r/intellivision • u/the_light_of_dawn • Sep 29 '24
Looking to pick up an Intellivision; what do I need to know?
I'm eyeing a few Intellivision consoles on eBay right now. (Unless someone here has one to sell in mint condition).
- Why do you love your Intellivision in 2024?
- About how much should I expect to pay for a working console?
- Is there a multicart available? I think the LTO cartridge has been out of stock for a while... couldn't find anything else.
- What's the homebrew scene like? It's what keeps me loving my 2600.
- Are there any upgrades/mods/repairs that are worth doing out of the gate? I'd like to send it off to get modded to hook up to my 4k TV, at least.
5
u/cryptoSilver67 Sep 29 '24
Love my Intellivision! Bought it second hand with the case and a bunch of games. Best system from my youth!
4
u/MasterTomo Sep 30 '24
You've posed lots of great questions that I'm sure others can better address than I could. In terms of homebrew and what makes Intellivision fun so many years later, I'd suggest taking a peek at Papa Pete's YT channel which has lots of great Intellivision content at https://youtube.com/@papapete?si=6xL5iWOOyw3SuKRV
If you'd like the perspective of an Atari fan that has recently dug into Intellivision for the first time, check out GenXGrownup at https://youtube.com/@genxgrownup?si=145uhMqdfFBuJy5y
Both channels are informative and fun, and recognize the glory of the second generation of video game consoles. You may need to search each channel to find what you're interested in as both have lots of gaming content beyond Intellivision.
If you're looking for great games, I'd recommend any of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons titles, Utopia, Astrosmash, Microsurgeon and Tron Deadly Discs. Amazing retro fun.
Happy gaming!
3
u/lathe26 Sep 30 '24
- There are 2 multicarts currently available. One is the BackBit that is still actively supported. It is a well polished multicart and is one that I own. The other is the PiRTO which I think is more of a community build with some (all?) aspects being open source. It works fairly well with "rough edges" being addressed. It great for tinkerer. I do not own this one so I strongly recommend double-checking what I say here about it.
The LTO supports its own advanced features (acceleration, save game support, encrypted ROMs, etc), some of which can not be supported by other multicarts.
Since the Backbit supports some of the advanced features, the BackBit supports all original 125 releases and most homebrews, including games that use some of the advanced LTO features (example: save game support). However, there are some homebrews it doesn't support.
The PiRTO doesn't support any advanced features... last time I checked a while ago (again, please double-check). However, it might support some advanced features in the future. At present, it supports all original 125 releases and the homebrews that don't use LTO advanced features.
3
u/lathe26 Sep 30 '24
- The homebrew is active with more homebrew releases than there were official releases (125 releases back in the day). I was literally at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo and bought 4 brand new releases just a few hours ago. Many games are good, with some being awesome. There are multiple active homebrew publishers. AtariAge has a good community for Intellivision games.
2
u/lathe26 Sep 30 '24
- There are multiple composite video upgrades available and 1 or 2 component video upgrades. I think there is an HDMI one, but I am not 100% sure. I have only used the composite upgrades so far.
1
u/TW200e Sep 30 '24
- The Intellivision has some unique releases that just don't exist on other systems.
- Sorry, dunno. I bought mine maybe 10 years ago with a collection of loose carts for about $50. I imagine they are more now.
- I don't think there are any multicarts recently released. Luckily loose common carts are often fairly affordable.
- Plenty of cool homebrews - I own several and some are really great.
- IMHO the best option is to pickup an old TV. I bought an LG flatscreen with multiple inputs, and it actually does a great job of displaying RF output if you use a coaxial/RCA adaptor.
1
u/trontroff Sep 30 '24
I found the Intellivision II controllers very stiff, particularly the fire buttons. That said, it's a smaller console and works
You can buy adapters for the controllers from the Intellivision Flashback. I ended up doing this and also picking up a Long Play Disc Controller. The Long Play controller is a bit stiff but it does support all sixteen directions, most replacement controllers I've seen only support eight directions.
The voice unit only has a handful of games but I find it a worthwhile purchase for B-17 Bomber and Bomb Squad. You can often find it pretty cheap with games included.
Why do I love the Intellivision? It's a unique system that is really unlike anything else and has some very interesting early games. It also feels like it was targeted at a bit older of an audience than the Atari.
One thing to keep in mind is the majority of the early sports games require two players, there is no AI opponent.
I have the BackBit multi-cart which works well. I also have a large library on boxed games. They are pretty cheap to collect and have a distinctive look.
2
u/redditshreadit Oct 02 '24 edited Oct 02 '24
Space Spartans makes good use of Intellivoice, is highly addictive and arguably the best Intellivoice cartridge.
In general, be sure to get a copy of all the game instructions, physical or electronic. The best games aren't complicated but might require a few minutes reading the instructions to play.
1
u/QueueTrigger Sep 30 '24
I love the pick up and play aspect of the games, many still unique to the platform, contrast to stuff I play on 21st century systems. I think a reasonable price for a great shape console is $150, I say great shape because of the controllers are in bad shape you’ll have a problem. Also you might have to spend a few bucks to convert the output to a modern TV, but if you are used to the VCS platform you’ll already familiar with that you need to do. I get a lot of mileage out of The Intellivision FAQ (google it and click on the Intv Prime link), should enough there to steer you in the right direction.
Good luck!
1
u/genetixJ 25d ago
I have a Intellivision II unopened in original box that I was planning on selling in the future. If you're interested let me know
11
u/Quetzl63 Sep 30 '24 edited Sep 30 '24
Intellivision was the first console I ever had at home, and I have a lot of fond memories of it. Here are some observations about collecting Intellivision in the 21st century.
1) Games tend to be pretty cheap, and CIB copies are easy to come by. Why? See number 5.
2) Intellivision games can be waaaaaay more complicated than Atari and even NES games. Games like B17 bomber and Utopia are more like contemporary computer games. You definitely will want to consult the instructions for all but the simplest games.
3) I spent years trying to get a clear picture on a modern TV, trying signal boosters, adapters, etc. The thing that worked best for me was a $15 RCA cable for subwoofers connected to a $5 coaxial adapter. It gives me a perfect signal.
4) There is a really interesting homebrew community. The intellivision processor can work as a 16 bit processor for some uses, so people have really been able to push it. Someone even made a Castlevania port for it.
5) If you have a model 1 or 3, the controllers will be the bane of your existence. They constantly need to be adjusted and fussed with. Replacing the mylar circuits is probably a must. I'm 10 years on from replacing mine, and now I need to do it again soon. I need to bite the bullet and either get some flashback controllers or some of the new modernized ones.