While going through some of my old video game magazines (I've been putting
them up on ebay), I found an article in the November 1983 issue of
Videogaming and Computergaming Illustrated about an Atari 2600 programming
system called the READS 2600 by VSS Inc.
For those who might be interested in the magazine itself
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dllViewItem&category=4315&item=1948683065&rd=1
Was this system ever released? Does anybody here know anything about it?
Anybody ever use it? Here's the text from the article.
YOU CONTROL THE VIDEO
Maybe you're one of the apparently mounting number of videogamers grown
bored with what the Atari 2600 has (or doesn't have) to offer. Maybe you
feel you could make a fortune designing games if your freehand sketches
would just feed into your Atari 800's disk drive. Or maybe you bought a
2600 AND an 800 and don't know what the hell you're going to do with both of
them.
A possible solution to all three problems has been provided by VSS inc. With
their READS 2600, supplied software, and a 6502 assembler, you can use your
800 to create your own games for the 2600 (adaptor for Vic-20 games
available).
Says Ed Salvo of VSS: "The READS 2600 is a development tool for home use.
It's intended for someone who knows how to program and design a VCS game,
especially someone who'd want to sell that game to a manufacturer."
Physically, it is a "black box" which connects to your 800 through the
joystick ports and to your VCS through a cartridge adaptor.
In addition to developing games in 4k, you can utilize the unit's bank
selection mechanism to create 8k games. With an optional eprom programmer,
you can assemble prototype cartridges.
The complete READS 2600 package includes 8K Rom emulator, Atari 800
connector cable, Atari VCS cartridge adaptor, Cartridge adaptor connector
cable, instructions, and software packages for transferring your computer's
machine language program for execution on the VCS and for discovering the
graphic and audio capabilities of the VCS. Price is $795.00, with
accessories ranging from $5.50 to $295. Write to VSS Inc., Hardware
Development Division, TX 75220
The city is missing from the companies address and is not a typo on my part.
I wonder how many they sold (if any?)
Chris Pepin
cpepin1@xxxxxxxxxxx
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Tom Swift and His Electronic Web
http://www.geocities.com/cpepin1976
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