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The Atari 7800 is a video game console released by Atari in 1986 (a test market occurred in June 1984). The 7800 was designed to replace the unsuccessful Atari 5200, and re-establish Atari's market supremacy against Intellivision and Colecovision. With this system, Atari addressed all the shortcomings of the Atari 5200: it had simple digital joysticks; it was almost fully backwards compatible with the Atari 2600; and it was affordable (it was originally priced at $140 USD).
Summary
The 7800 was the first game system from Atari which was designed by an outside company (by the General Computer Corporation, future consoles designed outside the company were the Atari Lynx and the Atari Jaguar). The system was designed to be upgraded to a fully-fledged home computer — a keyboard was developed, and the keyboard had an expansion port (which was the SIO port from Atari's 8-bit computer line) for the addition of peripherals like disk drives and printers (this should not be taken to imply that this computer expansion would have allowed the 7800 to run programs designed for Atari's computers, as the two architectures were entirely different). GCC had also designed a 'high score cartridge,' a battery-backed RAM cart designed for storing game scores. Atari manufactured none of these accessories, and after the initial production run they also eliminated the expansion port. In 1987, the Atari XEGS was released and it came with a light gun, called the XG-1. The XG-1 was fully compatible with the 7800 and the 2600, and Atari released four games on the 7800 that utilized this peripheral.
The 7800 was test-marketed in southern California in June 1984. One month later, Warner Communications sold Atari to Jack Tramiel, who did not want to build a video game console. He pulled the plug on all projects related to video games and decided to focus on Atari's existing computer line in order to begin development of the new 16-bit computer line (which appeared as the Atari ST). The 7800 was re-introduced in winter 1986 after the success of the Nintendo Entertainment System proved that the video game market was still viable. Unfortunately, by the time the 7800 made it to market, the NES had 90% of the market cornered and the rival Sega Master System had most of what was left.
More on [ Atari 7800 ]
Has begun restoring an Atari 7800. Part 1) cleaning the case and components.
Ryuuzaki_L (L) Sun, 20 Dec 2009 03:07:09 -0000
Has begun restoring an Atari 7800. Part 1) cleaning the case and components.
Got an Atari 7800 from 1986 for $3
Ryuuzaki_L (L) Sat, 19 Dec 2009 19:48:30 -0000
Got an Atari 7800 from 1986 for $3
Playing the Atari 7800, its so epic
Skyjino (Nathan James) Thu, 17 Dec 2009 11:28:33 -0000
Playing the Atari 7800, its so epic
Killing some time playing some atari 7800 while the gf watches the hockey game.
hurt138 (hurt138) Thu, 17 Dec 2009 01:37:51 -0000
Killing some time playing some atari 7800 while the gf watches the hockey game.
[Blog] Classic Game Room HD - JOUST for Atari 7800 review: Classic Game Room was the FIRST c... http://www.xbox360livegoldcard.com/?p=1853
xboxgoldcard (Xbox Gamer) Wed, 16 Dec 2009 13:35:23 -0000
[Blog] Classic Game Room HD - JOUST for Atari 7800 review: Classic Game Room was the FIRST c... http://www.xbox360livegoldcard.com/?p=1853
Vintage Atari 7800 Pro System Video Computer System Bxd only $31.00 » http://bit.ly/7nNX0D #system
VintageGaming (Vintage Gaming) Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:54:37 -0000
Vintage Atari 7800 Pro System Video Computer System Bxd only $31.00 » http://bit.ly/7nNX0D #system
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AHS: Atari 7800 ProSystem - History and images of the system and peripherals.
Atari 7800 Archive - Contains instruction manuals, a game list, tips and tricks, screenshots, and scans of consoles, cartridges and controllers.
Meta Description: [ All things pertaining to the Atari 7800 ]
Atari 7800 Development - Homebrew project source code and development kit.
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Atari 7800 High Score Cartridge - Previously unreleased add-on peripheral now available for purchase.
Atari Flashback - Recreation of the Atari 7800 which includes 20 built in classic games.
Atari7800.com - Offers news, history, articles, and prototype information.
Classic Games: Atari 7800 - History, information, specifications, and items for sale or trade.
Meta Description: [ Atari 7800 video game system information ]
Dan B's Atari 7800 Tech Page - System specifications, source code, encryption information, and links.
Game Winners: Atari 7800 - Cheats, codes, hints, walkthroughs, and FAQs.
Meta Description: [ Cheats, codes, hints, walkthroughs, and FAQs for the Atari 7800 video game system. ]
The Video Game Critic's Atari 7800 Page - Contains reviews with screenshots.
Meta Description: [ Atari 7800 Game Reviews ]
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