Comments on: Caveman Game Consoles

By: Chris P.

Chris P. — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:05:00 +0000

I still have a Coleco Telstar! It’s sitting in my basement next to my Atari 2600…

By: Ian Sokoliwski

Ian Sokoliwski — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 18:59:00 +0000

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!

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 19:54:00 +0000

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!

By: rob!

rob! — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 18:45:00 +0000

i bet that Telstar gave more people cancer than the set of The Conqueror.

By: Dancin' Homer

Dancin' Homer — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 17:25:00 +0000

cool, thanks gang. how many days til Christmas?

ps Chunky that is the console, with the controls attached.

By: Lady Jaye

Lady Jaye — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 17:00:00 +0000

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.

By: chunky B

chunky B — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 14:42:00 +0000

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.

By: Dancin' Homer

Dancin' Homer — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 14:29:00 +0000

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.

By: Arkonbey

Arkonbey — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 13:30:00 +0000

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.

By: Dancin' Homer

Dancin' Homer — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 11:18:00 +0000

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.