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While late night host Conan O’Brien may be more well know for stand-up comedy (and his hair) than his thoughts on video games, he’s made major progress in becoming somewhat of a famous games reviewer in recent years - a feat made even more impressive by the fact that he is “contemptuous of the medium” as a whole.

As part of his ongoing ‘Clueless Gamer’ segment, O’Brien has already given his thoughts on Hitman: Absolution, and witnessed the horrors of the new Tomb Raider firsthand; but finally, he’s set his sights on the past. Watch in disbelief as O’Brien takes a walk down memory lane - memories he never had in the first place, mind you - and tries his hand at the Atari 2600 and its most well-known games for the very first time.

Although O’Brien may not be the most seasoned gamer, he’s already enjoyed more access to some triple-A releases than most. Millions of gamers would kill for the chance to tour the offices of 343 Industries - something O’Brien certainly made the most of - let alone appear in the finished game as an easter egg.

But anybody can appreciate that visual spectacle of a game series like Halo - what about the roots of gaming? You know, before they resembled reality in any meaningful way? O’Brien proves that while aging video game fans may remember classic titles from their childhood with rose-colored glasses, we’ve come a long way.

All jokes aside - and crushing realizations of just how bad some video games were at capturing real-life sports and battles - it’s worth pointing out that even O’Brien is able to recognize how well-designed a game like Space Invaders remains to this day. But yes, E.T. The Extraterrestrial has earned its place among the worst games ever made.

Was it a walk down memory lane seeing the Atari 2600 played by a modern-day newcomer, or were your rosy memories dashed by realizing just how far games have come? Which games on the Atari 2600 or other classic gaming consoles remain as vivid to you today as they were when you first played them? Leave some of your favorites in the comments.

Follow Andrew on Twitter @andrew_dyce.