Hopefully I don't step on toes (not trying to BTW) but here goes.
If I didn't defend the console like I continue to do then I wouldn't be known as the 5200 Guy here. I learned a lot about the system over the decades from malfunctioning systems I'd find in the wild. I'd repair them, get them to where the controllers at least try to respond, and try to play the games that came with those systems. The controls would be erratic, buttons would fail again, it was a learning experience. My first conclusion was maybe the 5200 wasn't as good as I remembered it but hold that thought.
After communicating to Video 61 sometime after 1998 about a 5200 I found, again, in the wild. By the end of the phone conversation I learned the truth behind the 5200. It had an iron curtain and one I never seen. The 5200 I received on Christmas Day as a kid never gave me any trouble until it literally blew a resistor by 1987. For 5 years solid, every day that machine got used. The one I had was well cared for and appeared to be a solid system.
Many times after that, when I would find 5200 systems in the wild, my perception of the 5200 slightly changed. I always chalked up the poor controller conditions to neglect or misuse. I never, never, knew the 5200 had such a dark history to it until shortly after 1998. The joysticks would work, some had torn boots, a few people tried to repair only to end up destroying the flex circuit, but all of them...the buttons no longer worked without a lot of cleaning. But once working again the systems I found worked great. This issue was something I never experienced with my original 5200. I have no clue why other than using it day after day kept it from failure. That's the only theory I came up with.
I know it is in the history books as a failure. I've heard from reliable resources just how much the system cost Atari in the end having to replace blown TV sets, controllers, consoles, all of that adds up quick. Do I think it is the perfect system? No. I don't. In 1982 it was my first game console and an Atari I kept asking for. I couldn't complain. I was one of the lucky few. The system I have now, with 4 controllers, is a pain in the rear to keep in working order. If it is not used at least weekly the controllers start to fail. It is not a system that will manage to last for generations to come. I just don't see it happening. But...my love and passion for the system are all I have to offer it. When it works it has a hell of a library of games to enjoy. It's library also documents a huge amount of what arcade games were popular in the early 1980s.
I know I can't change its history. I have retreated to that much and I have accepted its poor history. It should have never been released as the public received it. But if I can find a way to combine its history with my history to encourage finding a way to enjoy the system and share it with other gamers then I will or would like to try. I am simply holding up to my claim that I will defend it to my last breath. There is a lot that I don't yet know about the system's history. From a business perspective it bombed, for an 8 year old kid it was best the ride of my life.
I don't get it. I wouldn't call it a mistake. Were mistakes made? Yes. It was released to the public even when R&D said it wasn't ready. It was trying a couple of new concepts with the first being a computer converted into a console. The 5200 was the first to try this. The second was the analog controller. The movement of address locations made sense; to avoid the unauthorized games that plagued the 2600. It was a means to keep that from happening again. Atari didn't want just anyone making games for the 5200.
The 5200 is not limited to 32K. It can handle up to 48K before bankswitching is required. That is printed in the field service manual for the system. The adapter would have been cool but it would have had to do a couple of things: 1) remap all #D0 access to #C0 access on the fly, 2) provide support for the analog controllers or have joystick ports for using 2600 controllers.
I've had all three: 5200, Colecovision, and Intellivision. After owning and spending a decent amount of time on each one I can say the 5200, IMO, I like much better. All three have fun games, no doubt, but the Intellivision controllers were too small and the ColecoVision controllers were a bit too large and off balance.
The maze collision routine would have to be completely re-written, as it doesn't work the way the arcade (or 7800 version for that matter) work. 😞 I'm not proficient enough in the 5200 to be able to do that.
When I did Hangly Man on the 5200 I had to make changes to the maze layout to fit in the framework of how the maze collision worked there.
