It may not have the big-name games of other mini consoles, but it still offers fascinating insights into Atari’s 8-bit era.
Now that the miniature game console trend has already covered most of the biggest devices from Nintendo, Sega, and Sony, we’re starting to enter more niche territory. The Atari 400 Mini isn’t a rerelease of the company’s most recognizable console (that’d be the 2600). And it isn’t full of household names. But that’s also part of what makes it so interesting — the little gadget is a cute, playful way to explore a very specific and formative niche of video game history.
I like that they give you the option to add your own ROMs to it! I came very close to buying the 2600+ that they released last year, but backed out at the last minute. My RetroArch setup does really well for most things, although I do have some original hardware here and there.
Yeah, it's a tricky balance between playing the games and being more of a collector trying to get to the original experience. I also have very convenient retroarch setup, so I'm just not sure if this would add much.
I still have actual Atari 800 XL though. Turbo 2000 cassettes and all that 😊
For a quick gaming session I tend to use RetroArch, but if I really enjoy a game I often have a cartridge or disk for it so I can experience it on original hardware. I've got a small computer collection of era correct hardware that I keep running so I can play some of the older Windows games. It's sometimes a lot of effort, but a lot of fun when Windows 98 or XP boots up again!
That Atari setup would be nice to have! I wanted to get something in their 8-bit lineup but I never have. I do have a Commodore 64 though!