REVIEWS | ATARI 2600
Second generation | 1977-1992 | cartridge
Games: 470 (unconfirmed) | Units sold: 30m
Originally released as the Atari Video Computer System (VCS) before being rebranded as the 2600 in 1982, the platform popularised many of the facets we have come to think of as console gaming norms, including swappable cartridges and a bundled joystick controller. Atari’s joystick port would become the industry standard for more than a decade. High-profile failures in the form of Pac-Man and hastily programmed tie-in E.T. the Extra Terrestrial hurt the brand’s standing, but huge sales for the likes of Frogger, Asteroids and Space Invaders showed fans of popular contemporary arcade games were responsive to playing them on a unifying home device. Its 30 million sales made it the first games console to become a mega-hit, whilst fifteen years at retail showed remarkable longevity.
Games: 470 (unconfirmed) | Units sold: 30m
Originally released as the Atari Video Computer System (VCS) before being rebranded as the 2600 in 1982, the platform popularised many of the facets we have come to think of as console gaming norms, including swappable cartridges and a bundled joystick controller. Atari’s joystick port would become the industry standard for more than a decade. High-profile failures in the form of Pac-Man and hastily programmed tie-in E.T. the Extra Terrestrial hurt the brand’s standing, but huge sales for the likes of Frogger, Asteroids and Space Invaders showed fans of popular contemporary arcade games were responsive to playing them on a unifying home device. Its 30 million sales made it the first games console to become a mega-hit, whilst fifteen years at retail showed remarkable longevity.
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