The Video Game Critic

Just a quick reply that I'm really enjoying this thread. Every new post teaches me something I really had no idea about before.

The homebrew community has people that do wonders with hardware nowadays, but I don't know of anyone playing with first generation hardware much. However, I would not be surpised if AtariAge has some members that are!

pacman000 wrote:Atari was planning to release a Pong-on-a-chip-in-a-cart system: The Game Brain.

http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/d ... gamebrain/

Obviously it would've used their own chips, not GI's.

Apparently, the Epoch Cassette Vision could play both pong-on-a-chip games and ROM carts. http://www.videogameconsolelibrary.com/ ... ge=reviews

I wonder if anyone's ever tried to put a microcontroller or SoaC into one of these carts to make homebrew games?

Thanks for the links the Epoch sounds like it has a foot in both the first and second generations. Shame that as yet it seems unemulated. I enjoy playing through a system with a small library as you can play through all the games.

It looks like America did get a console with the same style tech the Telstar Arcade is essentially a PC-50x console not sure if GI chips but the games are the same but with different ‘sprites ?’

http://www.videogameconsolelibrary.com/ ... ge=reviews

Marriott Guy’s webpage is a superb resource.

Finally got round to some time on Tank Battle although I’ve had it a while now this game has took me about 3 years to source.

Notice how the bespoke Tank controllers go into the back of the cartridge rather than use the systems joysticks (like the J-cart on Micro Machines).


Gameplay shot: Pretty much a port of Atari’s Tank arcade game, believe the chip on this cartridge also powered the Telstar Combat console.

If anyone decides to collect the PC-50x library it is much easier to mix and match your systems rather than attempt to get all cartridges for the same system.
Due to its nature the system cannot be emulated only simulated.

The Telstar Arcade used a different series of chips made by MOS. Each cart included a microcontroller with custom graphics hardware.

The Microvision also used microcontrollers in each cart.

There was apparently a PC-50x system released in the U.S, but it's incredibly rare; only about four have shown up.

Found out awhile age the Cassette Vision used NEC microcontrollers in each cart. Epoch used the same microcontrollers in a few of their Pong-type systems.

pacman000 wrote:The Telstar Arcade used a different series of chips made by MOS.

Yes although they seem to be the same games as the ones produced by General Instruments. Perhaps they used the same logic ?