Are we seeing a resurgence in Atari 2600 collecting?

[+KaeruYojimbo]

Bingo.

 

The funny thing is, I started out with Atari and Colecovision and then didn't own another system until the PS1. I'm in prime NES-nostalgia age, but except for a couple of games I played a lot a friends' houses, I couldn't care less about it.

[Schizophretard]

Yes. The big difference between NES collecting and Atari collecting is that the younger generations don't care about Atari. That is why Atari games aren't worth much more now than they were 10 years ago, while NES, SNES, and others have soared.

 

I think even a bigger difference is with the timing that Atari collectors had to already have big collections before online shopping like eBay became a price guide. Older generations had a head start to start collecting before they went online and therefore already had a big chuck of the library and/or most of the hit titles. That is why online Atari collecting has been more about filling gaps in collections than starting them. Online Atari collecting is more about getting each label variation, cart variation, manual variation, box variation, pirate cart variation(probably something around an average of 20 of each of those 5 for the original releases), CIB, sealed, prototypes, console variations, variety of controllers and accessories, etc. than it is about getting the basics like all the games worth playing because getting the basics already happened pre-online price guide.

 

There is a big difference in what you can charge for your Atari games in your flea market booth when you have hundreds of games along with 10 other competing booths with the very limited amount of potential customers passing your booth compared to what you can charge on eBay when potentially every Atari collector who has a demand for what you got can "pass by to look at your eBay booth".

 

However, that big difference isn't as big as it is for younger generations and their consoles because by the time you got your Atari stuff online most already bought what you had back when you had a flea market booth with cheap games while the younger generations had less of that cheap prices flea market opportunity and more of the competing with their collector peers over online auctions just to get the basics of their consoles.

 

And even though flea markets, thrift stores, game stores, etc. still exist the online shopping still acts as a price guide for them because the sellers choose their prices by thinking,"Well, this is what I could get for it on eBay..." which didn't exist for those type of stores when Atari collectors got the basics before having to fill in gaps.

 

Also, correct me if I'm wrong here, but doesn't post-crash consoles like the NES, Super NES, etc. have a lot less of these variation type gaps like Atari does? For an example, did Nintendo release NES games with a huge variety of cartridge, label, manual, and box variations so that collectors looking for a title aren't competing over a more narrow range of variations?

[Andromeda Stardust]

 

Also, correct me if I'm wrong here, but doesn't post-crash consoles like the NES, Super NES, etc. have a lot less of these variation type gaps like Atari does? For an example, did Nintendo release NES games with a huge variety of cartridge, label, manual, and box variations so that collectors looking for a title aren't competing over a more narrow range of variations?

Don't get me started on the assinine variation stuff NES collectors collect. 3-screw versus 5-screw is a huge deal with NES carts. I'm honestly surprised the same hasn't happened with SNES slot vs ramp. And yes, there are tons of variations. Zelda comes in gold and gray carts. The gray cart is somehow worth more. Super Mario Brothers 2 seal of quality can be a silver circle or a gold oval. Player's Choice / Million Seller vs original cart. "NFS" SNES and N64 games. Then there's "black box" NES games and whether or not the freaking box included a hang tab. And forget the idiotic prices people pay for sealed games, or VGA culture. Sealed Atari ain't worth crap by comparison.

[Schizophretard]

Don't get me started on the assinine variation stuff NES collectors collect. 3-screw versus 5-screw is a huge deal with NES carts. I'm honestly surprised the same hasn't happened with SNES slot vs ramp. And yes, there are tons of variations. Zelda comes in gold and gray carts. The gray cart is somehow worth more. Super Mario Brothers 2 seal of quality can be a silver circle or a gold oval. Player's Choice / Million Seller vs original cart. "NFS" SNES and N64 games. Then there's "black box" NES games and whether or not the freaking box included a hang tab. And forget the idiotic prices people pay for sealed games, or VGA culture. Sealed Atari ain't worth crap by comparison.

 

I think you just now already started on the asinine variation stuff NES collectors collect.

 

Are these variations to the same extent? For an example, Atarimania has 8455 entries based on 617 original versions of Atari 2600 games and yet it is still incomplete and even within entries there are variations within those variations. So, there are likely more like maybe more than 10,000 possible variations for those 617 games. Are there near 10,000 possible variations for every 600 or so NES titles?

[Keatah]

The minor variations on box design is fodder for new graphic arts interns. Something to break them in and learn the lay of the land. The marketing department farts a different design and collectards get hissyfits. Gotta say it is amusing to stand back and observe.

[spawnshop]

 

I went back yesterday and took a picture of the Atari section.

 

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This looks like fun!

 

Where in NYC is this? I'm headed in to the city next week.

[Andromeda Stardust]

The minor variations on box design is fodder for new graphic arts interns. Something to break them in and learn the lay of the land. The marketing department farts a different design and collectards get hissyfits. Gotta say it is amusing to stand back and observe.

For once, I agree with you.

[Two-in-the-Belfry]

This looks like fun!

 

Where in NYC is this? I'm headed in to the city next week.

 

It's Videogamesnewyork, on East 6th Street right near Cooper Union and not far from St. Mark's Place. Supposedly the boxes and stuff were being moved out Wednesday, so maybe it'll be cleaner if you stop by!