Magnavody

Magnavody is an open-source simulator of the 1972 Magnavox Odyssey, the first video game console. It recreates the system’s circuit-based design, including its unit controllers, cards, spot generators, gate matrix and flip-flops. The Odyssey had no CPU or memory to emulate; separate circuit boards controlled elements such as the ball, wall and each player’s dot.

Games and play

Magnavody includes homages to the Odyssey’s Table Tennis and Tennis games. Tennis has an optional digital overlay that simulates the plastic overlay supplied with the original game. The simulator also supports some games that use Card 5, including Submarine, Invasion and Wipeout; these require you to provide the physical pieces and overlays.

Two players can play, and games offer both original rules and modern rules, which make play faster and more balanced. The simulator also includes quality-of-life options such as quick load and reset controllers.

Display and controls

You can play in an authentic 4:3 aspect ratio or switch to an optional enhanced 16:9 widescreen mode. Optional CRT overlays add effects such as static and waves, and on-screen elements can be toggled. Digital overlays are also supported for games that originally used plastic ones. Controller support is designed to simulate the Odyssey’s dial controllers.