The Magnavox Odyssey 2 was a contender early on in the video game console world. It had a lot going for it, but it was up against a gaming juggernaut, the Atari 2600, and just couldn’t keep up. Still it is a memorable system and worth spending some time remembering. So, on todays, show I will talk about this often overlooked gaming console.
I begin by talking about my childhood encounter with the Odyssey came about because of a case of mistaken identity. It was a magical find and surprising highlight of a few family visits that were to follow. Then I move onto the console itself, discussing its predecessor, creator, development, games, accessories, and much more.
I also sprinkle a good amount of retro audio into the show and return to reading a little bit from the paper. Nothing excessive, but it a few highlights from around the time of the console’s release. This included another pop culture TV event that I think was worth mentioning.
We have had a lot of consoles that failed. Ones that didn’t last long, but I believe by all measures, the Odyssey 2 was a success. That is why I think it is a shame that not enough people have heard of it or have forgotten it. So please join me while I share the history and some information about Magnavox Geewhizbang console, the Odyssey 2.
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Production Notes
This is the 339th episode of the Retroist Podcast and episode 14 of the new season.
I have wanted to do this episode for a few years. It has been requested by people often.
I think my uncle came across his system from someone he knew - a bought off the truck kinda deal. Knowing him, it doesn’t surprise me that he didn’t consider that multiple game systems existed.
My favorite game from this time period was a platformer called, Pickaxe Pete.
Put in some fun retro audio, but I would love to have included more. They did some solid marketing and had some great commercials. Leonard Nimoy is a great spokesperson.
I cannot think of another console where one person was responsible for so much of the games available for it, especially at such a large scale. Its amazing. Here is a great interview with Ed Averett.
If you want to check out the console, you can emulate it at the Internet Archive. Its not perfect, but it gives you a great idea of the consoles capabilities.
I am to try and put Bonus Clipping up at the same time the episode comes out and see if people prefer it that way.
Music on the show is, as always, by Peachy.
Thanks for listening to the show and I hope you have a great weekend.
Certainly one of the most overlooked consoles of the era, especially given its relative popularity. As an Atari 2600 owner, I considered the Odyssey 2 inferior - until I saw KC Munchkin vs. Atari's Pacman and the Quest for the Rings game!
Your Odyssey 2 story closely matches mine. In the mid 90s at the tale end of the SNES and Genesis, I went over to my friends house and his dad had a box set aside with a Magnavox Odyssey 2 from the early 80s also with a bunch of games. I was familiar with most videogames of the era, but never tried the Odyssey 2 up to that point. It was a blast, even though we had just rented some games for our 16 bit consoles to play that night. I offered to buy the console, it was so interesting to me. That was the original reason it was set aside in a box, to get rid of it. He told me he'd think about it, I never ended up hearing a price as he ended up keeping the console :)
Maybe it was one of those things where you made him realize the value of it and suddenly wasn’t ready to part with it.
Finally the podcast I've been waiting for. Great job on this one. My favorite system that I still have and play to this day including a complete set of the American carts as well as the third party, homebrews and I have a multi cart which has the European games included on it for it.
New subscriber here. Have you done a write-up on the Vectrex console?
Its a little older as my podcasts go, and is probably overdue to be redone, but I recorded an episode way back in 2010 about the Vectrex.
https://www.retroist.com/p/retroist-vectrex-podcast
I had a couple of friends with Odyssey 2. They were the "cool kids." We were in awe of KC Munchkin and there were some nifty space games as well. I desperately wanted one but my parents were firm that one video game system was enough. I eventually upgraded to Colecovision and Odyssey 2 faded into history.