Retro Classic Video Games Atari 2600

Atari 2600 VCS

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Atari 2600 VCS

Intro to the Atari 2600

I vividly remember being ~13 and sitting in front of a TV, at a friend's house, playing Space Invaders on his Atari 2600. He'd just gotten it for Christmas and I knew I had to have one. With cash in hand, my Mom took me to an appliance store where I proudly became a paying member of the ensuing video game craze.

As my collection of "arcade" titles grew, so did my need to buy more game carts. It was my crack - the one thing I simply HAD to have. I loved arcades and the idea that I could play renditions of these games at home - saving more quarters for trips to the arcades.

Atari 2600 - Technical Specifications

The Atari 2600 is a video game console released in October 1977. It is credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor-based hardware and cartridges containing game code, instead of having non-microprocessor dedicated hardware with all games built in. The first game console to use this format was the Fairchild Channel F; however, the Atari 2600 is credited with making the plug-in concept popular among the game-playing public.

The console was originally sold as the Atari VCS, for Video Computer System. Following the release of the Atari 5200, in 1982, the VCS was renamed "Atari 2600", after the unit's Atari part number, CX2600. The 2600 was typically bundled with two joystick controllers, a conjoined pair of paddle controllers, and a cartridge game-initially Combat and later Pac-Man.

Images of the Atari 2600 VCS

joystick for Atari 2600
Atari 2600 quarter view
Atari 2600 console organizer
Atari 2600 Paddle Controller

View all Atari 2600 VCS Images

Have you played Atari today?

Our List of Top 10 Atari 2600 Games

  1. Asteroids
  2. Yar's Revenge
  3. Defender II
  4. Space invaders
  5. Donkey Kong
  6. Missile Command
  7. Demon Attack
  8. Spider Fighter
  9. Pitfall!
  10. Dig Dug

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