iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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The Onion @theonion.com · 01/09/2026

Physical Media Collector Pumped For Downfall Of Humanity theonion.com/physical-media-collect…

AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

Until the actual answer is known, I shall choose to believe that Nintendo* hired a clandestine factory in Malaysia (for some reason) to make this while negotiating with Atari to sell the Famicom in N. America. * in conjunction with the saucer people, under the supervision of the reverse vampires…

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Meatba'al @vance.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Very few people have survived the Malaysian Controller Mystery Hole. Rumor says there's still two Hori Support Gameboy Controllers in there, if you're brave and lucky enough

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Internet Archive @archive.org · 01/09/2026

🏛️ Before the Internet, computer clubs helped people learn, trade software & explore personal computing. A surviving binder of 50 Atari newsletters from August 1987 offers a time capsule of that world. Explore the Atari collection & more computer history: blog.archive.org/2026/08/27/a... 🧵

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HerpDerpWolfBlitzer @herpderpwolfb.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Whoaaaa I totally want a 2600 gamepad like that

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

You know how in dreams sometimes your brain invents stuff that seems realistically plausible? This mystery gamepad from Malaysia might as well have arrived from a dream — I’ve never seen another, and I know essentially nothing about its origin. theatari.spot/blog/2026-08...

theatari.spot

Malaysian Mystery: Unidentified Atari 2600 D-Pad Controller

Prototype for something? Unauthorized 3rd-party production? Homemade? Something else entirely?

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Kevin Bunch (ubersaurus) @atariarchive.org · 31/08/2026

Back in May, I helped dump seven prototype game cartridges that represent some of the earliest steps toward home video games as we know them today. I've published my findings on a new Archive Annex video: meet the FRED III. youtu.be/180erQryZFw

youtu.be

FRED III: RCA's Original Prototype Game Console - Archive Annex 6

YouTube video by Atari Archive

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Weasel ⛳🏌️ @wildweasel486.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

My uncle married one of my dad's sisters about 30-ish years ago, by my recollection. I hadn't really been around him a lot, but the handful of times I was, he made very strong impressions. He had quite a talent for computers, was the biggest Java evangelist I've ever met (even back in its infancy).

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Atari Scene News @philsan.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Randy Eric Crihfield has passed away. He was well known in the Atari community as one of the pioneers of #Atari2600 homebrew scene, producing some of the earliest games through his company, Hozer Video Games. Among them was Edtris 2600 (1995). www.morningjournalnews.com/obituaries/2... #atari

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Play History @playhistory.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

A fun new post about that time for consoles before Atari got in! thehistoryofhowweplay.wordpress.com/2026/08/22/1... Learn about the strange, interesting, and largely European early history of game consoles!

thehistoryofhowweplay.wordpress.com

1974’s Bizarre Game Consoles

Weird and wonderful early consoles. Let’s talk about them.

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Here’s my best shot at answering this quoted mystery. Many years ago @earlthird.bsky.social showed me two unusual carts. One, hand-labeled with 鐵板陣 (Xevious), is pictured in this post). I think these two carts could be similar to / the same as those seen in @ianoid.bsky.social’s AA thread. 🧵 1/7

A hot pink colored plastic cartridge about the size of an Atari 2600 cartridge with 鐵板陣 written on it in black marker.

The hot pink colored cartridge disassembled into top and bottom shell pieces, plus the PCB.

Detail of the PCB, which is marked GAM7. It uses a combination of NEC, TI, and Mitsubishi chips. 25 connector pins are visible.

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

If you missed it… hey, I’m alive! I’ve got a new site going so that I can put things somewhere that isn’t social media. The first truly new post is about a heretofore undocumented 2600 clone console manufactured in a state-owned factory in China. Much more to come! theatari.spot/blog/2026-07...

theatari.spot

Shanghai's Dazzling 2600 Clone: Apollo-8 TV GAME

The 新建 (Xinjian) XJ 8811 -- a beautiful Atari clone console from a Chinese state-owned factory.

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

*blows 14 months of dust off Bluesky* Hi to friends old & new, and to so many followers amassed for no good reason! 😸 I’ve started a website with help from a good friend. Only a few things are there so far, but more will come now that I have a non-social-media place to put things! theAtari.spot

theatari.spot

theAtari.spot

Highlighting the unusual side of Atari 2600 collecting.

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 18/05/2025

Okay, fine, while I’m here… I acquired my first 2600 cartridge that retailed in Uruguay. (The shop in Montevideo is on a street called Paraguay) Neat little 8-in-1 cartridge, and one of them is a game you don’t find too often on unauthorized multicarts: London Blitz!

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 18/05/2025

Popping in for a quick moment from my ongoing, indefinite, self-imposed social media moratorium to say… 🎊 Unauthorizon is back! 🎊 Cheers to @pirategamething.com and everyone else involved. youtu.be/x7hyVVDj1h0

youtu.be

Unauthorizon is BACK!!

YouTube video by PirateGameThing

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Daily Pac-Man @dailypacman.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

Tengen's NES version of Ms. Pac-Man contains an Easter Egg seen by having Ms. Pac-Man and Pac-Man bounce off of each other repeatedly as they go through opposite ends of a tunnel. This causes baby Pac-Men to spawn in the middle of the maze! Eating them nets you 5000 points each.

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

Parade day. Go Birds. 🦅 More photos later/tomorrow!

Saquon Barkley rides atop a bus and holds out the Lombardi Trophy for the crowd

Jalen Hurts walks alongside the parade of buses. He’s wearing a black “Love,Hurts.” Nike hoodie, sunglasses, and a black hat.

Brandon Graham holds the Lombardi Trophy atop the lead bus in the parade and points to my dad while holding a cigar.

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Dan Orlowitz @aishiterutokyo.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

THEY’RE CLIMBING THE POLES IN TOKYO GO BIRDS🦅🦅🦅

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

Had to go celebrate with strangers since I’m not in Philly. What a night!

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Kat Flandermeyer @katflandermeyer.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

funniest highlights of the philly police scanner, a thread

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Dave Itzkoff @ditzkoff.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

It’s time

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Will Bunch @willbunch.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

World fucking champions!!!

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Video Game History Foundation @gamehistoryorg.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

The Video Game History Foundation Library is now in early access. For free. For everyone. Wherever you are. Read more: gamehistory.org/vghf-library...

youtube.com

library.gamehistory.org — Now in early access

YouTube video by The Video Game History Foundation

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Kevin Bunch (ubersaurus) @atariarchive.org · 28/01/2025

New post on the Atari Archive website: Canyon Bomber! David Crane's melding of two disparate Atari arcade games from the mid-70s really elevates the experience of playing each of them. www.atariarchive.org/atari-vcs/ca...

atariarchive.org

Canyon Bomber – March 1979, Atari Archive

March 1979 brought the VCS a slew of new releases, and while some of those were original works, others returned to the tried-and-true realm of...

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xot @xot.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

I include TV-like controls in my retro emulators but never considered linking preferred settings to certain games. > NTSC Colour In Vintage Games > Includes a proposal for a 2600 container format and additional metadata. via @jetsetilly.bsky.social's Mastodon jetsetilly.github.io/Gopher2600-B...

jetsetilly.github.io

NTSC Colour In Vintage Games

In the previous article while discussing the NTSC colour problem I said that examining vintage 2600 ROMs would be an informative exercise. That is the purpose of today’s article. While selecting ROMs ...

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 26/01/2025

In speedrunning terms, I performed a sequence break and skipped the entire second phase this week (HOLY HELL THEY DID IT!!!)

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 25/01/2025

It’s not Halloween, but it *is* Random Game Saturday! I would never have been able to show this one if not for a recent big trade (yes, an Atari TRADE! in the year of our lord 2025!) Honestly, I expected never to have this one given where prices for it have gone in recent years.

An Atari 2600 game, Halloween, featuring a red, black, and white label. The game title is red on a black field, and is above the Wizard Video Games artwork in B&W on a red field. At bottom is the publisher name and product number “No. 007” in black.

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Benj Edwards @benjedwards.com · 18/01/2025

The PC is Dead: It's Time To Make Computing Personal Again My new essay on how we lost control of personal computing to Internet surveillance, DRM, and extractive business models—and how we can launch the era of Personal Computer 2.0 www.vintagecomputing.com/index.php/ar...

Photo from an early Apple II ad in the 1970s

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Jasmine 🌌🔭 @astrojaz.bsky.social · 16/01/2025

the debris from starship flight 7 caught over turks and caicos. absolutely unreal. 📸: dean olson on twitter

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The Cave (Neil) @visitthecave.bsky.social · 16/01/2025

You Wouldn't Download an Arcade Machine...would you? New Video: youtu.be/SONO6LTHuR8 Watch as Ed Fries laser scans an entire arcade machine for us to download and 3D print, and not just any machine, this is an incredibly rare #atari model from 1973. Call the cops!

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Atari Scene News @philsan.bsky.social · 15/01/2025

Another prototype for #Atari2600 console found. It's a diagnostic cart named VCS Vertical Bars by Horace Olive forums.atariage.com/topic/378681-ne… #atari #retrogames #retrogaming

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Brandon Sheffield @brandon.insertcredit.com · 12/01/2025

ATTENTION: I am starting a charity bundle to benefit victims of the Southern California wildfires. Game (and other) makers, please submit your projects so we can do some good. There is a call for submissions of projects through the 18th, please share widely! FAQ below: itch.io/jam/californ...

wildfire rages through a building in southern california, bright orange against grey arches, with water from firefighting attempts pooling in the foreground

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Andrew Borman @borman.bsky.social · 12/01/2025

Worth noting that the rom's parent directory, at least in our backups at the museum, has a game concept file talking about a fishing game for bars with very similar ideas, wotha file modified date of around a month later than the roms (though the rom was compiled a few months earlier)

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 12/01/2025

It’s Random Game Saturday once more. I let one of our cats choose this one! Here’s 法櫃奇兵 (Raiders of the Lost Ark) from an unknown Taiwan distributor (maybe 立達 “Leader”). Not sure if the titles on these carts were written at the factory or by the end user. I lean toward the former, but don’t know.

An Atari 2600 cartridge with a fairly plain label. There are scattered pink triangles on a plain white background. The word 立達 (Leader?) is printed vertically in a purplish color. The name of the game has been neatly written onto the bottom of the label in blue pen. Glue spotting/staining mars the label.

A view of the end label, showing the game name written neatly in blue pen.

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Atari Scene News @philsan.bsky.social · 11/01/2025

Fish, a prototype game for #Atari2600 console discovered on a tape backup of Atari Coin-Op division's mainframe, in the folder of an employee named Mike Albaugh. Download: forums.atariage.com/topic/378560... Info: www.atariprotos.com/2600/softwar... #atari #retrogames #retrogaming

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Video Game History Foundation @gamehistoryorg.bsky.social · 08/01/2025

Our latest Video Game History Hour podcast talks to The Strong's director of digital preservation Andrew Borman: gamehistory.org/episode-122-... (Reminder: Patreon subscribers - www.patreon.com/gamehistoryorg - get access a day early, and bonus episodes too!)

gamehistory.org

Episode 122: Save the Games Recap | Video Game History Foundation

We’re joined by Director of Digital Preservation at The Strong National Museum of Play Andrew Borman to recap the events of the first ever Save the Games Symposium put on by the museum in August 2024,...

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Felipe Pepe @felipepepe.bsky.social · 08/01/2025

"Video Games Around the World" is a book I always recommend, but the chapter on Brazil has a flaw that's a warning to us all. It says BRs only made 105 games from 1983-2010. Why so few? Because it only lists commercial ones... in the country of informality, it only documented the industry's side :/

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 07/01/2025

Advertise your account with one Simpsons image

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 07/01/2025

Recently snagged a very nice box upgrade for the New Zealand silver-label-styled release of Yars’ Revenge. I love that Atari/Monaco redesigned the box sticker so that instead of hawking an included Yars’ comic (since it wasn’t part of the NZ release) it now just says: NEW INSIDE AMAZING GRAPHICS

Atari 2600 box for Yars’ Revenge in the silver-label style box. Residue from a price sticker is the only major blemish. A red triangular sticker is affixed to the lower right box corner, which reads “NEW INSIDE” “AMAZING GRAPHICS”.

The manual and cartridge on top of the (now flipped over) box for the NZ release of Yars’ Revenge. The back of the manual has the reflective foil stickers from Monaco Distributors, Atari’s licensee in New Zealand. The cartridge has a label with a white colored background, but is in the design of the standard silver foil label that Atari used in 1982-1984.

A zoomed screenshot of a scan that shows the triangular box sticker on the original release of Yars’ Revenge: it says (white text on blue stripe) “NEW INSIDE”, then (white text on red stripe) “YARS’ REVENGE from ATARI action packed”, then (red text on yellow) “COMIC BOOK”, along with a cyan unshaded line-art drawing of a Yar from the comic.

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GDRI @gdri.bsky.social · 06/01/2025

This would have been a bigger hit if was published by Activision and not CBS... bsky.app/profile/ovga...

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Peter Fletcher @rectapete.bsky.social · 05/01/2025

Join @billlange.bsky.social and me tonight at 8:00 PM EST as we chat all things Atari Party with the Retro Repair Roundup gang.

youtube.com

ATARI Party! - Retro Repair Roundup Episode #71

YouTube video by Retro Repair Roundup

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AtariSpot // rob @atarispot.bsky.social · 05/01/2025

Random game Saturday returns! Here’s “Uzay Savunma Zirhlisi” (Space Defense Armor), the licensed release of Defender in the Republic of Türkiye 🇹🇷 by Atari / ME-TA for the 2600.

An Atari 2600 cartridge with the standard Defender artwork. The Turkish and English names of the game are above and below the game art, respectively. Standard copyright text is at the bottom and names Atari’s distributor in Türkiye: ME-TA.

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Ian Larson, PhD @socialvideogame.bsky.social · 04/01/2025

Worth a read. I would add that a lot of important historical regional contributions are often dismissed over concerns of copying, unauthorized IP use, or piracy. So much unique development, reworking, and adaptation happened in communities where devices like bootlegs and clones were popular.

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Nathaniel Lockhart @nathaniellockhart.bsky.social · 03/01/2025

I was lucky enough to attend the Save the Games symposium at the Strong this past summer, and one of my biggest takeaways was how varied the experience of gaming has been across cultures. People from China, Panama, and Puerto Rico all shared their experiences with me, and they are *fascinating*!

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Frank Cifaldi @frankcifaldi.bsky.social · 03/01/2025

This is the biggest leap forward in a long time for simulating a CRT on a modern display. Even the 120hz demo (if you have a 120hz monitor) is incredible. I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that this open source code hacks the human eyeball into perceiving smooth movement.

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