LEGO has announced a new set based on the classic game console Atari 2600. The set includes a buildable recreation of the console itself, plus a joystick, a few game cartridges, as well as some extra features. LEGO Atari 2600 will be available exclusively on the LEGO Store on August 1, for $239.99. Preorders will not be available.
The set is comprised of 2,532 pieces. It includes buildable game cartridges of Asteroids, Adventure, and Centipede. These can be placed in a buildable game holder, and each one has an alternate build that lets you create images from that game (see the slideshow below).
Lots of thoughtful additions are also included. The joystick on the controller moves just like the actual Atari joystick. You can slide open the front of the system to reveal a side-view of a gaming room from the 1980s. It has a minifigure playing video games on a CRT television in a room adorned with a boom box, VHS tape, and era-appropriate posters.
The set is from the LEGO Icons line and it features the 18+ age designation. That comes as no surprise seeing as it’s intended for display rather than play — and most people who played the Atari 2600 as kids are several decades past that age anyway.
LEGO has been on a roll putting out retro gaming-related builds in recent years, including the LEGO Nintendo Entertainment System, Sonic the Hedgehog – Green Hill Zone, and Super Mario 64 Question Mark Block. Additionally, the company has teamed up with Nintendo to create a whole product line of Super Mario Adventures sets that let you create “playable” Mario levels.
This set releases right around the 50th anniversary of Atari as a company. On a related note, Atari is also releasing Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration, a new game that will celebrate the company’s history.
Chris Reed is a deals expert and commerce editor for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @_chrislreed.