Magnavox Odyssey 2
Game console that looked like a computer
By 1980 there was no question that the Atari VCS (soon to be renamed the 2600) was the dominant game console of the new video game industry. Many are aware of the Mattel Intellivision as its primary competitor, but there was another console around at the time: the Magnavox Odyssey 2.
The Odyssey 2 was Introduced in 1978, just about a year after the Atari VCS, at a price of $180 (about $900 in 2026).
The name implies there was an original Magnavox Odyssey. And there was. Released in 1970, the Odyssey is considered the first console, but it was incredibly limited. It only could display a few blocks on the screen and had no support for game cartridges or even color. It also looked pretty weird.
The Odyssey 2 also looks pretty weird itself. It has a membrane keyboard, for some reason. Apparently this was to facilitate educational software, but I don’t think it was used much.
The gray case and the space age font for Odyssey look pretty cool to me, though. And I like that the cartridge port is front and center, just like with the Atari VCS.
The joysticks, however, were terrible. I believe they were analog, which wasn’t always the best for most games of the time. They also were permanently wired to the console, which means you cannot swap in replacements.
Every now and then I see one of these pop up on Facebook Marketplace and I debate buying it, but I usually come to my senses and realize I have enough retro consoles and don’t need another one.
I did actually use an Odyssey 2 a few times in the 80s. May grandfather had picked one up at a garage sale and I got to play it when we visited.
Specifications
The Odyssey 2 used the Intel 8048 CPU, which I’d not actually heard of before. This looks like a rather low-end CPU, with just 320 bytes of total RAM. It could output a maximum resolution of about 160x200 with up to 16 colors.
The cartridges could hold 2K, 4K or 8K ROMs, which was equivalent to the Atari VCS.
KC Munchkin
According to Wikipedia were 47 games released for the Odyssey 2, which was just a pittance compared to the many hundreds that were available for the Atari VCS.
Perhaps the most notable game was KC Munchkin, essentially a variation of Pac-Mac. KC Munchkin was worlds better than the Pac-Man for the Atari 2600 and I remember enjoying it as a kid.
Unfortunately Atari sued to get the game pulled from the market in one of the first look-and-feel copyright lawsuits.
Emulation
As with most retro stuff, there is a way to emulate it so that you don’t need the actual hardware. Using O2Em I was able to run KC Munchkin on my Mac, although I could not figure out how to actually play it using the keyboard.
More Pictures
This picture shows The Voice add-on product that added voice synthesis to some games. The Intellivision had something similar.
Below you can see some of the game cartridge library.
Here’s a slightly beat-up Odyssey 2 box. Note that the “2” is written more stylized as Odyssey².
To learn much more about the Odyssey 2, be sure to check out The Odyssey 2 HomePage.
Do you remember the Odyssey 2? Did you ever use use one?
Are you looking for some fun retro gear to adorn your workspace? Then check out the Goto 10 store, which has some cool Atari-themed merch. The GEM desktop mouse pad has been the most popular so far. These will bring joy to your life and help support Goto 10!
My father in law did the art work for the games
Neighbor had one. It was better than the pong machine I had. Vague memories - Quest for the Ring, but just the video game parts, Wizards of Wor, KC Munchkin and Take the Money and Run. I've never cared for the Steve Miller band, but that song always conjures up Oddysey2 memories.
Did love the silvery futuristic look to it. Have one in storage - need to get all my consoles out onto a shelf, but apparently yard work comes first. Didn't know until a few years ago that it had ROM "sprites" built into it, which would explain why a lot of the games had a similar look to the players.