Welcome to Odyssey2.info!

Hello, and welcome to The Odyssey² Homepage's new URL: https://odyssey2.info! While I'd like to thank my previous host (the-nextlevel.com) for several years of support, I felt the time had come to move the site to its own domain. Also, for some time I had been having some difficulty receiving messages submitted through the contact forms on the old site. If you attempted to contact me via my website forms at any time over say, the past year, and I didn't respond, it's probably because I didn't receive your message or it got improperly labeled as spam. I believe I have remedied this problem with the Contact Page here at the new URL. Please feel free to contact me again if I didn't reply to an earlier message, or just to say hello.

At the moment, there is no content here that didn't already exist at the previous location. The old site has simply been moved over, with some small fixes and improvements here and there. The better tooling at my new web host should make it easier to post updates in the future. That said, I'm reconsidering my approach to the site.

For most of its existence, the front page has been dominated by a news stream. This was originally a place for me to post site updates, but gradually it expanded toward reporting on developments happening in the larger Odyssey world – particularly new homebrew announcements. I still want to cover those; I think the homebrew scene is amazing and I never expected it to become as robust as it has. I want to encourage it, but it's not where my passion lies.

I'm an archivist at heart, and the reason I launched this site nearly 27 years ago was to celebrate and document as much as I could about Odyssey²'s original commercial lifetime. I'm from the United States so it's easier for me to dig up information on its North American history, but I also want this site to cover as much info about European Videopac and Brazilian Odyssey history as it can. But again, the "history" part is what interests me most. I've never been that good at keeping tabs on social media or online forums, so I'm frequently out of touch with the latest happenings. And it bugs me to promote news so prominently when I know the content is lacking. So, in the near-ish future I expect to redesign the front page to de-prioritize the news stream and emphasize content updates. It's not that I won't post any news though. Some news will still be on the front page and I will continue to welcome any reports of new happenings in the Odyssey/Videopac world – be they homebrew releases or something else. It just won't take up the entire front page like it does now.

But those changes are for the future. In the meantime I think the new URL should be fully functional... at least I hope it is! If you notice any problems while browsing, please contact me about them. Thanks so much!

TRENCH RUNNER Has Launched! We're Goin' In!

The newest game from Odyssey Brasil is out! Trench Runner (Portuguese title: Corredor Estelar) is the debut game for Odyssey Brasil from Jason Gohlke, who longtime readers may recognize as the creator of the first Odyssey² Cartridge Reader. Jason's new game is inspired by Star Strike on the Intellivision, which in turn was inspired by the famous Death Star trench scene from Star Wars – so it has a classic lineage. Trench Runner even comes with a custom keyboard overlay! Learn all about Trench Runner on the official web page.

Odyssey Brasil's Vault section, which allows you to play emulated Odyssey games directly in your browser, now features two exclusive homebrew titles: Copa 82 (Cup '82) and Salve os Humanos! (Save the Humans!). Check out these and other Vault games, and participate in the Challenge of the Month to get your name on the leaderboards!

KC Returns Once Again!

Ed Averett, who all Odyssey fans know as the programmer behind many Odyssey² games and creator of KC Munchkin, has published a new game starring our favorite blue munchkin! KC Returns II follows up on KC's previous adventure, where our hero once again does battle against a real-world biological enemy: this time, the COVID virus. As in the first Returns, KC has entered a microscopic world, where he helps the human body's Adaptive Immune System fight off invading viral molecules. This time around, the membranes that define the playfield form a more maze-like structure than before, which is a natural fit for KC. The game is meant to be fun of course, but has a larger purpose: to teach about the immune system and help players visualize the mechanics of disease and how to counteract it. Ad Ed and KC say, "If you can see it, you can solve it!"

Old-school Odyssey fans will be interested in the game for another reason: a port of the original K.C.'s Krazy Chase is included as an Easter egg! This marks the first time an Odyssey² game has received an official port to a different system (in the U.S. anyway) – and by the original creator, no less! This is indeed a port, not an emulation; Ed worked to build a faithful PC recreation of the original game, but did make some minor tweaks to improve the experience when played with a touchscreen. He even consulted with Odyssey fans (including yours truly – it was an honor) to ensure accuracy to the original. Even better... he promises there will be more Odyssey² ports to come! Although Ed's always more interested in looking forward than revisiting the past, he does want to preserve the video game history he was such an instrumental part of. Check out the Odyssey Legacy portion of kcmunchkin.com for more info!

Odyssey (and Videopac) Hit By SANDSTORM!

Rafael Cardoso's latest release is SANDSTORM, the newest adventure of the intrepid explorer, Josué Jorge:

You are Josué Jorge and you have time traveled to the ancient world of Egypt in search of the Crowns of Power. They are hidden inside the labyrintihne and macabre Great Pyramids and guarded by powerful deities. Now, our hero must face unexpected dangers such as giant spiders, poisonous snakes and, if that's not enough, time itself, because if the countdown reaches zero, he will be forever stuck in the past...

SandStorm is available in two editions: the Brazilian "Odyssey" style and Videopac-style. The Brazilian release Tempêstade de Areia is in Portuguese but there will be an English language guide available. It can be purchased on Experiência Odyssey, and may also be available on eBay (search "Tempestade de Areia"). Also, a limited run of 25 Videopac cartridges is being released by Videopac Is @live. These can be purchased on the Odyssey.nl Forums. Both cartridge versions will function on American Odyssey² consoles, but since the Brazilian version is NTSC it will have more accurate colors.

A playable demo of the game can be found here.

Also, to celebrate the new adventure of Josué Jorge, Odyssey Brasil is launching the Brazilian version of Wildlife: Vida Selvagem! More information (in English), plus a playable demo, can be found here.

II Basque Tournament of Videopac G7000

I'm very late with this news, but it's been difficult to find the time for regular site updates lately. I'm adjusting some things in my everyday schedule however, and hope to find more time for the site before long. But enough about me!

Back in April, the II Basque Tournament of Videopac G7000 was held in Bilbao, Spain. It marked the third such Videopac contest held in Basque Country since they started last year. It's involved a tiny group of participants so far but it's always encouraging to hear about a regular Odyssey²/Videopac event, no matter how small it is. Read about it and view the scoreboard here. Thanks as always to Egoitz Campo for the update!

Extra! Read All About It!

Hot off the presses! I'm pleased to announce a brand new area of the site: the Odyssey² Newspaper Archives, an index of O2 content that you might have seen in your daily paper decades ago. Although the Internet hasn't fully killed off the medium yet, newspapers are nowhere near the media powerhouses they once were. Back in the Odyssey²'s heyday, the daily paper was a major source of information and news for people across the world. Dig through an archive of newsprint from the early '80s and you'll likely find advertisements, sales listings, and maybe even the occasional article about our favorite console. I've been combing through some online archives for a while and saving up digital clippings, which I've placed into a kind of scrapbook under the site's Library section. So grab a cup of coffee and your morning bagel and start reading!

The content currently in the Newspaper Archives only scratches the surface – I still have dozens of advertisements to add, and there are more online archives I've yet to sift through. I'm sure I'm not the only one doing this. If you have been saving newspaper clippings on your own that you'd like to share, please contact me.

Can You Escape the FROZEN FORT?

The newest Odyssey²/Videopac homebrew is truly an international effort! Designed by Rafael Cardoso of Brazil, Frozen Fort is being published by Côté Gamers of France with the help of Marc Verraes from Belgium. Plus, it's set on an asteroid, so does that make it interplanetary as well? Well, maybe not, but its story is intriguing to say the least:

After years of searching, Spencer Styles has finally managed to complete his father's quest: to find the mysterious asteroid of the ancients that all the legends of the cosmos speak of. Located at the edge of the GNZ-11 galaxy, in an as yet unexplored solar system, the asteroid can only be reached when it temporarily escapes from a swarm of millions of its fellow companions, which happens only once every ten years... the ancients hid a terrible secret... but to access it, it will be necessary to gather seven artifacts. Where are they? What do they look like? No one knows yet...and maybe no one will ever find out!

Soon you'll be able to don Spencer Styles' spacesuit and solve the mystery yourself! Frozen Fort is now available for pre-order at Côté Gamers, a French group producing collector's editions of homebrew games for classic systems. Frozen Fort is their first O2/Videopac effort, and like their releases for other systems, it will come in a "big box" (4 × 19 × 4cm) supported by internal foam wedges. Included in it will be the cart and manual, some index cards from their encyclopedia of video games, a 3D-printed certificate of authenticity with your name, and a full-color, 46-page bilingual (English and French) leaflet about the making of of the game! The game costs €45 and will be released at the end of March. Watch this forum thread for more information.

NOTE: If you read this in time, try to catch Rafael along with others from the Odyssey Brasil group on Sunday, Feb. 21, for a live stream on RetroGamer Brasil's YouTube channel. It's happening at 9:30 p.m. UTC (in the USA, that's 10:30 a.m. EST, 1:30 p.m. PST). I believe the stream will be in Portuguese, but it should be fun. They are even giving away a copy of Floresta Assombrada, the Brazilian version of Haunted Woods!

Return to Haunted Woods, Brazil Style!

Odyssey Brasil is preparing to relaunch some homebrews in the Brazilan style, with Portuguese titles, new packaging and extras – they are really going all out! First up is Haunted Woods, which will receive the Portuguese title Floresta Assombrada. The set will include:

• Acetate case packaging
• Numbered Case (American Standard)
• Numbered Cartridge (NEW, exclusive Odyssey Brasil version)
• Numbered Certificate of Authenticity
• Manual in Portuguese
• Rules in English
• ScorePad
• Storybook with story of the game (Portuguese – Coming soon in English on the Experiência Odyssey website)
• Odyssey Tales Page Marker
• Haunted Forest/Floresta Assombrada button
• Poster (420mm × 297mm)
• Postcard (Pre-Sale Exclusive – First 50 copies)

If you're interested, send "HELLO" to https://wa.me/p/3353382318120952/551150832487

Expect to see more such rereleases coming from Odyssey Brasil!

The Odyssey Adventure Continues!

Exciting work is being done in South America! Odyssey Brasil is a group of passionate Odyssey fans headed by homebrew author Rafael Cardoso, Experiência Odyssey webmaster Ricardo Silva, and Márcio of the Facebook group Odyssey – O Videogame da Philips among other devotees of the system. Together, they are working to relaunch Odyssey Adventure magazine in Brazil!

If you read original issues of Odyssey2 Adventure (Odyssey Aventura in Brazil), you'll know that back in the day, Philips treated Odyssey fandom like a social club, with the magazine as its official publication. It was a fun way to provide a sense of community to all Odyssey fans as they read all the latest news about upcoming releases and events. Odyssey Brasil is aiming to recapture those glory days by creating NEW issues of Odyssey Aventura. With a constant stream of new homebrews, ROM hacks and repros, the Odyssey community is thriving once again. It seems only right for new issues of the classic magazine to report on all this activity.

Issue #9 of Odyssey Aventura, which picked up where the original eight issues from the '80s left off, was already published by Rafael some time ago. Issue #10, which profiles some older homebrews as well as the artist ZeMiaL who has provided amazing artwork for some recent releases, is coming soon. Both digital and print versions will be available. The content will be in Portuguese, although plans for an English version are being considered. Watch Experiência Odyssey for news. Announcements will also be posted on this site.

The 50-Foot-Tall Stalk of Celery!

Homebrew developer Chris Read has just released a new Odyssey² game, with possibly the greatest title of any video game, anywhere: The 50-Foot-Tall Stalk of Celery! I won't try to describe it myself, and instead just post the publisher's description:

You are Rodney, friend of the 50-foot tall stalk of Celery.

Mr. Celery has a problem: It seems the vegetarians want to chomp, chew, and digest him!

As Rodney, you can help fight back! How? Well, Mr. Celery has invented a Vegetarian Killing Machine (VKM for short).

Rodney can control the VKM. Vegetarian men are running amok! Use the VKM to destroy them. How many vegetarians can you defeat?

Oh, one more thing: the vegetarians are aware of you and Mr. Celery's plans. They are hurling bombs at you!

Avoid the bombs! If you get hit by a bomb, it's all over for Mr. Celery!

With a story like that, how can you not want to play it? Cartridges and manuals are now available for purchase from publisher 2600 Connection for $25 plus shipping.

I. Derio Tournament of Videopac G7000

In late August, a second Videopac tournament was held in Basque Country in northern Spain, continuing the event that was started in May. This installment took place entirely in the town of Derio, so the organizers called it the I. Derio Tournament of Videopac G7000. Click here to see the leaderboards.

Thanks again to Egoitz Campo for the write-up!

Will You Make It Through the Neon Nights?

NEON NIGHTS, the latest homebrew game from Rafael Cardoso, is available for pre-order now! The people of the planet Argus are under attack, only you can save them! But you'll have to cross the Neon constellations to do it. The journey will take you through four waves of different opponents, dodging and blasting enemy craft all the way. Do you have what it takes to save Argus?

Homebew publisher Videopac Is @live is taking pre-orders for NEON NIGHTS on the Videopac.nl forums. Fifty copies will be produced in Odyssey² style and twenty-five in Videopac+ style. The game features a starfield backdrop on Videopac+. Reserve your copy today!

Basque Tournament of Videopac G7000

In May of 2020, a small Videopac tournament was held in Basque Country in northern Spain. The organizers hope to make this a regular occurrence. Check out this article for some photos and to see the leaderboards.

Thanks to Egoitz Campo for the write-up. Hopefully Basque Country will see even more Videopac action in the future!

Fully Mobile-ized!

You may have noticed that site updates have been pretty rare recently. However, that's not because I haven't been working on it; I've just been busy porting 20 years of content over to a mobile-friendly framework. I am pleased to announce that this work is now done – every page on the site should be readable on mobile devices. This also gave me the chance to revamp most of the page designs. In particular, if you haven't checked out the Games Database, Collectibles section or Media section for a while, why not take a fresh look?

This project was more about bringing old content into the modern age than it was about adding new material, but nevertheless I did drop in a few new things. Here are some highlights:

The mobile-friendly project took much longer than I'd have liked, but I'm pleased it's finally done! Next I plan to give some attention to areas of the site that haven't received any for a long time – the Games Database really needs it. There are a lot of missing entries; it's hard to keep on top of all the new homebrew releases any more! Who'd have thought that Odyssey² would receive so much support 20 years into the 21st century?

If you're a regular visitor to this site, I'd like to thank you for sticking around despite the lack of updates. Even after all of this time, I still have a huge backlog of material to add... if only I had more time to get it all done!

Hopping Soon to Odyssey²: LADY FROG!

Rafael Cardoso, Odyssey² homebrew developer extraordinaire, is at it again! He describes his latest title, Lady Frog, as a "sequel to a well-known game." Which game you ask? I think the screenshot will tell you all you need to know. This game features songs by Ted Foolery, and if you remember his tunes from Puzzle Piece Panic a few years ago, you know they're going to be good!

Pre-orders for the game are being taken on the Videopac.nl forum. A limited run of 50 Odyssey² and 25 Videopac+ cartridges are being produced, so act now to reserve yours!

Tom Snow Is on the COLD CASE!

Homebrew legend Rafael Cardoso is back at it again, this time with his 19th release for Odyssey² and Videopac: COLD CASE! Based on the Atari 2600 classic Frostbite, Cold Case features the same ice-hopping action that made the original game so fun. From the game's official site:

The Game: An evil king has set his sights on ruling the Arctic and placed a curse upon the people of the North Pole, blocking all their igloo entrances and transforming the fish into killer king crabs. The king will only lift the curse if the people pay him tribute. Enter local hero Tom Snow to the rescue! He has a plan to break the curse! It involves jumping on all the floating ice blocks and changing their color from white to blue. The first time he accomplishes this feat, a magical scepter will appear before the igloo entrance. Once he picks it up, if he can change the color of the ice blocks again, the curse will finally be broken!

The object of the game is to help Tom Snow unblock igloos by jumping on floating blocks of ice. Be careful to avoid these deadly hazards: killer king crabs, grizzly polar bears, the subfreezing water, and the rapidly dropping temperature.

COLD CASE is an 8K game and works on both Odyssey² and Videopac machines, which enhanced "Plus" graphics for G7400 owners. A limited release of 100 carts is being released by Atari Compendium – reserve yours today!

Odyssey 4... and 5?!

As we know, the follow-up console to the Odyssey², the Odyssey3 Command Center, was ultimately cancelled in the United States – although a version of it did come out in Europe as the Videopac G7400+. But did you know that an "Odyssey 4" was in the planning stages as well, and even an "Odyssey 5" was considered as a future product? Rafael Cardoso alerted me to some fascinating engineering documents from "Papa Intellivision" Dr. David P. Chandler, who led the development of the Mattel Intellivision system from its conceptual stage all the way through release. Dr. Chandler sadly passed away in 2011, but many of his engineering notes and documents have been preserved on PapaIntellivision.com and mirrored on Archive.org.

Of particular note to Odyssey² fans are notes from early 1983 meetings between Mattel and North American Philips where future products from both companies were discussed. Included in the notes are numerous references to "Odyssey 4", which was proposed as an expandable system. A diagram labeled "O⁴ System Interfaces" depicts a series of expansion units, with the "O4 Game" at the center. Other systems attached to it include a Home Computing Sub-System which would support standard PC operations like discs and printers, a Home Terminal Sub-System that would connect to external services like Videotex or Dow Jones, and an Interactive Controller Sub-System that included peripheral devices like laserdisc players or cable downloads. An "O5 System" (presumably meaning Odyssey 5) interface is shown surrounding the core O4 product.

This is an amazing piece of information and reveals a possible future to Odyssey that wasn't widely known before. I plan to study Chandler's notes for a more in-depth analysis later, but a few points jumped out to me after just a quick read. First, these meetings happened in early 1983, just before the Odyssey3 project was cancelled. (The O2 Timeline shows that the cancellation announcement was made in June 1983). Second, the expandable system shown in the diagram sounds a lot like the home computer system that Philips programmer Randy Green worked on after the Probe 2000 games division shut down. The Videotex integration is interesting, since the cases of European G7200 consoles are essentially modified Minitel terminals – which connected to Videotex. And lastly, the whole enterprise seems reminiscent of the Philips CD-i, which began early development in 1984. Could it be that the CD-i, after a fashion, IS the Odyssey 4? There's probably not enough evidence to definitively say that yet, but who knows what further research might uncover? Thanks a lot to Rafael for pointing this out!

Prepare for Blast Off... to Moon Town!

Odyssey² and Videopac homebrew programmer Rafael Cardoso is up to it again! His next release channels the arcade classic Missile Command as well as Imagic's console release Atlantis. The aliens from Rafael's earlier release Mars Menace are back in Moon Town! The human survivors from the first game have set up a colony on the Moon. But the Martian menace won't allow the colony to live in peace. It's your job to protect it from the invaders.

Moon Town! will be available in both Odyssey²- and Videopac-style packaging, and will have a limited cartridge release. You can reserve your copy at the Videopac.nl forums.

Can You Survive the LASER BLITZ?

Odyssey and Videopac homebrew designer Rafael Cardoso has announced his latest release: LASER BLITZ! In each level of this shoot'em-up that takes visual inspiration from the console classic Beamrider, you have to destroy the Titan robot at the top of the screen. To bring down the Titan, you must accumulate enough energy to launch a missile. The enemy attacks start with green, then yellow, then pink and finally blue fleets, each one more powerful than the other.

The game is being released in a limited run of 50 units, 25 done in the U.S. Odyssey² style, and 25 in the UK Videopac style. The release date is the end of this month, May 31. Reserve your copy over at the Videopac.nl Forums.

New Turtles Remake Released!

In celebration of the 35th anniversary of the launch of the Odyssey² video game in Brazil, a new TOWER TURTLES game has been made available. Released on April 14, it is a remake of TURTLES that brings new challenges for the turtle and its babies!!!

TOWER TURTLES was designed and developed over two years by Luciano B B A Ferreira and released by Retronic. The developer calls it "a birthday present for the Odyssey in Brazil."

It is available in two versions: Portuguese (Odyssey) and English (Odyssey²).

• View the "Tartarugas 2" commercial video!
• Order your copy at the Videopac.nl Forum
• Contact: retronics@retronics.com.br

Have fun!!!