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The Atari 5200 was a video game console introduced in 1982 by Atari as a replacement for the famous Atari 2600. The 5200 was created to compete with the Mattel Intellivision, but wound up more directly competing with the Colecovision shortly after the 5200's release. In some ways, it was both technologically superior and more cost efficient than any console available at that time. However, a number of design flaws had a serious impact on usability, and the system is generally considered a failure.
Hardware The Atari 5200 was in essence an Atari 400 computer without a keyboard. This made for a powerful, proven design which Atari could quickly bring to market. The initial 1982 release of the system featured four controller ports, where all other systems of the day had only two ports. The 5200 also featured a revolutionary new controller with an analog joystick, numeric keypad, two fire buttons on both sides of the controller and game function keys for Start, Pause, and Reset. The 5200 also featured the innovation of the first automatic TV switchbox, allowing it to automatically switch from regular TV viewing to the game system signal when the system was activated (previous RF adapters required the user to slide a switch on the adapter by hand). Unfortunately, this unique RF box was also where the power supply connected in a unique dual power/television signal setup similar to the RCA Studio II's. A single cable coming out of the 5200 plugged into the switch box was used for both electricity and the television signal. The 1983 release of the Atari 5200 saw a scaled down controller port (2 instead of 4 ports) and a change back to the more conventional separate power supply and standard (non autoswitching) RF switch. It also saw changes in the cartridge port address lines to allow for the Atari 2600 adaptor released that year. While the adaptor was only made to work on the 2 port version, modifications can be done to the 4 port to make it line compatible. Furthermore, towards the end of the 4 port production run there were also an extremely limited number of 2600 adaptor compatible consoles produced. These much harder to find 4 port versions can be identified by an asterisk in the unit's serial number. The infamous Atari 5200 controllers The unusual design of the analog joystick, which used a weak rubber boot rather than springs to provide centering, proved to be ungainly and unreliable. They ultimately alienated many consumers and quickly became the achilles heel of the system due to their combination of an overly complex mechanical design with a very low-cost internal flex circuit system. The controllers did; however, include a pause button which was a novelty at the time which is now standard on almost all game systems today. Why the console failed The Atari 5200 suffered from its software incompatibility with the Atari 2600, though an adapter was later released in 1983 allowing it to play all Atari 2600 games, using the more reliable controllers native to that system. Another problem was the lack of attention that Atari gave to the console; most of its resources went to the already over-saturated Atari 2600. While the 5200 did garner a strong cult following with its library of high quality games, it faced an uphill battle competing with the Colecovision's head start and a stuttering economy. But the question of which system was superior became moot. The CEOs of both companies became motivational speakers when the game market crashed in 1983, killing off both systems in their prime. Trivia Screenshot gallery Image:A5200_PacMan.png|Pac-Man Atari (1983) Image:A5200_Dig_Dug.png|Dig Dug Atari (1983) Image:A5200_Jungle_Hunt.png|Jungle Hunt Atari (1983) Image:A5200_RealSports_Baseball.png|RealSports Baseball Atari (1983) Image:A5200_PitfallII.png|Pitfall II Activision (1984) Image:A5200_Zaxxon.png|Zaxxon Sega (1984) Image:A5200_Ballblazer.png|Ballblazer Atari/Lucasfilm Games (1986) Image:A5200_Rescue_On_Fractalus.png|Rescue on Fractalus! Atari/Lucasfilm Games (1986) Technical specifications See also | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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