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The Atari 5200 was, in essence, an Atari 400 computer without a keyboard. This made for a powerful, proven design which Atari could quickly bring to market. The system featured many innovations like an automatic switchbox and 4 controller ports, but the most revolutionary was the a controller with an analog joystick and system function keys (start, pause, reset). Unfortunately, the non-centering joystick design proved to be ungainly and unreliable, alienating many consumers. The Atari 5200 also suffered from its initial cartridge incompatibility with the Atari 2600 (an adapter was later released).
While the 5200 did garner a strong cult following with its library of high quality games, it faced an uphill battle competing with the ColecoVision's head start and a stuttering economy. But the question of which system was superior became moot when the game market crashed in 1983-84, killing off both systems in their prime.
| Pac-Man | Dig Dug | Jungle Hunt | RealSports Baseball |
| Atari ( 1982) | Atari ( 1983) | Atari ( 1983) | Atari ( 1983) |
| Pitfall II | ZaxxonZaxxon is a 1982 arcade game by Sega. The game gives the player the experience of flying a space shuttle-like craft through a fortress while shooting at enemy entities ( missiles, enemy gunfire, etc. The object of the game is to hit as many targets as pos | Ballblazer | Rescue on FractalusAtari 5200 Rescue On Fractalus was a computer game title created by Lucasfilm Games (later LucasArts Entertainment), released in 1985 for the Atari 8-bit systems, such as the Atari 800 and the Atari 5200. It was also converted to other popular platforms o |
| Activision ( 1984) | Sega ( 1984) | Atari/ Lucasfilm Games ( 1986) | Atari/ Lucasfilm Games ( 1986) |
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