I remember the day my dad brought home a telestar, he went up several points in popularity. a few years later with the onset of Atari and several (sleazy) arcades opening up in town, it made the ol’ telestar look down right Paleolithic.
AKA Brian Heiler author of "Rack Toys: Cheap, Crazed Playthings" and co-editor of "Toy-Ventures Magazine". Co-Host of the "Pod Stallions" podcast. Host of the Brick Mantooth Youtube channel, painter, designer, writer, mental health advocate, toy collector, Mego, and Mego Knock-Off enthusiast. I have large feet, ADHD and I live in Canada. Talk toys, not others. 
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Tennis, Handball, AND Hockey! Hard to tell from that ad that they weren’t the same game.
I had a unit like this that Atari made as a precursor to the 2600. It just played pinball and breakout, but the graphics were lightyears ahead of telstar, and it was in color! Then my friend got one that only played Combat. We thought we were the shit. But like you said, a short time later the 2600 came out and rocked our worlds.
ha! My dad made us a Pong from a Heathkit kit. Our TV, too for that matter. Thing lasted like ten years.
I wonder why ‘handball’ and not racquetball?
and Combat is still a pretty fun game, it’s not FF VII, but still fun.
I hear ya – all the games that Atari/Activision came out with over those early years, and I don’t know that anything ever really topped the simple fun of Combat, the game that came free with the 2600 console. Remember all the options? Ricochet bullets, invisible tanks . . . not to mention trying to figure out how to control those jets and biplanes. And there was that one game which was 3 tiny jets vs 1 huge plane – the jets always won!
I wish I could play those games right now.
I love how the console is the controller, or is that just the controller.
dancin’ homer, about a year or two ago they released a little reproduction of the 2600 console, the basic games were built into the console (no cartridges), my son picked me one up for Christmas and combat is still the most awesomest game! I showed all those young punks how games were played back in the day!
They also have one that has the games in an old style joy stick for about 10 to 20 bucks. Both of these should still be around.
That repro of the console that Chunky talks about is the Atari Flashback 2. The Flashback 2 doesn’t play cartridges out-of-the-box, but it was made so it can be hacked into a full 2600 console.
cool, thanks gang. how many days til Christmas?
ps Chunky that is the console, with the controls attached.
i bet that Telstar gave more people cancer than the set of The Conqueror.
I still recall the countless hours I spent in my darkened room playing the Aerial Aces game. Every time you hit one of the planes (made out of light), it would register and immediately be replaced with a lit up explosion. Ah yes…those were the days!
I so gotta get that Atari Flashback 2. To go with the copy of Rockband I’m picking up soon 🙂
I remember, we didn’t have the Telstar growing up – instead, it was some Radio Shack knock-off. I’d love to grab one of those as well!
I still have a Coleco Telstar! It’s sitting in my basement next to my Atari 2600…