A pause switch fitted to a ColecoVision, with an indicator lamp as an option.
Why it is needed
- A stock ColecoVision cannot stop a game at all. There is no pause, in hardware or in the games.
How it is done
- The usual method pulls the Z80's WAIT line low, which halts the processor where it stands. Because it stops the machine rather than the software, it works on any game rather than on ones written to expect it.
- An LED shows the state, which matters more than it sounds: a paused console and a crashed one look identical otherwise.