LEGO's new Atari 2600 kit comes with joystick, games

Building the Atari 2600 model set. (Photo via LEGO Group) LEGOs and video games both became playroom staples in the 1980s. So it just makes sense for LEGO to release a buildable brick model of the iconic Atari 2600 video game console.LEGO announced details of the new set on Tuesday.

In addition to the classic black and faux wood-grain console – the four-switch VCS/2600 model, which slides open to reveal a "a pop-up scene from an 80’s gaming room" – the kit also includes a model joystick controller that moves just like the original, as well as three video game cartridges in brick format: Asteroids, Adventure, and Centipede.Yes, you can slide the cartridges into the console.

When not in "use," they can be stored in a buildable case or even built into mini versions of the games themselves."I recall spending hours and hours in front of the TV, absolutely amazed that I could play arcade games in my own home," set designer Chris McVeigh said in a release about the kit. "This is why it has been such an incredible experience to bring two icons together, Atari and LEGO, in this awesome set."Cartridges can be put into the slot, just like the real console. (Photo via LEGO Group) The new Atari set goes on sale August 1 with a suggested price of $240.

It clocks in at just under – you guessed it – 2,600 pieces.If you played video games at home in the early 1980s, there’s a good chance you were using an Atari 2600.