Even though they pioneered home videogame consoles with the original Odyssey, Magnavox, which became a subsiduary of Dutch high-tech conglomerate Philips in 1974, has to play some serious catch-up after the advent of programmable systems like the Channel F and VCS. Their answer is a resdesign of a machine orignally prototyped by the company in 1977, featuring 24 built-in games. Called the Odyssey2 (O2), the system is re-tooled as a programmable machine and debuts for US$200 in 1978. Inside is an Intel 4-bit 8048 CPU, running at 1.78 MHz. It is touted as "The Ultimate Video Game System", mainly on the strength of its innovative, but ultimately under-utilized, 49 key alpha-numeric membrane keyboard. This selling point forces Atari to eventually release membrane keypad addons for their VCS. The O2 falls short in other, more important categories; the O2 has lower resolution graphics than the Atari VCS and only one audio channel, compared to its rival's two. Another problem are the joysticks hardwired right into the machine, so that when the sticks wear out or break (which they often did), there is no choice but to take the whole contraption back to the dealer. This is later fixed in a remodeled O2 with external joystick ports. The marketing strategy for the unit also leaves something to be desired. Unable or unwilling to heed lessons learned from the sales problems of their first Odyssey, distribution of the O2 is again limited to authorized Magnavox dealers, severely limiting its sales potential. Mother corporation Philips never 
really gets behind the machine, and actively tries to fold their videogame division at every opportunity. The system has fairly better luck in Europe, where Philips markets it as the Videopac G7000. In fact, two other Videopac models are produced for the European market, the G7200 featuring a built-in monitor, and the G7400 which is the equivalent of the mysterious Odyssey3 (see below).
Over 50 games are produced by Magnavox, plus two cartridges by third party gamemaker Imagic and four arcade translations from Parker Brothers. Amazingly, almost all of the Magnavox games are written by one man, Ed Averett. Convincing employee Intel that programmable home videogame systems are a great way to sell their chips, he moves over to Magnavox six months after production starts and begins making games for the 
system. Within the extremely limiting technical confines of the O2,
Averett cranks out some of the most creative home videogames of the era. One of his creations, K.C. Munchkin!, becomes the crux on which the O2 rises, and then ultimately drops into oblivion.
Munchkin! is created to capitalize on the immense success of arcade wunderkind Pac-Man. Averett releases his version in 1981, and it rapidly becomes the O2's killer game, causing people to buy the system just to play it. It features such enhancements to the Pac-Man
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most graphically complex and enjoyable games of the pre-1980 home videogames, it comes too late to save the O2.
Attempts at reviving the system with add-ons such as The Voice voice-synthesizer and a Microsoft BASIC programming module all fail to jump-start the O2's dwindling market share. The Master Strategy Series games are a last-ditch attempt at resuscitation by Averett. Appearing between 1981 and 1982, each of the three games have extended memory, complex packaging and include plastic and metal game pieces used on a highly detailed gameboard packed with the game which players use as a supplement to the onscreen action. The first of the series, The Quest 
for the Rings, wins the "Most Innovative Game of 1981" award from Electronic Games, the premiere videogame magazine of the time.
With about one million units sold, the Odyssey2 does beat out every other fringe system like the Channel F, Vectrex and astrocade, but it never comes close to powerhouse Atari. When the videogame market crashes in 1983 - 84, so does the O2. Not one to miss an opportunity to beat a dead horse, Magnavox announces the next generation Odyssey3, with 16k of RAM, a chiclet-style keyboard, new voice-synthesizer and even a 300 baud modem. They go so far as to preview the system at the 1983 CES, but it only sees very limited release in Europe as the G7400.
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The Professional Arcade debuts for $300 USD, but Bally isn't prepared for the intense competition building around the home videogame industry and they soon pull 
the system off the market. Left in the lurch by the abrupt cancellation of production, a group of hardcore users who have learned the ropes of the machine and its BASIC language purchase the rights to the system. In 1981, in a confusing series of name changes, this fan-faction re-releases the system as the Bally Computer System under the company name Astrovision, which then changes its name to Astrocade and releases the astrocade. Throughout all these incarnations, however, only the name-plate changes...the system is the same in every other respect. Over 45 cartidges are released for the device throughout its run, along with many programs loaded through audio cassette in BASIC. A remarkable translation of Pac-Man called Muncher is made by third party gamesmaker Esoterica, but the Atari/Magnavox lawsuit prevents its release. Needless to say, none of the versions of the Bally Professional Arcade pose a serious threat to the stranglehold Atari has on the industry. Forever fourth in the early home console race, the unit dies a silent death in the big videogame flameout.
