This Console was the Sh*t! | Nostalgia Nerd
Head to [sponsor] https://squarespace.com/nostalgianerd to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code nostalgianerd ~ Think of the iconic video game consoles of the 80s, and you may not think of the Vectrex, but you should. The first vector based video game console, this thing was a work of art, and is just as much fun today as it was back in 1983.
⌚Timings⌚
00:00-02:48 Smith Engineering
02:48-05:05 The Vectrex
05:05-06:53 Vector Displays
06:53-09:18 Vectrex Components
09:18-10:31 Milton Bradley
10:31-11:16 SqSp
11:16-16:08 Launching the Vectrex
16:08-20:27 Decline of the Vectrex
20:27-24:00 Afterlife
24:00-24:38 Credits
🔗Video Links🔗
Check out some Vectrex stuff! http://www.vectrex.co.uk/links.htm
Erin Plays Vectrex: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9LLEJ63_Rw
1980s News Report: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8xhFcxtxaM
Jay Smith Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7kDxMgiFaM
Western Technologies News: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txMSb1JK4HI
KABC Eye: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fMef9nuXOo
Kerry Decker CES: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZ8qmilo8ic
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@MrKanjidude
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I've never seen anyone talk about the vertically mounted screen. I wonder if it was a purely aesthetic decision, or if technical limitations (speed) were the reason.
@Sperkowitz
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Holy damn. I forgot about this thing until now. I remember playing with this thing and loving it. Granted I loved everything tech thing as a kid. I don't even remember who I knew who had this. But I definitely remember the vortex graphics and the controller
@truebones
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
teacher showed me this in 5th grade…
@ralfbaechle
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
The Vectrex I used briefly ages ago certainly had its appeal due to the vector tube which gave it perfectly smooth lines, kinda the look of professional CAD or some scifi computer systems back then or even earlier. But it was a total flop on the market here in Germany. I know no shop or person who had one, never saw one on a flea market. Just this one fashion shop had one for its customers to play with. And every once in a while its resurrected in retro computing & gaming circles.
@ryanframmy15
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Had one of these in my shed until last year,it had a heap of games and different colour screens for it too.
@sauercrowder
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I wonder if the employees were deliberately playing it up for the news piece.
@RobbCochran-l2u
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I think they could have Easily made it Color after a few years. You know, start with the BnW version, then make a color version Later on, like they did with GameBoy and Game Boy Color –
Unfortunately it suffered the same fate as the VirtualBoy, Which was SO MUCH FUN and could have really been something if Nintendo would have done a couple minor things differently.
That machine got Pummeled by the Media by claims that it caused "Blindness" or "Headaches" – which, Ok you could get a headache if for had your face stuck to the thing for a ling time… But, they Didn't Understand the Hardware was just tiny red LED's and a Pair of Mirrors… They Assumed it was firing Lasers into your Eyes, whichwas nonsense… but Parents didn't care… My folks got me one when they were being sold for $20 because they were Discontinued so early… I opened it up and showed them there was only a Tiny LED bar in there because they thought it really was shooting Lasers into my eyes lol.
The Media can Make or Break a product with no effort. They often Prop Up products that Suck, while at the same time Demonizing products that are just Ahead of their Time.
@RobbCochran-l2u
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
They did all that even 3D stuff on a CPU that would barely be used to operate a Microwave Timer … actually, the MicroController in your Microwave is probably hundreds of times Faster. Wild.
@RobbCochran-l2u
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I wish that MB still made these, They literally make almost everything else still, but the CRT would be really expensive these days, Not sure how they would be able to redesign the Display, I don't think and LCD would really do it Justice, maybe a LED style display… It's a bummer we don't get "Surprisingly Simple and Innovative" designs any more it was part of the Magic of the 70's and 80's
@RobbCochran-l2u
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
When I was about 5 or 6, my Dad's buddy brought me one of these for my Birthday and It was AWESOME! It was the First Game Console I ever Owned. I had the Racing Game and the one that was like "Asteroids" , it was about 1985 i think. Anyway It was Great!
@slickstretch6391
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
"Free-swinging atmosphere" is an interesting choice of words… 🤔🤔
@avabethmcghee3048
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I only got one chance to play a vectrex in the 80s, but the person that owned it took the joystick so I couldn't try it, only hooked it back up right when I had to leave and laughed when I started begging for five minutes. To hell with the Vectrex.
@Rosalee2424
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Loved it. Still in my parents’ attic and bet it still works ❤️
@ron-e1m
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
it's not shit at all your an idiot, i wanted one have you seen how much a boxed one is now! no suppose not
@ReddMcKnight
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
"What the (Vectrex Sound) is this??"
DEAD! 😂
@Novaheart1998
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I finally got one last week and it is totally different from every other retro system, its really cool.
@georgina_cat
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I got one of these with a ton of games from a house clearance at arminghall a few years ago, knew of them but never seen one – paid £8 fully working and boxed About 2 weeks later – i found another – no games this time but fully working for about a 10er. I think i made about £1300 on them
@nosville22
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I Left. ONE COMMENT about Vectrex. ON REDDIT.
Thtat's all it took. That was all Youtube needed to put this video in front of me.
@Boogie_the_cat
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Having seen my first vector based arcade game only last week (in person) i can understand why people say that video of vector games don't do the screen justice.
100% agree. In person it is so crisp clear and bright, it's amazing.
With blacks so black you'd swear it was an OLED.
@hobbyhands
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
One of my favorites. I own 2 🙂
@Punisher6654
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Loved the video.
@bombswabs3041
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I owned a GCE branded vectrex as a child and solved the level 13 Minstorm crash.
I became extremely good at Minestorm. Of course I encountered the level 13 crash. This was very disappointing. So I read every manual and instruction booklet I could to find a solution. I know 100% for a fact I read instructions stating to move beyond level 12 or 13 (I forget but I believe its 13) one must press the reset button. Obviously even as a young child this seemed like a joke. But I did as the instructions stated and the game simply reset as expected. But even back then I had a never give up attitude so I tried again and again and still nothing. Not wanting to give up I tried again but I couldnt bring myself to fully press the reset button so I pressed it only 1/2 the way down and IT WORKED!!! The game would flash some type of screen for about 1/2 a second ( I cant recall if anything was displayed but it was like a quick blip) then it would load the future levels which increased in difficulty and arrangement. This was by far not a ONE OFF. This became my norm and I did this reliably every time probably 100's of times (yes I played it A LOT). Occasionally out of curiosity, I would not press reset or I would press it fully in and both would result in the crash or full reset respectively. So something very much had to do with only pressing reset 1/2 the way in and one must hold that position while the game transitions from 13 to the beyond. Once the level loads you can then let off the reset button.
To this day its still a mystery why this worked at all and its relation to the instructions specifically stating to press reset to proceed to the next levels of minestorm. And I did re read the instructions thinking perhaps I missed the part where it stated to only press 1/2 the way in. But no there wasn't anything suggesting this. Further as far as I know, Im the only person to mention this at all and I have been trying to inform the Vectrex community b/c I am sure there are many owners out there who would love a simple way to move beyond level 13. To this end, I got so extremely good at Minestorm I was able to play it until it was no longer playable. the instant your ship appeared, it died. I would try everything, hyperspace, thrust, shooting…nothing worked. As soon as your ship appeared something destroyed it. In essence ,Minestorm Has a kill screen and i reached it several times!!! Keep in mind this was probably between 1984 and 1987 I accomplished this. After reaching this level a few times I lost interest b/c there was no point. After sometime I stopped playing it all together as I grew up and became obsessed with Mortal Kombat 1.
I am also aware there are several versions of the Vectrex and some do not have the crash as it was fully fixed. Others may have a version where this may not work for other unknown reasons. As for me I know it worked, it worked every single time, it never ever failed to work. But I'd love to know why it worked. Thanks for reading my rant.
@vectrexer
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Please note the deflection yoke used with the CRT in vector based also differs from a other CRT TV's and monitors and monitors using raster scan display technology.
@resolvanlemmy
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I love how the thumbnail morphs into the video. Well done mate.
@JackFoxtrotEDM
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
"This permission extends to … duplicate and/or create game ROMs for your personal use. When the opportunity arises, please send us a ROM sample of your work."
Meanwhile Nintendo…
@timotheegoulet1511
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Yup one of my buddies had one of these too. Only had like three games for it but we played it like it was going out of style.
@PaganPilot
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Played a Vectrex once at a pawnshop that one lying around, missing the overlays though. Makes you think on how well a Vectrex 2 with color would have done. Have to commend Smith and his son for being forwards thinking and support for Vectrex preservation, homebrew and ROM scene. Also music at 6:25 – 7:00?
@speedbird737
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
oh dear @ 9:00 you have the less reliable made in Taiwan version! (serial number ends in A) – made in hong kong version more reliable!
@speedbird737
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
your Vectrex display needs realignment/ centering ! @ 08:28
@paultownend-xc1lw
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
o wow reminds me of my vectrex 1n 1983 , i still had box it had come in and arround 10 games all boxed in 1999/2000 no one would give me even 50 pounds for it all, so i gave to charity shop . if only i saved it , so when i watch all these retro gaming channels i get nostalgic, i love watching but also its tough to watch as ive lost lots of money as i have been an avid gammer since i bought my atari in 78. great channel
@Beautifultruthofficial
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I always loved vectrex.
@Dan-Commando
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
The fact the uploader found that this console was the Sh*t! but it had not even come into the world yet made me laught so hard. these british (eyes rolling)
@noticiasinmundicias
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
18:00 wow, his eyes truly reveal how elevated he currently is
@slimpixie2404
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I used to sell these in the UK when I worked for a small retail chain called The Games Centre. It was an excellent unit.
@Switcher1972
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Mine still needs to be repaired, it still does not want to boot (no buzzing sound), let's hope it's NOT the screen… ^^
That was a courageous little warrior in the market. But bad timing…
@Kinglink
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I always think emulation is the best way to maintain our gaming legacy, but you're ABSOLUTELY right, Vectrex is one of the few consoles that can't be replicated. You literally need the machine to truly understand the love of it.
@Mike-tv9rk
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
They had one of these demoing in the toy shop where my Mum worked. It was enough excitment to make my young self faint. A magic box . But too expensive for anyone but a Genie. 😮
@thegearknob7161
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
The saddest of all the console failures. It really deserved better. Still a unique thing even 40 years on, nothing else can really claim that.
@smartin484
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I still have one! The cartridge connection is kind of flaky at this point, but after 30+ years that's not too surprising. Here's a Vectrex flashback for you: "Help, Spike!… Oh no, Molly!"
@CaptainReynolds-flyinspace
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
3d goggles also bring colors to the games.
@RichieDigs
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
I'm so blessed to have one in my home. It's the only console I own aside from my original ganeboy.
@MIWarrior80
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
OH SPIKE
OH MOLLY
OH SPIKE
OH MOLLY
@MIWarrior80
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
CANT IMAGINE THEY SOLD TOO MANY COPIES OF RIP OFF, I SURE AS HELL WOULDNT BUY ANYTHING NAMED RIP OFF
@Nanako__
January 20, 2026 at 9:31 am
Avgn + nostalgia critic ?
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