Odd label

[up2knowgood]

 

If you are interested, I offer reproductions labels (I do not sell on eBay). If you are interested just shoot me a PM.

I have a large catalog of titles so I will not list them here (including foil based labels). All labels are cut to correct size and shape (just peel and stick).

Here's an image of just my Activision titles:

 

2600ActivisionCatalog.jpg

 

Not gonna lie, I keep looking at those and thinking about using them as bumper stickers... Do you do Imagic labels?

[+pboland]

 

Not gonna lie, I keep looking at those and thinking about using them as bumper stickers... Do you do Imagic labels?

 

Yes I do. I also make DataAge and Spectravideo foil type labels (as well as 5200 & 7800 foil labels). Please keep in mind that I can not print the color "white". This mean anything on one of these labels that would be white comes out as the foil color. If you have any questions just PM me.

[CPUWIZ]

 

I just really didn't mean to cause an argument, and can't believe all the hate being thrown around because of a picture of a game cartridge. Seriously people, this is supposed to fun, remember? Calm down.

 

What are you talking about?

[BassGuitari]

I just really didn't mean to cause an argument, and can't believe all the hate being thrown around because of a picture of a game cartridge. Seriously people, this is supposed to fun, remember? Calm down.

 

Um......wha?

 

For a guy telling everybody else to calm down, you really need to lighten up. Nobody was attacking you or anybody else. We're all friends here--relax.

 

Anyway, now that so many people are around, I've been curious as to when they started the blue label thing here. Thoughts anyone? ....no hurt up2...

According to period sources, Activision seems to have started doing the blue text label cartridges in 1988:

 

"Classic Atari 2600 Games Revived by Activision

Activision has recently re-released some classic Atari 2600 games of their own, plus some titles originally done by Imagic. The newly added titles are THE ACTIVISION DECATHLON, ROBOT TANK, ATLANTIS, DEMON ATTACK, and MOONSWEEPER. These games are distributed primarily to nationwide toy store chains, such as Toys 'R' Us and Kaybee Toys."

(Computer Entertainer, Feb. 1988)

 

[up2knowgood]

 

What are you talking about?

 

 

 

Um......wha?

 

For a guy telling everybody else to calm down, you really need to lighten up. Nobody was attacking you or anybody else. We're all friends here--relax.

 

According to period sources, Activision seems to have started doing the blue text label cartridges in 1988:

 

"Classic Atari 2600 Games Revived by Activision

Activision has recently re-released some classic Atari 2600 games of their own, plus some titles originally done by Imagic. The newly added titles are THE ACTIVISION DECATHLON, ROBOT TANK, ATLANTIS, DEMON ATTACK, and MOONSWEEPER. These games are distributed primarily to nationwide toy store chains, such as Toys 'R' Us and Kaybee Toys."

(Computer Entertainer, Feb. 1988)

 

 

Guess I'm a little too high strung, apologies.

 

Oh, that explains it. All three of the Imagic Blues are there in that release. I've always wondered about them. If what I've read before is true, and Activison bought up Imagic in 1986, explains the change of cartridges, and the blue labels. Wonder why they continued to use the Imagic name and didn't just sell them under their own name. Honestly a lot later than I thought it would be. Considering the time since some of those releases, its impressive that there's as many Blues out there as there is.

 

Its also kind of sad both Toys 'R' Us and KB are gone. Changing times.

[jaybird3rd]

If what I've read before is true, and Activison bought up Imagic in 1986, explains the change of cartridges, and the blue labels. Wonder why they continued to use the Imagic name and didn't just sell them under their own name.

 

It's unclear whether Activision ever formally acquired Imagic or the Imagic game library, even though they re-released several of their games as "blue label" titles and later included Imagic games in their Action Pack emulation compilations. At the risk of double-quoting myself, here's an old post that I wrote years ago which addressed the Imagic/Activision ownership question:

 

Interesting question. I've often heard it said that Activision "acquired" Imagic after it closed its doors in 1985, but I'm not sure that's entirely true. I posted this in an earlier thread:

 

Regarding the Imagic titles: Despite popular belief, I don't think Activision owns or has ever owned any of the Imagic properties. If you listen to the November/December 2005 episodes of Retro Gaming Radio, you'll hear an extensive interview with Bruce Davis (the CEO of Imagic at the time it went under and later the CEO of Activision). According to him, Imagic went into bankruptcy in 1985 after selling off its fixed assets, and still exists as a California corporation "in bad standing" because it hasn't paid its debts to the state in 20+ years. If those were to be cleared, Imagic could be revived and would continue to hold all the rights it previously had. Because there was no buyer, and because Bruce Davis had no successor as CEO of Imagic, he technically still owns the properties but hasn't been approached with a serious offer for them yet.

To the best of my recollection, that's almost an exact quote from Davis. Take it for whatever it's worth. I've also heard that Bill Grubb (the former president of Imagic, whom Davis replaced) has confirmed that Activision did not acquire Imagic.

 

Here is a link to an even older post by John Hardie; he was the one who contacted Bill Grubb.

[up2knowgood]

As for the reproduction label controversy: to an extent, I can see the collectors' point of view (fear of reproductions being sold as originals), but as I've thought about it some more, I no longer think it's necessary to put a watermark or other identifier on reproduction labels, especially for games that will never be especially rare. Newly printed labels will necessarily be produced using a different process than the originals because the volumes are so much smaller, so there will always be subtle differences—in label texture and finishing, colors, typography, artwork, size, the way the corners are rounded, and so forth—that will be detectable even by looking at a picture of the label.

 

In my opinion, collectors who are concerned about label authenticity would do better to document the characteristics of the originals so that other collectors can recognize them, instead of demanding that alterations are added to the reproductions. Banks and currency collectors have operated this way for years; they spot counterfeits by learning exactly what the originals look and feel like, and by training their attention to notice deviations or differences. But the group of collectors who just want their cartridges to look nice is much larger, so I think there's clearly a need for high-quality reproduction labels like the ones pboland offers.

 

To play Devil's Advocate, the difference is when its done with currency its a serious crime, and reproductions HAVE to have such things to identify them as reproductions, else laws are broken. Even the large novelty paperweights shaped like coins can become subject to these laws despite their much larger size.

 

That said, I'd rather reproductions be as close to the originals as possible, but as you said, agree there will be differences between a factory made and applied label from the 80s, and one made today.

[CPUWIZ]

 

as you said, agree there will be differences between a factory made and applied label from the 80s, and one made today.

 

Yeah, they'll be better, if you know what you are doing.

[up2knowgood]

 

Yeah, they'll be better, if you know what you are doing.

 

EXACTLY!

[DoctorSpuds]

It seems that the blue label Activision games weren't the only ones prone to mislabeling I've got a Keystone Kapers that has the same exact thing. Though judging by the way this particular thread is going I doubt anybody really cares about the original topic of upside down labels, but hey... its fun, and finding weird shit is probably the best part of collecting. In my opinion, of course.

 

[up2knowgood]

It seems that the blue label Activision games weren't the only ones prone to mislabeling I've got a Keystone Kapers that has the same exact thing. Though judging by the way this particular thread is going I doubt anybody really cares about the original topic of upside down labels, but hey... its fun, and finding weird shit is probably the best part of collecting. In my opinion, of course.

 

 

AGREED! No collection is complete without a few mistakes.

[BassGuitari]

This thread is making me think of CBS cartridges for Atari 5200, and how all their labels are on upside down as a matter of course. I always used to think it was weird that all the end labels said "CBS Electronics" while the game's title was printed upside down along the bottom edge of the front of the label. (Well...I still do, I guess. )

 

And I ordinarily probably wouldn't have even given a thought to any of these Activision "error" carts with upside down labels before, but now I'm getting interested and might have to track down a couple just for grins and giggles (or just remove the label from a dupe cart and put it back on upside down...).

 

Thanks a lot, guys!

[jaybird3rd]

This thread is making me think of CBS cartridges for Atari 5200, and how all their labels are on upside down as a matter of course. I always used to think it was weird that all the end labels said "CBS Electronics" while the game's title was printed upside down along the bottom edge of the front of the label. (Well...I still do, I guess. )

I've noticed that about CBS's 5200 cartridges, too. This is another case where having reproduction labels is useful: pboland also offers replacement CBS 5200 labels, and I plan to pick some of them up so I can clean the old labels off of my CBS games and apply the new ones the right way.

[Calbright]

On 4/28/2018 at 2:13 PM, pboland said:

 

If you are interested, I offer reproductions labels (I do not sell on eBay). If you are interested just shoot me a PM.

I have a large catalog of titles so I will not list them here (including foil based labels). All labels are cut to correct size and shape (just peel and stick).

Here's an image of just my Activision titles:

 

Do you have this image in high resolution?