Atari Flashback 2.0 Reviews

• My favorite woodgrained system is back!

  
  By A2PXOP8AOGXQCO on 2005-05-24
  Imagine yourself at a flea market or garage sale. There's a big shoebox with 40 different Atari cartridges in it for 75 cents each. Interested in that dusty old junk? Maybe, maybe not ... but what if it were all neatly self-contained in one tidy, legally licensed package? Cool!
  
  What an improvement this machine is over the original "Flashback" console! The Atari Flashback 2.0 uses updated Atari 2600 VCS hardware, joysticks with the original "classic" feel, and 40 games built in. The joysticks aren't as nicely rubberized as the originals, but they feel similar, and if you had one of these systems in the 1980's, they'll immediately feel familiar to you.
  
  The hardware is well built and is quite faithful to the original controls. A nice touch: the included joysticks are compatible with vintage computers and consoles from the era, too. Hardwired AV cables provide cleaner video than the original system did, and allows you to attach this toy to any modern TV set, and an AC adapter lets you play without running out of battery power like similar toys. Modern users might be annoyed with the crude graphics and sound, plus the fact that you need to get up and turn the thing off and then on again to change games. There's no pause button should you need a bathroom break. That's the way things were in the 1980's, and that's the price we pay for fidelity to the source material.
  
  The console's built in 40 games are separated into "Adventure," "Arcade," "Space," and "Action/Skill" categories. There's enough variety here for everyone. Many of these games are "homebrews" and unreleased prototypes, meaning that unless you are a die-hard collector of Atari trivia, you haven't played these games elsewhere. Not even on an emulator running ill-gotten ROMs.
  
  The full list of games: 3D Tic-Tac-Toe, Adventure, Adventure II, Aquaventure, Arcade Asteroids, Arcade Pong, Asteroids Deluxe, Atari Climber, Battlezone, Caverns Of Mars, Centipede, Combat, Combat 2, Dodge'm, Fatal Run, Frog Pond, Hangman, Haunted House, Human Cannonball, Lunar Lander, Maze Craze, Millipede, Missile Command, Off the Wall, Outlaw, Pitfall, Quadrun, Radar Lock, Return To Haunted House, River Raid, Saboteur, Save Mary, Secret Quest, Space Duel, Space War, Video Checkers, Video Chess, Wizard, Yars' Return, and Yars' Revenge. Supposedly, there are some secret hidden "easter eggs," but I haven't found them yet...
  
  How did the games turn out? Well-known games came out just like the source material. That's good! They deliver a solid, nostalgic game experience. "Battlezone" (a last minute replacement for a homebrew that didn't make it-- and is MUCH better than the poor Flashback 1 version), "Missile Command," "Centipede," "Millipede," "Adventure," "Haunted House," "Combat," and "Yars' Revenge" -- many of these were included on other plug & play units as well as "Atari Anthology" and they work just fine here. If you're into Atari, you may well already have copies of these as they're pretty common. If not, you're in for a treat! Also included are the Activision mainstays "Pitfall!" and "River Raid," a nice touch.
  
  Some other old, familiar games don't hold up so well. They come off as primitive, but it's nice to see them here in the spirit of "family fun": Outlaw, 3D tic-tac-toe, Hangman, Video Checkers, Video Chess, Dodge'Em, Space War, Human Cannonball, Maze Craze are all here and playable. You might like them for some quick plays, but I would wager that many adults, let alone modern kids, would find them ugly and boring.
  
  Some rarities are included for those of us who don't like to spend hundreds of dollars on Atari games. Most of these were released late in the lifespan of the original system, so they show a little more technical flair than the early games. "Secret Quest" (designed by the founder of Atari, Nolan Bushnell) and "Off the Wall" are weird little games that are fun in their own way. "Radar Lock" appears to use the beautiful Solaris engine for an Afterburner-like game which is worth playing. "Fatal Run," only released in Europe, appears to use the Pole Position engine and adds some violent crash-em action to the racing. "Quadrun," an obscure title that fetches big bucks on auction, isn't much fun to play, and the game's main gimmick, a synthesized voice, didn't work on my unit. The manufacturer stated there was a problem with some of the chips in the early run which would be fixed later; since this was the only flaw I could find, I think I'll live with it.
  
  How are the homebrew and unreleased prototypes? A mixed bag. "Saboteur" appeared on Flashback 1 and is redone more faithfully here, but the game is unlikely to become a favorite. "Lunar Lander," while interesting and never seen before, is slow and flickery and looks nothing like the nice vector lines on the box. "Arcade Asteroids," "Asteroids Deluxe," and "Space Duel" are all tweaks on the old Asteroids game, offering a few different play modes but nothing radically new. "Yars' Return" and "Return to Haunted House" are modestly tweaked version of the originals -- in my opinion, these are sequels no one asked for.
  
  Don't despair, though, because there are better homebrews and prototypes on this thing: "Arcade Pong" uses the old Atari paddles if you plug them in when you choose the game, which give you much more control over this simple classic. "Save Mary" has excellent gameplay and graphics. "Atari Climber," also available on the GameBoy Activision Anthology set as Climber 5, is a fun little game that originally appeared on 8-bit computers. Another remake, "Caverns of Mars," is a flickery, upside-down River Raid-esque shooter that gets very manic very quickly, like a classic game should. "Frog Pond" features the best digital insects I've ever seen, and "Aquaventure"'s smooth scrolling and multiple screens suggest an early NES game. "Wizard" is a maze-bound shooter that doesn't seem finished but is still compelling to play, and if you liked "Combat" and "Adventure," the unimaginatively titled "Combat 2" and "Adventure 2" are here for your amusement and are worth trying.
  
  For the hacker, there are instructions on the internet to solder a ribbon cable to the motherboard and add an Atari cartridge slot. This would allow you to play just about any released Atari VCS cartridge, but will void your warranty should you mess something up. I wish there were a simple way to get some of my favorites into the system, like "Solaris" (iffy version on the Flashback 1), or any of the non-Atari games that didn't make it for licensing reasons.
  
  This is a great value for people who like classic games!
  
  

• Many of Your Favorite Atari Classics in One Unit

  
  By A3KY68OTSNHM3G on 2005-11-16
  This great game system contains 40 of the original Atari 26000 games. Included are such classics as Combat, Asteroids, Adventure, and Pitfall. Two classic joystick controllers are also included. The set-up is quick and easy. Just plug the unit directly into the i/o jacks of your TV and plug in the ac adapter to an outlet.
  
  The game graphics are exactly the same as they were on the original Atari games. I loved playing Atari games as a teenager, and this game contains not 1 but 40 great games. The price is what makes this game such a great value. For about $30, you get 40 games. When the Atari 2600 was first introduced, a single game cost upwards of $30.
  
  I highly recommend this great game unit. With the fast and easy set-up, you'll be playing your game in a matter of minutes. The games are exactly as they were years ago, and they are just as much fun now as they were then. My children especially like this game, but I enjoy it as much as they do. Pick up this great game value and enjoy a "blast from the past" from Atari.
  
  

• ... And in The Beginning, there was Atari...

  
  By A2DXOD9HQBE1FL on 2006-07-30
  What a blast from the past. I bought the Atari Flashback 2.0 as a sort-of-joke present for my sister's birthday a few months ago. My girlfriend returned the favor for my birthday just last week, and we took it with us on vacation, to a peaceful lakeside cabin where there's little more than a few books and a television that gets no reception to pass the time. My daughter and I spent a few hours over the course of three days playing pretty much every one of the 40 games included.
  
  First of all, at less than thirty bucks, the price is attractive for a trip down memory lane, and the Flashback really is a blast from Atari past. The console is simple to set up, right out of the box. it took about two minutes to get everything plugged in and to start playing.
  
  Those are the pluses. Unfortunately, that's about it. My memory of most of these games is vague, but even the best of them seemed a lot more fun when I was twelve years old, spending long afternoons at the supermarket or arcade, feeding hundreds of dollars in quarters into the Asteroids machine, and playing until I was the undisputed master of the neighborhood.
  
  Even my favorites have mostly been changed here, subtly tweaked so that they're not quite the games I remembered. The graphics are, of course, primitive, which is fine - even my eleven year old daughter, raised on Playstation and XBOX, had some fun, notably with Millipede. But here's a question: If you've already got Millipede, why include Centipede - which is basically the same game, but not as much fun? If I remember right, Atari released hundreds of games, and many of the better ones could've been included here instead of junk like Video Checkers and 3D Tic-Tac-Toe. A good bunch of the games in the package are buggy (Space Duel in particular - ships would disappear for no reason, leaving a lone player to shoot at himself, racking up points for the other player until the game ends...?), and others refused to play at all. Even my daughter (who is as good and intuitive a gamer as they come) had a difficult time figuring out how and when to use the select and difficulty buttons, or even if and when they apply to a particular game. The 'instruction manual' was absolutely no help. The revamped joysticks are stiff, making for jerky movements while playing, causing all sorts of problems (however, they may loosen up over time). Having to hit the Power button every time you want to switch to a new game is almost as annoying as having to take the time to swap cartridges, and the way the game files are needlessly laid out in sub-headed sections is irritating at best.
  
  Thirty bucks seems cheap for any game system these days, especially when you consider the forty 'classic' games programmed into this unit. But while we had some fun over the weekend, we flipped through most of the games quickly and only spent any real time playing a small handful of them. For us, I think the real test of this unit will come about six months down the road, if it's still hooked up to the TV at home, or stuffed in the box at a garage sale, right next to an original Atari and shoebox full of dusty old cartridges. We'll see...
  
  

• Classic Atari Goodness!

  
  By ANSQT1S929OX2 on 2005-11-18
  Like other reviews have said this Atari plug-n-play product is the real deal! It comes with 20 Classics, the other 20 games are prototypes and 'homebrew' games made from hobbiest programmers. The game Atari Climber is an example of a 'homebrew' game written in 2005 that is included in the flashback. Each game looks, sounds, and plays exactly the same as they did in the 1980s!
  
  Others have complained about the manual not being well detailed. If you memory is fuzzy on these old games you can to this page on Atari's site.
  
  http://www.atari.com/us/games/atari_flashback2/7800
  
  You can view it online or download a PDF file for printing. The PDF version is 110 pages and goes over each game in great detail.
  
  For $30 this Atari product is a steal.
  
  

• A flawed little gem

  
  By A5FUE9LBQIW1Y on 2006-07-18
  It's a shame that once again what should have been a great little system was rushed out onto market with little or no QA testing. Out of the 40 games included, over a dozen will be unfamiliar to most people since they're either new titles created just for the FB2 or old ones that were never released (and the reason they weren't is because they're not fun to play). Rather strange considering this system is called the "Flashback". Most of the new games are hacked versions of older ones, with some being completely unplayable due to poor programmer. Actually some of the built-in games don't even run correctly! The lineup of titles included is pretty weak overall, considering there were 100s of games that were released for the original Atari 2600. I suppose an argument can be made as to why games like 3D Tic-Tac-Toe and Video Checkers are included, but I personally don't remember playing them very much (and Video Chess runs so slowly, nobody would waste time trying to play it these days). Centipede and Millipede are great games, but why do we need both here? And why clunkers like Human Cannonball were included instead of more well-known games like Space Invaders makes no sense.
  
  The manual is VERY light on information - descriptions for each game are reduced to a single paragraph, and there's no mention of what the difficulty switches do for each one. I guess it doesn't matter since there's no way to tell which way you have them set.
  
  The menu is more complicated than it needs to be, as there are 5 different categories (for only 40 games), and space games like Asteroids and Space Duel are in the "arcade" section, instead of the "space station" section (and vice-versa). One simple list of all 40 titles would have been much better.
  
  As far as modifying the system to use actual cartridges, don't bother. Due to internal hardware problems, there are incompatibility problems with dozens of games, including some of the most popular titles such as Boxing, Berzerk, Cosmic Ark, Decathlon, Dig Dug, Galaxian, Hero, Mario Bros, Pitfall 2, etc....
  
  About the only real positive thing I can say about the system is the redesigned joysticks, but since there's so many problems with the system, you'd be better off using the joysticks on a real 2600 system. Whatever the reason(s)/excuses for the problems, dumping flawed product on consumers is a lousy thing to do, and this company has done it more than once, most notably with the original Flashback (1) model. For the price that these are selling for, you can pick up a Jakks Activision 10-in-1, Atari's 10-in-1, and Atari's 13-in-1 paddle TV systems.
  
  
  
  
• Flashback 2 Rocks!
  By A1R0JOJTT4LBT3 on 2005-11-17
  This retro system is great. I just bought one and played it last night. The collection of games is good, though missing are some beloved classics like Ms. PacMan, Defender-Stargate, Space Invaders and Galaxian. I think this was because of licensing reasons. Oddly enough though, Activision's Pitfall and River Raid were included because of a deal Atari worked out. That was a nice touch. In any case, the system works great right out of the box and will attach to any modern television with ease. (If you ever tried using an old 2600 with a newer t.v., you know what I mean. Those front-connector A/V jacks on t.v.'s are nice, but not compatible with the old "2600 VCS".) Not so with the Flashback 2 - just plug it right in!
  
  From what I have heard, there are also two "hidden games" that can be unlocked through a series of joystick movements. Apparently these two games require paddle controllers though, so I am not sure most people will care anyway. (I doubt many people out there have old 2600 paddle controllers on hand anymore.)
  
  I only have two complaints about this system. One is the sparse instruction manual included. When you have 40 games included, you would think the manual would be more than a few pages. How in the world are we supposed to know which game options in Asteroids, for instance, gives us "shields" instead of "hyperspace" when we pull back on the joystick? Again, a little more detail would have been helpful here. Either you have a REALLY good memory or just go through trial and error until you figure it out.
  
  The other complaint is the lack of a cartridge port on it. Since this system uses actual 2600 technology inside (instead of an emulator like the Flashback 1), it is possible to attach a cartridge port to the system and play additional games you may have on hand. Apparently hackers can find the instructions on how to do this on the Internet, though must of us would not feel comfortable attempting it. (Besides that, it would void the warranty.) I love the idea of having 40 games built in, but it would be even nicer to have a cartridge port too!
  
  If you think about it, one has to wonder why Atari just does not re-release the original 2600 or 7800 with modified Audio/Video connectors. If they priced it reasonably, people would buy a ton of them! Oh well, until that happens, the "Flashback 2" is well worth the money. It's a ton of fun for the whole family!
  
  
• The KING of all Plug and Play
  By AS20FJDG82XFZ on 2005-08-14
  Ok, its not completely perfect, but its darn close!
  
  The packaging is retro looking, the system itself is so cute..
  Joysticks are authentic, and work perfectly.
  Also, it comes with an Ac Adapter.... No more batteries!
  
  The games are good, and since this has a real " atari on a chip" , they are completely accurate, and not emulated like those other systems.
  
  Overall the system is any Atari 2600 fans dream come true.
  
  If I had anything negative to say it would be that I wish it would have more games, I miss Defender, Berzerk, Donkey Kong, etc...
  
  Honestly, you have to get this if your an Atari fan... There is no question...
  
  Check your local stores as many of them now have these in stock.
  
  
• The fun is back! Um....sort of.
  By A1QNBPT4NA1XU7 on 2005-08-22
  Ok, when I first saw this on the shelf at Walmart, I was a bit skeptical. The vintage-style box caught my eye right off the bat, but horrid visions of the first Flashback (which I bought...then resealed and RETURNED) filled my head. With that awful unit, the controllers were too small and stiff, and the games, well...they just weren't themselves (compare "Haunted House" on the Flashback to the same game on the "Atari Anthology" disk for the consoles, and you'll see what I mean). However, this new unit beckoned to me with the promise of several NEW games ("Adventure 2?!?" "Return to Haunted House?!?" SOLD!), and I bought it and took it home.
  
  Upon opening the box, I was hit with the "Awwww" cuteness factor of the li'l, 2/3 size replica of the old 2600, complete with fake wood grain on it's front edge! No cartridge slot (obviously), and big buttons instead of switches, but close enough! The next pleasant surprise; FULL SIZE joysticks!! Whoopie!! And they feel JUST like the originals! But, how were the games? Since everyone knows how the originals play (and, here, they play/sound/look EXACTLY as they should), I'll just touch on a few of the new "homebrew" games;
  
  Adventure 2; It's more like "Adventure Deluxe", since it plays exactly the same as the original, but with a MUCH larger kingdom to wander around in. I don't quite get the "water" boards, though...even with the bridge, you can't really get anywhere.
  
  Return to Haunted House; I was honestly a bit disappointed with this one. Instead of playing like a sequel, it plays EXACTLY like a modified version of "Adventure"; your character is a square instead of eyes (there are no matches to keep lit), a ladder (I think; more on this in a minute) replaces the bridge, a scepter replaces the sword, which gets rid of the ghosts which have replaced the dragons, as you hunt through "Adventure"-like boards for the flashing skull of Old Man Grimes that has replaced the flashing Magic Chalice. What happened? There was SO much promise with this one.
  
  The other "new games" are a mixed bag at best (as a scuba diver, I particularly enjoy "Aquadventure", I just had to figure out how to PLAY it). The games would be more enjoyable if (and here's my other BIG beef) they had MORE DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS! (...) Well, good luck with that; as of this writing (8/22/05) all that does is lead you to a pre-order screen for the unit! Perhaps, once Atari gets on the ball and UPDATES the site, things will make more sense! Also, my one final wish for this would have been some type of card slot, for future add-ons, such as licensed games like Ms. Pac-Man and the Star Wars titles. Dinosaurs for sure in this day and age, but still SORELY missed. And yes, the unit is designed to be "hacker-friendly" to add a cartridge port, but not ALL of us are tech-heads that are skilled with a soldering iron!
  
  
• ITS LIKE PAC-MAN FEVER, without the PAC-MAN!
  By A27P0MW8TE1JQP on 2006-01-03
  a GREAT way to relive the 80's without all that hairgel. The scaled-down look of the ATARI 2600, the godfather of the home play systems, is reproduced without all the dusty cartridges. The Flashback includes 40 classic Atari games (and others from Activision) with gameplay on the original joystick design and the original game variations and difficulty settings. Games like Battle zone, Combat, Outlaw, Adventure, Pitfall, River raid, Lunar lander, Missile command, Yar's Revenge and Return. I was pleased with the Flashback on most points,having lost my original 2600 in Katrina, but was disappointed by the absence of a few favorites of mine like: Night Driver and Warlords. I also would have liked a paddle variation for the set. Speaking of paddles, Flashback II. included Pong, but ours didn't work right.
  
  
  Warning: Do not to confuse this system with Atari FlashBack (no Roman numeral) which has the 2nd gen. controlers and less games (it retails for under $20.)
  
  
• Trip Back in Time
  By A1HT2LV0Z1A1CS on 2006-08-09
  I have an Xbox but when I purchased this game it was like stepping back in time. I spent more time playing the atari than I ever had my Xbox.
  
  
• ...And now I have it at last!
  By A2LTX6V3SUL7NJ on 2005-12-15
  After months and months of waiting,I finally got my very own
  Atari Flashback 2.0 in the mail. YAY! Now as before, it has two
  joystick replicas, which can be tiring to use after a while. The system is as small as the new,slim PS2.The box came with an a/v cable,and the system also has a Black and White button on the back to which you can change the color on some games.The front of the system has a fake woodgrain design, not to confuse you. Overall, the system was fun, and I play it when I have that classic feeling inside me. Now, to the games. There are more than 40 games to play, 2 hidden games to which you have to unlock, and alot of the games are unreleased prototypes. Return to the Haunted House is a Haunted House-meets-Adventure game. (Still can't escape the ghosts.)(...) Wizard is a game in which you fight imps in a labryinth with your magic attack. It has become my new favorite, but why do the imps look like vortexses? Arcade Pong looks no different than the arcade version. Battlezone is still as fun to play as in this system as on my Atari Anthology. Millipede is an unreleased 2600 game. Quadrun... Don't see why it's so rare... Sabotaur is fun, but I still can't figure out how to damage the boss. Combat 1 and 2 were fun, especially that you have heat-seeking missiles in the 2nd one. Fatal Run, only in Europe, is a fun shoot-and-ram driving game. And Pitfall is the best Activision game I've played. Those are the reviews for these games. And for the system, there are secrets in it. You can hack into your 2.0 to add a cart. slot to which you can play other 2600 titles. You can use the original paddle and driving controllers. (I wonder if the Trackball controller works for the system?) And the last, and of course, two hidden games to unlock. I highly recommend getting this system, it truly is the king of Plug and Play games. I have to admit, it can get pretty boring after playing this system for days, but not to where I would sell my system. So go get this system!
  
  
• Finally, Retro gaming the way it was meant to be!
  By A4L1VX0WYE0E5 on 2006-01-13
  The folks who put this system together did it right. The games themselves are exactly like us older folks remember. The version of asteroids that's included looks a little bit different as far as graphics go, but the actual gameplay is the same as the original 2600 asteroids.
  
  The joysticks that come with the game feel very, very similar to the original controllers, I even got a mild dose of carpel tunnel after a couple of hours..just like in old days!
  
  The best part about this package is getting that old atari feeling going again. Over the years I've bought other atari compilation programs for other game systems that promised the games would we be the same, but they fell short, the gameplay was way different and in the end, weren't really fun.
  
  This system delivers what it promises, the true original atari experience!
  
  
• This IS THE system to own...
  By A2D8OM8XL872DO on 2005-06-02
  Despite lack of an actual cartridge slot (due to a lack of willingness to support 20+ year old cartridges on Atari's part) the board is layed out in such a way as to make it an easy hack to add-on... Voiding the warranty of course, and requiring mods to the cover, but I bet we'll see some nifty kits out there in a few months so start collecting those cartridges now!
  
  
• Still waiting.......
  By AWFDT2F7JLN9L on 2005-09-19
  The first Atari games I ever played was on my Atari Anthology on my
  XBox system. Overall, I had fun playing the ones I liked, like Asteroids, Pong, Swordquest: Waterworld (still can't beat) (...),
  and Realsports Football. When I went to Gamestop at Crossroads Mall, that's when I saw the Atari Flashback. I looked at the box, being curious of it. I was about to order here, when I carefully read everyone's reviews about it. I was shocked at how much problems the Plug N' Play system had. A person said that some of the games had glitches and a lot of flickering in them, and the fact that the poor replicas of the Atari 7800 controllers could give you carpal tunnel easily. Plus, it was only completed in ten weeks, TEN WEEKS!?!?! So I gave up on the Atari Flashback, but then I heard of a second Atari Flashback coming out. The console looks nice, the controllers look just like real Atari joysticks, there are more then 40 games to play, and Atari is working on it much longer then the first.If you were at the E3 convention, you probablly got to play a demo of the Atari Flashback 2.0, WHAAAAAAA!!!! I WANT TO GO TO THE E3 CONVENTION!!!! I've printed off several reviews of the Atari Flashback 2.0, so if you've seen this system for the first time, let me tell you stuff about it. When you get your very own system and open the box, you'll see two replicas of the Atari joysicks, the seemingly cute replica of the Atari 2600 system,a a/v connector, and... it's all ready for you to hook up to any t.v.! And unlike the old Atari 2600 system, it will have large buttons on the front, which are the Power, Game Reset, Left and Right Difficulty, and Game Select buttons. But keep in mind, you'll have get up over and over and over to switch games. The Joysticks should feel familiar to any person who's own a Atari 2600 system, because of rubber grips on the joysticks.
  Now to move away from the System to the games. There are, like I said before, over 40 games to play. My favorites for now are Adventure 1 and 2, Arcade Asteroids, Arcade Pong, Asteroids Deluxe, Centipede, Combat 1 and 2, Dodge'm, Hangman, Haunted House, Millipede, Missle Command, Outlaw, Radar Lock, Return to the Haunted Mansion, Pitfall, and Saboteur, the unreleased Atari 2600 game. The system will run 21.5 hours straight in stable operating condition on 3 AA's. If you were to order this system online at Gamestop, you would have to wait until October the third to get it, which I'm still waiting on (...) Well that's all to tell you. And remember, if you plan to get the first Atari Flashback, drop it and get the Atari 2.0 instead. Well later everyone, I shall make another review once I have my own.
  
  
• A Great Present for Gamers
  By A1XNWHNTO9B72T on 2006-02-01
  I bought this for a guy I work with and he loves it. He has been into gaming for a long time so I figured this might be a lot of fun for him. Sure enough he has been playing it a lot and has been telling me how many memories it brings back. I am not as much of a gamer but because of how much fun he has had with it I think I am going to order one for myself. When having friends over it would be a lot of fun to bring back memories of playing centipede, asteroids, missle command, etc.
  
  If you are looking for a decent priced present for someone who loves gaming this system should score big. Obviously it is not for someone who is only into the newest games but anyone who has a history of gaming will really enjoy this as a gift.
  
  
• Everything I thought it would be and more
  By A3HVD67LRFB1DJ on 2006-02-24
  So much fun to play, I have my 5 year old niece playing pong and all the other great games.
  easy to use. great for everyone!
  
  
• Original FUN restored, some functionality removed
  By AOTA4PIBX6OZX on 2006-12-05
  ATARI was my first gaming system. Buying the flashback2.0 and playing has been a journey down memory lane. It has the same feel. setup was easy and the games come included. fun fun. Nothing has been changed, graphics in particular. I gave it 4 stars because they took away some functionality. for example, in the original system you can the joysticks had more functionality of re-starting the game etc. but in the flashback2.0 you have to get up everytime and use the console to start a new game, that is kind of a bummer. I have not fully explored it yet, so I might be wrong .. but the system is so simple n stripped that I do not see what I might have missed exploring ..
  
  have fun .. for 19.99 this was a no brainer.
  
  
  
  
• ahh...memories.....
  By A1P6XPCNWY6YO6 on 2007-03-22
  this thing is almost a dream come true. I remember wasting so many precious hours of my childhood on the atari game system. I think the atari flashback is big step towards redefining what REAL gaming is. The games present on this machine are tough...some are even bone crunching hard (caverns of mars, missle command and atari climber to name a few) and rather limited I might add. While I love the inclusion of Adventure and Pitfall (even the addition of Adventure 2 and haunted house 2 is a nice touch), I still find myself flipping past game after game that fails to hold me captive by its gameplay. Sure, these games are suppose to be challengin, but when the object of the game is obsure and I'm fumbling around with no guidance on what to do, I'm left reseting and trying the next game out only to findout that it's the same deal. Another thing is the reseting itself. If I want to change games I have to turn off the machine and turn it back on. Maybe in future releases of flashbacks Atari will include a "menu" button. I think the addition of certain titles such as stampede, barnstorming, freeway, journey escape, frogger and warlords might boost the appeal of the flashback as those games had a higher replay value than most fot he ones listed. Other than that, I'm enjoying the selection overall, which includes river raid, battle tank, combat, pong (gotta love pong!) and caverns of mars. In all, it's worth a purchase and a welcome sight to a market saturated with over complicated button configurations and painstaking real life graphics that suck out all manner of imagination within the human mind's potential. I find it's a treasure that will be passed down in my house to show my kids what real gaming is all about.
  
  
• Could have been better.
  By AXF3X7HM82ID on 2007-07-12
  I was planning on buying an old original 2600 off eBay till I learned of this little gem. It's half the size of the original console with 40 games built right in, and it's cheap. But there are enough drawbacks to make me wish I'd gone my original route.
  
  1. Although this console includes many of my childhood favorites (Adventure, Combat, Yar's Revenge, Pitfall and River Raid) it left out some very obvious choices that were hugely popular in the day (Pac Man, Defender, Space Invaders, Frogger and Pole Position to name a few) and replaced them with some rather lame games that I've never heard of before and got bored with very quickly. One of them, Frog Pond, is an unreleased prototype. Your going for nostalga here, now's not the time to be breaking new ground with your customer base.
  
  2. It lacks a cartridge slot. I've never counted them all, but I'm sure there have been over 1,000 games made for this system. Everyone has an obscure favorite, and it would have been great if we had the option of using this system to play them.
  
  3. Several games wouldn't work or were full of bugs. I've counted 3 so far, and I haven't cycled thru them all yet.
  
  4. Some of the games are watered down departures from the originals. The version of Asteroids on this system had terrible graphics (even by Atari 2600 standards) and I was not once assaulted by a UFO.
  
  So overall I applaud the concept, but I believe it could have been a whole lot better with relatively minimal effort. It smacks of a rush job.
  
  
• Nice little retro unit
  By A32BHDDDOLQUR8 on 2005-12-24
  As a bit of a caveat, I am speaking from the perspective of a 30 year old male... this system directly appeals to my age and gender group. I am not sure how the current set of eight year olds will care for these relatively primitive graphics and controllers... but these games are really, really fun for me! Big plus for getting pitfall and river raid on here... maybe the next version will pick up the remaining few games left to have. And who knows, if this sells well enough this month, could a Nintendo version be far behind?...
  
  
• i like it
  By on 2005-12-27
  i got this game for my mom havnt really played it but my mom likes it so im happy
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• a blast from the past!!
  By A82GQPXG0JUV on 2006-02-28
  This is a really fun game!! it has 40 different games but the only drawback is theres really only about 10 of them worth playing! But 10 games for the price isnt bad. Thats why i only gave it 4 stars. I really like centipede and millipede the best!! So id recommend it for the price!
  
  
• this system is cool!!!
  By on 2006-05-06
  this is a vary cool retro 2600 . it is great for your mom & dad I highly recmand it!
  
  
• Flashing back may be a mistake
  By ACHBT3MZEGJNU on 2006-07-03
  Nostalgia for the old games/games system? Bought this for a Father's Day gift, both dad and boys loved the concept and the games contained - fun! BUT unit died after 10 minutes of play. Sent it back to Tiger Direct, who was out. So I just ordered another from Overstock, and we'll see how this one behaves.
  
  
• I LOVE IT!!!!!! 4.5 out of 5
  By on 2006-07-18
  The Atari 2600 was releaesd in 1977 and became popular in the 1980's.Well this game is awsome and the best since Atari anthology.I like all of the games but my favorites are Centipede,Millipede, Astroids,and Astroids deluxe. Please buy this plug'n' play game.It's even got some never before released games
  
  
• Don't waster your money
  By A13KDY3SC23GN6 on 2006-12-10
  What a waste of time and money. The graphics are terrible, the joy sticks don't work and this was just an overall disappointemnt. I was really looking forward to playing the OLD atari games, but I guess you get what you pay for. Really, don't waste your money on this!!!
  
  
• No Pac Man??
  By A2LFLM5W59NH1I on 2006-12-26
  Ok first of all I will say that to me I don't think this is very much worth owning... too many classics are missing to make it worth your while. Maybe it was a liscensing problem who kmows... But quintessential Atari games are not present. There is no Pac Man, Mrs. Pac Man, Chopper Command, Berzerk, Donkey Kong, Enduro, Grand Prix, Breakout, Phoenix, Pole Position, oh the list can go on. I will stick to my original 6 switcher and hope it never dies on me. The games on this unit are mildy amusing but like I said, you will keep scrolling down the list searching for the classics and they just aren't here in my opinion!
  
  
• Not like the original
  By A3VW31VKMM8N8T on 2007-03-21
  This Atari is smaller than the original and is very convenient to store and hook up. The games are all programmed in which saves the hassle of changing game cartridges. The games themselves don't seem to be the quality of the original, and several will not load. Maybe it's because I'm older now but they don't seem as fun as they used to. It's certainly worth the money, especially if you have little kids to share them with.
  
  
• Let Down at Christmas
  By A3A4W0UIMVILDL on 2007-01-18
  This was a huge disappointment. I purchased as a Christmas gift for my husband- who has never forgiven his father for giving his Atari system to Good Will 15 years ago. Only 2 or 3 of the games actually worked and to start a game over or start a new game, you have to power off the entire system. The only good thing I can say, is that Amazon returned the game system with no problem and gave us a $5 gift certificate.
  
  
• Fun Game
  By A1RHIBAXD8PMXG on 2007-01-19
  This is a fun game system but it doesn't include a Pac-Man game.
  
  

• Atari: The 80 Classic Games in One (Jewel Case)
• Atari Paddle Controller TV Video Game System with Games
• Jakks Ms. Pac-Man TV Game
• Atari Flashback Game System
• Atari Anthology