What older systems (pre-1983) are worth having and why?

[crux]

I recently bought a Colecovision and repurchased an Atari 2600 (I had donated mine years back), in each case for very limited reasons. I got the Colecovision for some of the trackball games and the Atari 2600, frankly, mostly for Warlords and because I never donated my games for it.

I soon realized how limited were the amount of trackball games for Celecovision (though some of them are original IPs, which is nice). I started looking at other options and decided to get a trackball for MAME use (X-Arcade) and soon realized that even Warlords is on MAME, meaning I could get an Atari 2600 controller adapter and play it via PC.

I'm now quickly becoming regretful of my retro purchases because I'm not sure what purpose they'll serve. Colecovision at least has some unique IPs, but aside from a very small handful of unique trackball games, there isn't much I desire on the system (I have the wheel module too, and Turbo is hardly worth playing). Between MAME and all the updates and compilations out there, I'm having trouble thinking of many excuses to own the consoles. MAME is one of the few things I will emulate with, because of the difficulty in finding and using the circuit boards for the games, never mind all the varying controls and cabinets that exist. I'm also a fan of pure arcade ports, as most of the arcade games from that era were far superior to the console ports. With that noted, what else can be found on Colecovision or Atari 2600 that can't be found elsewhere?

And, for that matter, what other systems pre-1983 are worth owning? Commodore 64 sticks out the most, but the library is intimidating, to say the least.

[Ack]

If you really want some of the arcade games on a home console, might I suggest the Vectrex? It's the closest many of us would ever come to a true vector-based arcade machine, and it's got a very active homebrew community, so new unofficial games are still being made for it. Plus, since it's got a built in vector monitor, you don't have to worry about setting it up. It was released in 1983, so I don't know if it meets your age requirement.

[crux]

I wasn't trying to be exclusive with the year. I was mainly thinking of the video game crash followed by NES, so I was trying to discount NES, Master System, Atari 7800, etc., which I know plenty about. I'll look into Vectrex, honestly. I've heard about it, of course, but I never thought about owning it. Of course, if my wife saw yet a FOURTH monitor in our basement, well, I'm not sure what she'd do.

Are any Vectrex games really worth it aside from the novelty of a 3D imager? How are the homebrew games?

[Hatta]

The Vectrex is pretty unique, and worth having. Vector graphics are gorgeous.

I don't know what you don't like about the 2600 and colecovision. Yeah, you can emulate if you want, but why? If you like old arcade style action games, they're a must have. If not, don't bother.

Besides consoles, I've been having a good time with my Apple II. It's got a great library of early RPGs (Wasteland, Ultima), and adventure games (Zork, Mystery House). But again, you can always emulate those if you want.

Generally, if you're happy with emulation, there's little reason to own any console before the 32 bit era.

[crux]

Reread my post. I said I ONLY emulate MAME and that I prefer MAME to console ports because the arcade versions are often far superior (Atari 2600 is FULL of arcade ports, being that Atari made a lot of the arcade games). Missile Command, Centipede, Pac-Man, Space Invaders, Asteroids, etc., all look better and often play better in the original arcade form than on the ports from the consoles of that era (compilations and sequels or remakes on later systems finally caught up and sometimes surpassed, ie. Tempest 2000). And frankly, arcade games are my favorite games from that era - so why play the inferior ports?

I can probably find some games that weren't released for other systems, of course, but considering the monstrous amount of arcade titles available, compilations, remakes, and my ever-growing collection of games that I own but haven't played, how much value is there in the best of the first and second generation systems? I guess that's the real question.

That's easier to answer with Vectrix. Those games really are truly unique and can't be reproduced easily. I just don't know much about many of the games for it.

[Ack]

I'd say to take a moment to read over the Wikipedia article, as it's got a decent listing of games, both official and nonofficial. Also, while only two peripherals were released for the console, the homebrew community's also figured out ways to create imitations that serve the same purpose, so you don't have to hunt down the peripherals yourself.

As for games, stuff like Starhawk, Star Castle, Pole Position, and Rip-Off are all worth checking out. If you want, there's quite a few emulators for Vectrex stuff out there to try a few of these, though accurately portraying the color overlays is hit or miss.

[Hatta]

Well the first thing that comes to mind are all the Activision games that never made it to the arcade. River Raid, Enduro, Pitfall!, H.E.R.O., Spider Fighter, Keystone Kapers, stand out.

Also, if you like paddle games, Circus Atari is really good, and I don't think that was in the arcades.

I think Yar's Revenge was a 2600 exclusive.

Star Raiders kicks ass, but it's much better on the 5200 or an Atari computer.

That's all I've got for now.

Edit: Solaris is another must have for your 2600.

[nickfil]

Just my humble opinion, but when you start to emulate stuff on the pc, the only advantage that older systems start to have is to play them on the original hardware. Which, there is something to be said for that experience, but it isn't something that is required, and it is sometimes difficult to find controllers that are in good working condition pre 83.

Hell, with emulation in the state it is in, It is kinda hard to justify keeping anything that isn't one or 2 generations back in hardware if you are looking to save space.

[otaku]

I just picked up a vectrex very unique little system a must have imo just be warned while they're not too expensive finding spare controllers can be. I'd get one for minestorm alone. As for this emulation stuff I hate it for the most part you can't beat playing on a real machine like the 2600 (I plan on getting a heavy sixer from 77 soon for this reason) I only emulate when I have to (no way to buy the game/console because of extreme rarity etc) other systems...I find the bally astrocade interesting

[corn619]

I'm going to agree with Ack, the Vectrex is the most original system pre Nintendo. Theres nothing like it, nothing.