ColecoVision
From Sega Retro
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| ColecoVision |
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| Manufacturer: Coleco |
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The ColecoVision is a video game console released by Coleco in August 1982.
The ColecoVision was designed to tap into a then-booming North American video game market and act as a more advanced alternative to the then-dominant Atari 2600 and Intellivision systems. The machine was relatively popular, and at least 2 million units were sold before it was discontinued in October 1985.
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The ColecoVision was one of the first consoles to position itself as comparable to the arcade experience, and while technically lacking compared to the dedicated arcade systems of the time, was able to gain traction with its faily accurate conversions of titles such as Nintendo's Donkey Kong[1] and Sega's Zaxxon[1]. Alongside the Atari 5200 it stood as likely the most powerful dedicated home console of its day.
The ColecoVision shares several components with the SG-1000 and MSX, though while its games look and sound similar, the hardware is incompatible with both. A handful of Sega games were converted to the machine, however unlike rival platforms, said releases were usually published by Coleco themselves. Of particular note is the ColecoVision version of Turbo, which was bundled with the ColecoVision "Expansion Module #2" - a steering wheel controller.
The ColecoVision was one of the major casulties of the North American video game crash of 1983, after hedging their bets with an enhanced computer version of the ColecoVision, the Adam, Coleco left the electronics industry in 1985, and declared US chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1988.
Though primarily a product for North America, a handful of games were released in Europe by CBS Electronics, though the system struggled against the competition in the form of 8-bit home microcomputers.
Sega themselves were once set to distribute the ColecoVision in Japan[2], but this does not appear to have happened.
List of Sega games for the ColecoVision
- Carnival (1982)
- Turbo (1982)
- Zaxxon (1982)
- Buck Rogers: Planet of Zoom (1983)
- Congo Bongo (1983)
- Frogger (1983)
- Space Fury (1983)
- Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator (1983)
- SubRoc-3D (1983)
- Frogger II: Threeedeep! (1984)
- Up'n Down (1984)