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Atari 2600 homebrew is a term describing hobbyist-developed games for the
Atari 2600
The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) from its release until November 1982, is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocessor- ...
video game console
A video game console is an electronic device that Input/output, outputs a video signal or image to display a video game that can be played with a game controller. These may be home video game console, home consoles, which are generally placed i ...
. The first such game was written in 1995, and more than 100 have been released since then. The majority of games are unlicensed clones of games for other platforms, and many were written for the technical challenge. There are also
ROM hacks
Rom, or ROM may refer to:
Biomechanics and medicine
* Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient
* Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac
* R ...
and some original games. Several games have received attention outside the hobbyist community. Some have been included in a game anthology by
Activision
Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
.
With severe resource limitations such as only 128 bytes of
RAM
Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to:
Animals
* A male sheep
* Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish
People
* Ram (given name)
* Ram (surname)
* Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director
* RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch
* Ra ...
and no video
frame buffer
A framebuffer (frame buffer, or sometimes framestore) is a portion of random-access memory (RAM) containing a bitmap that drives a video display. It is a memory buffer containing data representing all the pixels in a complete video frame. Modern ...
, the 2600 is a difficult machine to program.
Emulator
In computing, an emulator is Computer hardware, hardware or software that enables one computer system (called the ''host'') to behave like another computer system (called the ''guest''). An emulator typically enables the host system to run so ...
s, the Batari Basic language, and freely available documentation, can help the hobbyist developer. There is an active community of Atari 2600 developers—the largest among classic systems.
History
Thomas Jentzsch's 2600 version of Jeremy Smith's BBC Micro game '' Thrust'' (2000)
The Atari 2600 game console was introduced to the market by
Atari, Inc.
Atari, Inc. was an American video game developer and home computer company founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. Atari was a key player in the formation of the video arcade and video game industry.
Based primarily around the Sunny ...
in 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System or Atari VCS for short.
Hundreds of games from dozens of companies have been released for the system,
with some selling millions of copies, such as ''
Missile Command
''Missile Command'' is a 1980 shoot 'em up arcade video game developed and published by Atari, Inc. and licensed to Sega for Japanese and European releases. It was designed by Dave Theurer, who also designed Atari's vector graphics game ''Tempest ...
'' and ''
Pitfall!
''Pitfall!'' is a platform video game designed by David Crane for the Atari 2600 and released by Activision in 1982. The player controls Pitfall Harry and is tasked with collecting all the treasures in a jungle within 20 minutes. The world con ...
''.
The 2600 continued to be manufactured throughout the 1980s, long past its peak years, until Atari Corporation dropped support in January 1992.
The next year, Harry Dodgson released the first hobbyist-produced
cartridge
Cartridge may refer to:
Objects
* Cartridge (firearms), a type of modern ammunition
* ROM cartridge, a removable component in an electronic device
* Cartridge (respirator), a type of filter used in respirators
Other uses
* Cartridge (surname), a ...
: ''7800/2600 Monitor Cartridge''.
It is a development tool that, after attempting to get Atari interested Dodgson decided to manufacture on his own.
He purchased a batch of Atari 7800 ''
Hat Trick
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
'' games at
Big Lots
Big Lots Stores, Inc. (stylized as Big Lots!) is an American retail company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio with over 1,400 stores in 47 states.
History
The Big Lots chain traces its history back to 1967 when Consolidated Stores Corporation w ...
for a dollar or less each and cannibalized the parts. He advertised the cartridge on
Usenet
Usenet () is a worldwide distributed discussion system available on computers. It was developed from the general-purpose Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979, and it was ...
and in a catalog for game seller Video 61, ultimately selling around 25 copies.
In 1995—three years after Atari's withdrawal of the 2600 from the marketplace—enthusiast Ed Federmeyer released ''SoundX'',
a cartridge to demonstrate the sound capabilities of the system. Federmeyer used the term ''homebrew'' to describe hobbyist-driven development, inspired by the California
Homebrew Computer Club
The Homebrew Computer Club was an early computer hobbyist group in Menlo Park, California, which met from March 1975 to December 1986. The club had an influential role in the development of the microcomputer revolution and the rise of that aspec ...
of the 1970s.
After designing the cartridge for his own use, Federmeyer advertised it on Usenet,
followed by an unlicensed port of ''
Tetris
''Tetris'' (russian: link=no, Тетрис) is a puzzle video game created by Soviet software engineer Alexey Pajitnov in 1984. It has been published by several companies for multiple platforms, most prominently during a dispute over the approp ...
''.
Since then, over 100 games have been released,
many published by
AtariAge
AtariAge is a website focusing on classic Atari video games. The site features gaming news, historical archives, discussion forums, and an online store. It was founded in 1998.
Taking its name from the 1982–84 '' Atari Age'' magazine, the site ...
.
Types of projects
left, ''''.
Most hobbyist-developed Atari 2600 games were created for the technical challenge, not as exercises in game design, and are unlicensed clones of arcade and computer games that were popular during the 1980s. '' Lady Bug'', released by John W. Champeau in 2006, is an implementation of the 1981 Universal arcade game.
''Juno First'', released by Chris Walton in 2009, borrows the name and design of the 1983
Konami
, is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company, video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machin ...
arcade game
An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade v ...
;
and ''Thrust'', released by Thomas Jentzsch in 2000, is a clone of the
BBC Micro game of the same name.
Other programmers have implemented ''
Sea Wolf'' (as ''Seawolf''), ''
Tetris
''Tetris'' (russian: link=no, Тетрис) is a puzzle video game created by Soviet software engineer Alexey Pajitnov in 1984. It has been published by several companies for multiple platforms, most prominently during a dispute over the approp ...
'' (as ''Edtris 2600''), and ''
Caverns of Mars
''Caverns of Mars'' is a vertically scrolling shooter for the Atari 8-bit family of home computers. It was programmed by Greg Christensen, with some features added by Richard Watts, and published by the Atari Program Exchange (APX) in 1981. ''Cav ...
'' (as ''Conquest of Mars''). The 2600 version of ''
Star Castle
''Star Castle'' is a vector graphics
Vector graphics is a form of computer graphics in which visual images are created directly from geometric shapes defined on a Cartesian plane, such as points, lines, curves and polygons. The associat ...
'' was undertaken because it had previously been said that "a decent version couldn’t be done."
Several releases have expanded upon earlier games. ''
Warring Worms'', by Billy Eno (2002), takes the core design of ''
Surround
Surround sound is a technique for enriching the fidelity and depth of sound reproduction by using multiple audio channels from speakers that surround the listener ( surround channels). Its first application was in movie theaters. Prior to sur ...
'' and adds new gameplay modes, such as the ability to fire shots at the opponent.
''
Medieval Mayhem'' by, Darrell Spice Jr., is a version of the 1980 arcade game ''
Warlords
A warlord is a person who exercises military, economic, and political control over a region in a country without a strong national government; largely because of coercive control over the armed forces. Warlords have existed throughout much of h ...
'' which includes elements omitted from Atari's official port.
While the majority of the hobbyist development community uses designs from existing games, there are also original titles. In ''SCSIcide'', released by
Joe Grand
Joe Grand is an American electrical engineer, inventor and hardware hacker known in the hacker community as Kingpin. He achieved mainstream popularity after his appearance on '' Prototype This!'', a Discovery Channel television show. He spec ...
in 2001,
the player acts as a hard drive read head picking up color-coded data bits as they fly past. ''
Oystron'', released by Piero Cavina in 1997, is an action game in which "space oysters" are opened and pearls collected to earn ammunition. ''Duck Attack!'' allows the player to battle giant, fire-breathing ducks in a quest to save the world from a mad scientist.
A
demake
A video game remake is a video game closely adapted from an earlier title, usually for the purpose of modernizing a game with updated graphics for newer hardware and gameplay for contemporary audiences. Typically, a remake of such game software s ...
is a port from a system generations past the 2600.
''Halo 2600'' is a 4 KB game inspired by the
''Halo'' series of games.
It was written by former
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...
vice-president
Ed Fries
Ed Fries ( "freeze") is an American video game programmer and entrepreneur who was the vice president of game publishing at Microsoft during much of the Xbox's life-cycle.
Early life
Fries fell in love with games while playing arcade games in the ...
, who was involved in Microsoft's acquisition of ''Halo'' creator
Bungie
Bungie, Inc. is an American video game company based in Bellevue, Washington. It is a studio owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment. The company was established in May 1991 by Alex Seropian, who later brought in programmer Jason Jones (progr ...
.
Other 2600 demakes include the ''
Portal
Portal often refers to:
* Portal (architecture), an opening in a wall of a building, gate or fortification, or the extremities (ends) of a tunnel
Portal may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Gaming
* ''Portal'' (series), two video games ...
''-inspired ''Super 3D Portals 6'' and a demo based on the
Mega Man
''Mega Man'', known as in Japan, is a Japanese science fiction video game franchise created by Capcom, starring a series of robot characters each known by the moniker "Mega Man (character), Mega Man". Mega Man (video game), The original game w ...
franchise.
ROM hacking
ROM hacking is the process of modifying a ROM image, ROM image or ROM file of a video game to alter the game's graphics, dialogue, levels, gameplay, and/or other elements. This is usually done by technically inclined video game fans to improve an ...
modifies existing ROM images. Modifications typically include new graphics and game colors, but may also include gameplay modifications and the ability to use a different controller than the one for which the game was originally designed.
One hack target is the 2600 version of ''
Pac-Man
originally called ''Puck Man'' in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. Th ...
'', in which the graphic elements are reworked to more closely resemble the arcade version.
Games
''Video Euchre'' by Erik Eid is included in the 2003 '' ''.">Activision Anthology''.
''Stay Frosty'' by Darrell Spice Jr.
In 2003,
Activision
Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
selected several homebrew 2600 games for inclusion in the
Game Boy Advance
The (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo as the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, in the PAL region on June 22, 2 ...
version of its ''
Activision Anthology
''Activision Anthology'' is a compilation of most of the Atari 2600 games by Activision for various game systems. It also includes games that were originally released by Absolute Entertainment and Imagic, as well as various Homebrew (video games), ...
'': ''Climber 5'' by Dennis Debro (2004), ''Okie Dokie'' by Bob Colbert (1996), ''Skeleton+'' by Eric Ball (2003), ''Space Treat Deluxe'' by Fabrizio Zavagli (2003), ''Vault Assault'' by Brian Prescott (2001), ''Video Euchre'' by Erik Eid (2002), and ''Oystron''. In 2005, ''SCSIcide'', ''Oystron'', ''Warring Worms'', ''Skeleton+'', and ''Marble Craze'' by Paul Slocum (2002) were listed as the "Best 2600 Homebrew Games" in the book ''Gaming Hacks: 100 Industrial-Strength Tips & Tools'' by
Simon Carless
Simon Carless is a video game industry businessperson and former game designer and editor. Simon is the founder of GameDiscoverCo, a video game discoverability consultancy firm, and previously worked overseeing the worldwide Game Developers Confere ...
.
Games that have received attention outside the hobbyist development community include ''
Halo 2600'',
''
Duck Attack!'',
and ''
A-VCS-tec Challenge'' by Simon Quernhorst (2006), an unofficial port of the 1981
Atari 8-bit family
The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers introduced by Atari, Inc. in 1979 as the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The series was successively upgraded to Atari 1200XL , Atari 600XL, Atari 800XL, Atari 65XE, Atari 130XE, Atari 800XE, ...
game ''
Aztec Challenge''.
In May 2018 it was announced that the Retron 77, a clone of the Atari 2600 console, would include four homebrew pack in-games: ''Astronomer'', ''Baby'', ''Muncher 77'', and ''Nexion 3D''.
Development
The Atari 2600 is generally considered to be a very demanding programming environment, with a mere 128 bytes of RAM and no video frame buffer at all. The programmer must prepare each line of video output as it is being sent to the television. The only
sprite capabilities are one-dimensional 1-bit and 8-bit patterns; creating a two-dimensional object requires changing the pattern between each line of video. Games are often developed using Atari 2600 emulators such as ''
Stella'' and ''Z26''.
Unlike later consoles, the 2600 will run any properly configured cartridge without checking for a digital signature or performing any other type of authentication.
It was this aspect of the system that enabled third-party companies such as
Activision
Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
and
Imagic
Imagic ( ) was an American video game developer and publisher that created games initially for the Atari 2600. Founded in 1981 by corporate alumni of Atari, Inc. and Mattel, its best-selling titles were ''Atlantis'', ''Cosmic Ark'', and ''Demon ...
to develop Atari 2600 games without Atari's consent in the 1980s. This led Atari to incorporate authentication features in its later console, the
Atari 7800
The Atari 7800 ProSystem, or simply the Atari 7800, is a home video game console officially released by Atari Corporation in 1986 as the successor to both the Atari 2600 and Atari 5200. It can run almost all Atari 2600 cartridges, making it one o ...
, to prevent other companies from creating and selling their own 7800 games without Atari's permission.
With third-party hardware such as the Cuttle Cart and Harmony Cartridge, developers could load in-progress games onto a physical Atari console to test.
The Cuttle Cart, developed by Chad Schell in the early 2000s, was designed to be compatible with the
Starpath Supercharger
The Starpath Supercharger (originally called the Arcadia Supercharger) is an expansion peripheral cartridge created by Starpath, for playing cassette-based proprietary games on the Atari 2600 video game console.
The device consists of a long car ...
, and allows ROM images to be loaded via an
1/8" minijack audio interface such as a
cassette tape
The Compact Cassette or Musicassette (MC), also commonly called the tape cassette, cassette tape, audio cassette, or simply tape or cassette, is an analog magnetic tape recording format for audio recording and playback. Invented by Lou Ottens ...
or
CD player
A CD player is an electronic device that plays audio compact discs, which are a digital optical disc data storage format. CD players were first sold to consumers in 1982. CDs typically contain recordings of audio material such as music or aud ...
.
[Carless, Simon. ''Gaming Hacks''. pg. 16. .]
Batari Basic
As the 2600 uses the 6507, a variant of the
MOS Technology 6502
The MOS Technology 6502 (typically pronounced "sixty-five-oh-two" or "six-five-oh-two") William Mensch and the moderator both pronounce the 6502 microprocessor as ''"sixty-five-oh-two"''. is an 8-bit microprocessor that was designed by a small t ...
processor, most games are written in 6502
assembly language
In computer programming, assembly language (or assembler language, or symbolic machine code), often referred to simply as Assembly and commonly abbreviated as ASM or asm, is any low-level programming language with a very strong correspondence be ...
. In 2007, developer Fred X. Quimby released the Batari Basic compiler allowing developers to write games in
BASIC
BASIC (Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages designed for ease of use. The original version was created by John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz at Dartmouth College ...
, a high-level programming language. Game designer and
Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
associate professor
Ian Bogost
Ian Bogost is an American academic and video game designer, most known for the game ''Cow Clicker''. He holds a joint professorship at Washington University as director and professor of the Film and Media Studies program in Arts & Sciences and ...
has used Batari Basic in his classes to teach students video game concepts and history. An
integrated development environment
An integrated development environment (IDE) is a software application that provides comprehensive facilities to computer programmers for software development. An IDE normally consists of at least a source code editor, build automation tools a ...
for
Microsoft Windows
Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
, Visual Batari Basic, is also available.
See also
*
Stella (emulator)
Stella is an emulator of the Atari 2600 game console, and takes its name from the console's codename. It is open-source, and runs on most major modern platforms including Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. Stella was originally written in 1996 (and kno ...
References
*
*
*
*
External links
AtariAge: Atari 2600 programmingBatari Basic a BASIC compiler for the Atari 2600
{{Homebrew
Homebrew
Homebrew software
Video game development