9 replies to this topic

[Nico]

Hi, I'm curious about what kind of computers the programmers used back in the day to program games for the Atari 2600, I've tried to search about this but all I could find was some small picture of a person using some kind of ancient computer or dumb terminal, maybe? I know they coded the program in a computer, compiled it and then burned the code in an EPROM and tested it in a real A2600, right?

[Pioneer4x4]

I believe an Apple II was used for some part of it...

[Rastignac]

Atari first try to use 6502 KIM kits from MOS.
But they then used mini-computers (aka DEC PDP, or similar Unix minis).
SuperCharger games were done on an Apple2.

[Andrew Davie]

Rastignac, on Sat Jan 14, 2012 12:48 AM, said:

Atari first try to use 6502 KIM kits from MOS.
But they then used mini-computers (aka DEC PDP, or similar Unix minis).
SuperCharger games were done on an Apple2.

You can't be serious! The KIM had a calculator keyboard and a 4-digit LED display for output.
Can you provide a reference to support that claim?
Thanks
A

[Rastignac]

Andrew Davie, on Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:11 AM, said:

You can't be serious! The KIM had a calculator keyboard and a 4-digit LED display for output. Can you provide a reference to support that claim?

I think I read that claim in an old interview of one of the first 1976/1977 programmers (Larry Kaplan or Alan Miller or ?). I will even write this in my own (unfinished) book about Atari history.

They tried to use KIM for debug purposes, but it was limited. Some of these new programmers used to work with PDP or Unix machines, so they told Atari to buy one big mini-computer.

PS: found it ! It was written there: http://www.digitpres...lan_miller.html

[Random Terrain]

You could check out the computer that Imagic used by watching this video:

The Making of Imagic's Atlantis

[Torr]

Rastignac, on Sat Jan 14, 2012 6:14 AM, said:

...so they told Atari to buy one big mini-computer.

That just strikes me so funny... would 2 Mini Big-Computers have sufficed as well

[Thorium]

I am sure they did a lot more on paper than today.
You dont necessarily need a computer to write a program. You can even assemble it by hand, no compiler needed.

I dont see why they didnt used the KIM in the early days. They probably wrote the whole program on paper and then feeded it to the KIM to burn the ROM.

Edited by Thorium, Sat Jan 14, 2012 9:04 AM.

[ianoid]

Dan Kramer said they used a Cromemco system at Atari, perhaps this one. He described it as a black box.

Edited by ianoid, Sun Jan 15, 2012 7:58 AM.

[jdrose]

I would like to see some confirmation that someone developed a professional game for the VCS on a KIM-1 back in the day. That would have been a tedious, yet awesome accomplishment.

My understanding is that Atari had in house PDP-11 minicomputers for developing VCS code and "state of the art" 8001 color computers for designing graphics.
(I suppose the other cartridge developers would have had similar minicomputers.)