History Platform / Atari5200

* [[UsefulNotes/GraphicsProcessingUnit GPU]]: Atari ANTIC (graphics coprocessor) and GTIA (video display)

The 5200 ended up a huge flop, being discontinued after only two years and barely breaking 1 million units sold. Its failure is frequently attributed to its lack of native backwards compatibility with the 2600's games -- the 2600 was still popular when the 5200 came out and both of the 5200's main competitors had adaptors that let them play 2600 games. The Platform/ColecoVision in particular presented stiff competition, as it was bundled with an impressive port of ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'' that demonstrated the console's prowess for handling arcade conversions. The 5200 didn't have much to show off its capabilities, being bundled with the unexciting ''Super Breakout''. One of the worst aspects of the console was that the controllers were infamously terrible thanks to the poorly-made analog sticks. They either had no auto-center or a cheap rubber boot to auto-center with incredibly poor reliability, and were even known for their mild tendency to short-circuit. If the 5200 had any hope, it was killed by Atari's downfall during MediaNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, which occurred just one year after the console launched.

Although the 5200 is mocked for its failure and small library, said library ''does'' have some good games. Atari made upgraded versions of their classic titles for the system and the 5200's hardware similarities to Atari's 8-bit computers led to game overlap, though the 5200 differs in key areas that prevented straight ports.

* [[UsefulNotes/CentralProcessingUnit CPU]]: Atari custom 6502C, 1.79 [=MHz=]. This was ''technically'' software compatible with the Atari 2600's 6507 processor, though would have caused 2600 games to run far too fast, meaning that the eventual 2600 adaptor had to include its own 6507.

* Cartridges up to 48K, or more with bank switching.

The 5200 was fairly ahead of its time in several respects. The first model had four controller ports and the controllers used analog sticks, features that would not be reintroduced until over a decade later with the release of the Platform/Nintendo64 and standardized with Media/TheSixthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames. The 5200 was also the first console with a dedicated Pause button.

The 5200 ended up a huge flop, being discontinued after only two years and barely breaking 1 million units sold. Its failure is frequently attributed to its lack of native backwards compatibility with the 2600's games -- the 2600 was still popular when the 5200 came out and both of the 5200's main competitors had adaptors that let them play 2600 games. The Platform/ColecoVision in particular presented stiff competition, as it was bundled with an impressive port of ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'' that demonstrated the console's prowess for handling arcade conversions. The 5200 didn't have much to show off its capabilities, being bundled with the unexciting ''Super Breakout''. One of the worst aspects of the console was that the controllers were infamously terrible thanks to the poorly-made analog sticks. They either had no auto-center or a cheap rubber boot to auto-center with incredibly poor reliability, and were even known for their mild tendency to short-circuit. If the 5200 had any hope, it was killed by Atari's downfall during Media/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, which occurred just one year after the console launched.

The 5200 was fairly ahead of its time in several respects. The first model had four controller ports and the controllers used analog sticks, features that would not be reintroduced until over a decade later with the release of the Platform/Nintendo64 and standardized with UsefulNotes/TheSixthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames. The 5200 was also the first console with a dedicated Pause button.

The 5200 ended up a huge flop, being discontinued after only two years and barely breaking 1 million units sold. Its failure is frequently attributed to its lack of native backwards compatibility with the 2600's games -- the 2600 was still popular when the 5200 came out and both of the 5200's main competitors had adaptors that let them play 2600 games. The Platform/ColecoVision in particular presented stiff competition, as it was bundled with an impressive port of ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'' that demonstrated the console's prowess for handling arcade conversions. The 5200 didn't have much to show off its capabilities, being bundled with the unexciting ''Super Breakout''. One of the worst aspects of the console was that the controllers were infamously terrible thanks to the poorly-made analog sticks. They either had no auto-center or a cheap rubber boot to auto-center with incredibly poor reliability, and were even known for their mild tendency to short-circuit. If the 5200 had any hope, it was killed by Atari's downfall during UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, which occurred just one year after the console launched.

In the late '70s and early '80s, Atari was riding high as the ruler of the budding video game console market thanks to their hugely successful Platform/Atari2600 system. But with this success came competition from the Platform/ColecoVision and Mattel's Platform/{{Intellivision}}, so Atari felt the need to reassert their dominance. In 1982 they followed up with a brand new console made using technology from their UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers. Enter the '''Atari 5200'''.

In the late '70s and early '80s, Atari was riding high as the ruler of the budding video game console market thanks to their hugely successful UsefulNotes/Atari2600 system. But with this success came competition from the UsefulNotes/ColecoVision and Mattel's UsefulNotes/{{Intellivision}}, so Atari felt the need to reassert their dominance. In 1982 they followed up with a brand new console made using technology from their UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers. Enter the '''Atari 5200'''.

The 5200 was fairly ahead of its time in several respects. The first model had four controller ports and the controllers used analog sticks, features that would not be reintroduced until over a decade later with the release of the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 and standardized with UsefulNotes/TheSixthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames. The 5200 was also the first console with a dedicated Pause button.

The 5200 ended up a huge flop, being discontinued after only two years and barely breaking 1 million units sold. Its failure is frequently attributed to its lack of native backwards compatibility with the 2600's games -- the 2600 was still popular when the 5200 came out and both of the 5200's main competitors had adaptors that let them play 2600 games. The UsefulNotes/{{Colecovision}} in particular presented stiff competition, as it was bundled with an impressive port of ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'' that demonstrated the console's prowess for handling arcade conversions. The 5200 didn't have much to show off its capabilities, being bundled with the unexciting ''Super Breakout''. One of the worst aspects of the console was that the controllers were infamously terrible thanks to the poorly-made analog sticks. They either had no auto-center or a cheap rubber boot to auto-center with incredibly poor reliability, and were even known for their mild tendency to short-circuit. If the 5200 had any hope, it was killed by Atari's downfall during UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, which occurred just one year after the console launched.

The 5200 ended up a huge flop, being discontinued after only two years and barely breaking 1 million units sold. Its failure is frequently attributed to its lack of native backwards compatibility with the 2600's games -- the 2600 was still popular when the 5200 came out and both of the 5200's main competitors had adaptors that let them play 2600 games. The UsefulNotes/{{Colecovision}} also presented stiff competition, as it was bundled with an impressive port of ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'' that showed of the console's prowess for handling arcade conversions. The 5200 didn't have much to show off its capabilities, being bundled with the unexciting ''Super Breakout''. One of the worst aspects of the console was that the controllers were infamously terrible thanks to the poorly-made analog sticks. They either had no auto-center or a cheap rubber boot to auto-center with incredibly poor reliability and even a mild tendency to short-circuit. If the 5200 had any hope, it was killed by Atari's downfall during UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, which occurred just one year after the console launched.

The 5200 was fairly ahead of its time in several respects. The first model had four controller ports and the controllers used analog sticks, features that would not be standardized in video game consoles until over a decade later with the release of the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64. The 5200 was also the first console to have controllers with a dedicated Pause button.

There were two versions of the 5200 released. The first had four controller ports, as previously mentioned, and an unusual hookup method in that you hooked the power supply up to the RF switchbox, and then a single cable carried power to the console and the A/V signals to the television. The switchbox also automated the process of switching the TV's signal when the console is turned on. The second version went back to two controller ports and having separate power and A/V connections. It was compatible with 2600 games via an add-on, though it was incompatible with certain 5200 titles, including the port of ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}''. Both versions of the system are rather infamous for their large size (13" × 15" × 4.25"), the result of Atari adding a hollowed-out section of the casing to store controllers.

There were two versions of the 5200 released. The first had four controller ports, as previously mentioned, and an unusual hookup method in that you hooked the power supply up to the RF switchbox, and then a single cable carried power to the console and the A/V signals to the television. The switchbox also automated the process of switching the TV's signal when the console is turned on. The second version went back to two controller ports and having separate power and A/V connections. The second version was also compatible with 2600 games via an add-on. However, the revision was incompatible with certain 5200 titles, including the port of ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}''. Both versions of the system are rather infamous for their large size (13" × 15" × 4.25"), the result of Atari adding a hollowed-out section of the casing to store controllers.

In the late 70s and early 80s, Atari was riding high as the ruler of the budding video game console market thanks to their hugely successful UsefulNotes/Atari2600 system. But with this success came competition from the UsefulNotes/ColecoVision and Mattel's UsefulNotes/{{Intellivision}}, so Atari felt the need to reassert their dominance. In 1982 they followed up with a brand new console made using technology from their UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers. Enter the '''Atari 5200'''.

Although the 5200 is mocked for its failure and small library, said library ''does'' have some good games. Atari still made upgraded versions of their classic titles for the system and the 5200's hardware similarities to Atari's 8-bit computers led to game overlap, though the 5200 differs in key areas that prevented straight ports.

Although the 5200 is mocked for its failure and small library, said library has some good games. The 5200's hardware similarities to Atari's 8-bit computers led to game overlap, though the 5200 differs in key areas that prevented straight ports.

Although mocked, it did have some good games; many of them came from the UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers library, as the 5200 was nearly functionally identical, though differing in key areas to prevent straight ports.

There were two versions of the 5200 released. The first had four controller ports, as previously mentioned, and an unusual hookup method in that you hooked the power supply up to the RF switchbox, and then a single cable carried power to the console and the A/V signals to the television. The switchbox also automated the process of switching the TV's signal when the console is turned on. The second version went back to two controller ports and having separate power and A/V connections. The second version was also compatible with 2600 games via an add-on. However, the revision was incompatible with certain 5200 titles, including the port of ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}''. Both versions of the system are rather infamous for their large size (13" × 15" × 4.25"), the result of Atari adding a hollowed-out section of the casing so the console could store controllers.

The 5200 was fairly ahead of its time in several respects. The first model had four controller ports and the controllers used analog sticks, features that would not be standardized in the industry until over a decade later with the release of the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64. The 5200 was also the first console to have controllers with a dedicated Pause button.

The 5200 was fairly ahead of its time in several respects. The first model had four controller ports and the controllers used analog sticks, features that would not be standardized in the industry until over a decade later with the release of the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64. The 5200 was also the first console with a dedicated Pause button.

The 5200 ended up a huge flop, being discontinued after only two years and barely breaking 1 million units sold. It failed for at least four reasons:
* There was no backwards compatibility with the still-popular 2600. Even the [=ColecoVision=] was compatible with the 2600's library thanks to an add-on. Atari eventually released an adapter to fix this, but by then the damage was done.
* Competition from the UsefulNotes/{{Colecovision}}, which was bundled with an impressive port of ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong'' that showed of the console's capabilities. The 5200 was bundled with a port of ''Super Breakout'' that didn't do the console justice.
* The controllers were infamously terrible thanks to the poorly-made analog sticks, with either no auto-center or a cheap rubber boot to auto-center; either way, incredibly poor reliability and even a mild tendency to short-circuit.
* The 5200 was released just one year before the UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983. Atari's downfall during the Crash killed any hope left for the console.

In the late 70s and early 80s, Atari was riding high as the king of the budding video game console market thanks to their hugely successful UsefulNotes/Atari2600 system. But with this success came competition from the UsefulNotes/ColecoVision and Mattel's UsefulNotes/{{Intellivision}}, so Atari felt the need to assert their dominance. In 1982 they followed up with a brand new console made using technology from their UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers. Enter the '''Atari 5200'''.

There were two versions of the 5200 released. As mentioned, the first had four controller ports, and an unusual hookup method in that you hooked the power supply up to the RF switchbox, and then a single cable carried power to the console and the A/V signals to the television. The initial model is also rather infamous for its large size, the result of Atari adding a hollowed-out section so the console could store controllers. The second version ditched all these features and went back to two controller ports and having separate power and A/V connections, and was also compatible with 2600 games via an add-on. However, the revision was incompatible with certain 5200 titles, including its own port of ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}''.

The 5200 was fairly ahead of its time in several respects. It had four controller ports and the controllers used analog sticks, features that would not be standardized in the industry until over a decade later with the release of the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64. The 5200 was also the first console with a dedicated Pause button.

There were two versions of the console released. The first had the four controller ports, and had an unusual hookup method in that you hooked the power supply up to the RF switchbox, and then a single cable carried power to the console and the A/V signals to the television. The initial model is also rather infamous for its large size, the result of Atari adding a hollowed out section so the console could store controllers. The second version ditched this setup and went back to having separate power and A/V connections, and was also compatible with 2600 games with an add-on, but lost two of its controller ports in the process, and to add insult to injury was this revision was incompatible with certain 5200 titles, including its own port of ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}''.

There were two versions of the console released. The first had four controller ports, and had an unusual hookup method in that you hooked the power supply up to the RF switchbox, and then a single cable carried power to the console and the A/V signals to the television. The second version ditched this setup and went back to having separate power and A/V connections, and was also compatible with 2600 games with an add-on, but lost two of its controller ports in the process, and to add insult to injury was this revision was incompatible with certain 5200 titles, including its own port of ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}''.

There were two versions of the console released. The first had the four controller ports, and had an unusual hookup method in that you hooked the power supply up to the RF switchbox, and then a single cable carried power to the console and the A/V signals to the television. The initial model is also rather infamous for its large size, the result of Atari adding a hollowed out section to store controllrs. The second version ditched this setup and went back to having separate power and A/V connections, and was also compatible with 2600 games with an add-on, but lost two of its controller ports in the process, and to add insult to injury was this revision was incompatible with certain 5200 titles, including its own port of ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}''.

The 5200 was fairly ahead of its time in several respects. It had four controller ports and the controllers used analog sticks, features that would not be standardized in the industry until over a decade later with the release of the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64. The 5200 was also the first console with a dedicated Pause button. It ended up a huge flop, being discontinued after only two years and barely breaking 1 million units sold.

The 5200 failed for at least four reasons:

The 5200 was fairly ahead of its time in several respects. It had four controller ports and the controllers used analog sticks, features that would not be standardized in the industry until over a decade later with the release of the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64. The 5200 was also the first console with a dedicated Pause button. One of its more unique features was an automated switcher to make it more convenient to play games on the TV. It ended up a huge flop, being discontinued after only two years and barely breaking 1 million units sold.

Although mocked, it did have some good games; many of them came from the UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers library, as the 5200 was nearly functionally identical, though differing in key areas to prevent straight ports. It was also the first system that allowed you to pause the game.

There were two versions of the console released. The first had four controller ports, and had an unusual hookup method in that you hooked the power supply up to the RF switchbox, and then a single cable carried power to the console and the A/V signals to the television. The second version ditched this setup and went back to having separate power and A/V connections, and was also compatible with 2600 games with an add-on, but lost two of its controller ports in the process, and to add insult to injury was incompatible with certain 5200 titles, including its own port of ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}''.

In the late 70s and early 80s, Atari was riding high as the king of the budding video game console market thanks to their hugely successful UsefulNotes/Atari2600 system. But with this success came competition from the UsefulNotes/ColecoVision and Mattel's UsefulNotes/{{Intellivision}}, so Atari felt the need to assert their dominance. In 1982 they followed up with a brand new console made using technology from their UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers. Enter the Atari 5200.

The 5200 was innovative for its time. It had four controller ports and the controllers featured a pause button and an analog stick. The console also came with an automated switcher to make it more convenient to play games on the TV. It ended up a huge flop, being discontinued after only two years and barely breaking 1 million units sold.