The ColecoVision console was first launched in North America in August 1982, then a year later in Europe, in 1983, and offered a closer experience to arcade games of the time than many of its competitors did (such as the Atari 2600 and Mattel Intellivision).

The pack-in game, supplied with the console, was the ColecoVision “killer app”, and one that made gamers of the time drool with anticipation and jealousy – a conversion of Nintendo‘s Donkey Kong that was as close to the original arcade game as was possible on home-based gaming hardware of the time. As a teenager at the time I distinctly remember the ColecoVision standing out among the competition, and Donkey Kong in particular being a game that dazzled everyone who saw or played it. While I never got to own a ColecoVision myself, I did get to play on one at my local Asda, which is where most home consoles at the time could be seen being demonstrated.

The ColecoVision‘s game library was a mixture of ports of arcade games, and the occasional original title. Most of the more memorable ColecoVision games were arcade conversions, though, such as Zaxxon, BurgerTime, Galaxian, Spy Hunter, Pac-Man and Gorf. The console also helped popularise lesser-known arcade games, such as Ladybug, Venture, and Moon Patrol.

Coleco released a series of hardware add-ons and special controllers, to try to expand the capabilities of the ColecoVision, and they even released an expansion module (called “Expansion Module #1“) that allowed Atari 2600 games to be played on the console. A later module, supplied with a plug-in keyboard, converted the ColecoVision into a Coleco Adam home computer.

Unfortunately the ColecoVision was a victim of the North American video game market crash in 1983-84, with Coleco withdrawing from the market in 1985. So the ColecoVision only really existed as a viable retail product for three short years. Which is a pity considering the machine’s capabilities, which were ahead of their time.

People still collect and play ColecoVision games to this day, and – overall – approximately 140 games were released for the system. Coders even still make homebrew games for it. The ColecoVision is an early home gaming system that is fondly-remembered by those who had one, or who simply got to play on their friend’s or relative’s, during the early to mid-Eighties.

This week I’m going to be publishing just ColecoVision games, in celebration of this excellent console.

Here’s a full list of ColecoVision games on this site.

Enjoy,
The King of Grabs

Alcazar: The Forgotten Fortress
Boulder Dash
BurgerTime
Cabbage Patch Kids: Adventures in the Park
Chuck Norris Superkicks
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong Jr.
Dragonfire
Fortune Builder
Frenzy
Frogger
Galaxian
Gateway to Apshai
Gorf
H.E.R.O.
Looping
Miner 2049er
Montezuma’s Revenge
Pac-Man
Pepper II
Q*Bert
Smurf: Rescue in Gargamel’s Castle
Spy Hunter
Super Cobra
Tapper
Turbo
Venture
Zaxxon

More: ColecoVision on Wikipedia