View source for Atari 2600

{{Short description|Home video game console}}
{{Redirect|Atari VCS|the 2021 console|Atari VCS (2021 console)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2017}}
{{Infobox information appliance
| logo         = Atari2600logo.svg
| image        = Atari-2600-Wood-4Sw-Set.png
| caption      = Four-switch VCS model (1980–1982)
| aka          = Atari Video Computer System (1977–1982)
| manufacturer = [[Atari, Inc.]]
| type         = [[Home video game console]]
| generation   = [[Second generation of video game consoles|Second]]
| releasedate  = {{vgrelease|NA|September 1977|EU|1978|FRA|1982|BR|September 1983|JP|October 1983 ([[#Atari 2800|Atari 2800]])}}
| lifespan     = 1977–1992
| price        = {{US$|189.95|1977|round=-1}}
| discontinued = {{end date|1992}}{{sfn|Montfort|Bogost|2009|p=137}}
| unitssold    = 30 million ({{as of|2004|lc=y}})<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/10/game_consoles/source/3.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070509092239/http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/10/game_consoles/source/3.htm|archive-date=2007-05-09|title=A Brief History of Game Console Warfare |work=BusinessWeek|date=2007-05-09|access-date=2018-10-13}}</ref>
| media        = [[ROM cartridge]]
| cpu          = 8-bit [[MOS Technology 6507]]
| CPUspeed     = 1.19&nbsp;MHz
| graphics     = [[Television Interface Adaptor]]
| memory       = 128&nbsp;bytes RAM
| controllers  = {{cslist|Joystick|paddles|driving|keypad|Trak-Ball}}
| topgame      = ''[[Pac-Man (Atari 2600 video game)|Pac-Man]]'', {{nowrap|8 million}} (as of 1990){{efn|name=PacMan}}
| predecessor  = [[Pong#Home version|Atari Home Pong]]<br/>[[Video Pinball series|Atari Video Pinball]]
| successor    = [[Atari 5200]]
}}

The '''Atari 2600''' is a [[home video game console]] developed and produced by [[Atari, Inc.]] Released in September 1977 as the '''Atari Video Computer System''' ('''Atari VCS'''), it popularized [[microprocessor]]-based hardware and games stored on swappable [[ROM cartridge]]s, a format first used with the [[Fairchild Channel F]] in 1976. The VCS was bundled with two [[joystick]] [[game controller|controllers]], a conjoined pair of [[paddle (game controller)|paddle]] controllers, and a game cartridge{{mdash}}initially ''[[Combat (video game)|Combat]]''<ref name=combat>{{cite web | last = Weesner | first = Jason | title = On Game Design: A History of Video Games | date = January 11, 2007 | url = http://www.gamecareerguide.com/features/327/on_game_design_a_history_of_video_.php?page=3 | access-date = November 13, 2007 | archive-date = November 24, 2007 | archive-url = https://archive.today/20071124040000/http://www.gamecareerguide.com/features/327/on_game_design_a_history_of_video_.php?page=3 | url-status = live }}</ref> and later ''[[Pac-Man (Atari 2600 video game)|Pac-Man]]''.<ref name=2600pacman>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mr-atari.com/afbeeldingen/systems/2600pacmanblue.jpg|title=Image of box with Pac-Man sticker|access-date=September 4, 2008|archive-date=May 29, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080529194107/http://www.mr-atari.com/afbeeldingen/systems/2600pacmanblue.jpg|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Sears]] sold the system as the '''Tele-Games Video Arcade'''. Atari rebranded the VCS as the Atari 2600 in November 1982, alongside the release of the [[Atari 5200]].

During the mid-1970s, Atari had been successful at creating [[arcade video game]]s, but their development cost and limited lifespan drove [[Chief executive officer|CEO]] [[Nolan Bushnell]] to seek a programmable home system. The first inexpensive microprocessors from [[MOS Technology]] in late 1975 made this feasible. The console was prototyped under the [[codename]] Stella by Atari subsidiary [[Cyan Engineering]]. Lacking funding to complete the project, Bushnell sold Atari to [[Warner Communications]] in 1976.

The Atari VCS was launched in 1977 with nine games on 2 KB cartridges. Atari ported many of their arcade games to the system, and the VCS versions of ''[[Breakout (video game)|Breakout]]'' and ''[[Night Driver (video game)|Night Driver]]'' are in color while the arcade originals have monochrome graphics. The system's first [[killer application]] was the [[Space Invaders (Atari 2600 video game)|home conversion of]] [[Taito]]'s ''[[Space Invaders]]'' in 1980. ''[[Adventure (1980 video game)|Adventure]]'', also released in 1980, was one of the first [[action-adventure video game]]s and contains the first widely recognized [[Easter egg (media)|Easter egg]]. Beginning with the VCS version of ''[[Asteroids (video game)|Asteroids]]'' in 1980, many games used [[bank switching]] to allow 8 KB or larger cartridges. By the time of the system's peak in 1982–83, games were released with significantly more advanced visuals and gameplay than the system was designed for, such as Activision's ''[[Pitfall!]]''. The popularity of the VCS led to the founding of [[Activision]] and other [[Video game developer#Third-party developers|third-party game developers]], as well as competition from the [[Intellivision]] and [[ColecoVision]] consoles.

By 1982, the 2600 was the dominant game system in North America, and "Atari" had entered the vernacular as a synonym for the console and video games in general. However, poor decisions by Atari management damaged both the system's and the company's reputation, most notably the release of two highly anticipated games for the 2600: a port of the arcade game ''[[Pac-Man]]'' and ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (video game)|E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]''. ''[[Pac-Man (Atari 2600 video game)|Pac-Man]]'' became the 2600's best-selling game, but was panned for not resembling the original; ''E.T.'' was rushed to market for the [[economics of Christmas|holiday shopping]] season and was similarly disparaged. Both games, coupled with a glut of third-party [[shovelware]], were factors in ending Atari's dominance of the console market, contributing to the North American [[video game crash of 1983]].

Warner sold the assets of Atari's [[consumer electronics]] division to former [[Commodore International|Commodore]] CEO [[Jack Tramiel]] in 1984. In 1986, the new [[Atari Corporation]] under Tramiel released a revised, low-cost 2600 model, and the backward-compatible [[Atari 7800]], but it was [[Nintendo]] that led the recovery of the industry with the [[History of the Nintendo Entertainment System#North American launch (1985-1986)|1985 North American launch]] of the [[Nintendo Entertainment System]]. Production of the Atari 2600 ended in 1992, with an estimated 30 million units sold across its lifetime.

==History==
{{VG timeline
|title=Atari VCS/2600 timeline
|align=right
|range1=1972:1976
|range1_color=#FFFF01 #999900
|range2=1977:1985
|range2_color=#0CEB51 #229B22
|range3=1986:1992
|range3_color=#99FFFF #006666
|1972=Formation of [[Atari, Inc.]]
|1974=Acquisition of [[Cyan Engineering]]
|1975=Debut of the [[MOS 6502]]
|1976=Sale of Atari to [[Warner Communications]]
|1977=Launch of Atari VCS
|1979=Formation of [[Activision]]
|1980=Release of ''[[Space Invaders (Atari 2600 video game)|Space Invaders]]'' and ''[[Adventure (1980 video game)|Adventure]]''
|1981=First bank-switched game: ''[[Asteroids (video game)|Asteroids]]''
|1982a=Rebranding to Atari 2600 (November)
|1982b=Release of ''[[Pac-Man (Atari 2600 video game)|Pac-Man]]'' and ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (video game)|E.T.]]''
|1983=[[Video game crash of 1983]]
|1984=Sale of Atari to [[Jack Tramiel]]
|1986=Release of US$50 model
|1990=Final Atari 2600 game: ''[[Klax (video game)|Klax]]''
|1992=Discontinuation
}}

Atari, Inc. was founded by [[Nolan Bushnell]] and [[Ted Dabney]] in 1972. Its first major product was ''[[Pong]]'', released in 1972, the first successful [[arcade game|coin-operated video game]].<ref name="inc bushnell">{{Cite magazine|url = https://www.inc.com/magazine/20090401/the-gamer.html|title = Nolan Busnell is Back in the Game|last = Chafkin, Max|date = April 1, 2009|magazine = [[Inc. (magazine)|Inc.]]|access-date = September 11, 2018|archive-date = January 14, 2019|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190114051424/https://www.inc.com/magazine/20090401/the-gamer.html|url-status = live}}</ref> While Atari continued to develop new arcade games in following years, ''Pong'' gave rise to a number of competitors to the growing arcade game market. The competition along with other missteps by Atari led to financial problems in 1974 before the company recovered by the end of the year.<ref name="gamasutra history atari"/> By 1975, Atari had released a [[Home Pong|''Pong'' home console]] that competed against [[Magnavox]], the only other major producer of home consoles at the time. However, Atari engineers recognized the limitation of custom [[logic programming|logic]] integrated onto the circuit board, permanently confining the whole console to only one game.<ref name="gamespy history p. 1">{{cite web | url = http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Articles.Detail&id=401 | title = The 2600 Story – Part I | first = Marty | last = Goldberg | date = January 4, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131013220343/http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=Articles.Detail&id=401 | archive-date = October 13, 2013 | access-date = September 11, 2018 | work = [[GameSpy]] }}</ref> The increasing competition increased the risk, as Atari had found with past arcade games and again with dedicated home consoles. Both platforms are built from integrating discrete electro-mechanical components into circuits instead of being programmed as on a [[mainframe computer]]. Thus, development of a console had cost at least {{US$|100000|1975|about=yes|round=-3|long=no}} plus time to complete, but the final product only had about a three-month shelf life before becoming outdated by competition.<ref name="gamasutra history atari">{{cite web | url = https://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/130414/the_history_of_atari_19711977.php?print=1 | title = The History of Atari: 1971–1977 | first = Steve | last = Fulton | date = November 6, 2007 | access-date = September 11, 2018 | work = [[Gamasutra]] | archive-date = September 12, 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180912021902/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/130414/the_history_of_atari_19711977.php?print=1 | url-status = live }}</ref>

By 1974, Atari had acquired [[Cyan Engineering]], a [[Grass Valley, California|Grass Valley]] electronics company founded by Steve Mayer and Larry Emmons, both former colleagues of Bushnell and Dabney from [[Ampex]], who helped to develop new ideas for Atari's arcade games. Even before the release of the home version of ''Pong'', Cyan's engineers, led by Mayer and Ron Milner, had envisioned a home console powered by new programmable [[microprocessor]]s capable of playing Atari's arcade offerings of the time. The programmable microprocessors would make a console's design significantly simpler and more powerful than any dedicated single-game unit.<ref name="atari fun chp5">{{cite book | title = Atari Inc: Business is Fun | first1 = Marty | last1 = Goldberg | first2 = Curt | last2 = Vendel | year = 2012 | isbn = 978-0985597405 | publisher = Sygyzy Press | chapter=Chapter 5 | url=https://archive.org/details/atariincbusiness0000gold/ | url-access=registration | chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/atariincbusiness0000gold/page/192/mode/2up | chapter-url-access=registration}}</ref> However, the cost {{US$|100–300|long=no}} of such chips was far outside the range that their market would tolerate.<ref name="gamespy history p. 1"/> Atari had opened negotiations to use Motorola's new [[Motorola 6800|6800]] in future systems.<ref name=edge>{{cite book |first=Brian |last=Bagnall |title=Commodore: A company on the edge |date=2011 |publisher=Variant Press |isbn=978-0973864960}}</ref>

===MOS Technology 6502/6507===
In September 1975, [[MOS Technology]] debuted the [[MOS Technology 6502|6502 microprocessor]] for {{US$|25|long=no}} at the Wescon trade show in San Francisco.<ref name = Comp1975>{{Cite journal | title = MOS 6502 the second of a low cost high performance microprocessor family | journal = Computer | volume = 8 | issue = 9 | pages = 38–39 | publisher = IEEE Computer Society | date = September 1975 | url = http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MOS_6501_6502_Ad_Sept_1975.jpg | doi = 10.1109/C-M.1975.219074 | bibcode = 1975Compr...8i..38. | access-date = September 28, 2020 | archive-date = February 24, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210224154043/https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MOS_6501_6502_Ad_Sept_1975.jpg | url-status = live | url-access = subscription }}</ref><ref name="atari fun chp5"/> Mayer and Milner attended, and met with [[Chuck Peddle]], the leader of the team that created the chip. They proposed using the 6502 in a game console, and offered to discuss it further at Cyan's facilities after the show.<ref name=edge/>

Over two days, MOS and Cyan engineers sketched out a 6502-based console design by Meyer and Milner's specifications.<ref name="ieee decuir">{{cite journal |title = Atari Video Computer System: Bring Entertainment Stories Home | first = Joe | last = Decuir | journal = IEEE Consumer Electronics Magazine | date = July 2015 | doi = 10.1109/MCE.2015.2421572 | pages =59–66 | doi-access = free }}</ref> Financial models showed that even at {{USD|25|long=no}}, the 6502 would be too expensive, and Peddle offered them a planned [[MOS Technology 6507|6507 microprocessor]], a cost-reduced version of the 6502, and MOS's [[MOS Technology 6532|RIOT]] chip for [[input/output]]. Cyan and MOS negotiated the 6507 and RIOT chips at {{USD|12|long=no}} a pair.<ref name=edge/><ref>Oral History of Chuck Peddle.  Computer History Museum  X7180.2014  https://www.computerhistory.org/collections/catalog/102739938 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210611034012/https://www.computerhistory.org/collections/catalog/102739938 |date=June 11, 2021 }}  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enHF9lMseP8 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210611034818/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enHF9lMseP8 |date=June 11, 2021 }}  time index: 0:59:10 and 1:19:24</ref> MOS also introduced Cyan to [[Microcomputer Associates, Incorporated|Microcomputer Associates]], who had separately developed debugging software and hardware for MOS, and had developed the JOLT Computer for testing the 6502, which Peddle suggested would be useful for Atari and Cyan to use while developing their system.<ref name="atari fun chp5"/> Milner was able to demonstrate a proof-of-concept for a programmable console by implementing ''[[Tank (video game)|Tank]]'', an arcade game by Atari subsidiary [[Kee Games]], on the JOLT.<ref name="atari fun chp5"/>

As part of the deal, Atari wanted a second source of the chipset. Peddle and Paivinen suggested [[Synertek]], whose co-founder, Bob Schreiner, was a friend of Peddle.<ref name="gamespy history p. 1"/> In October 1975, Atari informed the market that it was moving forward with MOS. The Motorola sales team had already told its management that the Atari deal was finalized, and Motorola management was livid. They announced a lawsuit against MOS the next week.<ref name=edge/>

===Building the system===
[[File:Atari 2600 Prototype at CHM.jpg|thumb|right|The first Stella prototype on display at the [[Computer History Museum]]]]

By December 1975, Atari hired [[Joseph C. Decuir|Joe Decuir]], a recent graduate from [[University of California, Berkeley]] who had been doing his own testing on the 6502. Decuir began debugging the first prototype designed by Mayer and Milner, which gained the [[codename]] "Stella" after the brand of Decuir's bicycle. This prototype included a [[breadboard]]-level design of the graphics interface to build upon.<ref name="gamasutra history atari"/><ref name="atari fun chp5"/> A second prototype was completed by March 1976 with the help of [[Jay Miner]], who created a chip called the [[Television Interface Adaptor]] (TIA) to send graphics and audio to a television.<ref name="proto">{{cite web|author=Curt Vendel |url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2600/proto2600.html |title=The Atari VCS Prototype |publisher=Atarimuseum.com |access-date=March 30, 2014 |archive-url = https://archive.today/20130117094934/http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2600/proto2600.html |archive-date = January 17, 2013}}</ref> The second prototype included a TIA, a 6507, and a [[ROM cartridge]] slot and adapter.<ref name="gamasutra history atari"/>

As the TIA's design was refined, [[Al Alcorn]] brought in Atari's game developers to provide input on features.<ref name="atari fun chp5"/> There were significant limitations in the 6507, the TIA, and other components, so the programmers creatively optimized their games to maximize the console.<ref name="ieee decuir"/> The console lacks a [[framebuffer]] and requires games to instruct the system to generate graphics in synchronization with the [[electron gun]] in the [[cathode-ray tube]] (CRT) as it scans across rows on the screen. The programmers found ways to "[[#Racing the beam|race the beam]]" to perform other functions while the electron gun scans outside of the visible screen.<ref name="Wired racing">{{cite magazine | url = https://www.wired.com/gamelife/2009/03/racing-the-beam/ | title = Racing the Beam: How Atari 2600's Crazy Hardware Changed Game Design | first = Chris | last = Kohler | magazine = Wired | date = 2009-03-19 | access-date = 2010-08-09 | archive-date = July 27, 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100727184654/http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2009/03/racing-the-beam/ | url-status = live }}</ref>

Alongside the electronics development, Bushnell brought in Gene Landrum, a consultant who had already consulted for [[Fairchild Camera and Instrument]] for its upcoming [[Fairchild Channel F|Channel F]], to determine the consumer requirements for the console. In his final report, Landrum suggested a living room aesthetic, with a [[wood grain]] finish, and for the cartridges to be "idiot proof, child proof and effective in resisting potential static [electricity] problems in a living room environment". Landrum recommended it include four to five dedicated games in addition to the cartridges, but this was dropped in the final designs.<ref name="atari fun chp5"/> The cartridge design was done by James Asher and Douglas Hardy. Hardy had been an engineer for Fairchild and helped in the initial design of the Channel F cartridges, but he quit to join Atari in 1976. The interior of the cartridge that Asher and Hardy designed was sufficiently different to avoid patent conflicts, but the exterior components were directly influenced by the Channel F to help work around the static electricity concerns.<ref name="atari fun chp5"/><ref name="fc fairchild carts"/>

Atari was still recovering from its 1974 financial woes, and needed additional capital to fully enter the home console market; however, Bushnell was wary of being beholden to outside financial sources. Atari obtained smaller investments through 1975, but not at the scale it needed, and began considering a sale to a larger firm by early 1976. Atari was introduced to [[Warner Communications]], which saw the potential for the growing video game industry to help offset declining profits from its film and music divisions. Negotiations took place during 1976, during which Atari cleared itself of liabilities, including settling a patent infringement lawsuit with [[Magnavox]] over [[Ralph H. Baer]]'s patents that were the basis for the [[Magnavox Odyssey]].<ref name="atari fun chp5"/> In mid-1976, Fairchild announced the Channel F, planned for release later that year, beating Atari to the market.<ref name="fc fairchild carts">{{cite web | url = https://www.fastcompany.com/3040889/the-untold-story-of-the-invention-of-the-game-cartridge | title = The Untold Story Of The Invention Of The Game Cartridge | first = Benj | last = Edwards | date = January 22, 2015 | access-date = April 9, 2021 | work = [[Fast Company]] | archive-date = April 13, 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190413014941/https://www.fastcompany.com/3040889/the-untold-story-of-the-invention-of-the-game-cartridge | url-status = live }}</ref>

By October 1976, Warner and Atari agreed to the purchase of Atari for {{US$|28 million|long=no}}.<ref name="atari fun chp5"/> Warner provided an estimated {{US$|120 million|long=no}}, which was enough to fast-track Stella.<ref name="gamasutra history atari"/><ref name="inc bushnell 1984">{{cite magazine | url = https://www.inc.com/magazine/19841001/136.html | title = When The Magic Goes | first = Steve | last = Goll | date = October 1, 1984 | access-date = April 2, 2021 | magazine = Inc. | archive-date = March 10, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210310075000/http://www.inc.com/magazine/19841001/136.html | url-status = live }}</ref> By 1977, development had advanced enough to brand it the '''Atari Video Computer System''' (VCS) and start developing games.<ref name="gamasutra history atari"/>

===Launch and success===
[[File:Atari-2600-Light-Sixer-FL.jpg|thumb|The second VCS model has lighter plastic molding and shielding, and a more angular shape, than the 1977 launch model.]]
[[File:Atari-2600-Woody-FL.jpg|thumb|Starting in 1980, the VCS has only four front switches and a capital-letters logotype.]]

The unit was showcased on June 4, 1977, at the Summer [[Consumer Electronics Show]], with plans for retail release in October. The announcement was purportedly delayed to wait out the terms of the Magnavox patent lawsuit settlement, which would have given Magnavox all technical information on any of Atari's products announced between June 1, 1976, and June 1, 1977.<ref name="atari fun chp5"/> However, Atari encountered production problems during its first batch, and its testing was complicated by the use of cartridges.

[[Image:Combat.svg|thumb|''[[Combat (video game)|Combat]]'', the pack-in game at launch]]

The Atari VCS was launched in September 1977 at {{US$|199|1977|about=yes|round=-1|long=no}}, with two joysticks and a ''[[Combat (video game)|Combat]]'' cartridge; eight additional games were sold separately.<ref>{{cite book |last=Forster |first=Winnie |title=The encyclopedia of consoles, handhelds & home computers 1972–2005 |year=2005 |publisher=GAMEPLAN |isbn=3-00-015359-4|page=27}}</ref> Most of the [[launch games]] were based on arcade games developed by Atari or its subsidiary [[Kee Games]]: for example, ''Combat'' was based on Kee's ''[[Tank (video game)|Tank]]'' (1974) and Atari's ''[[Jet Fighter (video game)|Jet Fighter]]'' (1975).<ref name="gamasutra history atari"/> Atari sold between 350,000 and 400,000 Atari VCS units during 1977, which was attributed to the delay in shipping the units and consumers' unfamiliarity with a swappable-cartridge console not dedicated to only one game.<ref name="gamasutra atari 2"/>

In 1978, Atari sold only 550,000 of the 800,000 systems that had been manufactured, requiring further financial support from Warner to cover losses.<ref name="gamasutra atari 2">{{cite web | url = http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3766/atari_the_golden_years__a_.php?print=1 | title = Atari: The Golden Years – A History, 1978–1981 | first = Steve | last = Fulton | date = August 21, 2008 | access-date = September 11, 2018 | work = [[Gamasutra]] | archive-date = October 10, 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181010011309/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3766/atari_the_golden_years__a_.php?print=1 | url-status = dead }}</ref> Bushnell pushed the Warner Board of Directors to start working on "Stella 2", as he grew concerned that rising competition and aging tech specs of the VCS would render the console obsolete. However, the board stayed committed to the VCS and ignored Bushnell's advice, leading to his departure from Atari in 1979. Atari sold about 600,000 VCS systems in 1979, bringing the installed base to a little over 1.3 million.<ref name="tcwv1">{{cite book |last1=Smith |first1=Alexander |title=They Create Worlds: The Story of the People and Companies That Shaped the Video Game Industry, Vol I |date=2019 |publisher=CRC Press |isbn=9781138389908 |pages=458, 466, 518 |edition=1}}</ref>

Atari obtained a license from [[Taito]] to develop a VCS conversion of its 1978 arcade hit ''[[Space Invaders]]'', which made it the first officially licensed arcade conversion for a home console.<ref name="RG-41">{{Cite magazine|date=September 2007|title=The Definitive Space Invaders|url=https://archive.org/stream/retro_gamer/RetroGamer_041#page/24/mode/2up|magazine=[[Retro Gamer]]|publisher=[[Imagine Publishing]]|issue=41|pages=24–33}}</ref> Atari sold 1.25 million ''Space Invaders'' cartridges and more than a million VCS systems in 1980, nearly doubling the install base to over 2 million, and then an estimated 3.1 million VCS systems in 1981.<ref name="tcwv1" /> By 1982, 10 million consoles had been sold in the United States, while its best-selling game was ''[[Pac-Man (Atari 2600 video game)|Pac-Man]]'',<ref>{{cite book |title=[[Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition]] |publisher=[[Guinness World Records]] |year=2008 |isbn=1-904994-21-0 <!-- |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OJQFSlyMEfAC --> |page=24 |quote=10 million – number of Atari 2600 consoles sold by 1982.}}</ref> of which over {{nowrap|8 million}} copies had been sold by 1990.{{efn|name=PacMan|7,271,844 in 1982. 684,569 in 1983.<ref name="Atari">{{cite book |title=Cartridge Sales Since 1980 |publisher=[[Atari Corp.]]}} Via {{cite episode |title=The Agony & The Ecstasy |series=Once Upon Atari |date=August 10, 2003 |number=4 |minutes=23 |publisher=Scott West Productions}}</ref> {{formatnum:{{#expr:21279+15784}}|}} in 1986. 61,685 in 1987. 3,885 in 1988. 34,374 in 1989. 2,166 in 1990.<ref name="Vendel">{{Cite web|last=Vendel|first=Curt|date=May 28, 2009|title=Site News|url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/whatsnew/2009-MAY-28.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206090952/http://www.atarimuseum.com/whatsnew/2009-MAY-28.html|archive-date=2010-12-06|access-date=2021-11-27|website=Atari Museum}}</ref>}} ''Pac-Man'' propelled worldwide Atari VCS sales to {{nowrap|12 million}} units during 1982, according to a November 1983 article in ''[[InfoWorld]]'' magazine.<ref name="hubner19831128">{{cite magazine |last1=Hubner |first1=John |last2=Kistner |first2=William F. |title=The Industry: What went wrong at Atari? |magazine=[[InfoWorld]] |date=28 November 1983 |volume=5 |issue=48 |pages=151–158 (157) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sy8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA151 |publisher=[[InfoWorld Media Group, Inc.]] |issn=0199-6649 |access-date=December 1, 2021 |archive-date=October 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020183655/https://books.google.com/books?id=sy8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA151#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> A subsequent ''InfoWorld'' article from August 1984 stated that more than {{nowrap|15 million}} Atari 2600 machines had been sold by 1982.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Bisson |first1=Gisselle |title=Atari: From Starting Black to Auction Block |magazine=[[InfoWorld]] |date=6 August 1984 |volume=6 |issue=32 |page=52 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HC8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA52 |publisher=[[InfoWorld Media Group, Inc.]] |issn=0199-6649}}</ref> A March 1983 article in ''[[IEEE Spectrum]]'' magazine estimated about 3 million VCS sales in 1981, about 5.5 million in 1982, as well as a total of over 12 million VCS systems and an estimated 120 million cartridges sold.<ref name="ieee8304">{{cite journal |last1=Perry |first1=Tekla |last2=Wallich |first2=Paul |title=Design case history: the Atari Video Computer System |journal=IEEE Spectrum |date=March 1983 |volume=20 |issue=3 |pages=45, 50, 51|doi=10.1109/MSPEC.1983.6369841 |s2cid=2840318 }}</ref>

In Europe, the Atari VCS sold 125,000 units in the United Kingdom during 1980,<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Technology: The games that aliens play |magazine=[[New Scientist]] |date=18 December 1980 |volume=88 |issue=1232–1233 |page=782 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ainC3-wuz_kC&pg=PA782 |publisher=[[Reed Business Information]] |issn=0262-4079 }}{{Dead link|date=April 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> and 450,000 in [[West Germany]] by 1984.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=EG Goes Continental: Europe Joins the Game World |magazine=[[Electronic Games]] |date=January 1984 |volume=2 |issue=23 |pages=46–7 |url=https://archive.org/details/ElectronicGames/Electronic%20Games%20Issue%2023%20%28January%201984%29/page/n46|access-date=2 December 2021}}</ref> In France, where the VCS released in 1982, the system sold 600,000 units by 1989.<ref name="SVM">{{cite magazine |title=Guerre Dans Le Salon |trans-title=War in the Living Room |magazine=[[Science & Vie|Science & Vie Micro]] |date=December 1989 |issue=67 |pages=126–8 |lang=fr |url=https://abandonware-magazines.org/affiche_mag.php?mag=48&num=2280&album=oui |access-date=December 8, 2021 |archive-date=December 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211208070551/https://abandonware-magazines.org/affiche_mag.php?mag=48&num=2280&album=oui |url-status=live }}</ref> The console was distributed by [[Epoch Co.]] in Japan in 1979 under the name "Cassette TV Game", but did not sell as well as Epoch's own [[Cassette Vision]] system in 1981.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/games/2023/jul/18/40-years-of-the-nintendo-famicom-the-console-that-changed-the-games-industry|title=40 years of the Nintendo Famicom – the console that changed the games industry &#124; Games &#124; The Guardian|website=amp.theguardian.com|date=July 18, 2023 |access-date=July 18, 2023|archive-date=July 18, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230718133759/https://amp.theguardian.com/games/2023/jul/18/40-years-of-the-nintendo-famicom-the-console-that-changed-the-games-industry|url-status=live |last1=Packwood |first1=Lewis }}</ref> In English-speaking countries, the console was distributed in the United Kingdom (first from 1979 by Ingersoll Electronics Ltd., later by Railway Terrace), Australia (by Futuretronics), Canada (first from 1977 by Paragon Entertainment and from 1980 by Irwin Toys), Ireland (from 1979 by Quintin Flynn and from 1982 by Omnitek), New Zealand (by Monaco), Singapore (by Hin Seng Ltd), South Africa (by Frank & Hirsch), Hong Kong (by Wong's Kong King Ltd) and Malaysia (by Perangsang International Sdn Bhd).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.atarimania.com/catalogues/hi_res/cat113004.jpg |title=Game Club Locations}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.atarimania.com/list_games_atari-2600-vcs-atari-new-zealand-monaco_publisher_2559_2_G.html |title=Atari New Zealand-Monaco 2600 Games}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://mcurrent.name/atarihistory/wci_games.html |title=A History of WCI Games / Atari / Atari Games / Atari Holdings}}</ref>

In 1982, Atari launched its second programmable console, the [[Atari 5200]]. To standardize naming, the VCS was renamed the '''Atari 2600 Video Computer System''', or '''Atari 2600''', with the number derived from the manufacture part number CX2600.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.gamedeveloper.com/design/a-history-of-gaming-platforms-atari-2600-video-computer-system-vcs | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140513034048/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/131956/a_history_of_gaming_platforms_.php?print=1 | archive-date = 2014-05-13 | title = A History of Gaming Platforms: Atari 2600 Video Computer System/VCS | first1 = Matt | last1= Barton | first2 = Bill | last2 =Loguidice | date = February 28, 2008 | access-date = September 11, 2018 | url-status = live | work = [[Gamasutra]] }}</ref> By 1982, the 2600 cost Atari about {{US$|long=no|40}} to manufacture, and was sold for an average of {{US$|125|1982|round=-1|long=no}}. The company spent {{US$|long=no|4}}.50 to {{US$|long=no|6}} to manufacture each cartridge, plus {{US$|long=no|1}} to {{US$|long=no|2}} for advertising, wholesaling for {{US$|18.95|1982|long=no|round=-1}}.<ref name="hubner19831128" />

===Third-party development===
[[Activision]], formed by Crane, Whitehead, and Miller in 1979, started developing third-party VCS games using their knowledge of VCS design and programming tricks, and began releasing games in 1980. ''[[Kaboom! (video game)|Kaboom!]]'' (1981) and ''[[Pitfall!]]'' (1982) are among the most successful, with at least one and four million copies sold, respectively.<ref name="gi activision start">{{cite magazine | url = https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2013/02/26/activisionaries-how-four-programmers-changed-the-game-industry-forever.aspx | title = Activisionaries: How Four Programmers Changed The Game Industry | first = Ben | last = Reeves | date = February 26, 2013 | access-date = April 2, 2021 | magazine = [[Game Informer]] | archive-date = January 27, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210127015005/https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2013/02/26/activisionaries-how-four-programmers-changed-the-game-industry-forever.aspx | url-status = live }}</ref> In 1980, Atari attempted to block the sale of the Activision cartridges, accusing the four of intellectual property infringement. The two companies settled out of court, with Activision agreeing to pay Atari a licensing fee for their games. This made Activision the first third-party video game developer, and established the licensing model that continues to be used by console manufacturers for game development.<ref name="Gamasutra">{{cite web |url=https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/the-history-of-activision |title=The History Of Activision |work=Gamasutra |first=Jeffrey |last=Flemming |access-date=December 30, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220122651/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/1537/the_history_of_activision.php?print=1 |archive-date=December 20, 2016}}</ref>

Activision's success led to the establishment of other third-party VCS game developers following its model in the early 1980s,<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZD4EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PP1 |title=Atari Sues to k.o. Competition |magazine=InfoWorld |volume=2 |issue=13 |date=August 4, 1980 |page=1 |access-date=March 30, 2014 |archive-date=October 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020183642/https://books.google.com/books?id=ZD4EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ej0EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA1 |title=Atari attempts to gobble software competition |author=John Markoff |magazine=InfoWorld |date=December 21, 1981 |page=1 |volume=3 |issue=31 |access-date=March 30, 2014 |archive-date=October 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020183658/https://books.google.com/books?id=ej0EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA1#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=deBFx7QAwsQC&q=atari+activision+1981&pg=PA6 |title=Encyclopedia of Video Games: The Culture, Technology, and Art of Gaming |volume=2 |author=Mark P. Wolf |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2012 |isbn=9780313379369 |page=6 |access-date=March 30, 2014 |archive-date=October 20, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231020183636/https://books.google.com/books?id=deBFx7QAwsQC&q=atari+activision+1981&pg=PA6 |url-status=live }}</ref> including [[U.S. Games]], [[Telesys]], [[Games by Apollo]], [[Data Age]], [[Zimag]], [[Mystique (company)|Mystique]], and [[CommaVid]]. The founding of [[Imagic]] included ex-Atari programmers. [[Mattel]] and [[Coleco]], each already producing its own more advanced console, created simplified versions of their existing games for the 2600. Mattel used the [[M Network]] brand name for its cartridges. Third-party games accounted for half of VCS game sales by 1982.<ref>{{cite news|last=Rosenberg|first=Ron|title=Competitors Claim Role in Warner Setback|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/boston/access/666912291.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Dec+11%2C+1982&author=Ron+Rosenberg+Globe+Staff&pub=Boston+Globe+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=COMPETITORS+CLAIM+ROLE+IN+WARNER+SETBACK&pqatl=google|access-date=March 6, 2012|newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]]|date=December 11, 1982|page=1|archive-date=November 7, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107073803/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/boston/access/666912291.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Dec+11%2C+1982&author=Ron+Rosenberg+Globe+Staff&pub=Boston+Globe+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=COMPETITORS+CLAIM+ROLE+IN+WARNER+SETBACK&pqatl=google|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Decline and redesign===
In addition to third-party game development, Atari also received the first major threat to its hardware dominance from the [[ColecoVision]]. Coleco had a license from [[Nintendo]] to develop a home version of Nintendo's 1981 arcade hit ''[[Donkey Kong (1981 video game)|Donkey Kong]]'', which was bundled with every ColecoVision console. Coleco gained about 17% of the hardware market in 1982 compared to Atari's 58%.<ref name="ieee history">{{cite journal | title = Innovation and Competition in Standard-Based Industries: A Historical Analysis of the U.S. Home Video Game Market | first1 = Scott | last1 =Gallager | first2 = Seung | last2 =Ho Park | date = February 2002 | journal = IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management | publisher = [[IEEE Technology and Engineering Management Society]] | volume = 49 | issue = 1 | pages = 67–82 | doi = 10.1109/17.985749 | bibcode = 2002ITEM...49...67G }}</ref> With third parties competing for market share, Atari worked to maintain dominance in the market by acquiring licenses for popular arcade games and other properties to make games from. The 2600 conversion of ''Pac-Man'' had numerous technical and aesthetic flaws, but still sold upwards of 7 million copies. Heading into the 1982 holiday shopping season, Atari had placed high sales expectations on ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (video game)|E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]'', a game based on the [[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial|film of the same name]] that was programmed in about six weeks.  Atari produced an estimated four million cartridges of ''E.T.'',<ref name="kassarmaster">Bruck, ''Master of the Game: Steve Ross and the Creation of Time Warner'', pp. 179–180</ref> but the game was poorly reviewed, and only about 1.5 million copies were sold.<ref name="retroign-tas">{{cite web | last = Buchanan | first = Levi | url = http://retro.ign.com/articles/903/903024p1.html | title = IGN: Top 10 Best-Selling Atari 2600 Games | website = IGN | date = August 26, 2008 | access-date = September 21, 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110726161836/http://retro.ign.com/articles/903/903024p1.html | archive-date = July 26, 2011 | url-status = live }}</ref>

In December 1982, Warner Communications issued revised earnings guidance to its shareholders, having expected a 50% year-to-year growth but now only expecting 10–15% due to declining sales at Atari.<ref name="atariyears">{{cite magazine|last1=Crawford|first1=Chris|title=The Atari Years|magazine=The Journal of Computer Game Design|date=1991|volume=5}}</ref><ref name="Snopes">{{cite web | first1=Barbara | url=http://www.snopes.com/business/market/atari.asp | title=Buried Atari Cartridges | publisher=[[Snopes.com]] | date=May 10, 2011 | access-date=September 10, 2011 | first2=David P | last1=Mikkelson | last2=Mikkelson | archive-date=September 11, 2012 | archive-url=https://archive.today/20120911032250/http://www.snopes.com/business/market/atari.asp | url-status=live }}</ref> Coupled with the oversaturated home game market, Atari's weakened position led investors to start pulling funds out of video games, beginning a cascade of disastrous effects that would come to be known as the [[video game crash of 1983]].<ref name="atariyears"/> Many third-party developers formed prior to 1983 were closed, and Mattel and Coleco both left the video game market by 1985.<ref name="down many times">{{cite book | last = Ernkvist | first = Mirko  | chapter = Down many times, but still playing the game: Creative destruction and industry crashes in the early video game industry 1971–1986 | year = 2008 | pages = 161–191 | title = History of Insolvancy and Bankruptcy | publisher = Södertörns högskola | editor-first =Karl | editor-last=Gratzer | editor-first2=Dieter | editor-last2=Stiefel | isbn = 978-91-89315-94-5 }}</ref>

In September 1983, Atari [[Atari video game burial|sent 14 truckloads of unsold Atari 2600 cartridges and other equipment to a landfill]] in the New Mexico desert.<ref>{{cite news|title=Atari Parts Are Dumped|newspaper=The New York Times|date=28 September 1983|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/28/business/atari-parts-are-dumped.html|url-access=limited|access-date=May 20, 2018|archive-date=February 9, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170209222223/http://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/28/business/atari-parts-are-dumped.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The event was long considered an [[urban legend]] that claimed the burial contained millions of unsold cartridges. However, when the site was excavated in 2014, only 700,000 cartridges were revealed to have been buried, confirming reports from former Atari executives.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Poeter |first1=Damon |title=Atari's Buried E.T. Games Up for Sale |url=https://www.pcmag.com/news/ataris-buried-et-games-up-for-sale |magazine=PC Magazine |date=May 31, 2014 |access-date=September 29, 2020 |archive-date=January 18, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118140812/https://www.pcmag.com/news/ataris-buried-et-games-up-for-sale |url-status=live }}</ref> Atari reported a {{US$|536 million|long=no}} loss for 1983 as a whole,<ref name="Ultimate History">{{cite book |first= Steven | last= Kent | authorlink = Steven L. Kent|year=2001 |title=The Ultimate History of Video Games |publisher=[[Three Rivers Press]] |isbn=0-7615-3643-4 |url=https://archive.org/details/ultimatehistoryofvideogamesrevisited/}}</ref>{{rp|ch14}} and continued to lose money into 1984, with a {{USD|425 million|long=no}} loss reported in the second quarter.<ref name="sale"/> By mid-1984, software development for the 2600 had essentially stopped, except for that of Atari and Activision.<ref name="holyoak19840530">{{cite news | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PqZNAAAAIBAJ&pg=7081%2C6575510 | title=Here are ColecoVision's jewels | work=Deseret News | date=May 30, 1984 | access-date=January 10, 2015 | author=Holyoak, Craig | pages=4 WV | archive-date=May 10, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230510234406/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PqZNAAAAIBAJ&pg=7081,6575510 | url-status=live }}</ref>

Warner, wary of supporting its failing Atari division, started looking for buyers. In July 1984, it sold most of the assets of Atari's consumer electronics and home computer divisions to [[Jack Tramiel]], the founder of [[Commodore International]], in a deal valued at {{US$|240 million|long=no}}; Warner would retain Atari's arcade business, which would be rechristened as [[Atari Games]]. Tramiel, a proponent of [[personal computer]]s, halted all game development for the 2600 soon after the sale.<ref name="sale">{{Cite news
 |last=Sange
 |first=David E.
 |title=Warner Sells Atari To Tramiel
 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]
 |pages=Late City Final Edition, Section D, Page 1, Column 6, 1115 words
 |date=July 3, 1984
 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/07/03/business/warner-sells-atari-to-tramiel.html
 |url-status=live
 |url-access=limited
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161118132248/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/07/03/business/warner-sells-atari-to-tramiel.html
 |archive-date=November 18, 2016
}}</ref>

The North American video game market did not recover until about 1986, after [[Nintendo]]'s [[History of the Nintendo Entertainment System#North American launch (1985-1986)|1985 launch]] of the [[Nintendo Entertainment System]] in North America. In 1986, [[Atari Corporation]] released a redesigned version of the 2600, supported by an ad campaign touting a price of "under 50 bucks".<ref>{{cite web|title=Atari 2600 1986 Commercial 'The Fun is Back'|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m752qiGqSm4|website=YouTube| date=December 21, 2011 |access-date=May 20, 2018|archive-date=August 17, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190817092507/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m752qiGqSm4&gl=US&hl=en|url-status=live}}</ref> With a large library of cartridges and a low price point, the 2600 continued to sell into the late 1980s. Atari released the last batch of games in 1989–90, including ''[[Secret Quest]]''<ref>{{cite web|title=Secret Quest|url=http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-secret-quest_7464.html|website=Atari Mania|access-date=May 20, 2018|archive-date=May 20, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520124517/http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-secret-quest_7464.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and ''[[Fatal Run]]''.<ref>{{cite web|title=Fatal Run|url=http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-fatal-run_16746.html|website=Atari Mania|access-date=May 20, 2018|archive-date=May 20, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520124402/http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-fatal-run_16746.html|url-status=live}}</ref> By 1986, over {{nowrap|20 million}} Atari VCS units had been sold worldwide.<ref>{{cite news |title=Where every home game turns out to be a winter |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/18547690/the-guardian/ |access-date=3 October 2021 |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=6 March 1986 |pages=15 |archive-date=October 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211003220523/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/18547690/the-guardian/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Pollack">{{cite news |last1=Pollack |first1=Andrew |title=Video Games, Once Zapped, In Comeback |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/09/27/business/video-games-once-zapped-in-comeback.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=September 27, 1986 |publication-date=September 27, 1986 |page=A1 |no-pp=yes |access-date=November 2, 2015 |url-access=limited |archive-date=June 6, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210606050154/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/09/27/business/video-games-once-zapped-in-comeback.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The final Atari-licensed release was the PAL-only version of the arcade game ''[[Klax (video game)|Klax]]'' in 1990.

After more than 14 years on the market, production on the 2600, along with the [[Atari 7800]] and [[Atari 8-bit computers]], ended in 1992.{{sfn|Montfort|Bogost|2009|p=137}} Despite this, sales of the 2600 continued in Europe for years to come. It cost less than £39.99 and was mainly distributed through mail order chains. In 1991, 200,000 units were sold on the continent, and it was a bestseller at [[Littlewoods]] stores in the UK.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Atari triumphs in Index |journal=CTW |issue=362 |page=4 }}</ref> After the fall of communism, Atari attempted to legally introduce the Atari 2600 and 7800 to former Eastern Bloc countries, with the small price being main advantage of the system. However, Atari was defeated by even cheaper and easily available clones called "Rambo TV Game 2600" (advertised with the 1982 movie character [[First Blood|Rambo]]), which contained up to several hundred built-in games.<ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/44974 |title=Бурный рост приводит к аномалиям|date=April 14, 1993 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | title = Atari 2600 |journal = Bajtek | issue = 4/1992 | page = 14}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.retrobajty.cz/video-computer-game-console-rambo-hry/ |title=Video Computer Game Console (Rambo hry)|date=February 16, 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |url=https://dzen.ru/a/YtBQy5-AFWLXBLu8 |title=Игровая приставка Рэмбо. Китайский аналог легенды из США}}</ref> In Western Europe, the last stocks of the 2600 and 7800 were sold until the summer/fall of 1995.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://atarimuseum.nl/history-of-atari-benelux/ | title=Atari Benelux Timeline – Atarimuseum.nl | access-date=May 16, 2023 | archive-date=May 16, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230516214620/https://atarimuseum.nl/history-of-atari-benelux/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

==Hardware==
{{Main|Atari 2600 hardware}}

The Atari 2600's CPU is the [[MOS Technology 6507]], a version of the [[MOS Technology 6502|6502]],<ref name="EGM62">{{cite magazine|date=September 1994|title=When Pac Ruled the Earth|page=18|magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|publisher=EGM Media, LLC|issue=62|url=https://archive.org/details/Electronic_Gaming_Monthly_62/page/n17/mode/2up}}</ref> running at 1.19 [[megahertz|MHz]] in the 2600.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.theguardian.com/technology/gallery/2017/feb/24/10-most-influential-games-consoles-in-pictures | title = 10 most influential games consoles – in pictures | first = Keith | last = Stewart | date = February 24, 2017 | access-date = September 17, 2018 | work = [[The Guardian]] | archive-date = September 17, 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180917215537/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/gallery/2017/feb/24/10-most-influential-games-consoles-in-pictures | url-status = live }}</ref> Though their internal silicon was identical, the 6507 was cheaper than the 6502 because its package included fewer [[Memory address|memory-address]] pins—13 instead of 16.{{sfn|Montfort|Bogost|2009|p=25}} The designers of the Atari 2600 selected an inexpensive cartridge interface<ref name="cartridge-socket">{{harvnb|Montfort|Bogost|2009|p=26}} The cartridge connector's 24 pins are allocated to one supply-voltage line, two ground lines, 8 data lines, and 13 address lines. The uppermost address line is used as a so-called [[chip select]] for the cartridge's ROM chip, however, leaving only 12 address lines for the chip's game program. Thus, without special "hardware tricks" built into the cartridge, an Atari 2600 game can occupy a maximum address space of 4 KB.</ref> that has one fewer address pins than the 13 allowed by the 6507, further reducing the already limited addressable memory from 8 KB (2<sup>13</sup> = 8,192) to 4 KB (2<sup>12</sup> = 4,096). This was believed to be sufficient as ''[[Combat (video game)|Combat]]'' was only 2 KB.{{sfn|Montfort|Bogost|2009|pp=25–26}} Later games circumvented this limitation with [[bank switching]].{{sfn|Montfort|Bogost|2009|p=88}}

The console has 128 [[byte]]s of [[random-access memory|RAM]] for scratch space, the [[call stack]], and the state of the game environment.

The top bezel of the console originally had six switches: power, TV type selection (color or black-and-white), game selection, left and right player difficulty, and game reset. The difficulty switches were moved to the back of the bezel in later versions of the console. The back bezel also included the controller ports, TV output, and power input.

===Graphics===
{{Main|Television Interface Adaptor}}
{{anchor|Racing the beam}}
[[File:A2600 Pitfall.png|thumb|''[[Pitfall!]]'' (1982) has more advanced graphics than the games the VCS launched with. The black bar on the left provides extra time for the program to prepare graphics between each scanline.<ref name=":0" />]]

The Atari 2600 was designed to be compatible with the [[cathode-ray tube]] television sets produced in the late 1970s and early 1980s, which commonly lack auxiliary video inputs to receive audio and video from another device. Therefore, to connect to a TV, the console generates a [[radio frequency]] signal compatible with the regional television standards ([[NTSC]], [[PAL]], or [[SECAM]]), using a special switch box to act as the television's antenna.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Arceneaux |first1=Noah |title=Review Article: Game theories, technologies and techniques of play |journal=New Media & Society |date=19 February 2010 |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=161–166 |doi=10.1177/1461444809350996|s2cid=220595570 }}</ref><ref name="ieee decuir"/>

Atari developed the [[Television Interface Adaptor]] (TIA) chip in the VCS to handle the graphics and conversion to a television signal. It provides a single-color, 20-bit background register that covers the left half of the screen (each bit represents 4 adjacent pixels) and is either repeated or reflected on the right side. There are 5 single-color [[Sprite (computer graphics)|sprites]]: two 8-pixel wide ''players''; two 1 bit ''missiles'', which share the same colors as the players; and a 1-pixel ''ball'', which shares the background color. The 1-bit sprites all can be controlled to stretch to 1, 2, 4, or 8 pixels.<ref name="Wright">{{citation|last=Wright|first=Steve|title=Stella Programmer's Guide|date=1979-12-03}}</ref>

The system was designed without a [[frame buffer]] to avoid the cost of the associated [[Random-access memory|RAM]]. The background and [[Sprite (computer graphics)|sprites]] apply to a single [[scan line]], and as the display is output to the television, the program can change colors, sprite positions, and background settings. The careful timing required to sync the code to the screen on the part of the programmer was labeled "[[racing the beam]]"; the actual game logic runs when the television beam is outside of the visible area of the screen.{{sfn|Montfort|Bogost|2009}}<ref name="Wired racing"/> Early games for the system use the same visuals for pairs of scan lines, giving a lower vertical resolution, to allow more time for the next row of graphics to be prepared. Later games, such as ''Pitfall!'', change the visuals for each scan line or extend the black areas around the screen to extend the game code's processing time.<ref name="gi activision start" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2009/03/racing-the-beam/|title=Racing the Beam: How Atari 2600's Crazy Hardware Changed Game Design|last=Kohler|first=Chris|date=March 13, 2009|magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140712094639/https://www.wired.com/2009/03/racing-the-beam/|archive-date=July 12, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>

Regional releases of the Atari 2600 use modified [[Television Interface Adaptor|TIA]] chips for each region's television formats, which require games to be developed and published separately for each region. All modes are 160 pixels wide. [[NTSC]] mode provides 192 visible lines per screen, drawn at 60&nbsp;[[Hertz|Hz]], with 16 colors, each at 8 levels of brightness. [[PAL]] mode provides more vertical scanlines, with 228 visible lines per screen, but drawn at 50&nbsp;Hz and only 13 colors. [[SECAM]] mode, also a 50&nbsp;[[Hertz|Hz]] format, is limited to 8 colors, each with only a single brightness level.<ref name="Wright"/><ref name="TIA color chart">Atari 2600 [http://www.biglist.com/lists/stella/archives/200109/msg00285.html "TIA color chart"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707234118/http://www.biglist.com/lists/stella/archives/200109/msg00285.html |date=July 7, 2011 }}</ref>

===Controllers===
{{multiple image
 | total_width = 320
 | image1      = Atari-2600-Paddle-Controller-FR.jpg 
 | caption1    = CX30 paddle
 | image2      = Atari-2600-Joystick.jpg
 | caption2    = CX40 joystick
}}

The first VCS bundle has two types of controllers: a joystick (part number CX10) and pair of rotary [[paddle (game controller)|paddle controllers]] (CX30). Driving controllers, which are similar to paddle controllers but can be continuously rotated, shipped with the ''[[Indy 500 (1977 video game)|Indy 500]]'' launch game. After less than a year, the CX10 joystick was replaced with the CX40 model<ref name="current"/> designed by James C. Asher.<ref>{{cite web|title=United States Patent 4,349,708|url=https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/pdfs/1ae0e2937613724a0e9f/US4349708.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/pdfs/1ae0e2937613724a0e9f/US4349708.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live|date=September 14, 1982}}</ref> Because the [[Atari joystick port]] and [[Atari CX40 joystick|CX40 joystick]] became industry standards, 2600 joysticks and some other peripherals work with later systems, including the [[MSX]], [[Commodore 64]], [[Amiga]], [[Atari 8-bit computers]], and [[Atari ST]]. The CX40 joystick can be used with the [[Master System]] and [[Sega Genesis]], but does not provide all the buttons of a native controller. Third-party controllers include Wico's Command Control joystick.<ref>{{cite web|last=Hruschak|first=PJ|date=April 1, 2008|title=Gamertell Review: Wico's Command Control Joystick|url=http://www.technologytell.com/gaming/31885/gamertell-review-wicos-command-control-joystick/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160403210511/http://www.technologytell.com/gaming/31885/gamertell-review-wicos-command-control-joystick/|archive-date=April 3, 2016|website=Technologytell.com}}</ref> Later, the CX42 Remote Control Joysticks, similar in appearance but using wireless technology, were released, together with a receiver whose wires could be inserted in the controller jacks.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://atariage.com/controller_page.php?SystemID=2600&ControllerID=27|title=AtariAge – Atari 2600 – Controllers – Remote Control Joysticks|website=atariage.com|access-date=2019-02-18|archive-date=October 11, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011122525/http://atariage.com/controller_page.php?SystemID=2600&ControllerID=27|url-status=live}}</ref>

Atari introduced the CX50 Keyboard Controller in June 1978 along with two games that require it: ''Codebreaker'' and ''Hunt & Score''.<ref name="current"/> The similar, but simpler, CX23 Kid's Controller was released later for a series of games aimed at a younger audience.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://atariage.com/controller_page.php?SystemID=2600&ControllerID=6|title=AtariAge – Atari 2600 – Controllers – Kid's Controller|website=atariage.com|access-date=2019-02-18|archive-date=May 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190518115901/https://atariage.com/controller_page.php?SystemID=2600&ControllerID=6|url-status=live}}</ref> The CX22 Trak-Ball controller was announced in January 1983 and is compatible with the Atari 8-bit computers.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Current|first1=Michael D.|title=Atari 8-Bit Computers FAQ|url=http://www.faqs.org/faqs/atari-8-bit/faq/section-102.html|access-date=May 24, 2018|archive-date=August 28, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180828161141/http://www.faqs.org/faqs/atari-8-bit/faq/section-102.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

There were two attempts to turn the Atari 2600 into a keyboard-equipped [[home computer]]: Atari's never-released CX3000 "Graduate" keyboard,<ref>{{cite web |title=The Atari "Graduate" Computer CX-3000 |url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2600/a3000.html |website=Atari Museum |access-date=April 22, 2019 |archive-date=April 30, 2015 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20150430005623/http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2600/a3000.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and the [[CompuMate]] keyboard by [[Spectravideo]] which was released in 1983.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Spectravideo "Compumate" Keyboard |url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2600/compumat.html |website=Atari Museum |access-date=June 23, 2019 |archive-date=November 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191126222146/http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2600/compumat.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Console models==
{{multiple image
|align=right
|direction=vertical
|image1=Atari-2600-Vader-FL.jpg
|caption1 = The all-black model that first used the Atari 2600 name (released in November 1982)
|image2=Atari-2600-Tele-Games-FL.jpg
|caption2 = Sears rebranded the VCS as the "Video Arcade" for its Tele-Games line.
|image3=Atari-2600-Video-Arcade-II-FL.jpg
|caption3=The design of the Japan-only Atari 2800 was previously used in the US for the Sears Video Arcade II.
|image4=Atari-2600-Jr-FL.jpg
|caption4=The 1986 cost-reduced version, nicknamed "2600 Jr."
}}

===Minor revisions===
The initial production of the VCS was made in Sunnyvale during 1977, using thick [[polystyrene]] plastic for the casing as to give the impression of weight from what was mostly an empty shell inside.<ref name="atari fun chp5"/> The initial Sunnyvale batch had also included potential mounts for an internal speaker system on the casing, though the speakers were found to be too expensive to include;  instead sound was routed through the TIA to the connected television.<ref name="atari fun chp5"/> All six console switches were mounted on the front panel. Production of the unit was moved to Taiwan in 1978, where a less thick internal metal shielding was used and thinner plastic was used for the casing, reducing the system's weight. These two versions are commonly referred to as "Heavy Sixers" and "Light Sixers" respectively, referencing the six front switches.<ref>{{Cite web | url = https://www.digitalgamemuseum.org/you-can-judge-a-2600-by-its-cover/ | title = You Can Judge a 2600 By Its Cover | first = Dave | last = Beaudoin | date = May 31, 2016 | access-date = September 11, 2018 | work = Digital Game Museum | archive-date = September 11, 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180911225626/https://www.digitalgamemuseum.org/you-can-judge-a-2600-by-its-cover/ | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="atari fun chp5"/>

In 1980, the difficulty switches were moved to the back of the console, leaving four switches on the front and replacing the previous all lowercase font for the switch labels to fully capitalized wording. Otherwise, these four-switch consoles look nearly identical to the earlier six-switch models. In 1982, to coincide with the release of the Atari 5200, Atari rebranded the console as the "Atari 2600", a name first used on a version of the four-switch model without woodgrain, giving it an all-black appearance. This all-black model is commonly referred to by fans as the "Vader" model, due to its resemblance to [[Darth Vader|the ''Star Wars'' character]] of the same name.

===Sears Video Arcade {{anchor|sears}}===
Atari continued its [[Original equipment manufacturer|OEM]] relationship with [[Sears]] under the latter's Tele-Games brand, which started in 1975 with the original ''[[Pong]]''. This is unrelated to the company [[Telegames]], which later produced 2600 cartridges.<ref name="TelegamesCatalog">{{cite web
 | url = https://atariage.com/catalog_overview.php?SystemID=2600&CatalogID=21
 | title = Atari 2600 Catalog: Telegames
 | last = Yarusso
 | first = Albert
 | work = [[AtariAge]]
 | access-date = August 31, 2010
 | archive-date = July 26, 2020
 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200726103858/https://atariage.com/catalog_overview.php?SystemID=2600&CatalogID=21
 | url-status = live
 }}</ref><ref name="Sears_n_ColecoGemini">{{cite web | url = https://wearethemutants.com/2017/09/19/the-sears-tele-games-video-arcade-1977-and-the-coleco-gemini-1982/ | title = The Sears Tele-Games Video Arcade (1977) and the Coleco Gemini (1982) | last = Grasso | first = Michael | date = September 19, 2017 | publisher = We Are the Mutants | access-date = July 22, 2020 | archive-date = July 22, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200722033027/https://wearethemutants.com/2017/09/19/the-sears-tele-games-video-arcade-1977-and-the-coleco-gemini-1982/ | url-status = live }}</ref> Sears released several models of the VCS as the Sears Video Arcade series starting in 1977. The final Sears-specific model was the Video Arcade II, released during the fall of 1982.<ref name="Sears Ad">{{cite news |title=Sears Ad |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-record/123038461/ |access-date=17 April 2023 |work=Daily Record |publisher=Sears |date=8 December 1982 |page=9 |archive-date=April 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230417181106/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-record/123038461/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Sears released versions of Atari's games with Tele-Games branding, usually with different titles.<ref name="searscartridge" /> Three games were produced by Atari for Sears as exclusive releases: ''[[Steeplechase (video game)|Steeplechase]]'', ''[[Stellar Track]]'', and ''[[Submarine Commander (Atari 2600)|Submarine Commander]]''.<ref name="searscartridge">{{cite web | url = https://atariage.com/label_page.php?LabelID=10 | title = Atari 2600 – Sears&nbsp;– Picture Label Variation | last = Yarusso | first = Albert | publisher = [[AtariAge]] | access-date = October 7, 2007 | archive-date = September 29, 2015 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150929042236/http://atariage.com/label_page.php?LabelID=10 | url-status = live }}</ref>

===Atari 2800 {{anchor|2800}}===
The Atari 2800 is the Japanese version of the 2600 released in October 1983. It is the first Japan-specific release of a 2600, though companies like [[Epoch Co.|Epoch]] had distributed the 2600 in Japan previously. The 2800 was released a short time after [[Nintendo]]'s [[Nintendo Entertainment System|Family Computer]] (which became the dominant console in Japan), and it did not gain a significant share of the market. Sears previously released the 2800 in the US during late 1982 as the Sears Video Arcade II, which came packaged with two controllers and ''[[Space Invaders (Atari 2600 video game)|Space Invaders]]''.<ref name="atarimuseum" /><ref name="Sears Ad"/> The system launched in May 1983 with 25 specifically branded games.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.famitsu.com/guc/blog/tvgame/11475.html|title=第2回：TVゲームグラフティー[〜1984年日本編] テレビゲーム・ファーストジェネレーション - コミニー[Cominy] / ブログ|website=www.famitsu.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130126142952/https://www.famitsu.com/guc/blog/tvgame/11475.html|archive-date=January 26, 2013|access-date=December 11, 2025}}</ref> Around 35 games were released for the 2800.{{citation needed|date=December 2025}}

Designed by engineer Joe Tilly, the 2800 has four controller ports instead of the two of the 2600. The controllers are an all-in one design using a combination of an 8-direction digital [[joystick]] and a 270-degree [[paddle (game controller)|paddle]], designed by John Amber.<ref name="atarimuseum">{{cite web|url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2800/A2800.html |title=The Atari 2800 System |first=Curt |last=Vendel |website=atarimuseum.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160523171925/http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2800/A2800.html |archive-date=May 23, 2016 }}</ref> The 2800's case design departed from the 2600, using a wedge shape with non-protruding switches. The case style is the basis for the [[Atari 7800]], which was redesigned for the 7800 by Barney Huang.<ref name="atarimuseum" />

===1986 model===
The cost-reduced 1986 model, sometimes referred to as the "2600 Jr.",  has a smaller form factor with an [[Atari 7800]]-like appearance. It was advertised as a budget gaming system (under {{US$|50|long=no}}) with the ability to run a large collection of games.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Atari 7800 and 2600|magazine=Sears Catalog|date=1988|url=https://atariage.com/forums/topic/233960-7800-2600-jr-ad-in-sears-1988-catalog/|access-date=May 20, 2018|archive-date=July 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715174649/https://atariage.com/forums/topic/233960-7800-2600-jr-ad-in-sears-1988-catalog/|url-status=live}}</ref> Released after the [[video game crash of 1983]], and after the [[History of the Nintendo Entertainment System#North American launch (1985-1986)|North American launch of the Nintendo Entertainment System]], the 2600 was supported with new games and television commercials promoting "The fun is back!". Atari released several minor stylistic variations: the "large rainbow" (shown), "short rainbow", and an all-black version sold only in Ireland.<ref>{{Cite web |title = 2600 Consoles and Clones |url = https://atariage.com/2600/archives/consoles.html |access-date = August 2, 2018 |archive-date = October 6, 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071006124404/http://www.atariage.com/2600/archives/consoles.html |url-status = live }}</ref> Later European versions include a joypad.<ref>{{Cite web |last=retroplace |title=Atari 2600 Jr. {{!}} Atari 2600 |url=https://www.retroplace.com/en/games/180313--atari-2600-jr |access-date=2022-08-27 |website=retroplace.com |date=1983 |language=en |archive-date=August 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220827204231/https://www.retroplace.com/en/games/180313--atari-2600-jr |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Unreleased prototypes===
The [[Atari 2700]] was a version of the 2600 with wireless controllers.

The CX2000, with integrated joystick controllers, was a redesign based on human factor analysis by [[Henry Dreyfuss Associates]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2000/a2000.html|title=The Atari CX-2000 Prototype|publisher=www.atarimuseum.com|access-date=2019-02-18|archive-date=January 17, 2013|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130117093134/http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2000/a2000.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The circa-1982 Atari 3200 was a backwards compatible 2600 successor with "more memory, higher resolution graphics and improved sound".<ref name="sylvia">{{cite web|url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/sylvia/sylvia.html |title=The Atari 3200: Super-Stella/Sylvia |publisher=AtarL Museum |access-date=July 6, 2009 |archive-url = https://archive.today/20130118010922/http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/sylvia/sylvia.html |archive-date = January 18, 2013}}</ref>

===Related hardware and recreations===
The [[Atari 7800]], announced in 1984 and released in 1986, is the official successor to the Atari 2600 and is backward compatible with 2600 cartridges.

Multiple [[List of retro style video game consoles|retro-style consoles]] and [[microconsoles]] have been released since the lifespan of the original Atari 2600:
*The [[TV Boy]] includes 127 games in an enlarged joypad.
*The [[Atari Joystick Controller TV Video Game System|Atari Classics 10-in-1 TV Game]], manufactured by [[Jakks Pacific]], [[Video game console emulator|emulates]] the 2600 with ten games inside an Atari-style joystick with [[composite video|composite-video]] output.
*The [[Atari Flashback 2]] (2005) contains 40 games, with four additional programs unlocked by a [[cheat code]]. It uses a recreated chip based on original 2600 hardware, and is compatible with original 2600 controllers. It can be modified to play original 2600 cartridges.
*In 2017, [[Hyperkin]] announced the [[RetroN]] 77, a clone of the Atari 2600 that plays original cartridges instead of preinstalled games.<ref>{{cite web | title=Atari 2600 fans get the revival console they deserve. | date=June 14, 2017 | url=https://www.engadget.com/2017/06/13/atari-2600-retron-77/ | access-date=August 20, 2018 | archive-date=August 5, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170805130403/https://www.engadget.com/2017/06/13/atari-2600-retron-77/ | url-status=live }}</ref>
*The [[Atari VCS (2021 console)]] can download and emulate 2600 games via an online store.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.engadget.com/atari-vcs-now-available-193329467.html | title = Atari VCS is now available to buy | first = Igor | last = Bonifac | date = June 15, 2021 | access-date = June 15, 2021 | work = [[Engadget]] | archive-date = June 15, 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210615194626/https://www.engadget.com/atari-vcs-now-available-193329467.html | url-status = live }}</ref>
*The [[Atari Flashback series|Atari Flashback 12 Gold]] (2023) contains 130 games built-in.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Atari Flashback 12 Gold Console |url=https://www.atgames.us/products/atari-flashback-12-gold-console |access-date=2024-09-11 |website=AtGames E-Store |language=en |archive-date=September 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240916163912/https://www.atgames.us/products/atari-flashback-12-gold-console |url-status=live }}</ref>
*The [[Atari 2600+]] (2023) is a replica of the 2600 and is 20% smaller. The 2600+ includes support for original Atari 2600 and 7800 cartridges.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nam |first=Michael |date=2023-09-30 |title=Atari 2600+ sees its future in retro gaming {{!}} CNN Business |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/30/tech/atari-2600-plus-wade-rosen-nintendo-playstation/index.html |access-date=2023-10-20 |website=CNN |language=en |archive-date=October 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231001011901/https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/30/tech/atari-2600-plus-wade-rosen-nintendo-playstation/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
*The Atari 7800+ (2024) is a smaller replica of the [[Atari 7800]]. It has similar features to the Atari 2600+, but its exterior encasing design pays homage to the Atari 7800.

==Games==
{{Main|List of Atari 2600 games}}
{{See also|List of best-selling Atari 2600 video games}}

In 1977, nine games were released on cartridge to accompany the launch of the console: ''[[Air-Sea Battle]]'', ''[[Basic Math (video game)|Basic Math]]'', ''[[Blackjack (Atari 2600)|Blackjack]]'', ''[[Combat (video game)|Combat]]'', ''[[Indy 500 (1977 video game)|Indy 500]]'', ''[[Star Ship]]'', ''[[Street Racer (1977 video game)|Street Racer]]'', ''[[Surround (video game)|Surround]]'', and ''[[Video Olympics]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Video Games Console Library Atari VCS Launch Titles |url=http://www.videogameconsolelibrary.com/pg70-2600.htm#page=games |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808211321/http://www.videogameconsolelibrary.com/pg70-2600.htm#page=games |archive-date=August 8, 2017 |access-date=September 8, 2017}}</ref> ''Indy 500'' shipped with special "driving controllers", which are like paddles but rotate freely. ''Street Racer'' and ''Video Olympics'' use the standard paddle controllers. Atari, Inc. was the only developer for the first few years, releasing dozens of games.

[[File:Combatatarigamepack.jpg|thumb|upright|right|Cover art for Atari's games, such as this cover for ''Combat'' illustrated by Cliff Spohn, were aimed to capture the player's imagination and obviate the low fidelity of game graphics.]]

Atari determined that box art featuring only descriptions of the game and screenshots would not be sufficient to sell games in retail stores, since most games were based on abstract principles and screenshots give little information. Atari outsourced box art to Cliff Spohn, who created visually interesting artwork with implications of dynamic movement intended to engage the player's imagination while staying true to the gameplay. Spohn's style became a standard for Atari when bringing in assistant artists, including Susan Jaekel, Rick Guidice, John Enright, and Steve Hendricks.<ref name="verge box art" /> Spohn and Hendricks were the largest contributors to the covers in the Atari 2600 library. [[Ralph McQuarrie]], a concept artist on the ''[[Star Wars]]'' series, was commissioned for one cover, the arcade conversion of ''[[Vanguard (video game)|Vanguard]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wanserski |first=Nick |date=February 22, 2017 |title=How fantastical Atari box art taught the world what makes video games special |url=https://www.avclub.com/how-fantastical-atari-box-art-taught-the-world-what-mak-1798258156 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201113142038/https://games.avclub.com/how-fantastical-atari-box-art-taught-the-world-what-mak-1798258156 |archive-date=November 13, 2020 |access-date=April 4, 2021 |website=[[The A.V. Club]]}}</ref> These artists generally conferred with the programmer to learn about the game before drawing the art.<ref name="verge box art">{{Cite web |last=Webster |first=Andrew |date=September 19, 2013 |title=How Atari Box Art Turned 8-bit Games Into Virtual Wonderlands |url=https://www.theverge.com/2013/9/19/4716444/how-atari-box-art-turned-8-bit-games-into-virtual-wonderlands |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210419043337/https://www.theverge.com/2013/9/19/4716444/how-atari-box-art-turned-8-bit-games-into-virtual-wonderlands |archive-date=April 19, 2021 |access-date=April 4, 2021 |website=[[The Verge]]}}</ref>

An Atari VCS port of the ''[[Breakout (video game)|Breakout]]'' arcade game appeared in 1978. The original is in black and white with a colored overlay, and the home version is in color. In 1980, Atari released ''[[Adventure (1980 video game)|Adventure]]'',<ref name="WarrenSite">{{Cite web |last=Robinett |first=Warren |author-link=Warren Robinett |title=Adventure for the Atari 2600 Video Game Console |url=http://www.warrenrobinett.com/adventure/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071025085250/http://www.warrenrobinett.com/adventure/index.html |archive-date=October 25, 2007 |access-date=October 11, 2007}}</ref> the first [[action-adventure game]], and the first home game with a hidden [[Easter egg (media)|Easter egg]].

Rick Maurer's [[Space Invaders (Atari 2600 video game)|port of Taito's ''Space Invaders'']], released in 1980, was the first VCS game to sell a million copies—eventually doubling that<ref name="7best">{{Cite web |last=Kevin Day |first=Patrick |date=January 22, 2013 |title=Atari bankruptcy: Remembering the 2600, 7 bestselling games |url=http://herocomplex.latimes.com/games/atari-bankruptcy-remembering-the-2600-7-bestselling-games/#/0 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130616181055/http://herocomplex.latimes.com/games/atari-bankruptcy-remembering-the-2600-7-bestselling-games/#/0 |archive-date=June 16, 2013 |access-date=June 27, 2018 |website=Hero Complex}}</ref> within a year<ref name="Age">{{Cite news |last=Hutcheon |first=Stephen |date=June 7, 1983 |title=The video games boom has yet to come |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fC5VAAAAIBAJ&pg=4131,3188851 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414070311/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fC5VAAAAIBAJ&pg=4131,3188851 |archive-date=April 14, 2021 |access-date=February 22, 2012 |work=[[The Age]]}}</ref> and totaling more than {{nowrap|6 million}} cartridges by 1983.<ref name="Atari"/> It became the [[killer application|killer app]] to drive console sales. Versions of Atari's own ''[[Asteroids (video game)|Asteroids]]'' and ''[[Missile Command]]'' arcade games, released in 1981, were also major hits.

Launch games use 2K ROMs. 4K eventually became standard with games such as ''Space Invaders''.<ref name="horton">{{Cite web |last=Horton |first=Kevin |date=1996 |title=Info about cart sizes and bankswitching methods |url=http://www.classic-games.com/atari2600/bankswitch.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210223035123/http://www.classic-games.com/atari2600/bankswitch.html |archive-date=February 23, 2021 |access-date=November 22, 2018}}</ref> The VCS port of ''Asteroids'' (1981) was the first game for the system to use 8K via a [[bank switching]] technique between two 4K segments.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Grand |first=Joe |url=https://archive.org/details/hardwarehackingh00gran |title=Hardware Hacking |date=2004 |publisher=Syngress Publishing |isbn=978-1932266832 |url-access=registration}}</ref> Some games, including Atari's ports of ''[[Dig Dug]]'' and ''[[Crystal Castles (video game)|Crystal Castles]]'', are 16K cartridges.<ref name=horton/> One of the final games, ''[[Fatal Run]]'' (1990), doubled this to 32K.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Atari 2600 VCS Fatal Run : scans, dump, download, screenshots, ads, videos, catalog, instructions, roms |url=http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-fatal-run_16746.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520124402/http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-fatal-run_16746.html |archive-date=May 20, 2018 |access-date=May 20, 2018 |website=www.atarimania.com}}</ref>

Many early VCS titles were able to display in both monochrome (black and white) and full color through the use of the "TV type" switch on the console. This allowed the VCS games to function on both monochrome and color televisions. However, beginning around the rebranding from "VCS" to "2600", support for black and white display modes diminished greatly, with most releases during this period only displaying in color and the TV type switch serving no function. Late releases such as ''[[Secret Quest]]'', began using the TV type switch for gameplay functions, such as pausing.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-03-22 |title=Nerdly Pleasures: The Forgotten Switch : The Atari 2600's B&W/Color Switch |url=https://nerdlypleasures.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-forgotten-switch-atari-2600s-b.html |access-date=2024-01-27 |website=Nerdly Pleasures |archive-date=January 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240128053245/http://nerdlypleasures.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-forgotten-switch-atari-2600s-b.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Two Atari-published games, both from the system's peak in 1982, ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial''<ref name="1up" /> and ''Pac-Man'',<ref name="sales">{{Cite web |last=Vendel |first=Curt |title=The Atari 2600 Video Computer System |url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2600/atari2600.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130118032119/http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2600/atari2600.html |archive-date=January 18, 2013 |access-date=November 13, 2007 |website=The Atari Museum}}</ref> were rushed to market and are cited as factors in the video game crash of 1983.

A company named [[American Multiple Industries]] produced a number of [[pornography|pornographic]] games for the 2600 under the ''Mystique Presents Swedish Erotica'' label. The most notorious, ''[[Custer's Revenge]]'', was protested by women's and [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] groups<ref>{{Cite web |title=AGH – Third Party Profile: Mystique |url=http://www.atarihq.com/2678/3party/mystique.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081207035221/http://www.atarihq.com/2678/3party/mystique.html |archive-date=December 7, 2008 |access-date=July 6, 2009 |publisher=AtariHQ.com}}</ref> because it depicted [[George Armstrong Custer|General George Armstrong Custer]] raping a bound Native American woman.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fragmaster |title=Custer's Revenge |url=http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=GameMuseum.Detail&id=282 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416185618/http://classicgaming.gamespy.com/View.php?view=GameMuseum.Detail&id=282 |archive-date=April 16, 2009 |access-date=July 6, 2009 |publisher=Classic Gaming |df=mdy}}</ref> Atari sued American Multiple Industries in court over the release of the game.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gonzalez |first=Lauren |title=When Two Tribes Go to War: A History of Video Game Controversy |url=http://www.gamespot.com/features/6090892/p-3.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090709233617/http://www.gamespot.com/features/6090892/p-3.html |archive-date=July 9, 2009 |access-date=July 6, 2009 |website=GameSpot |page=3 |df=mdy}}</ref>

==Legacy==
[[File:Video Game Consoles Atari VCS.jpg|thumb|upright|right|"[[The Art of Video Games]]" (2012) at the [[Smithsonian American Art Museum]], with ''[[Pac-Man (Atari 2600 video game)|Pac-Man]]'', ''[[Space Invaders (Atari 2600 video game)|Space Invaders]]'', ''[[Pitfall!]]'', and ''[[Combat (video game)|Combat]]'']]

The 2600 was so successful in the late 1970s and early 1980s that "Atari" was a synonym for the console in mainstream media and for video games in general.<ref name=globe>{{cite news | last = Edgers | first = Geoff | title =Atari and the deep history of video games| date= March 8, 2009 | work= [[The Boston Globe]] |url =http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2009/03/08/a_talk_with_nick_montfort/ | access-date = April 13, 2009 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090416221945/http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2009/03/08/a_talk_with_nick_montfort/| archive-date= April 16, 2009 | url-status= live}}</ref> Jay Miner directed the creation of the successors to the 2600's TIA chip—[[CTIA and GTIA|CTIA]] and [[ANTIC]]—which are central to the [[Atari 8-bit computers]] released in 1979 and later the [[Atari 5200]] console.

The Atari 2600 was inducted into the [[National Toy Hall of Fame]] at [[The Strong]] in [[Rochester, New York]], in 2007.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.salon.com/2007/11/09/toy_hall_of_fame/|title=The Atari 2600 makes the Toy Hall of Fame|author=Farhad Manjoo|date=November 10, 2007|access-date=November 29, 2015|archive-date=December 8, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208145307/http://www.salon.com/2007/11/09/toy_hall_of_fame/|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2009, the Atari 2600 was named the number two console of all time by [[IGN]], which cited its remarkable role behind both the first video game boom and the video game crash of 1983, and called it "the console that our entire industry is built upon".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://ign.com/top-25-consoles/2.html |title=Atari 2600 is number 2 |website=IGN |access-date=September 22, 2011 |archive-date=September 29, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929175158/http://www.ign.com/top-25-consoles/2.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In November 2021, the current incarnation of Atari announced three 2600 games to be published under "Atari XP" label: ''Yars' Return'', ''Aquaventure'', and ''Saboteur''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/mattgardner1/2021/11/17/atari-2600-gets-three-new-releases-28-years-after-discontinuation/?sh=520b5a1273ea |title=Atari 2600 Gets Three New Releases, 28 Years After Discontinuation |website=Forbes |date=17 November 2021 |first=Matt |last=Gardner |access-date=November 28, 2021 |archive-date=November 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128122627/https://www.forbes.com/sites/mattgardner1/2021/11/17/atari-2600-gets-three-new-releases-28-years-after-discontinuation/?sh=520b5a1273ea |url-status=live }}</ref> These were previously included in Atari Flashback consoles.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://kotaku.com/atari-s-new-collectible-game-cartridges-off-to-a-rocky-1848075679 |title=Atari's New Collectible Game Cartridges Off To A Rocky Start |date=17 November 2021 |first=Mike |last=Fahey |website=Kotaku |access-date=November 28, 2021 |archive-date=November 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128123156/https://kotaku.com/atari-s-new-collectible-game-cartridges-off-to-a-rocky-1848075679 |url-status=live }}</ref>

A model of the Atari 2600 was released by [[Lego]] in 2022.<ref>{{cite web|first=Chris|last=Reed|title=Atari 2600 LEGO Set Is Now Available
|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/atari-2600-lego-set-release-date-announcement|date=August 1, 2022|access-date=November 13, 2024|publisher=IGN}}</ref> Included are the three games ''Asteroid'', ''Centipede'', and ''Adventure''. Included is a minifigure with a bedroom designed from the 1980s.

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
=== Citations ===
<references>
<ref name="1up">{{cite web
  | last = Parish
  | first = Jeremy
  | title = Classic 1UP.Com's Essential 50
  | publisher = 1UP.Com
  | url = http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3116290
  | access-date = November 8, 2007
  | archive-date = July 25, 2012
  | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120725011314/http://www.1up.com/features/the-essential-50
  | url-status = dead
  }}</ref>
<ref name="current">{{cite web |last1=Current |first1=Michael A. |title=A History of WCI Games / Atari / Atari Games / Atari Holdings |url=http://mcurrent.name/atarihistory/wci_games.html |access-date=May 24, 2018 |archive-date=May 25, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180525062845/http://mcurrent.name/atarihistory/wci_games.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
</references>

=== General bibliography ===
* {{cite book |author1=Tim Lapetino |year=2016 |chapter=Industrial Design |url=http://www.artofatari.com/ |title=Art of Atari |publisher=Dynamite |isbn=978-1-5241-0103-9 |access-date=September 11, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170912071135/http://artofatari.com/ |archive-date=September 12, 2017 |url-status=dead }}
* {{Cite book
| last1           = Montfort
| first1          = Nick
| last2           = Bogost
| first2          = Ian
| name-list-style = amp
| title           = Racing the Beam: The Atari Video Computer System
| url             = https://archive.org/details/racingbeamatariv00mont_656
| url-access      = registration
| publisher       = [[MIT Press]]
| year            = 2009
| isbn            = 978-0-262-01257-7
}}
* {{cite journal | last1=Perry | first1=Tekla | last2=Wallich | first2=Paul | title=Design case history: The Atari Video Computer System | journal=[[IEEE Spectrum]] | date=March 1983}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Atari 2600}}
* [http://thedoteaters.com/?bitstory=console/vcs2600 A history of the Atari VCS/2600]
* [http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Inside-the-Atari-2600/ Inside the Atari 2600]
* [http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/2600menu/2600menu.htm Hardware and prototypes] at the Atari Museum

{{Atari 2600|state=expanded}}
{{Atari hardware}}
{{Second generation game consoles}}
{{Home video game consoles}}
{{Portal bar|Video games|Electronics|1970s|1980s}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Atari 2600| ]]
[[Category:1970s toys]]
[[Category:1980s toys]]
[[Category:Atari consoles|2600]]
[[Category:Computer-related introductions in 1977]]
[[Category:Home video game consoles]]
[[Category:Products and services discontinued in 1992]]
[[Category:Second-generation video game consoles]]
[[Category:65xx-based video game consoles]]
[[Category:Discontinued video game consoles]]