This is a typical system using catridges based on the different chipsets developped by General Instruments in the late 70s. Each GI chips was able to generate several games, ball games for a start, then later car racing, motorcycle, submarines, tanks and shooting games.
The system has two detachable controllers with one analog joystick and one fire button each. The control panel is composed of 10 buttons to select the different games offered by each cartridge (10 being the maximum). Difficulty switches, power switch and a start button can also be found.
Prinztronic marketed another very similar system which used cartridges based on GI chips: the Prinztronic Tournament. Though different in shape, it is basicaly the same system. Can anyone confirm if cartridges for each system can be used in each other?!
The Prinztronic 5500 was marketed in Europe and Oceania (New Zealand). In Germany it was sold as the SHG Blackpoint (different models exist).
The Tank Battle game produced by the AY-3-8710 chip from General Instruments, is often missing from available cartridges for this type of systems (based upon GI chips). There is one good reason. All the other games use analog controllers whereas the Tank Battle must be played with digital controllers (like direction buttons for example). And all these video-game systems were designed with analog controllers and no numeric ones. However, some systems, like the Prinztronic Micro 5500 (and the SHG Blackpoint) offered optional digital controllers (pads with 5 buttons: directions and fire) with the Tank Battle cartridge...
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please send us pictures or anything you might find useful.
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Ahh, my first ever console....the racing game was brilliant......bought for me by my mum and dad xmas 1978, the following year I was lucky enough to get the all singing and all dancing Atari :)
Thursday 19th April 2018
AJ
I used to have one of these myself, probably around about Xmas 1981...my first games console.
Remember buying a cartridge for it, some speed bike racer game whereby you had to jump a series of cars, it came with a analog rotary dialled paddle that you moved left or right to set your speed, this plugged directly into the back of the cartridge.
If I remember correctly the screen consisted of three tiers of road with your character horizontally scrolling. Your character would start at the top of the screen and as it reached the right edge of the screen would shift down to the next tier of road, the bottom tier had the ramp. If you set your bike too fast you would crash, if too slow by the time you reached the ramp to jump the cars you would fail your landing.
Wednesday 24th March 2010
Nick (Midlands, UK)
Don't know if anyone can help I've got a 5500 still in orig box with all parts + still works, have you any idea if these are worth anything?( Good Condition
Thursday 2nd December 2004
Pete (Midlands)
NAME
Micro 5500
MANUFACTURER
Prinztronic
ORIGIN
Europe
YEAR
? 1978
BUILT IN SOFTWARE / GAMES
None
CONTROLLERS
Two controllers with analog joysticks and a fire button
