This is basically the Atari 2600 version of the "Everdrive", basically, except it also contains an enhanced chipset that allows me to emulate some rare (read: ~SUPER FREAKIN EXPENSIVE~) Starpath Supercharger games, games that use the DPC+ Batari BASIC KErnel (DPC was the upgrade chip in PItfall II that gave it full music like an NES Game with sound effects, newer DPCs can do even more with the VCS...stuff I think Jay Miner and Joe Decuir couldn't even dream of in 1976). The menus are navigated using the select and reset switches, or the Joystick controller (or in my case CX-78+, which one of the two buttons acts as a "Back" button, so real bonus to you 7800 controller fans as it gives extended functionality to the 2600 in this case, hehe).

For the first several days of ownership, I used it without issue, exploring games for the Starpath Supercharger, some other rare titles. I will get more into the technicals of that in the technical subsection below. I'm also going to make a list of games I found that I like on here, homebrew, and rare commercial.

However, be warned, you might need to get into some technical stuff if you plan to flash the firmware to a newer version like I plan to. There's also a LOT more to Atari 2600 games technically than I remember. So this is going to be sort of my "TBA 2600-UNO For Dummies" page so I'm hopefully being helpful to other people who use these. The fact that there are so many variants of 2600 cartridge now a days (as development on them has gotten more "insane" since the 1990's when I started collecting), you may need to update the firmware on your UnoCart to allow it to run other games that it cannot initially run.

The earliest version was released in 2018, the next one over is a newer design as seen in the MacRorie's videos, the third one across from the left is mine made by KneeHighSpy, and the last one is a common (if a bit overpriced) Chinese made version (they cost around $54, I paid $40 for mine which is cheaper than the TBA full built cartridge).

It has an ARM Processor on-board that acts as the file management operating system for the Uno. It runs off of firmware that can be flashed to the cart using a USB-flasher such as the ST-Link V2 pictured to the right. However despite containing an ARM processor the Uno CANNOT run ARM Assisted games so there's none of that Andrew Davies stuff (ie Boulderdash CDFJ) or anything beyond a DPC+ cartridge of 64K ROM size.

Flashing Firmware - There are two methods to flash the firmware. The most common way of updating is via SDCard with a file called "firmware.bin" - all lowercase - put in the root directory of the SDCard. The UnoCart will detect the new Firmware and give an option for **Update Firmware**, which if you select it and hit the fire button, it SHOULD take a few minutes to write the data to the SD Card, and will show a "flash complete" screen when done.

The other method - particularly if you "BRICK" your cart (as I did) - will require soldering some pin headers onto the cart (if not already soldered), and connecting it to a USB ST-Link V2 type USB device (left) to re-flash it using one of ST-Links Utilities depending on what kind of computer you are using. I'll be using a Mac or Linux most of the time. This is also how firmware is installed when the cartridge is first put together by you or whatever "Factory" that built it.

Cartridges have 2 types of port for this. The earliest carts had just SWCLK, SDIO, and GND on them, while later cartridges included lines for RST (reset) and +3vdc. The earlier cartridges required you plug the cartridge into the Atari 2600 console to provide power to it to have it programmed, the later cartridges with all five ports can be programmed without being powered by the Atari console.

You will need an ST-Link V2 programmer tool, preferrably one of the cheaper ones oddly enough, which are about $5-10 on e-bay, and come in all sorts of cool colors (mine's orange, kinda' fitting for it's Atari work).

You will also need some software from ST - which is a chip company (who makes the ARM processor inside these flash cartridges). The PC version is called STM32 ST-LINK UTILITY and is meant to be used in Microsoft Windows. The Mac version is called STM32 Cube Programmer which works on macos. My Linux Strategy is just the PC version run from a VM using the STLINK over virtualized USB.

My STLINK V2 came with only 4 leads, so I connected all but the +3v line between the cart and the STLINK V2: RST->RST, SWDIO to SWDIO, GND to GND, and CLK to CLK. THen I put the cart in my Heavy Sixer, using the Heavy Sixer for the +3v. One thing to be careful of is the SWCLK And SWIM pins are next to each other, had I checked this earlier, I would have had success much sooner. Once I had all those pins, I just flashed the UCA Firmware to the ST32 on the cartridge, and then disconnected the programmer, opened OBS, power cycled the Atari, and of course, it came right up, now with the latest UCA Firmware.

Cases & Thoughts on Design - Most of the cases I see focus on the SDCard, as most people will only be messing with that, if anything. It really depends on your application.

I think the smallest models that fit into a regular 4-screw reproduction Atari Shell without modification and use a microSD card would be a great "kid-proof" solution in the case that you don't plan on putting a whole bunch of fancy schmancy games on the cartridge, and won't need to get at the SDcard at a later date. You could slap on labels and have it just sorta "hide" in your collection.

Models like mine also would need to be in a non-center-screw design repro Atari shell. That's what I used actually. Except I cut a slot in the BOTTOM side (and a little bit of the top) for the SDCard in back, and then cut a hole in back for the UART pin header. My personal design is all about functionality, or "form follows function". Basically, it allows me to put the cartridge together and not have to unscrew the shell again, and still be able to access everything that I need to, meaning the SDcard, and UART header. The appearance of said cartridge is also pretty cool, so I'm toying with label ideas for it....maybe a waterslide decal with a clear cover over it would be really cool on the transparent gray cart (especially if I laminate it).

Some people are offering original cartridge designs with slots for the SDCard or MicroSD Card to allow you to access it easier. Nobody I know is doing the UART Pin-Header thing, but that's because being an Electronics tinkerer myself, I like to have all the options open, especially since I bricked my own cartridge trying to put the v18 firmware on it. On mine, the header comes out through the back with enough clearance to be fine on any "Sixer" era console.

Title & Screenshot	Description
DragonStomper	One of the primary reasons for purchasing this was to try out some of those "enhanced" Starpath Supercharger games. What the Starpath SuperCharger was, was a cartridge-like-device you'd put in the Atari 2600's cartridge port, and then attach a Tape Deck to. It allowed for some pretty large, and sophisticated games on the Atari 2600 due to adding more RAM to the system, and due to having storage only limited by your cassette size. I found one new favorite in the lot so far - DragonStomper. Imagine a very simplified version of Dragon Warrior (Quest). Basically, you wander a vast countryside fighting monsters in random encounters (they even have slimes, as well as maniacs, monkeys, and various bugs), while out on a quest to find a magic amulet stolen by a dragon. Honestly, this ia good case study because I believe in 2025 with all the DPC+ kernels, ARM-enhanced co-processors, and expanded memory for the Atari 2600, a Dragon Quest-style RPG would not be out of the question on this system now. Even on this 1980's enhancement it gets remarkably close.
Survival Run	A NTSC Conversion of a PAL Europe only release from the end of the Atari 2600's life (it was released in 1990). It's basically a expansion on what Pole Position and Enduro did, but with some serious Mad Max inspired vibes (and I LOVE the Mad Max movies). Basically, you play a driver for hire in the apocalypse, tasked with the job of "running" important medical supplies from town to town to take care of the sick and injured. This means driving at breakneck speeds. It's basically like Solaris, but with cars. Pretty rad, and I'm not half-bad at it considering I've only played a few rounds as of this writing. The controls are smooth, the story is more than adequate (especially by 2600 standards), and it's fun as heck. Actually, there's a surprising lot of variables to keep track of on your car in this game, closer to an early Flight Sim than an Atari 2600 "racing" game.
Donkey Kong VCS	Donkey Kong VCS is a much-improved port of Nintendo's Donkey Kong, which was originally released as the pack-in with Coleco's Atari 2600 clone, the Coleco Gemini, in 1982. This is a homebrew release that adds the two missing levels (Pie Factory and the bouncing lifts), however, it omits the angled girders of the first level, which is really not much of a loss. It even includes a neato easter-egg where if you move the controller it changes "How high can you go?" to "How high can you try?", hehe. Also, you can skip the long wait the Arcade game (and the NES ports have) before jumping back to the game when you lose a life....so there's a lot of really thoughtful moves in this port. That said, it's one of my favorite DK ports for the 2600, and there's a second one too. SOme of these homebrew guys are working some absolute miracles on the system (just wait till I get my hands on my copy of Boulderdash that I ordered in the AtariAge Last Chance sale like....5 months ago).
Princess Rescue	I've seen this one around. It's basically a re-imagined port of Super Mario Bros. for the Atari 2600. That's right, it's a 32K ROM that is basically an entire Mario game that runs on the system, and it does a pretty decent job. Sure, it doesn't have the PHYSICS that make mario a classic, but I'm not even sure if that level of detail is even obtainiable on an Atari 2600. It seems though, based on the look of this release, this is indeed a Batari BASIC project, which is pretty cool. There is a little more randomization and some key differences in this to say, the real NES port, but it catches the vibe pretty darned well. What's really cool to me is this is a pretty good side-scroller, though I could have done well with having smaller sprites and more action on screen at once....but that might be something for me to work on at some point.
Zippy the Porcupine	And again, we have another "de-make" of sorts, Zippy the Porcupine (onicSay het edgehoghThey), basically a high speed moving critter that collects rings and runs in anti-gravity loops like another well known quasi-obscure pet-based mascot from a company that also made their own 2600 cartridges back in the day - like Star Trek the Strategic Operations Simulator. While things are a bit more choppy than the Genesis, and the level selection has a feel akin to something more out of Mega Man (probalby to keep from flying too close to the sun), Zippy fulfills his purpose on the system quite well and it's quite a fun play.