Coleco Telstar Combat (1977)

The Coleco Telstar Combat was released in 1977 as a post-Pong video game console. not like Coleco's former home Pong clones based on the General Instrument AY-3-8500 chip, it worn a AY-3-8700 chip. The console was a success but due to having too many same dedicated console product, Coleco almost went bankrupt in 1980.

Telstar Combat was Coleco's attempts to break away from the Pong-clone video game rut. It's certainly special, there is no company manufactured a dedicatedl console with such elaborate controls. This consoles play 4 variations of a tank battle game, same to the Atari 2600 Combat match cartridge.

Atari VCS 2600 (1977)

The Atari 2600 was released in 1977, an is the 1st successful video game console that use plug-in cartridges rather than having one or more built in games. originally known as the Atari VCS 2600, for Video Computer System, and the name "Atari 2600" (full from the element's Atari part number, CX2600) was first worn in 1982, after the release of the more advanced Atari 5200.

The early price was $199 with an library of 9 titles. In a play to compete briefly with the Channel F, Atari named the order the Video Computer System (or VCS for sharp), as the Channel F was at that thing known as the VES (Video Entertainment System). When Fairchild learned how Atari's naming their product quickly changed the name of their system to become the Channel F.

Atari expanded the 2600 family with two another compatible consoles. The Atari 2700, a wireless style of the console was never released due to design flaws. The Sleek Atari 2800 released to the Japanese in 1983 suffered from competition from the newly-released Nintendo Famicom.

Atari Stunt Cycle (1977)

All the thrills stunt motorcycle riding right in your living room, so much fun Evil Knievel must have had one!. Stunt Cycle originally was an Atari arcade coin-op, then made into a video game console shown here.

The initial coin-op had been released in 1975 to take benefit of the popular motorcycle stunt man Evil Knievel. Originally a motorcycle salesclerk who began doing stunts to draw attention to his store, by the early 70's, he was a household name. Atari's coin-op attempted to capture the feel and fun of the stunt jumping Evel Knievel was famous for, and was a success.

Stunt Cycle gave the player a 1st person felt of riding a motorcycle, even although the image on screen was not 1st person. You could leap over the cars and buses, if you played with the control just right you could flinch right off the screens, much fun!

Atari Video Pinball (1977)

In 1977, Atari Video Pinball appeared as another Atari coin-op to stand-alone home video game console translation by transfer the Breakout game to home players. released in the 1970's Atari "1st edition release" standard wood grain (also to be utilised on the Atari 2600) and then the 2nd edition white plastic model. bumper controllers on the sides or a dial on the front were used to control the games depending on the choosen game. There were three selection of game (Pinball, Basketball, and Breakout).

Interestingly enough, Atari did be found up with an actual video Pinball coin-op, 2 years after the release of their home video game console. It was a special mixture between video game and pinball technology that still has not been duplicated to this year. While some before, and after trying using the video game as a game within the game or simple to display some unique animations (such as Baby Pacman, or the recent Star Wars pinball hologram effect model).

RCA Studio II (1976)

RCA couldn't accept the truth that they let the Odyssey mistake through their fingers (Ralph Baer the designer of Odyssey approached RCA with the deal 1st), and into the hands of their TV rival Magnavox. The RCA Studio II is their answer for the Magnavox Odyssey. Releasing in 1976 a few months after the release of the Fairchild Channel F, it may have been the first programmable video game system (Fairchild beat them to the release gate).

The console was doomed from the start. The lack of a color and command paddles made this unit old and dated. With only 8 games, the Studio II suffered the same destiny as Channel F. Overshadowing and rendered obsolete by the Atari VCS / 2600

The RCA Studio II should have been an colour console, a few games were intended for color, but the video output of the console was black & white. A Studio II clone released in the UK called The Sheen M1200 released in 1978, and produced PAL colour with RCA Studio II games and was a more success unit.

Fairchild Channel F (1976)

The Channel F is the first programmable video game system, including plug-in cartridges containing ROM and microprocessor code slightly than dedicated circuits. Not a very general or entertaining method, it was nonetheless important at the time for having several previous features which were imitated by later more successful video game systems.

Fairchild released 26 different cartridges for this video game system, with up to four games being on each cartridge. The games included sports (Hockey, Tennis and Baseball, educational, such as Maths Quiz, board games, such as Checkers, and shooting games, such as Space War). The cartridges had labels that enclosed the game instructions on them and each were given a sequential number. Fairchild ongoing a trend in tiresome to boost game sales by numbering them and so appealing to consumers who wanted to collect their collection.

The Channel F console's famous lowered when the Atari released their VCS in 1977 because the VCS had much better games, graphics and sound.

Magnavox Odyssey 500 (1976)

The Magnavox Odyssey 500 was released in 1976, and was very advanced in that time because of the technology. It was in statement the only system of its kind. As a trouble of detail, the white paddles representing players replaced by simple graphics: two tennis players with their rackets (TENNIS game), two squash players (SQUASH), or two hockey players holding their sticks (HOCKEY).

Magnavox released Magnavox Odyssey 2000, 3000 and 4000 in 1977. Magnavox Odyssey 5000 was intended but never released. It was intended to have 24 games (7 different types) for two or four players. The Odyssey 4000 was the last PONG video game system released by Magnavox.