Atari 7800 and XE System Games — Atari’s Second Chance
The Atari 7800 ProSystem, originally completed in 1984 but delayed until 1986 by Atari’s sale to Jack Tramiel, was designed to compete directly with the NES — offering backward compatibility with Atari 2600 cartridges alongside improved graphics capability. Its custom MARIA graphics chip could handle up to 100 sprites on screen with minimal flicker, making it technically capable of superior arcade conversions. The Atari XE Game System (XEGS), released in 1987, was a detachable-keyboard version of the Atari 65XE computer that could function as either a games console or a home computer.
Both systems suffered from Nintendo’s overwhelming dominance of the late 1980s console market — the NES had established such a strong position by the time the 7800 launched in North America that Atari could never gain meaningful market share despite the 7800’s technical merits. The software libraries for both systems are consequently relatively small compared to the NES, making complete collections challenging and particularly rewarding for dedicated Atari collectors.
Tietokonemuseo Ata’s games:
A
Ace of Aces L
Asteroids SW
Asteroids L
B
Ballblaszer B
Barnyard Blaster SW
Barnyard Blaster L
Bug Hunt (xe) L (2)
C
Choplifter! CIB
Crack’ed L
D
Desert Falcon (xe) CIB
Desert Falcon L
Dig Dug SW
Donkey Kong SW
Donkey Kong Junior L
F
Fatal Run L
Flight Simulator II (xe) LM
Flight Simulator II (xe) L
H
Hat Trick B
Hat Trick L
I
Impossible Mission CIB
Impossible Mission L
J
Jinks SW
Jinks B
Jinks L
Joust SW
K
Karateka CIB
Karateka L
M
Mat Mania Challenge L
Mean 18 CIB
Meltdown SW
Meltdown CIB
Meltdown L
Midnight Mutants L
Ms. Pac-man L
O
One On One basketball L
P
Planet Smashers L
Pole Position II SW
Pole Position II L
S
Super Huey UX-IX CIB (2)
T
Tower Toppler SW
Tower Toppler L