SharkyUK
ClioSport Club Member
I would guess that I'm probably one of the more mature (i.e. older) members on here so please don't be too upset if you haven't a clue what an Atari VCS 2600 is and why is was so great back in 1977... 
As some folks know I spent a good 12 years working in the games industry as a programmer (specialising in 3D graphics/visualisation) and have always had an avid interest in games and what drives them. However, my interest in games started a looooong time before that and my first 'proper' console was the mighty Atari VCS (later renamed the Atari 2600). I have numerous other consoles and nik-naks from over the years but I still regard the 2600 as the "one that started it all".
Anyways, I travelled up to see my folks this weekend and (as my old gaming stuff is still stored there) decided to get the Atari out for a dust down and a bit of a gaming sesh. Oh happy days... and oh my God how crap are some of those games that I remember so fondly... After a few hours of gaming and mixed emotions I decided to grab a few photos of the VCS part of my gaming collection. Here are the pics... (all items still 100% working!)
Here is the original 1977 beast and the iconic joystick!
And here are the famous Pong paddles (which were used for many games)
Here is the 'Jnr' version that I got in the mid 1980's...
Following are pictures of the 'manual' and various marketing flyers from back then...
I'll upload some photos of the game cartridges shortly...
As some folks know I spent a good 12 years working in the games industry as a programmer (specialising in 3D graphics/visualisation) and have always had an avid interest in games and what drives them. However, my interest in games started a looooong time before that and my first 'proper' console was the mighty Atari VCS (later renamed the Atari 2600). I have numerous other consoles and nik-naks from over the years but I still regard the 2600 as the "one that started it all".
Anyways, I travelled up to see my folks this weekend and (as my old gaming stuff is still stored there) decided to get the Atari out for a dust down and a bit of a gaming sesh. Oh happy days... and oh my God how crap are some of those games that I remember so fondly... After a few hours of gaming and mixed emotions I decided to grab a few photos of the VCS part of my gaming collection. Here are the pics... (all items still 100% working!)
Here is the original 1977 beast and the iconic joystick!
And here are the famous Pong paddles (which were used for many games)
Here is the 'Jnr' version that I got in the mid 1980's...
Following are pictures of the 'manual' and various marketing flyers from back then...
I'll upload some photos of the game cartridges shortly...
