Hyperkin "Ranger" Premium Wired Gamepad for Atari 2600 / RetroN 77

I literally plugged this in and doubled my score on Berzerk, to over 80,000. The panel has a great design is made from comfortable materials, making it ergonomically and aesthetically pleasing (the woodgrain is a nice touch.) The knob on the side moves smoothly and accurately, though it does feel unusual holding the controller sideways. There is also a switch which lets you flip the controller over (there are two brackets for the controller wire so you can anchor it at either "top" of the controller) and use your right-thumb for the stick if you are so inclicned. (I found out that I was still much better using my left thumb after decades of practice.) If you have an old console, you need this now!I am disappointed that there isn't a special model for the 7800+ with a second firing button. My hope is that they can broker a detail with Atari.

I bought this to pair with a Retron 77, so I can't speak to how it works with an original 2600. It feels very solid compared to most aftermarket controllers, and I was able to beat my all-time best score on River Raid the first time I used it, so it's very responsive and VERY comfortable compared to the mushy old Atari sticks. I've tested the paddle side with Breakout, Super Breakout, and Demons to Diamonds and they all worked perfectly. BUT... I had to change the firmware on my Retron from Stella 6 back to the Retron 77 community build in order to get it to work properly. The Stella developers are aware of this issue but have no intention of addressing it. So, if you are planning on using the Ranger with a USB dongle and an emulator, the paddle probably won't work. Some people using emulators have said they haven't had issues, but many have, so just be aware that it's a gamble if you want to use this controller with current builds of Stella.As a side note, original paddle controllers came in pairs attached to a single connector, so if you want to play multiplayer paddle games you'll need a 2 into 1 adapter and an additional Ranger.

I don’t really enjoy using the Atari joystick. This is a great alternative controller for my new Atari 2600+ and has been a literal game changer for my Galaga sessions. It’s nice that the paddle is also an option, but I currently don’t own any paddle games to test that feature. You can also flip the controller to use the joystick on the left side for a more modern experience. The cord is designed to be moved and clipped down when you flip the controller, keeping it out of the way. My one complaint is that the first time I adjusted the cord it was hard to move to the correct position. The attempt seemed to break off a small piece of plastic inside the controller, which proceeded to rattle while in use. I opened it up and removed it. The controller still works fine, but this may be a flaw in the cord design and makes it lose a star. I do appreciate the generous cord length. I also love that they sent me the wood grain style gamepad. It pairs great with the 2600+Hyperkin should consider making a 7800 style 2 button controller at a similar price. I’d likely purchase that too.

Works as expected with my new 2600. I like having the thumbstick instead of the old joystick which makes the old controllers clunky and hard to use, but they're forgiven cuz that was a long time ago and they had a lot to figure out. Something that was super appreciated is you can change the direction of the cable from coming out of the bottom of the controller (not sure why you would want that but ok) and set it to come out of the top of the controller. Keep in mind that some very specific Atari games require a different controller, so that's just something to keep in mind. Still, this one covers like 95% of them.

Connected to my newly recapped 4-button woody. The stick is lovely, 5 stars. Played several games with it and wish I'd had it back in the day. Even though I play every other console's movement with my left thumb, this feels natural to play with the stick on the right.Now for the paddle, 2 stars. It's WAY too sensitive, to the point of unplayable. Breakout was laughable. Night Driver was impossible. I'll definitely have to rebuild my original paddles.

This is really well built and nicely ergonomic. There is one curious issue I came upon, but it seems to be related to Atari Interactive's split from the Atari Flashback series of 2600 retroconsole. On the Flashback 8 Classic (wired option) retroconsoles, these controllers will not work. This was my original intended use for these, so initially I thought it was a defect. Testing it on the original Atari hardware, a 130XE home computer, it turns out the controllers work perfectly.