Atari Collection 2 (Evercade Review)

The second Atari collection continues on the legacy of the first by adding another 20 games from the 7800 and 2600. Five titles from the 7800 make the cut and fifteen from the 2600. The quality is a bit more balanced this time around and there are a number of interesting games to get into.

The 2600 selection remains inconsistent but there are a couple of absolute gems in there. Dark Chambers is an excellent adventure/gauntlet lite style game that has you moving from room to room clearing out monsters and making your way to the exit. The action is basic but satisfying and it is strangely compelling even after extended periods of play. The star of the show though is the technical masterpiece that is Solaris.

A massively ambitious space adventure the game has you plotting a location on a star chart before blasting off. Location depending, you could be thrown into a dog fight or skim across a planets service clearing it of enemies, rescuing missing crew or looking for resources. The game looks pretty good as well and the stylised graphics still hold up remarkably well in what has to be the best looking 2600 game of all time. It’s also excellent and will keep you busy for a long time.

These two highlights mixed with the solid showings of Millipede, Radar Lock, Sub Commander and Wizard give a much better impression of what the 2600 has to offer. The 7800 fairs much better this time around also.

While there’s nothing quite as unique as Ninja Golf here what we do have is two good arcade conversions in Asteroids and Centipede which are immensely enjoyable and more than enough to keep high score chasers happy. The excellent isometric shooter in Desert Falcon is included as well and is much better than the 2600 version featured on the first Atari collection. It’s a unique looking game that requires some thought to progress and offers up something different to get your head around. Planet Smashers is also solid but the less said about Basket Brawl the better.

Overall, the second Atari collection has more than enough to recommend it to Evercade owners. The combination of three very good 7800 games and a host of solid to excellent 2600 titles mean there is more than enough to discover and play. The fact Solaris is another gem that has been unearthed and made available to a new audience is further proof that the Evercade is a vital system for retro gaming fans. 

Game Ratings

Atari 7800

Asteroids                                             4/5

Basketbrawl                                        2/5

Centipede                                            4/5

Desert Falcon                                      4/5

Planet Smasher                                    3/5

Atari 2600

Air Sea Battle                                      2/5

Bowling                                               2/5

Dark Chambers                                    4/5

Demons to Diamonds                          2/5

Human Cannonball                              2/5

Haunted House                                     2/5

Millipede                                              3/5

Radar Lock                                           3/5

Real Sports Tennis                               2/5

Sub Commander                                  3/5

Sprint Master                                        3/5

Solaris                                                   5/5

Street Racer                                           2/5

Wizard                                                  3/5

Yars Revenge                                        2/5