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Do you own a console now for different games than you had BITD?


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I was wondering this since I did own a NES back in 1988 and at the time didn't care much for it. I was never much into the Super Mario or other platform games. I played Duck Hunt more than SMB. I simply didn't like the style of game where you get so far, die and have to start over from the beginning. As such I didn't care much for the system.

 

Flash forward to my collecting days and in discovering the NES library in it's entirety I found a lot of great arcade ports that really made me fall in love with the system to the point now where it's my favorite system after the Atari 2600 and 7800. I do have a few that I enjoyed back then that I still love now like RC Pro Am and Blades of Steel but it's mostly games I never owned in the 80's that I really enjoy now.

 

Is there a system that you love now that you didn't care for back then, mainly due to a lack of knowledge or experience with the whole library?

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I started college in 1986, and was poor for 4 years.  Completely missed the NES wave, except for a few times playing at friends places.  Fast forward a few years -- I wasn't poor any more, but I was more focused on my career.  I had a PC for gaming, but didn't pay much attention the Genesis or SNES.  The console that got me back into the fold was Dreamcast.  Then I had kids....and kind of didn't game for a long time. 

 

Once I got into the retro scene and renewed my love of the older systems (Atari, Intellivision, Colecovision) I grew up with, I started getting more into NES and loving it.  For the same reasons you mention.  Mostly for the great controller and the abundance of really fun games.  Zelda.  Punch Out!, Elevator Action, Donkey Kong Classics, Tecmo Bowl, Super Mario Brothers.  So many great games, and it really feels like a logical successor to the 2600 (standing on the shoulders of giants). 

 

The other one I've really taken to is the PS2.  There are so many great games, and they are very inexpensive.  And I think the PS2 has the absolute perfect controller.  Fits my hands perfectly. 

 

Nowadays,  I think my top 5 are:  Atari 2600, Atari 7800, Atari 8-bit, PS2, NES.

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Come to think of it, I would have to say no. If I didn't own a system my friends did. I had the VCS and an NES then later Genesis and Playstation. My buddy had the VCS, Coleco/ADAM and a Master System so I was set there. Intellivision would be the closest but because I was jealous of it more than anything. Another one of my friends older brother had one and did not get to play it much. So in a way I snobed it then but enjoy it now. Had I been able to play on one more often I don't think it would have counted here. lol Everything I played then I still love today. In fact I have a few systems that I LOVED then but feel lukewarm about today such as the NES. 

 

Very interesting question.  

Edited by Atari Creep

Don't just watch TV, PLAY IT!

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I was blessed enough to not miss many consoles growing up. I was part of the NES craze and had almost 100 games for it by the time the craze started to wear down. Most of that library was made up of popular titles. My favorites were Mega Man 2, Life Force, Guardian Legend, Zanac, Stinger, you get the idea. I lost many hours and weekend rest trying to beat those games and Castlevania 2. Since I didn't dig into sports games much I picked a few up not too long ago since they are the cheaper titles to obtain...literally a few dollars or less per title.

 

I am probably going to get tomatoes for saying this but when I got my 5200 I often dogged the 2600. When I would see identical titles for both systems I would look at the screenshots on the back of the boxes in stores. I felt like I had the better system because of visuals and sounds. Whenever I wasn't at home and visiting either family or friends who had a 2600 I would enjoy some 2600 game play but couldn't wait to get back home to my 5200.

 

I now own two 2600 models and almost 100 games. Space Invaders was my only reason for wanting a 2600 in the first place so that game was found first, all other titles were basically grabbed because I either didn't have them or I had some memories of them. Enduro, Pac-Man, Jr. Pac-Man, Missile Command, Vanguard, Warlords, Yar's Revenge I were familiar with the most. The 2600 taught me a valuable lesson as a gamer and collector in that it is not always how the games look but how they play. And most of the time the 2600 got the game play perfect. Most of the 2600 games I have now I find fun if not frustrating at times. The system shares the number two spot in my favorite systems list with the NES.

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Great post I really should look at the PS2 library a little closer because I've head many people mention it as one of the great consoles of all time and it's one admittedly I'm not overly familiar with.

The PS2 is a great investment. For a popular console it is also very much undervalued with games starting at $2 for some popular titles. If you get one I would suggest either model but I am partial to the original over the slim. Titles I would suggest are Final Fantasy X, Gran Turismo 3 Apex, Dynasty Warriors (any one in the series), Burnout Revenge. And whatever you do pick up at least two memory cards as some games can fill one up quick.

 

Another great undervalued system is the original XBOX. There are many games for it that are underpriced that it blows my mind. Solid console with good controllers and great games as well. If you are going to get a PS2 then consider the XBOX as well since both have great exclusives (beyond Halo) that should not be missed. Also, identical third-party titles you might find play better on one console than the other. And with XBOX you don't need a memory card.

 

Just throwing this out there...check with Lukie Games for games but I would suggest if money is an issue to find the systems elsewhere as they can be pricey there.

 

https://www.lukiegames.com/playstation

 

https://www.lukiegames.com/microsoft-xbox-cat

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I did not have a 7800, 5200 or O2 growing up. Although I played all three BITD, I didn't personally own them until I got into classic gaming. Technically speaking, I had a Gemini when I was a kid so I guess you can add the 2600 to that list too... ;)

 

I got my first 7800 at a thrift store in the late 90s. It was mainly to play my old 2600 games. I really got into it about 7 years ago. The homebrews and arcade ports are just great.

 

I picked up a 5200 just a few years ago. I had an XEGS as a kid and I never really saw much of a difference. Plus, the XEGS is fully compatible with almost all A8 games and accessories and has a working controller. I picked the 5200 up after deciding to complete my Atari console collection.

 

I got a great deal on an O2 a few years back. My late cousin had one when we were kids so I got I couldn't pass it up.

 

All of the other retro consoles that I own are ones I had when they were being supported.

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I simply didn't like the style of game where you get so far, die and have to start over from the beginning. As such I didn't care much for the system.

 

That put me off a lot of really great stuff for years. I enjoy a lot of 8 and 16-bit era platformers but it seemed like so much time and work to make any progress, just to have it scrubbed at the end of each play. Those games didn't become viable for me until emulation allowed save states.

 

 

Is there a system that you love now that you didn't care for back then, mainly due to a lack of knowledge or experience with the whole library?

 

I really begrudged the first PlayStation back in the day. At the time I perceived it as a force for corporate power overwhelming creativity, where Sony were using their massive resources to swamp a market and drive out a lot of innovative players. At the same time wider consolidation in the industry meant many smaller game developers were being bought out, home micro-computers stopped being viable platforms, bad/early 3D muscled out really great 2D styled games and the rising cost of development led to commercially safe games being the ones which received the funding and marketing attention. Basically, I blamed Sony for all the problems of the modern gaming industry by starting those trends.

 

In retrospect I was being very unfair, especially now I know a lot more about the internal management problems at Atari, Sega and Commodore. Now I'm revisiting the library a little bit and am discovering just how good the port of Doom was, and how good Symphony of The Night is, for instance, I can't attribute the console's success to corporate bullying. There's a lot there which earned success.

 

 

The PS2 is a great investment. For a popular console it is also very much undervalued with games starting at $2 for some popular titles.

 

The economics are definitely in the collectors' favour. Running for so many years, selling so many units, and getting such good developer support has resulted in a flooded second-hand market.

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Its funny, I have lots of systems that I didn't own BITD, but I played them either at a console arcade next to my house, or at my friends and cousins houses on a constant basis.

 

The only consoles I owned as a kid are:

 

Atari 2600

NES

 

The consoles I own now that I never really played before are:

 

Intellivision

Atari 5200

Atari 7800

Colecovision

 

The consoles I own now that I played a ton of when I was younger (pre-20) are:

 

SNES

Sega Genesis

Playstation

N64

Turbografx 16

 

Dreamcast on up I've owned myself, although I usually don't buy them on release. The exception for that rule was the Wii, Wii U, and Switch. Wii I got launch day, Wii U and Switch I got within 3 months of release.

 

My wife got me into the CV; she played it a lot when she was a kid because her folks left it at her grandparents house after they upgraded to the NES. Some of the best pre crash graphics and arcade ports are on this system, and I'm glad we have one now!

 

SNES and Genesis were no brainers for me; I played these things almost every weekend. I had two cousins that had the Genesis, and my best friend owned a SNES and his stepbrother had a Genesis which we borrowed pretty much whenever we felt like it. The SNES we have is actually my wife's original one she got for Christmas in the 90's, yellowed case and all!

 

I had played the Playstation a lot at same best friends house; he bought one shortly after it launched. My brother in law also had one, and I played it a lot while I was dating my wife.

 

Another one of my best friends had the N64 at launch, and I was at his house playing it a lot, or there were times when he would let me borrow it for a week, usually when I was on school break. He had already graduated and was working full time, so he was cool with me playing it when I was off school. The N64 we have is also my wife's original one she received for Christmas in 1999.

 

None of my friends had the Turbo, but the console arcade next door to my house did, and it was one of my favorite things to play, mainly because none of my friends or relatives had one. I played the heck out of Bonk's Adventure, Galaga 90, and Blazing Lasers.

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Console-wise I started with dedicated pong unit, and moved into the VCS on release day. Since then I owned practically every cartridge based system of the day. But I had always wanted an all-in-one system that'd play every game ever made. Today that is possible through a standard emulation box. And that means yes, despite it being virtual consoles.

 

This enables me to sample and enjoy NeoGeo. Something I didn't like bitd, but do now.

Edited by Keatah
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Console-wise I started with dedicated pong unit, and moved into the VCS on release day. Since then I owned practically every cartridge based system of the day. But I had always wanted an all-in-one system that'd play every game ever made. Today that is possible through a standard emulation box. And that means yes, despite it being virtual consoles.

 

This enables me to sample and enjoy NeoGeo. Something I didn't like bitd, but do now.

I would love to get into real Neo Geo, but it’s more expensive now than it was when it released! Emulation seems like the smart choice for that system.

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The 2600 I collect and enjoy now. I had a few growing up long after the crash but I didn't give it a fair chance and parted with them almost as soon as I got them. I have a lot of respect for it now and almost every game I have for it I like...almost.? So, for me personally, the 2600 would have to be my choice for this topic.

 

Almost every other known console I had and enjoyed spiritually. NEO GEO was for the rich then and is still for the rich now. I never had, nor played, that console other than the stand up arcade.

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I would love to get into real Neo Geo, but it’s more expensive now than it was when it released! Emulation seems like the smart choice for that system.

 

Probably the best way to play Neo Geo games (without going into that gray area) is the Nintendo Switch as there is a large number of games available in the eshop (mostly fighters and SHMUPS) but still no Viewpoint which is my favorite that I've play of those...

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I grew up with Atari VCS, Intellivision, Colecovision, Astrocade, Odyssey2, Commodore64, Atari 400/800, Vectrex, Amiga, Ti-99/4A, CoCo, and other pre-NES stuff. I kind of skipped the NES, PS1, SMS, Genesis, NeoGeo, and SNES generation while it was happening.

Today I just have my original Apple from bitd. And all my gaming is done on a state-of-the-art PC, both vintage through emulators and a few select native modern titles.

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My vote would be the 7800. When my C64 crashed on me back then, I jumped on board with the NES. I never even gave the 7800 the time of day as I had a 2600 growing up and just thought it would be more of the same. Now that I own a 7800 and see all the great games, like Food Fight and others, that came out, I wished I had gone that direction. The NES is a great system, but most of the games that came out for it were not that appealing to me. The 7800 library had more of the game play type of games that appeal to me, especially now with the home brew scene.

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On 5/6/2018 at 12:06 PM, Atarileaf said:

Is there a system that you love now that you didn't care for back then, mainly due to a lack of knowledge or experience with the whole library?

As strange as it may sound in this community, my answer is the 2600.

I can say with certainty that I am more excited by it now than I ever was as a kid. Sure, I loved it and practically begged my parents to get me one as a kid in the early 80s, but the mainstream 2600 games couldn't compete with the coin-op games of the arcades. While some games were a lot of fun (Activision Starmaster immediately comes to mind), I don't recall a game that really held deep interest or love. I think I owned eight to ten 2600 games as a kid (I had to save for three months to buy one game). Video games that I have most fondness for as a kid were all arcade games. The writing was probably on the wall when I got the Big Trak for Christmas, and I had a lot of fun programming it. By the time I discovered computers and programming in sixth grade, I lost interest in the 2600.

I practically ignored all consoles after the 2600 because I was playing games on computers. While I briefly owned the Vectrex and GameBoy during the late 80s and early 90s and got a PS1 in '98 to play FF7, I played very little on consoles until I got a Xbox 360 in the late 2000s.

After learning about this thing called retro gaming four years ago, I started learning about all the consoles and games that I passed on, in particular the PlayStations and Xboxes. A year ago, I started looking back on the 2600 and started playing Atari games again only this year. I bought the 2600, 5200, and 7800 just prior to joining the I/O in August and have since added an Intellivision, Jaguar, SNES, Genesis, and CoreGrafx to my console stable. My ability to appreciate past consoles has grown significantly the past year or two, and I now see I missed out on a lot of console gaming goodness especially during the 90s and 2000s.

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I now have a lot of systems I did not have back in the day.  The last console I bought was the Atari 7800 and the last handheld was the Lynx.  Then came medical school and I essentially paused my getting new games.  I did not get a PSP until 2004.  It wasn't until 2007 that I got the Jaguar and 2008 until I got an Intellivision (because I wanted D2K Arcade).  I did not get any other consoles until I bought a bundle in 2013 and got an NES 101, Genesis, Dreamcast, and an original Xbox.  A year later I was gifted a GameCube.  So, in less than a decade, I have discovered first hand how gaming changed since I had last purchased a console in the late 80's! 

🖖 Going to the final frontier, gaming...

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