kicking myself for not getting the console, which was probably super cheap. I never found controllers or a power supply but it would've been worth it just for display purposes alone. Oh well
Would love to see these types of vids on handhelds!
When are you going to do a retrospective on Wonkavision?
Someone should build a good controller replacement for it and maybe we all can get a 5200 underground going.
We do have an underground 5200 brotherhood. You can find us on AtariAge and on Facebook. I have a NeoGeo arcade stick converted for use with the 5200.
What's worse about this thing is, it's literally just a console version of their 8Bit computers. You are literally better off just getting something like an 800XL or even better, or an XEGS if you want the 'console' experience. The games are the same for the most part, you just have the option of MUCH better controllers. They mostly just have a different type of cartridge as far as I know. I think they're actually more like the 2600/7800 carts in shape.
The Atari 8-bit computers aren't as a good for "couch gaming" as the 5200 because they aren't consoles. They don't natively support multi-fire buttons or Pause/Select/Reset buttons on the controllers like the 5200 does. And the CX22 and CX80 Trak-Balls aren't as good as the 5200's CX53 Trak-Ball Controller.
the xegs is prohibitively expensive for most people in 2021 also - consistently $400+ on ebay bid wars
they do make after market controller's , they're jus very expensive
As far as I'm aware, the Atari 5200 uses the exact same hardware found in the Atari 400 and 800 computers. So that a game for one of them would look and sound precisely like the same game for the other. Amusing when you think that a few years later, Atari rolled out the XE game console which was just an Atari 800XL sans the keyboard and floppy drive.
The XE Game System was a repackaged Atari 65XE and primarily was sold with its detachable keyboard. The Atari 8-bit computer line project started out with the intent of being a console replacement for the 2600. Most of the games that came out for the 5200 did start out on the Atari 8-bit computer line but had enhancements made to them.
cool video tech talk adam
Interesting to watch this series and realize we're in the 8th gen. We're experiencing the weirdest generation in some time, I'm not sure where its all going, but looking back on the past could give us some insights.
Merry Christmas Eve Eve!
I used to play the 5200 at my cousin's. I was blown away at how much better it looked than the 2600 (not much better, but I didn't know back then lol). The games I loved playing the most were Popeye and Chopper Command. I totally forgot about the overlays. This video also solved the mystery as to why his controllers died so quickly. He only had it for a couple months and then the controllers stopped working right. I also remember the joystick kinda sticking, not centering perfectly. Showing us Mario Bros. reminds me of the ads for that game in comic books at the time.
Edit: Actually it was Super Cobra, not Chopper Command (which wasn't on the 5200, Choplifter was, but I looked that up and that's not what I remember so I looked up every game on Gamefaqs and saw that it was Super Cobra, a tough mofo of a game). Also I learned that the non-centering joystick problem was common.
i paid 15$ for mine, 15 games, power cable, two controllers, and a track pad...
Vectrex is a must.
The Vectrex, Colecovision, and Atari 5200 are all great systems. What a generation...
You should do a lengthy overview of gen 1 as a joke.
Interesting, I had no idea the 5200 did the controller overlay thing like the Jaguar.
How hard could it be to reverse engineer and build a working homebrew controller that doesn't break?
Probably not hard. But why? The masses, even in retro niche circles, have no desire to have a working 5200 controller. Even if you had a flawless controller that would work until the end of time...you're still stuck with an overall terrible gaming system.
Noah Douglas If it had a perfect controller, what was terrible about it?
short answer ; brought nothing new to the table. Innovated nothing. Long answer ; Games were not much better from the 2600 era. Competition (like the colecovision) were better options with more variety to the games. Hardly any 3rd party support. No backwards compatibility with 2600 wheras competition DID. Way overpriced for its time with a msrp of $269 (which in 2016 would be $672) I think that 'bout covers it...as for the aesthetics ; Too big, ugly design (hey, it has a built in closet though!) stupid AV and PSU design. Like I said, even with a flawless controller. you have other points to deal with so yeah, terrible system.
@@akxmedia0 OMG It was an awesome system back in the day. Just the controllers suck
@@akxmedia0 I LIKED the controller storage! So to me it WASN'T a huge system.
I'm guessing of course that Atari took Colecovision to court over the adapter.
How long was it until the courts ruled in Atari's favor and Coleco had to stop selling the adapter?
Im just wondering how common the adapters are. If Coleco got enough out there I would assume they made some good money off of it before it was stopped.
I would buy one. I can't afford collecting games, but consoles, something about consoles seems worth while.
Vanguard is an SNK game right? unless its a different one.
The overlays were plastic.Space Dungeon needs 2 controllers. The 5200 had awesome audio.
how about a hand held series?
...also should have mentioned that they consolized the 8-bit Atari computer line again with the Atari XE GS, except this time it actually accepted 2600 joysticks and played original Atari 400/800 game cartridges. It was also using the higher specs of the later model Atari 8-bit PCs. The keyboard on the computer replaces the key pad. Also probably should mention that four ports was another innovation for game consoles. Though the Atari 800 had that first It wasn't originally a game console.
xegs8bit.com/episodes.htm
I like the explanation as to why the controller stops working so easily.
merlin jesch for extra details the 5200 controller contacts are made of aluminum which oxidize over time and it stops working there u go
Awesome video Adam!
Thanks.
I think I was the only person in the UK that owned one of these, however I moved out and left some stuff (including the 5200) to pick up later, after I came back the landlord cleared out the flat entirely, everything was gone.
I still have those joysticks though.
What about the more widely know problem with the controlers the fact that they don't self center?
Yep, they're notoriously shitty controllers.
Merry Christmas Adam!!
All you would have to do is store the controller in a vacuum chamber or a chamber pressurized with dry nitrogen, then there will be no possibility of oxidation. Problem solved.
my fave atari and first atari in 1982 loved it
Atari make all the right choices given the market research available to the marketing team who would have been responsible to recommend the budget for the 5200
I believe the 5200 didn't have a Dark Chambers (my favorite 2600-7800 game) release. I love the version of Jungle Hunt, though.
The Atari 8-bit computer line started out as a console replacement for the 2600 slated for 1979. Ray Kassar, CEO of Atari Inc at the time, decided to have the project instead become a computer line after seeing the profit margins Apple was getting out of their Apple II computer line. So the 5200 is the return to the original intent of said project. Atari Inc's engineers wanted the 5200 to be backwards-compatible with the 2600 but the Warner picked managers nixed that, asking "why would anyone want to play their old games on this new superior system?" Atari's engineers protested against the joysticks being released without them self-centering; Warner overruled them. Warner insisted on all of the controller designs, including the mylar flex circuit, so Atari could patent everything. As for the 4-port version having the audio and video sharing the same cable as the power, well, that was from market testing. As kids back then, we all put our consoles on the floor. Mothers across America tripped over those cables so when Atari asked mothers about reasons they'd pay for a new system, one of the things they cited were less cables snaking out from the back of the console to trip over. That cable and the switch box isn't unreliable so long as the box functions. It does spark which scared people. But it never burned down any houses like the original Xbox did. The 2600 Adapter is a 2600 in-a-box and it has DB9 ports on it; it doesn't use the 5200 controllers. There were 3rd Party 5200 controllers back in the day; primarily done by Wico. You kinda scoffed at the 5200's Trak-Ball Controller but it's one of the best accessory controllers of all time even to this date. You mention the joystick itself commonly breaks; no it doesn't. The problem is that it doesn't self-center. Atari never released the CX52L which did self-center because Warner forced them to discontinue the 5200 in favor of the 7800 which was much cheaper to manufacture. Atari Inc released 9 revisions to the mylar flex circuit but gold dots and aluminum foil are commonly used by enthusiasts to make them work. One of the first 3rd party accessories made for the 5200 was the MasterPlay interface which was an adapter that let you plug in 2600 joysticks while keeping the CX52 also plugged in so the numeric keypad and the Pause/Select/Reset buttons could also be used. And ever since then, there's been PC GamePad, 2600, 7800, and Sega controller adapters made by enthusiasts to use with their 5200s. The 4-port original also allows for the cable to be wrapped up underneath the console.
And there is an active 5200 community, primarily found on AtariAge and on Facebook. New homebrews and also conversions of games from the Atari 8-bit computers happen. There's also the AtariMax SD Cartridge Adapter available for it. You ask how Super Breakout would work with the CX52 joystick; it's a 360-degree analog joystick. Of course, it works best with either the CX53 Trak-Ball Controller or with the CX52 modded into a Paddle Controller, which is common to do in the community.
The 5200 was only officially sold in the US. The sales projections indicated that the 5200 was going to go on beyond the 1.5 million sold and outsell the Colecovision because they had the momentum going for them by late 1983 but Warner ordered Atari to discontinue it in favor of the 7800 which Warner had GCC develop. That also caused the European PAL version not to get released. It caused many completed 5200 games not to get released and also caused others that were being developed - such as Tempest - not to get finished. Luckily for us, Keithen Hayenga decided he wanted to finish Tempest so he returned to doing so on his own and it was released by AtariAge in circa 2012 and it is damn good. Other things that we lost out on due to the 5200 getting dumped was the musical keyboard, the Kids' Controller, the fixed CX52L controller, official Paddles, an arcade stick, the Asteroids button controller, and also Dan Kramer's [the Atari engineer who created their consumer Trak-Ball controllers] 2 next projects which would've been consumer versions of Atari's arcade Pole Position controllers [steering wheel, pedals, and shifter] and a consumer version of Atari's arcade yoke controller used on their Star Wars arcade games. And after all of that, Warner screwed up even more by breaking up Atari Inc into pieces and selling it off which ultimately delayed the 7800's release until January 1986 instead of Christmas 1984. It also caused the Atari Coin/Games Inc/Corp [who later created the Tengen sub-brand] arcade division to be sold off to Namco, the AtariTel division - which developed video phones - to Mitsubishi, and Atari Inc's Consumer Division assets [video game consoles and computers] to Jack Tramiel's TTL company which renamed itself "Atari Corp".
I've only ever had the fire buttons break. Never a problem with the stick, or the keypad....once in a while the start/pause/reset buttons get finicky. It's an easy fix. A pencil eraser, rubbing alcohol, tin foil and elmers glue. Just rub the eraser gently on the circuit, wipe it down with alcohol, then with a tiny dab of glue attach the sliver of tin foil to the black contact dots. I have 4 controllers I fixed YEARS ago. Three still work perfectly. There's also an option to buy the replacement gold contacts, but imo it's a waste of $$. There were no less than 3 alternatives back in the day if you had to go that route. The Wico, the Masterplay interface to use 2600 controllers, and the competitin pro. I had a Masterplay (still do!) for some games where digital is necessary. I do wish the controllers weren't mushy/rubber, but 99% of system controllers have some kind of drawback. 7800 anyone? Colecovision? What genius but the two fire buttons on OPPOSITE sides of the controller??? Intellivision's disc controller took a lot of practice...even the Odyssey2 controllers were lackluster.
What are your top 10 SNES games of all time you'd "personally" recommend?
Wow I've followed your Dreamcast content for sometime now. Watched your controller cleaning video and this one for the 5200... I think I have a few games you don't have an duplicate copies of them. My 5200 is just collecting dust in the original box in my basement if you are interested in a few more games let me know I'll get them shipped out
Thanks man, but you don't have to do that.