My Arcade Atari Gamestation Pro Overview and Thoughts
Вставка
- Опубліковано 25 жов 2023
- Today we take a look at the My Arcade Atari Gamestation Pro and give some initial thoughts about the unit. It comes packed with over 200 games, but just under 140 of them are actual Atari stuff. You get games for the 2600, 5200, 7800, Arcade and some Piko Interactive license stuff for the Nes, Genesis or Mega Drive for those across the pond, Gameboy and a few arcade games from companies other than Atari. I haven't tested everything with the unit yet and the games will be listed below.
So if you want to add your own roms you'll want to source them off Google and make sure they have the following extensions for the following games. You'll want .a26 for 2600, .a52 for 5200, .a78 for 7800, .NES for Nintendo Entertainment System stuff, .bin for Genesis/Mega Drive games, and .GB for Game Boy stuff. People have also found ways to get Game Boy Advance and Master System games to work, but SNES doesn't seem to be on the unit. Also I find figuring out MAME and arcade roms to be a headache so I never messed with it, at least not yet. But there are certain games and rom packs that work too. Put your SD Card into your computer and make a "Games" folder on the main directory. You can NOT make sub folders or anything like that, so the games will show up on one massive list. I was also able to just rename the game files to get them to work on the Atari Gamestation Pro. So if they have .bin or something after you unzip them, you can literally just change the .bin to say, .a26 and they work.
The following games are preloaded onto the console when you receive it
Atari 2600 (82 Games total)
3D Tic-Tac-Toe
Adventure
Adventure II
Air-Sea Battle
Aquaventure
Asteroids
Atari Video Cube
Basic Math
Basketball
Bowling
Boxing (Activision)
Breakout
Canyon Bomber
Centipede
Championship Soccer
Circus Atari
Combat
Combat Two
Crystal Castles
Dark Chambers
Demons to Diamonds
Desert Falcon
Dodge ‘Em
Double Dunk
Drag Race
Fast Eddie
Fatal Run
Flag Capture
Football
Frog Pond
Golf
Gravitar
Hangman
Haunted House
Home Run
Human Cannonball
Indy 500
Maze Craze
Millipede
Miniature Golf
Missile Command
MotoRodeo
Night Driver
Off the Wall
Outlaw
Pong (Video Olympics)
Quadrun
Radar Lock
Realsports Baseball
Realsports Basketball
Realsports Boxing
Realsports Football
Realsports Soccer
Realsports Tennis
Realsports Volleyball
Road Runner
Saboteur
Save Mary
Secret Quest
Sky Diver
Slot Racers
Solaris
Space Raid
Space War
Sprint Master
Steeplechase
Street Racer
Stunt Cycle
Submarine Commander
Super Baseball
Super Breakout
Super Football
Surround
Swordquest: Earthworld
Swordquest: Fireworld
Swordquest: Waterworld
Tempest
Video Checkers
Video Pinball
Warlords
Wizard
Yars’ Revenge
Atari 5200 (7 Games Total)
Centipede
Frisky Tom
Meebzork
Millipede
Missile Command
Realsports Baseball
Realsports Basketball
Atari 7800 (10 Games Total)
Alien Brigade
Asteroids
Basketbrawl
Centipede
Dark Chambers
Desert Falcon
Food Fight
Motorpsycho
Realsports Baseball
Scrapyard Dog
Atari Arcade Games (39 Total)
Alpha One
Asteroids
Asteroids Deluxe
Atari Baseball
Atari Football
Atari Soccer
Avalanche
Basketball
Canyon Bomber
Centipede
Cloud 9
Crystal Castles
Dominos
Drag Race
Fire Truck
Food Fight
Gravitar
I, Robot
Liberator
Lunar Battle
Lunar Lander
Major Havoc
Millipede
Missile Command
Monte Carlo
Night Driver
Pool Shark
Quantum
Red Baron
Runaway
Sky Diver
Sky Raider
Space Duel
Super Breakout
Super Bug
Tempest
Tournament Table
Ultra Tank
Warlords
Bonus Games aka Piko Interactive Stuff (63 total)
Alpha One
Asteroids
Asteroids Deluxe
Atari Baseball
Atari Football
Atari Soccer
Avalanche
Basketball
Canyon Bomber
Centipede
Cloud 9
Crystal Castles
Dominos
Drag Race
Fire Truck
Food Fight
Gravitar
I, Robot
Liberator
Lunar Battle
Lunar Lander
Major Havoc
Millipede
Missile Command
Monte Carlo
Night Driver
Pool Shark
Quantum
Red Baron
Runaway
Sky Diver
Sky Raider
Space Duel
Super Breakout
Super Bug
Tempest
Tournament Table
Ultra Tank
Warlords
If you are interested in advertising or partnering, or even just talk you can email me at 7800progamer@gmail.com
You can also follow me on Twitter (X), Instagram or Facebook by searching for the 7800progamer!
The Atari Network has 3 goals (besides entertainment) that I hope embodies everything the channel does:
1. Bring awareness to Atari, especially the often ignored Tramiel and 7800 era
2. Make sure the hardworking people both new and old (from the old guard at Atari corp to the new developers keeping the 7800 alive) get the recognition that they deserve for their hard work
3. Preserve the history of Atari in the video game hobby so that it survives long after us
Check out my written reviews and all of Vinnies 20 years of hard work here
atari7800forever.com
Thanks for watching and please subscribe. It does way more than you'll ever know for me.
#atari #gaming #retro #retrogaming #myarcade #gamestationpro #plugnplay - Ігри
Hey guys! Just a couple things in addition to the video that I'll leave here. It was discovered that the Atari Gamestation Pro can also play master system and game boy advance roms as well. I haven't looked into this but that might affect your decision to get one so I think it's worth stating!
Some people want to know if they should get this or wait for the 2600+. And while I haven't played the 2600+ yet, I think it comes down to if you want actual cartridges or not. If yes then get the 2600 plus, but that lacks compatibility with 5200 as well.
As far as I can tell there is no way to pair Bluetooth controllers to the console but I may be wrong. The ones it comes with are wireless and work great but I assume you have to plug the new controller in. The only inputs are usb-c so I have no way to test any of mine on it. If anybody can clarify controller stuff please comment below.
Also the options are extremely limited. You essentially have aspect ratio (16:9 or 4:3) scan lines on off and how apparent they are, and borders. That's really it. No way to remap the controllers that I can tell.
Also I state probably too far into the video but the screen tearing was not present while playing the Atari Gamestation Pro. I'll have to fix my setup so that my videos don't introduce screen tearing...
Ok guys I think that's everything I missed, I hope you enjoyed the video!
The Gamestation and 2600+ are complimentary products not competitors. They serve different purposes. (imo)
Emulators and roms for non-Atari systems is an unexpected inclusion. It makes it a little more interesting to me. A shame no PC Engine/TG-16, though!
What would interest me would be Lynx and Jaguar games, those are the only two Atari systems I ever purchased. I’d love more than what is available in Atari 50th.
I would buy this device all over again just for the fact that with these joysticks, jumping in Mountain King is now a delight!
I am happy to see that you are not dismissive of the plug and play style of games. I was definitely technically challenged and intimidated by hooking up original hardware.
( I have since done so.) But a basic plug and play; that was just an Atari joystick with built in games, was a big step back into the world of Atari. Moved onto a Flashback, then Retron77 before getting the 7800.
These things definitely serve a purpose being a great entry for people to get back to Atari. And this one having the ability to play roms is a plus too. I just wish the compatibility was a bit better.
Isn't it funny how we all see things so differently (and I know you updated your review of this). I feel like this thing is a STEAL at $99.99. You get two controllers which I still think are not terrible, it's compatible with A ton of other controllers you can swap out, the SD card slot allowing unlimited game loading, and the ability to literally add games to the UI with boxart and everything. The GSP is awesome!!
Funny how I never use it and I play on my 2600+ so much more. Strange how that works....I think for the average user the GSP is the way to go!
I should do an updated video on this. Maybe something where I look at this, the 2600 plus and maybe the VCS or something and update my thoughts. Anyway...
I feel like if you want to emulate and already have some good USB C controllers then this isn't a bad option. You could go with the raspberry pi but if you don't want to do a bunch of setup and tweaking then the GSP is best. I personally just don't touch it much because I have most of this stuff in their original form but I honestly expected that...
Another entertaining video, I might grab one of these especially since you can play some of the homebrews bit pricey still in Canada though.
You didn't mention controller alternatives. My Xbox series controller (connected via usb-c cable) works extremely well. And yes, even with this omission, you earned yourself another sub!
Well thank you for the sub. Unfortunately I don't have an Xbox series x controller. I wanted to try a lot of the controllers I had but none of them are usb-c. I plan on buying an adapter to try some out and update everybody later, but I encourage everybody to give as much information as possible in the comments to help each other out!
This guy does a pretty in depth test on ann alternative controller to use. m.ua-cam.com/video/jD1RQ_3oK40/v-deo.html
Just bought it and I really like it but the joysticks don't travel very much. I wonder if you can fix that by loosening some screws on the inside?
Terrific review! This one is not for me as I have far better options for playing Atari games and for emulation. But I appreciate that a more casual fan may find a lot to enjoy here.
Good review, keep it up
Wonder when my pre-order is going to get here. Paid a scalper who bought it at Costco in September. It’s okay. Audio if using a wired Xbox controller etc has a lot of pops.
Good stuff! You could probably use a usb adapter for another controller. I love the look of it, might pick one up out in the wild. Thanks man!
I plan on trying an adapter soon. I let you guys know how it works!
I got mine for $50 clearance at Costco and it’s a mixed bag. The spinner works great and I love the 2600 and 7800 games. The bonus games are great also. Some of the Atari arcade games especially tempest look and play awful. I have tempest on my 1up and it’s night and day. My pi was having major issues and I’m glad that I could replace it with this. Sega cd bin files work in the same folder with the bios and playing snatcher worked like bread and butter with the Atari controller.
Hey great absolutly great review. I really liked how you focused on the 5200 and 7800 games. And the joystick. Question though? The joysticks are they clicky? I plan on loading up top gun, afterburner and several other shmups. Im dissapointed the pokey sound feature doesnt work, however did you load any 5200 homebrews? Anyway good job.🎉🎉🎉
I did play a few 5200 homebrews in the video I showed an Atari 8 bit conversion of necromancer. I also tried tempest and a few others. No issues so far.
The back trigger on the joystick is definitely clicky, the side and top button have a good feel but I wouldn't call them clicky per se. I hope that helps!
Just a heads up, Commando does have sound on 7800 or at least the version I tried.
I downloaded Trebors pack which has just about every 7800 rom available and I couldn't get sound out of any game that uses the pokey chip. This includes commando, ballblazer, Bentley bears crystal quest, donkey Kong PK, and many more. Im not sure what the difference would be in your rom but any Atari 7800 with advanced audio would not have sound for me.
Do you know if the included joysticks are just standard bluetooth controllers that could be hooked up to a PC? Or even as a wired controller?
They don't appear to be standard Bluetooth as I see no sync button or anything of the sort but I could be wrong. A usb c wire should work to plug it into a PC but I'm not sure how well they work as computer controllers and I heard the paddle controls only work for the handful of titles that use it on the system itself.
Radness!
How did controls work for Major Havoc? Was the rollerball emulated decently with (paddle,???? joystick???). Did you notice any input lag in general?
So you use the joystick for major havoc and it worked pretty good. I'm not familiar with the arcade as I've never seen a cabinet in person but it's definitely one of the more fun arcade games on the unit. I didn't notice any lag but jumping is a bit weird as you have to jump first and then move the joystick. Feels more like a design choice than anything else.
It will also play Arcade games, for the most part. Space Ace and Dragons Lair do not work. As far as the controller. I've been using a PS4 controller for the NES and Sega games. There are two ports in the front to connect different controllers
A curated collection of Atari 8bit computer games would have been nice. Joystick only computer games of course.
You know they did a commodore 64 mini so you might be onto something. A lot of people make comments about the 8 bits on the channel so there's a market I just don't know how big
I got it for 49.99 at target, great deal 😊
I'm glad they put a knob on the joystick for paddle games. I remember a while ago seeing the joystick and it didn't have a knob anywhere on the joystick, I'm like oh man, paddle games are going to be a pain to play.
But anyways I'll probably just stick to my S905x3 android box running emuelec.
Yeah the paddle on the joystick is definitely a plus.
Yeah the thing is anybody interested in emulation could do a lot more with a raspberry pi even so I'm not sure that this will be good for that. Unless you really like the form factor and controllers but even then I was disappointed with the 7800 emulation.
Still it can be fun and I don't hate it, it's probably more for entry level emulation and Atari fans getting back to the hobby...
With the Atari vcs or + the joystick is the paddle too. It spins around.
@@Xiy114 yes, I know the VCS has the paddle incorporated into the joystick (but I was really only talking about the game station), but the + (I guess you're talking about the 2600+?) has separate paddles, the joystick is the standard CX40.
Is river raid 1 and 2 on this
No you would have to load them on yourself.
I bought this but have found so far that the lag on the joystick to be so awful that the product is essentially unplayable. Haven't tried using the joystick in wired mode and/or using another controller.
are you using a power source of at least 5v and 2amps?
@@j.d.ramirez8102 Using an old iPhone charger with plug in via usb a at 5v 1 amp, so looks like I need to try a direct USB charger instead.
The power supply doesn't make a difference, nor should it. Though, just for kicks, I plugged both the console and joystick each into 65 watt laptop power supplies and as expected, it didn't make a difference. The killer here is that there is probably a full 200ms lag which is an eternity for these kinds of twitch games, and makes this thing completely unplayable for anyone who expects anything close to the original experience. It's really unfortunate since I really like this machine otherwise, but the lag on the stick--not to mention really flakey paddle control--just completely ruins the experience. Wish I had found this out before I bought it. [Edit] See my next post for a revision to this.
Just an addendum to my comment above. While performance remains the same whether plugged in or not, I discovered that the lag is NOT as serious as I thought and wanted to correct myself. It turns out that the lag was coming from the HDMI connection on the TV. Once I switched the TV to a game optimized mode, all of the serious lag went away. There is still a tiny amount, but it is now very playable.
Amazon has a $59 refurbished unit for sale. I think this should be the normal price point especially since the + has been released.
I just bought mine today for $50 new at Costco
The software supports sub folders. No need for a huge list. You can also plug in an XBox One controller using a USB A to C adapter - it's fully compatible so kiss your button woes goodbye.
Sigh. All of these consoles and games represented are so old, so, in my opinion, they should have had the complete library for them all and the addition of all the Lynx games and the Jaquar.
I am sure they could have had enough memory to fit them all in.
Instead of holding titles back for future purchase, they could make new ones, or remake old ones with better graphics and sound.
Wasn't expecting mono sound only!? Nobody seems to mention that..
Well mono would be accurate for most of this stuff as the original hardware of most of it output in mono, or so I think. I could be wrong. It could do stereo in the sense that it outputs the same sound to both speakers but honestly I didn't notice anything off to the sound in my testing...
The console only outputs to one speaker. I was chatting with another buyer who told me that My Arcade confirmed that this was intentional. He had bought one then returned and got another with the same issue. Ultimately returning the second one after My Arcade said the system doesn't support stereo.
There is an Atari 2600 game called River Raid ؟
Yes by Activision
THANKS@@TheAtariNetwork
Huh,no 5200 pac man,no 2600 space invaders,no arcade qwack,no arcade stunt cycles,what a shame.
Heck am surprised that not everything from both the 5200 and 7800 is emulated but it does support even other brand name consoles such as the grnesis and nes? Well because of this that product will feel strange to including atari itself (as if they tolerate doing such iligal practics am mean they never signed a deal with sega or nintendo to allow to use emulators from their specific consoles on theor new console,mmmm.
Not knocking this product,but I already have the Atari VCS if I want to stream the oldies. Gonna take a pass at this one, but eagerly await the 2600+
This seemed really silly to grab since its just an emulation machine. I did buy the 2600+ though
The Atari 2600+ also uses emulation to play game cartridges.
@@JackHammer77 yup I know.
No PITFALL, no HERO, no KABOOM, no LAZO. No good.
Don't want any hassle from Activision... Microsoft.
Ive read the game list and nothing stands out for me to buy it .
Betting it outsells the OG 7800, if it hasn’t, already. Of course, 150K units isn’t a high benchmark...
This is probably the guy that keeps changing the figure on wikipedia to the incorrect 150,000 which is a flat out lie. And there is 0 evidence to support it. The sales evidence points to somewhere around 3.77 million units sold and until somebody has proof otherwise that's the approximation we should all go with.
And yes the Jaguar sold somewhere around that number you are correct!
I don’t understand why they wouldn’t create modernized yet same simple charm versions of the classic games? Centipede, Asteroids, Missile Command, Pitfall, just to name a few. Just seems like a remarkably predictable thing to do.
My arcade wouldn't and I don't think Atari would do any work on behalf of a company just licensing their name and games. If you're looking for modernized versions of the classic try the Atari 50th collection as that has a few and the recharged games on switch, Xbox, PlayStation and steam. And the VCS but most people don't have that one...
@@TheAtariNetwork have you heard of this? UNI Atari Portable Gaming System with 100 Games?
There are plenty of re-skinned or updated versions. Probably thousands. This is for emulating the originals. Kinda like listening to an original band recording rather than a cover or tribute band version of a great song. The original recording by the original band might have worse sound quality, production values, bit rate, or frequency range than modern versions, but some may still prefer the original--strange as it may seem.
@@daviddahlstrom192 any suggestions for the updated versions you mentioned?
My God, if you want old graphics go for it
I have a 7800 don’t need that!
Joy-sticks are too Long.
Today's joysticks are too short.
Honestly tired Atari 2600 games. HA HA.😂😅😊
Atari has been garbage for a long time. Still is.