Anyone here into the amazing Vectrex vector-based gaming console? I've got a couple of them and they are really very cool. They pre-date the original Mac, and you'd have to wonder if they in some way inspired the classic Mac "all in one" design.. There's even a handle at the top of the Vectrex to carry it around.
One game was built in and others could be loaded via the cartridge slot on the side. There's a controller that detaches from the front of the machine, and a second can be plugged in for dual-player games.
The display is black & white, however colour is added to games by way of translucent overlays that slide in front of the display giving a sense of, albeit static, colour. Each game shipped with its own unique overlay. Again this is a vector-based system, so the graphics you get are very different to a standard raster-based display as seen in the Mac, and almost every other computing system since. If you ever played original arcade machines like Asteroids and Battlezone you'll recognise the same vector-based graphics. Or if you've got an old CRT-based oscilloscope.
Just like many other classic platforms they are still receiving love from dedicated developers, both software and hardware. Given the system was very short-lived (intro late 1982, discontinued early 1984) it's surprising how many units are still around today, and how much new software is being written for them. A few years ago someone did a port of the classic Moon Patrol game - complete with an overlay of course. It has to be one of my favourite games ever, and seeing it rendered in gorgeous vectors instead of bit-mapped sprites is pretty amazing.
Anyway, interested in hearing if anyone else has or had one and your experiences!
Cheers,
One game was built in and others could be loaded via the cartridge slot on the side. There's a controller that detaches from the front of the machine, and a second can be plugged in for dual-player games.
The display is black & white, however colour is added to games by way of translucent overlays that slide in front of the display giving a sense of, albeit static, colour. Each game shipped with its own unique overlay. Again this is a vector-based system, so the graphics you get are very different to a standard raster-based display as seen in the Mac, and almost every other computing system since. If you ever played original arcade machines like Asteroids and Battlezone you'll recognise the same vector-based graphics. Or if you've got an old CRT-based oscilloscope.
Just like many other classic platforms they are still receiving love from dedicated developers, both software and hardware. Given the system was very short-lived (intro late 1982, discontinued early 1984) it's surprising how many units are still around today, and how much new software is being written for them. A few years ago someone did a port of the classic Moon Patrol game - complete with an overlay of course. It has to be one of my favourite games ever, and seeing it rendered in gorgeous vectors instead of bit-mapped sprites is pretty amazing.
Anyway, interested in hearing if anyone else has or had one and your experiences!
Cheers,
