Atari 5200

Atari 5200
Atari 5200 and one of its controllers
ManufacturerAtari, Inc.
TypeHome video game console
GenerationSecond
Release date
  • NA: November 1982
DiscontinuedMay 21, 1984 (1984-05-21)
Units sold1 million
MediaROM cartridge
CPUMOS 6502C @ 1.79 MHz
Memory16 KB RAM
Controller inputJoystick
Trak-Ball
PredecessorAtari 2600
SuccessorAtari 7800

The Atari 5200 SuperSystem or simply Atari 5200 is a home video game console introduced in 1982 by Atari, Inc. as a higher-end complement for the popular Atari Video Computer System. The VCS was renamed to Atari 2600 at the time of the 5200's launch. Created to compete with Mattel's Intellivision, the 5200 wound up a direct competitor of ColecoVision shortly after its release. While the Coleco system shipped with the first home version of Nintendo's Donkey Kong, the 5200 included the 1978 arcade game Super Breakout, which had already appeared on previous Atari home platforms.

The system architecture is almost identical to that of the Atari 8-bit computers, although software is not directly compatible between them. The 5200's controllers have an analog joystick and a numeric keypad along with start, pause, and reset buttons. The 360-degree non-centering joystick was touted as offering more control than the eight-way Atari CX40 joystick of the 2600, but it was a focal point for criticism.

On May 21, 1984, during a press conference at which the Atari 7800 was introduced, company executives revealed that the 5200 had been discontinued after less than two years on the market. Total sales of the system were reportedly in excess of 1 million units, far short of its predecessor's sales of over 30 million.