Atari 2600+ Pac-Man Edition Hands-on Preview – Hands-on Preview
Last year I went hands on with the 7800+ at Atari, their continued line of hardware that embraces the past but also enables future games for Atari hardware. It’s really kind of baffling to be holding an Atari 2600 joystick in the year 2025, but their new collaboration with Bandai Namco is all focused on PAC-MAN. A fresh paint job, in PAC-MAN neon yellow adorns the system, with a neat little frontplate replacing the wooden finish you’d have seen on the original 2600+, though this time decorated with a lit-up panel showing PAC-MAN being chased by the ghosts. Functionally the hardware is the same as the 2600+, but it is definitely more of a visual statement draped in PAC-MAN.
First off, all the Atari 2600+ systems support original Atari and Atari 7800 cartridges with clean inputs and outputs. They can be connected through HDMI to modern TV’s, but carry on the retro feel and look that Atari was known for at the beginning of the 1980’s. The real interesting bit is that this particular edition of the console comes with a brand new version of PAC-MAN, this time for the Atari 7800. The cartridge is dubbed ‘PAC-MAN: Double Feature’ and comes with the original PAC-MAN for 2600 (a, let’s say interesting adaptation of the arcade version) as well as a brand new version of PAC-MAN for the 7800. This version was developed with the approval of Bandai Namco and is much more similar to the original arcade version of the game. The music is much better than the 2600 version and the game controls incredibly well. How excited one can be over the release of a new-ish version of PAC-MAN in 2025 remains to be seen, though thankfully the collaboration with Bandai Namco will also see the (re)release of the 2600 versions of Dig Dug, Xevious and especially Galaga. That last one is still a ton of fun to play thankfully.
As for the controls, their CX40+ Wireless Joystick comes with a dongle that can be plugged into an original Atari or these modern takes, in order to get the most authentic experience possible. The PAC-MAN versions of the joysticks come in five colors designed after PAC-MAN and his undead foes. They feel premium, yet also entirely accurate to the original experience with a bit of a stiff feel to the stick. For the Atari sickos, this will be just like coming home. Of course the CX78+ arcade pad can also be connected to the system, which was honestly my preferred way of playing these arcade games with a little more comfort.
It’s interesting to see Atari trying to fully embrace their past, trying to reach out to the Atari development community and rekindle their original partnerships. In particular it remains to be seen if other Atari collaborations for the 2600/7800 can come to fruition to see the library expand even further.
