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Summary
From the perspective of modern computing , the Atari 400 seems like an awkward if wizard object , gasconade a difficult pressure - establish keyboard and an unusual descriptor factor with a primal jut for a pickup one-armed bandit . That cartridge slot , however , is the calling card of a machine that bridged home computation and play in a more intuitive style than its contemporaries could manage . Almost 45 year afterward , theAtari 400 Minibrings its namesake back to life in the now - familiar configuration of a downsized classic console , and it ’s a flawlessly substantiate effort that could resonate within its niche .
The Atari 400 Mini is n’t the first retro console that the company has put out in recent years , but it might be the dewy-eyed approach on most levels . go are the magazine expansion slot of the Atari 2600 + and the tremendous , awkward ambitions of the VCS , jettisoned in favor of a streamlined approach more comparable to Nintendo ’s throwback example . Notably , however , it ’s compatible with game across all of Atari ’s 8 - bit systems , which includes the 800 ( effectively the same computing gadget ) , 5200 , 130XE , and more .
A retro cabinet update for modern TVs so everyone can once again delight the classics from the Atari 2600 and 7800 . Can even play original magazine .
The Atari 400 Mini User Experience Is Simple
Straightforward UI And Save Features Get The Job Done
Atari games tend to be straight , and the 400 Mini does n’t essay to get in the means of that . A quick logotype succession on boot - up precedes a side - scrolling menu that features tiles and description for all 25 admit games , which can be opened with the press of a button and suspended just as well . Everything is nipping and responsive , and a little regalia of useful circumstance ( like an aspect proportion toggle ) stay tucked forth in a mode that ’s not intrusive . It ’s all been done before , but it ferment .
The biggest departure that number from run these titles on the Atari 400 Mini alternatively of original hardware dwell in the addition of save slots , pausing , and rewinding . While the grinding difficulty of simple game once help to mimic the colonnade experience and furnish more value in distance , it ’s not as appealing to every potential player today . Each let in title of respect features four save slot , with filled files distinguish by a thumbnail of gameplay and a book of playtime .
A Solid Selection From A Dated Library
The Library Is Fun But Imperfect
In most regard , the Atari 400 Mini ’s library is a healthy raiment , although it is n’t without its shortcomings . The most obvious is the absence seizure of the originalStar Raiders , widely considered the system ’s grampus app thanks to its staggering graphical accomplishment at the time of its spillage . Here , it ’s replaced byStar Raiders II , credibly thanks to the continuation ’s tone away from rely on the keyboard . There ’s also a case to be made that the excerpt is too reliant on game that feature mazes in some shape or another , but that ’s representative enough of the original library to be reasonable .
Some obvious highlighting of the Atari 400 Mini library areAsteroids , Centipede , M.U.L.E. , andMiner 2049eralong with the amazingly complexThe Seven Cities of Gold . Battlezoneis another far-famed inclusion , with a bequest asone of the first FPS gamesand an aspiration for i d Software . Likely less familiar isYoomp ! , a 2007 indie game for the platform that antecedently abstract intoAtari 50 : The Anniversary Celebration . Yoomp!stands out as an immediately engaging experience that pluck impressive answer out of the system limitation , so the mistiming is definitely worth it .
The Atari 400 Mini is think for a recess consultation rather than hoi polloi collection , and that audience is potential to be happy with the product .
If anything miss from the cable - up is a personal essential , it ’s not yet game over for the Atari 400 Mini . Any Atari 8 - bit title ( at least in hypothesis ) can be loaded onto a USB drive to play on the console , obviously with the disavowal that the game should be obtained lawfully . A test of .ATR files forDropzoneandJoustran into no trouble , although it ’s deserving take note that all game played this means will have to share four save slot in total .
Well-Built & Well-Designed
The Atari 400 Mini Is A Great Physical Product
The strong-arm nature of the Atari 400 Mini is obviously a major selling point for the organization , as anyone without a aggregator ’s mentality is likely to play these plot through other means now . Like the software , it ’s hard to find much to complain about in this respect . The console table is well - build and detailed , andthe included CXStick is an accurate recreation of all the estimable and the bad that comes with the iconic CX40 joystick , along with a few extra buttons for system functions .
One charming bill is that the HDMI and USB - speed of light cable that occur packaged with the console boast a equal ecru coloration , an unusual blending of 20th century electronic style and twenty-first century data formatting that abide out in a ocean of black cable . The only affair that ’s missing in the software program is a wall adapter , although it ’s potential to power the Atari 400 Mini by secure the USB into the TV itself . A six - foot cable for the CXStick is more generous than the CX40 ’s original offering , although the convenience of a setup could still be highly dependent on the way .
The Atari 400 Mini Fills Its Niche Well
A Strong System Without Wide Appeal
There ’s not all that much to nitpick about the Atari 400 Mini , which is a broadly speaking seamless experience aside from figuring out which buttons are suppose to agree to which functions in games . Whether it ’s deserving grease one’s palms for the $ 119.99 asking price , however , can still be a difficult question . Some games remain authentically impressive or simply fun , but it ’s gruelling to debate that others have n’t been mostly old-fashioned , and the Atari 8 - bit system do n’t retch a nostalgia net as wide as the 2600 does .
Ultimately , the Atari 400 Mini is intend for a niche consultation rather than mass appealingness , and that audience is potential to be happy with the product . It ’s well - made , mostly easy to use , and the prescribed keep for sideloading gives it more seniority than the included depository library can return on its own . TheAtari 400 Minimay not be the ripe paroxysm for most shelves , but anyone who ca n’t let go of fond Atari 8 - mo memory can feel easy about what the Graeco-Roman console get to the table .
Screen Rant was sent an Atari 400 Mini for the purpose of this reexamination .
