Atari 8-bit Computer for Gaming?

[marlowe221]

I have no experience with any of these machines so...

Which model of the Atari 8-bit line of computers is best for gaming? It looks like it would probably be the 800XL but there are a lot of different models and it's not easy to tell which is more powerful than which or which games are compatible with which computer.

Any help or advice would be appreciated.

Edit: On second thought, would it be the same and/or easier to just pick up an Atari 7800?

[noiseredux]

Edit: On second thought, would it be the same and/or easier to just pick up an Atari 7800?

the 8-bit computers have way more games.

[marlowe221]

Edit: On second thought, would it be the same and/or easier to just pick up an Atari 7800?

the 8-bit computers have way more games.

That's good to know! Any recommendations as to which computer to get?

[BoneSnapDeez]

It's not the 7800 that's comparable to the 8-bit computers. It's the 5200.

8-bit computer cartridges are essentially identical to their 5200 counterparts, but with way better (Atari 2600 style) controls.

There is a consolized 8-bit computer though, that's the Atari XEGS.

I have a 600XL and enjoy it. I honestly don't know the specific differences between the computers or whether there are games that are, say, only compatible with the 800.

The 800XL does seem to be popular among retro gamers.

As far as games go, I'd look for carts. The disk-based stuff is really rare and easier to find on C64 or DOS-PC.

[marlowe221]

It's not the 7800 that's comparable to the 8-bit computers. It's the 5200.

8-bit computer cartridges are essentially identical to their 5200 counterparts, but with way better (Atari 2600 style) controls.

There is a consolized 8-bit computer though, that's the Atari XEGS.

I have a 600XL and enjoy it. I honestly don't know the specific differences between the computers or whether there are games that are, say, only compatible with the 800.

The 800XL does seem to be popular among retro gamers.

As far as games go, I'd look for carts. The disk-based stuff is really rare and easier to find on C64 or DOS-PC.

Yep, I am definitely interested in the cartridge-based stuff.

On ebay I can find a little bit of everything. I assume that the 400 must be the base model since it seems to be the cheapest. The 800XL is going for significantly higher prices but the 600XL seems to be reasonable.

I didn't know about the Atari XEGS though. I will keep my eyes peeled for that one.

[samsonlonghair]

Atari XEGS seems like the best of both worlds if you can stomach the pastel-easter-egg-decorated console. I think the games are cool. I love the idea of playing 5200 games with a better controller...but man...those pastels.

[ApolloBoy]

The problem with the 600XL is that it only has 16K of RAM, which will really limit the games you can play. A lot of great Atari 8-bit games require 48K or more (even some of the cartridge-based games), so I'd recommend tracking down an 800XL or any of the XE computers. Plus, the 600XL only has RF output whereas the 800XL and the XEs at least have composite video.

Also for disk-based games, you've got several modern options, such as the SIO2PC (which allows you to use your computer as a virtual disk drive) or the SIO2SD (lets you load disk images from an SD card). Disks for the A8 are hard to come across and you won't run across any compatibility issues using modern solutions. There are also flash carts for the A8 like the MyIDE II and Ultimate Cart which are perfect for the cart-based games.

[noiseredux]

in the past I've looked into getting the hardware required to make a floppy disk drive in a modern PC be able to read old Atari ST, Amiga, etc disks. I feel like that'd be pretty cool. Though not cheap.

[noiseredux]

BTW, there's this project that SUPPOSEDLY allows for reading Atari ST floppies on a modern PC.

https://strecover.codeplex.com/

It requires an internal non-USB floppy drive to work. But if it really does work, it's certainly interesting as the research I've done into getting Amiga floppies to read on a modern PC involves buying expensive hardware like the CatWeasel floppy controller, etc. This would be a software solution.

I'm not 100% sure if it requires a specific internal drive, though.

I've never really looked into internal floppy drives for modern PC's... do SATA floppy drives exist even?

[CRTGAMER]

It's not the 7800 that's comparable to the 8-bit computers. It's the 5200.

8-bit computer cartridges are essentially identical to their 5200 counterparts, but with way better (Atari 2600 style) controls.

Yep, I am definitely interested in the cartridge-based stuff.

On ebay I can find a little bit of everything. I assume that the 400 must be the base model since it seems to be the cheapest. The 800XL is going for significantly higher prices but the 600XL seems to be reasonable.

I didn't know about the Atari XEGS though. I will keep my eyes peeled for that one.

I remember that Atari XEGS console with the pastel buttons! However, I don't think Atari 5200 carts would fit it. Not sure on the Atari computer game carts though. Bones description of the 400-800 is true, the 5200 games look nearly identical. Too bad the carts are not interchangeable though some games have been "homebrew" converted to the 5200 console.

Buy the Atari 800
Avoid the 400, the flat "touchpad" keyboard is crap. The 400/800 series have an "Apple II" bay at the top for multiple carts, with neat mod inspired slots for variuos game and utility carts. Look for the better E.T. game on the old Atari computers.

All 8 bit computers are great game consoles, having game carts, floppy disks and can be hooked up to a regular TV.

Interesting Computer Market History read I found while looking for an image.
http://koleksi-info.blogspot.com/2005_1 ... chive.html