While serious Atari computing ended latest in the early 2000s, we see a general revival of activities regarding old computer platforms since a few years now. This sudden re-interest is also branded as "Retro computing" and may even be a suitable midlife crisis compensation ;-) 

Hallway to middle-aged men's paradise

But many factors come into play. In contrary to fast-paced modern times, there is a calming aura about those old devices with their limitations and understandable technology. On top of that we have the opportunity for new technical developments which make long lasting dreams come true: hardware extensions, modding activities, modern software development approaches or maybe just a good dose of nostalgia crawling into former old school computer users.

As an accompanying effect we see a growth of communities, helping each other and organizing projects and events. This happens mostly online in forums or chat groups, but after COVID times, it is even more exciting to see communities finding together in real life again.

Chose your destiny!

The Club

Retro Computer Dresden e.V. (RCD) is such a local community which was founded rather recently, in 2023, in Dresden, Germany.

The new, non-commercial RCD club is holding weekly meetings in their club house and additionally organizes Retro Party events several times a year. Those parties are friendly meetups of interested visitors and members with their families, showcasing their systems, having deep talks on retro computers, enjoy some food together and of course, play games on original oldschool hardware.

The city of Dresden traditionally has a strong background in electronics and IT with its Technical University, long research tradition and therefore having companies like Robotron in the GDR or more recently Infineon, Globalfoundries or perspectively also ESMC - thankfully digesting the experienced or freshly baked engineers. This background can at least partly explain the regionally relatively vivid home computer scene since the 1980s. And to round up this adventurous theory, it appears that the descendants of this old home computer generation are now continuing the tradition of their fathers. This is confirmed by my impression of the average club members being aged 40 plus and usually having been introduced to home computers as a kid.

The Retroparty

So, last Saturday it was time for another instance of their Retroparty. As I went there, I thought, why not just share some impressions? The clubhouse is located not too far away from the city center and can be reached easily with public transport, bicycle or car. The location itself is one quite big room, stuffed with a lot of tables, shelves, sofas and also a kitchen area.

The SEGA corner, both variants of the Mastersystem and the Megadrive are in place. I have a weak spot for the case design, not quite reaching the Jaguar's level, but still ;-)

The available space is more or less completely occupied with computer and console systems and nicely decorated. The different parts of the hall are arranged systematically, so you have tables and corners for different system types.

Visitors were welcome to try out all the systems and often ended up in long conversions on the matter. As rough estimate I think there were 40-50 visitors present, many family members and kids playing the consoles or enjoying the BBQ as well.

Oldschool hardware walkthrough

What catches the visitors eyes when entering the room immediately, is the extensive use of good old CRT-screens and a relatively low number of flat screens. Yummy! This adds a lot to the general atmosphere and last but not least to the actual retro computing experience as well.

The Atari corner: an 130XE with an A8PicoCart and a 1040 STFM, 1 MB, with Gotek, both with proper CRTs

It was quite exciting to meet people you have never seen before, suddenly revealing their enthusiasm or expert knowledge, Atari-related or not. One older visitor sat down in front of the Atari 130XE and started programming some BASIC, like it was yesterday. I was even able to contribute with a few Poke values that were burnt deep in my neural fundament since 30 years it seems (710,10 to be exact:). Beside that the Atari machines were mostly used for gaming, with Thalion's "7 Gates of Jambala" being a permanent attraction.

Let me confess, I never played that game before - I just never had a copy! Both he smooth scrolling and sprites are indeed pretty impressive, just like the ST was a straight Arcade machine. But well, probably everyone except myself knows that already. Anyhow, during  the event, the game was played extensively and I witnessed someone standing up from the Atari after more than an hour stating he just played it through!

An very tempting arrangement, isn't it?

But of course there were many other, non-Atari systems in place. Some common and some rather exotic ones. One very special machine was a modified Sinclair ZX Spectrum. This homemade adaption was given the name "Laptop" back in 1982 as it was manually optimized for mobile use by a local named Karl Josef Schneider. With the aim to be as compact as possible, it included a tape recorder, the sound system, external memory, the PSU and even a printer which was created out of a receipt printing device from a cash register.

The silent star of the evening

Just as extraordinary, an Acorn Electron was put on display, running games from tape recorder. I was told this computer was supposed to be a cheap kind of BBC micro computer. Seems like software companies like "Superior software" didn't really save the product from being pushed out of the home computer market early.

The tape recorder used was surprisingly not the black one in front, but the silver colored 80's ghetto blaster to the right

Of course, during the event you could find also more well-known items. The Commodore corner was represented by a C-64 II running Giana sisters most of a time and there was also an older C64-variant on the shelf. The C64 II was encircled by all kind of interesting cartridges for different purposes.

As a gimmick extension, the C-64 above has the current voltage on display

There was also more recent hardware around, such as several "Classic" PCs showcasing games like Monkey Island and the likes. I didn't pay much attention, but those setups surely bring back memories to many. On the opposite side, there was also an iMac, which in my opinion just looks as great as it always did. The iMac was constantly occupied by kids playing Quake.

"Wait - what's this highres and smoothly scrolling shooter on modern hardware doing here? Aren't we at a Retro event?" - Thoughts just underpinning the undisputable ageing process of the author ;-)

In the different corners of the room you would find all kind of interesting items, setups and information. A VCS 2600 was doing its job in one corner. The games still do not convince me after all those years. Maybe, as a former Atari XL/XE kid, it is just difficult to become friends with this device.

A classic VCS 2600 setup and many things in the shelfs

In one of the shelfs I spotted a rare Odyssey 2100 console and some interesting looking self-built device, but forgot to ask what this is about. Not to far away from this orange box, there was a table setup with an impressive, self-built 3D-printer which was busy recreating the famous 3D rubber duck.

3D printing at Retro Computer Dresden e.V.

A colorful Amiga Fanzine (German language)

Did I already mention the beautiful Ataris? ;-)
In fact the tape loading failed, seems these carefully labelled tapes have lived their life.

Arcade machinery

One of the main interests of the Retro Computer Dresden club members are Arcade machines. Several people are involved in the actual procurement of new devices, parts and even built some of the Arcade machines themselves. You can follow some of these activities on their blog. One of the three Arcade machines you could play during the event featured the classic Street Fighter II. Perfect, what could go wrong with that?

Puh... I wondered how these sophisticated Arcade controls could ever even been considered to become represented on a one button joystick in home computer conversions (not that this justifies the poor ST port, but still)

Mordor

Not far away from the Arcade section you would find this seductive machine - an Amiga 1200 in its CD32 robe. Luckily I know it's owner, so we spent some time inspecting the setup and software available.

Let's just admit it: it's a beauty.

As if the elegant appearance of the machine wouldn't be enough, the inside was even more thrilling. It is equipped with a Vampire V4, which gave a good opportunity for some game testing and advanced demo watching. 

The trusty old floppy drive defending its space against the Vampire

Ephidrena getting smashed by the merciless TBL robot in a few milliseconds

Look! Seems like Desire finally managed to port this classic Atari-8 Bit UV-map effect to the Amiga! :p

Speaking about the Vampire, the owner also mentioned an unstoppable guy in the Vampire-sphere which is going crazy about creating Atari support for the Vampire, calling himself "Shoggoth". I wonder who that could be? :-) The Retrocomputing world is a small place, obviously.

Bottom Line

Ending this report with that Amiga picture as a climax leaves a bit of a sour taste in my mouth, but let's bite the bullet.

More seriously, it is great to see all those different people from different platforms sharing their interest in the retro computing hobby, exchanging knowledge and supporting each other in such an open way.

What else remains to say than "thank you" for this event and for giving birth to this promising, passionate and non-profit club! ❤️

🔗 Retro Computer Dresden e.V.