Atari and Plaion revealed that they are working together to create the Atari 7800+, a scaled-down throwback mini-console based on Atari’s NES and Sega Master System competitor.
The Atari 7800 was originally released in 1986, and it was Atari’s first piece of hardware after the video game crash of 1983. It didn’t reach the heights of popularity that the NES and Sega Master System were achieving at the time, but it was still notable for being one of the first backward compatible consoles and featuring solid ports of arcade classics like Food Fight, Galaga, and Dig Dug. Now, the Atari 7800+ offers a more compact version of that original design, and it’s compatible with modern TVs.
Taking cues from last year’s Atari 2600+, the Atari 7800+ lets people use their own game cartridges and play the games on an official system with HDMI connectivity and widescreen support. It’s a step above systems like the NES Classic Edition, which came pre-bundled with a select number of games. As is the case with the original console and 2600+, the Atari 7800+ will support 2600 and 7800 game cartridges. In addition, Atari is releasing 10 new game cartridges that will be compatible with the system.
Those games are Astroids Deluxe, Bounty Bob Strikes Back, Bentley Bear’s Crystal Quest, Berzerk, Frenzy, Space Duel, Caverns of Mars, Epyx Game Collections, M Network Collection, and RealSports Collection. These games will retail for $30 and come with color game manuals. Atari and Plaion are also releasing the CX78+ Wireless Gamepad and CX40+ Wireless Joystick for $35 each, although a CX78+ and a copy of Bentley Bear’s Crystal Quest will come bundled with each Atari 7800+.
The Atari 7800+ is available for preorder now, costs $130, and will be released sometime during winter 2024.
