Instead of using a joystick for Breakout-like games, you turned a paddle left or right. Some games play much better this way. Fortunately, enterprising hackers have sorted out hardware, drivers, and relevant emulator software to make Atari paddle controllers work on the PC, so you can play classic reissues of Atari 2600 games on modern hardware.
Emulators, ROMs, FrontEnds, Tools - you'll find it all here. If you'renew to emulation, we suggest you read the Beginner'sGuide to Emulation to give you an idea of what you're looking at.If you're an emu pro, then dig in to our juicy emulation archives below.
Game ROMs:
ROMs are binary versions of your favorite classicgames, they contain the actual code of the original cartridge. Inorder to enjoy emulation, you will need to download an emulator andthe game ROMs that you want to play.
Clickhere for our extensive searchable ROM archive.
The following are the most popular Atari 2600emulators available. All are of high quality, and I suggestyou try them all before choosing your personal preference. Stella and z26 are updated most frequently and are your best bets. Theseare all off-site links to ensure you download the latest version.
Emulators
DOS/Windows Emulators
- Stella - Popular 2600 emulator with versions for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux.
- z26 - A high quality emulator with many options and is frequently updated. DOS, Windows, and Linux versions are available.
- PC Atari - Easy to use, popular emulator. DOS and Windows versions available.
Macintosh Emulators
- Stella - As of Stella 1.4, the Macintosh OS X version of Stella is now up to date and should remain that way as new version of Stella are released. At present, this is the only viable Atari 2600 emulator or OS X.
Linux Emulators
- Stella - As of Stella 1.4, the Linux version of Stella is now up to date and should remain that way as new version of Stella are released.
- z26 - A high quality emulator with many options and is frequently updated. DOS, Windows, and Linux versions are available.
GP32 Emulators
- VCS32 - A new 2600 emulator for the portable GP32 console.
Emulator Tutorials
Tim Warner has written several emulator tutorials to help you get started playing games on your home computer, including a tutorial on how to use the popular Atari 2600 emulator z26:
Files and Utilities
This section contains utilities andother files useful when running emulators. Most of these utilities arenice graphic front-ends for command-line emulators (z26 and Stella), and'Good 2600' is a useful utility for identifying and properlynaming 2600 binaries. The 'Stella.pro' file is extremely usefulif you are using a version of the Stella emulator, as it will allow youto properly emulate the vast majority of roms without any hassles.
Utilities:
- AtariFrontz - front end for z26
- FEFA 2.5 - nice front end for 2600 emulators
- FEZ26 - front end for z26.
- Good 2600 V. 0999.3 - ROM renamer/fixer by Matt Cowering, it knows over 1200 games/hacks/versions
- KStella - Stella frontend for Linux/KDE
- Z-Launch - front end for z26. (3.2MB download with pics and text)
Usefile Files:
- FEFA Labels - cartridge label scans for use with FEFA
- FEFA Screen Shots - game screen shots for use with FEFA
You can help AtariAge
Can You Play Atari Games On Mac Os
We're looking for the following ROM files - theseROMs have not been made publicly available and one of our goals is topreserve these games in binary format due to the possibility of bit roton actual cartridges. If you have any of these ROMs, please contact usso that they may be permanently archived with other 2600 ROMs:
Play Windows Games On Mac
- Good Luck, Charlie Brown
- In Search of the Golden Skull
- Loco-Motion
We have the ability to extract the ROM (or EPROM) froma cartridge, so if you have an actual prototype cartridge we can workwith you to preserve the ROM. We can also read EPROM chips that are notsitting in a cartridge or on a board. In addition to the above unreleasedgames, we are also interested in any international ROMs that are missingfrom our database.
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