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The Video Game Console Library - Emerson Arcadia 2001

Emerson Arcadia 2001

  HANDS ON REVIEW by Marriott_Guy            DW FACTS by Dark Watcher
 
Developer Manufacturer Release Date Country(s) Initial Price Model Number  Game Releases  Overall Rating
Emerson Radio Corp. Various May-82 USA, Europe, Japan $199 USD See Below Approx. 45 4.5
Ratings Reviews Pictures\Video Specs Games\Emulation Models Clones Links  
   

Ratings
Ratings are based on the available technology at the time of release.  Ratings based on a 10 point scale (10 being excellent\very rare).

Console Design (Appearance and overall functionality)

 06

Console Durability (Sturdy and hearty or frail and fragile)

 07

Controllers (Design, response, feel and ease of use)

 05

Graphics (Graphical capability and game presentation)

 04

Audio (Sound capabilities, including music, speech, effects)

 05

Media (Game media format, design, durability)

 08

Packaging (Appeal and durability of packaging)

 08

Game Library (Quality and quantity of game offerings)

 02

Innovations (Technological strides on the industry)

 03

Gamer Value (Is this a good investment for the gamer?)

 02

Collector Value (Is this a good investment for the collector?)

 07

Games Rarity (General availability of most games)

 07

Console Rarity (General availability of a functional system)

 05
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    Reviews

  DW FACTS
  - by Dark Watcher

Emerson Arcadia 2001 was supposed to be the Atari 2600 killer. A great console with great games. Unfortunately they fell prey to complete lack of third party development, and the lack of arcade game titles. Similar to other consoles before it, they were forced to release arcade clones.

The system didn't grasp much attention and soon found its way to the bargain bin at the cost of $99. The release of the Colecovision months later sealed the Arcadia's fate. The Emerson Arcadia 2001 died after only a year and a half with 35 game releases. Most never recall it existed. Many clones of it (such as the Leonardo were released across the world though. It was also licensed and distributed in Japan by Bandai for 19,800 yen.

FACT: In an attempt to boost the system in advertisements, the Emerson Arcadia was said to have 24K of system RAM. This is actually a huge lie, and the single largest reason for historians and researchers to be VERY cautious about taking any sales-related statements at face value.
 


  HANDS ON REVIEW
  - by Marriott_Guy (08-Jun-08)


In 1982, Emerson Radio Corporation decided to enter the video game hardware arena with their release of the Arcadia 2001. Better known for their development of affordable electronic products, this move was not entirely a big surprise. Emerson was always looking for market niches to penetrate to utilize their existing electronics manufacturing team. As with their previous releases of low-end, price friendly electrical component ventures, the Arcadia 2001 would eventually suffer the same fate.

The Arcadia 2001 is not necessarily a bad looking machine. The sturdy, brown plastic housing has a nice accent of wood grain trimming (which was very popular at that time). The console sports a very clean user interface, located in the front and center of the unit. Soft, rounded, gold colored buttons provide easy access to the main systems functions (Reset, Select, Option, Start). The square shaped Power button that flanks these buttons to the right does not really quite fit into the scheme - almost as if this was an afterthought of the chassis design team. The two, non-detachable keypads (Intellivision-type clone) rest in cradles to the left and right, though do not truly fit visually into the design of the console (maybe another afterthought). The Arcadia 2001 does sport one of the longest video RF cables I have seen - 12' long. The plug for the 12 Volt external power supply and a Channel 3/4 switch adorn the back side of this system. There are two (2) screw 'holes' on the back as well. I have no idea what these are used for.

Underneath the hood, the Arcadia 2001 was powered by Signetics 2650 CPU running at 3.58 MHz which produced games in 8 colors and at a screen resolution of 208 x 108. The best way to describe games for the Arcadia 2001 is to think of an Atari 2600 release and inject it with a heavy does of steroids. The Arcadia 2001 was a more powerful machine that the console it was intended to dethrone, but Emerson lacked a critical component for success in the console wars - third party support.

Cartridges came in two different sizes and are black in color (USA) with well rendered artwork adorning the front of the cart (almost like a mini water color painting) and game instructions on the back. The title is displayed along the 'spine' of the cartridge in easy to read 'rainbow' lettering. The silver colored boxes are similar in size to the Atari 2600, but much more sturdy and are handsomely numbered. Many games come packaged with a controller overlay identical to the same concept used by Intellivision.

A number of popular games were developed for the Arcadia 2001, including Pacman, Galaxian and Defender. Atari successfully sued Emerson, and other companies, claiming they had exclusive rights to these game franchises. These games never saw the light of day and resulted in a waste of a great deal of capital. This left Emerson scrambling for suitor(s) to develop game software. With the Atari 5200 and the Coleco Colecovision about to be released, both being superior systems, development for the Arcadia 2001 was non existent. A total of 35 games (most arcade clones) were released for this system. Surprising, this console was manufactured and released in many different countries outside of the USA. All are basically the same, but differ in one significant way - cartridge size. Games are not necessarily compatible with all systems.

Development for the Arcadia 2001 ceased about one year after its debut. Unable to compete with technologically superior consoles that were released at virtually the same time (Atari 5200 and Coleco ColecoVision) coupled with the lack of third party software support sealed this system's fate.

Prices seem to fluctuate greatly on this system and appear to be dependant on the respective model. Though this console was a relative failure and a mere blip on the radar, it is not that rare and can be easily obtained.
   

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     Pictures & Video


Emerson Arcadia 2001 - Front
Emerson Arcadia 2001 - Back
Bandai Arcadia - Front
Bandai Arcadia - Back
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    Specs
Processor Type Processor Speed

Other Processor Information

 RAM \ Video RAM
8 bit Signetics 2650 3.58 MHz  Signetics 2637 Co-processor 1 KB \ None

Screen Resolution

Color Palette

Polygons \ Sprites

Audio
208 x 108 8 Colors (plus 1 for BG color) N\A \ 4 Signetics 2637N (single channel)

Media Format

Media Capacity

Games Released

Supported Formats
Cartridge 2048 to 8192 bytes Approx. 45 None

Internal Storage

External \ Removable Storage

Game Controllers

Other Game \ Peripheral Devices
None None Intellivision-style Keypads None
Controller Ports Network Ports

Other Ports

Audio \ Video
Two (hardwired) None None RF Connection

Power Supply

Other Outputs

 Other Details \ Notes
External 110 Volt None None
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    Games & Emulation

The following lists some of the games released for this system.

Tanks A Lot
Release Date: 1982
Developer: Emerson Radio Corp.
 
Nice General Display of System & Game Boxes
(picture source unknown)

 
Cat Trax
Release Date: 1982
Developer: Emerson Radio Corp.

Tanks A Lot Video
Release Date: 1982
Developer: Emerson Radio Corp.


Video courtesy of Umma6umma.
Doraemon
 Release Date: Unknown
Developer: Unknown (home brew?)
Video courtesy of Necople.
 
Cat Trax Video
Release Date: 1982
Developer: Emerson Radio Corp.


Video courtesy of Umma6umma.
The following lists links to third party sponsored game emulators   
Program Website Description
M.E.S.S. http://www.mess.org/

Multi-Emulator Super System is a DOS based emulator capable of running many systems including this one. It has a Windows based GUI, and should be usable by most PC systems.
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    Models

The following lists additional authorized releases for this console.
 
Emerson Arcadia 2001
Country released: USA
Bandai Arcadia
Country released: Japan
Advision Home Arcade
Country released: France

Picture courtesy of Miguel Durán

 
Schmidt TVG-2000
Country released: Germany

Picture courtesy of Miguel Durán
 


Soundic MPT-03
Country released: Europe
Picture courtesy of Silicium.org

 
Grandstand Video Master
Country released: New Zealand

Picture courtesy of Michael Davidson
Prestige MPT-03
Country released: France


Picture courtesy of Miguel Durán
Hanimex HMG-2650
Country released: Germany & Canada


Picture courtesy of Yorum Gönder

Hanimex MPT-03
Country released: France


 


Intercord 2000XL
Country released: Germany
GiG Leonardo
Country released: Italy
Tempest MPT-03
Country released: Australia

Rowntron MPT-03
Country released: Unknown

Picture courtesy of Miguel Durán
Poppy MPT-03
Country released: Germany

Picture courtesy of Miguel Durán
Tchibo Tele-Fever
Country released: Germany


Picture courtesy of Miguel Durán
 


Tunix Home Arcade
Country released: New Zealand


Picture courtesy of Michael Davidson
 
Neckermann Palladium
Country released: Germany
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    Clones

The following lists non-licensed additional releases.
No clones were released for this system.
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    Links

The following sites\resources are highly recommended for this system.  References utilized in compiling this data are denoted with an (#).
Name Website

Old-Computers.com's great site for the Arcadia (allot of pictures)

 http://www.old-computers.com/museum/software.asp?c=835&st=2
Game Asylum's interesting article on this system http://store.gameasylum.us/em19ar20.html
Emerson Arcadia 2001 Game Guide http://amigan.classicgaming.gamespy.com/agg/
   
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System page last updated 11-Oct-2008
 

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