Atari VCS

The VCS sounded like a vaguely interesting idea for about two days when it was announced, but once it became clear that it was mostly just a very expensive emulator, it was clear the final product wasn’t going to be anything special. And it’s not. A new-era relic for collectors perhaps, but if you do more than an hour of actual gaming on this thing after owning one, I’d be amazed.

It’s entirely possible the VCS could become a better proposition over time — either due to price drops, value-adding updates or a significantly expanded library — but as it currently stands you’ll almost certainly find better value elsewhere.

Hands on: If you are a huge Atari or retro gaming fan, there's a decent chance you already backed the crowdfunding campaign or else preordered a VCS system. For everyone else, it's an interesting device that doesn't quite nail it as a standalone console nor as a desktop PC. It's best to me right now as a fun Mac Mini alternative, although you'll be paying a premium to make your 2021 computer look like it came from 1977.

At this stage, the VCS is a curious little device that looks the part and offers impressive compatibility with a variety of peripherals, but doesn’t really boast anything truly unique that should have people eagerly opening their wallets at this stage.

With no exciting killer apps, the Atari VCS just a more attractive version of the countless cheap x64 mini PCs on the market. However, unlike those generic systems, the locked BIOS on the VCS prevents users from using the console as desired. Given the shoddy state of the default Atari OS and the other issues I’ve encountered, it’s hard to recommend the VCS as anything other than an oddity.