bigfriendly Posted June 5, 2018 Share Posted June 5, 2018 Just wondering if anybody knows how common these grey boxes are? Thanks:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+save2600 Posted June 5, 2018 Share Posted June 5, 2018 Seems there's a lot of those late release grey boxes at places like Video61, B&C and Best Electronics still. Probably South America too. Incredible they'd bother re-releasing the SwordQuest games in that fashion, long after the contest ended/was cancelled. Just a budget minded cash grab on Atari's part BITD, designed to dupe people by the swift box art. lol 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted June 5, 2018 Share Posted June 5, 2018 (edited) Incredible they'd bother re-releasing the SwordQuest games in that fashion, long after the contest ended/was cancelled. Just a budget minded cash grab on Atari's part BITD, designed to dupe people by the swift box art. lol Atari Corp. inherited excess stock of titles released by the former Warner-owned Atari Inc., including the Swordquest titles (except Waterworld); they repackaged these as cheaply as they reasonably could and sold them mainly to just get rid of them, but also to supplement their support for the their 2600jr. system and generate some income from them. Note that the Atari Corp. reprints of the Swordquest games make no mention of the contest--nor, in fact, do Atari Inc. versions that were distributed after the contest expired. If it seems ill-considered or anticlimactic for Atari Corp. to have re-released the Swordquest games, remember that this was the company that also reissued titles like Hangman, Fun With Numbers, and Blackjack. In terms of rarity/collectability, the Atari Corp. gray boxes range from " " to " :-o" depending on the title. Not too many people deliberately collect Atari Corp. reprints, but the right buyer might pay a little extra for them (or a lot, again depending on the title). Swordquest: Earthworld probably falls somewhere in the middle. Not common, but not really sought-after, either. Edited June 5, 2018 by BassGuitari 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfriendly Posted June 5, 2018 Author Share Posted June 5, 2018 No contest. That means you don't get the comic or the poster either. Talk about ROYALLY getting the shaft! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zwackery Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 The grey box variants are, in IMHO, a niche line for collectors (for a few titles, there are some interesting label variations on the carts that match the boxes), but I personally find them quite interesting. Within the grey box titles, some are much, much rarer than others (i.e., Pac-Man), and this actually makes them quite a bit rarer than most people might think. Given their late release, they have an unusual place in Atari history. Here's the list: Backgammon BASIC Programming Basketball Blackjack Bowling Brain Games Canyon Bomber Codebreaker Demons to Diamonds Flag Capture Fun with Numbers A Game of Concentration Golf Home Run Maze Craze Night Driver Outlaw Pac-Man RealSports Volleyball Surround Swordquest - Earthworld (and before anyone chimes in about Hangman, that release is in its own special category and the box isn't the same type of grey as the other grey box titles.) 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rom Hunter Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 The grey box variants are, in IMHO, a niche line for collectors (for a few titles, there are some interesting label variations on the carts that match the boxes), but I personally find them quite interesting. Within the grey box titles, some are much, much rarer than others (i.e., Pac-Man), and this actually makes them quite a bit rarer than most people might think. Given their late release, they have an unusual place in Atari history. Here's the list: Backgammon BASIC Programming Basketball Blackjack Bowling Brain Games Canyon Bomber Codebreaker Demons to Diamonds Flag Capture Fun with Numbers A Game of Concentration Golf Home Run Maze Craze Night Driver Outlaw Pac-Man RealSports Volleyball Surround Swordquest - Earthworld (and before anyone chimes in about Hangman, that release is in its own special category and the box isn't the same type of grey as the other grey box titles.) Zwackery, Do you have scans of Backgammon and Outlaw? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 They're so bland and depressing! Like the generic food labels from LOST. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+sixersfan105 Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 I think there are more. At least, there are more that have gray cartridges (but not sure if the boxes match). RealSports Baseball, RealSports Football and Kangaroo come to mind. All have late copyright date versions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Love Cowboy Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 If I'm remembering correctly, somewhere around '87 or '88 I actually bought (or rather my parents bought me) a grey-boxed Homerun cartridge, because I was really into baseball and we couldn't afford buying a then-current game system. I don't still have it though unfortunately Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigfriendly Posted June 7, 2018 Author Share Posted June 7, 2018 Man, I can't believe they tried to peddle some of those first gen games like Flag Capture and Surround. I wonder what they were asking for those relics! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 (edited) At least, there are more that have gray cartridges (but not sure if the boxes match). RealSports Baseball, RealSports Football and Kangaroo come to mind. All have late copyright date versions. Not all of those had the B/W boxes, though. To the best of my knowledge--and according to videogamevariations.com--no B/W boxes for RealSports Baseball, RealSports Football, or Kangaroo exist. The B/W boxes seem to have been limited to 1986 and are mostly associated with reissues of Picture Label titles. RealSports Volleyball and SwordQuest: Earthworld are the only 1986 Gray Label games with B/W boxes I've seen. I've never heard of a B/W box with any year other than 1986 on it. Most of the Gray Label carts (reprints of Silver Label titles), like RS Baseball, RS Football, and Kangaroo didn't appear until '87 and had color boxes, often of the multilingual "international" variety. As far as I can tell, though, these universally came with B/W manuals. But because Atari Corp. seemed to thrive on inconsistency (much to the aggravation of researchers and collectors ), anomalies and exceptions to these general rules exist practically as often as not, such as Breakout, Krull, and E.T., each of whose 1986 box variants are in color. And then are the titles that made it out with copyright dates of 1985, for some of which no "matching" boxes are confirmed at all--Ms. Pac-Man has an '85 box (a color one, at that!), but I haven't found any for others. And then there's stuff like Hangman, which is on its own planet out there somewhere. Lots to untangle with Atari Corp. releases. Edited June 7, 2018 by BassGuitari 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+sixersfan105 Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 Ah gotcha, makes sense. Gotta love Atari Corp.! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zwackery Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Zwackery, Do you have scans of Backgammon and Outlaw? Backgammon, no (it's a rare one), but, yes, I can make you a scan of Outlaw. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zwackery Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Not all of those had the B/W boxes, though. To the best of my knowledge--and according to videogamevariations.com--no B/W boxes for RealSports Baseball, RealSports Football, or Kangaroo exist. The B/W boxes seem to have been limited to 1986 and are mostly associated with reissues of Picture Label titles. RealSports Volleyball and SwordQuest: Earthworld are the only 1986 Gray Label games with B/W boxes I've seen. I've never heard of a B/W box with any year other than 1986 on it. Most of the Gray Label carts (reprints of Silver Label titles), like RS Baseball, RS Football, and Kangaroo didn't appear until '87 and had color boxes, often of the multilingual "international" variety. As far as I can tell, though, these universally came with B/W manuals. But because Atari Corp. seemed to thrive on inconsistency (much to the aggravation of researchers and collectors ), anomalies and exceptions to these general rules exist practically as often as not, such as Breakout, Krull, and E.T., each of whose 1986 box variants are in color. And then are the titles that made it out with copyright dates of 1985, for some of which no "matching" boxes are confirmed at all--Ms. Pac-Man has an '85 box (a color one, at that!), but I haven't found any for others. And then there's stuff like Hangman, which is on its own planet out there somewhere. Lots to untangle with Atari Corp. releases. My copies of Basketball, Canyon Bomber, Homerun, and RS Volleyball are all copyright 1988 on the box (carts, too). 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rom Hunter Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Backgammon, no (it's a rare one), but, yes, I can make you a scan of Outlaw. Would be great, Zwackery. I also miss the boxes of Canyon Bomber, Maze Craze and Night Driver. BTW: did you know there's a special Street Racer as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
high voltage Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Not all of those had the B/W boxes, though. To the best of my knowledge--and according to videogamevariations.com--no B/W boxes for RealSports Baseball, RealSports Football, or Kangaroo exist. The B/W boxes seem to have been limited to 1986 and are mostly associated with reissues of Picture Label titles. RealSports Volleyball and SwordQuest: Earthworld are the only 1986 Gray Label games with B/W boxes I've seen. I've never heard of a B/W box with any year other than 1986 on it. Most of the Gray Label carts (reprints of Silver Label titles), like RS Baseball, RS Football, and Kangaroo didn't appear until '87 and had color boxes, often of the multilingual "international" variety. As far as I can tell, though, these universally came with B/W manuals. But because Atari Corp. seemed to thrive on inconsistency (much to the aggravation of researchers and collectors ), anomalies and exceptions to these general rules exist practically as often as not, such as Breakout, Krull, and E.T., each of whose 1986 box variants are in color. And then are the titles that made it out with copyright dates of 1985, for some of which no "matching" boxes are confirmed at all--Ms. Pac-Man has an '85 box (a color one, at that!), but I haven't found any for others. And then there's stuff like Hangman, which is on its own planet out there somewhere. Lots to untangle with Atari Corp. releases. Ah, my Hangman which I sold in 2004, should've known 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zwackery Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Would be great, Zwackery. I also miss the boxes of Canyon Bomber, Maze Craze and Night Driver. BTW: did you know there's a special Street Racer as well? Well, I see the one listed on Atarimania. It would be nice for a non-cut up box to surface. Is it truly PAL? I don't recognize the logo on the price tag, but it has a dollar sign, so maybe from somewhere in North America? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 (edited) My copies of Basketball, Canyon Bomber, Homerun, and RS Volleyball are all copyright 1988 on the box (carts, too). Are the boxes B/W, though? I've heard of color '88 boxes but I don't recall B/W ones. Not that I'd be surprised either way. Atari Corp. was so all over the map with their back catalog releases that there are no truly hard and fast rules with them (except maybe for that? ). Edited June 8, 2018 by BassGuitari Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atari181 Posted June 9, 2018 Share Posted June 9, 2018 Are the boxes B/W, though? I've heard of color '88 boxes but I don't recall B/W ones. Not that I'd be surprised either way. Atari Corp. was so all over the map with their back catalog releases that there are no truly hard and fast rules with them (except maybe for that? ). Other than 86 I have in B/W boxes Home Run 88 Night Driver 87 Canyon Bomber 87 Canyon Bomber 88 RS Volleyball 88 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ballblaɀer Posted June 9, 2018 Share Posted June 9, 2018 Well, I see the one listed on Atarimania. It would be nice for a non-cut up box to surface. Is it truly PAL? I don't recognize the logo on the price tag, but it has a dollar sign, so maybe from somewhere in North America? I just recently picked up the weird gray box clamshell Street Racer from Australia. I lean towards the cut-up job being done by a game rental shop and not Atari itself, but given that I cant recall having ever seen anything like it before (specifically, an Atari-produced title with a modified box in a HES-style clamshell case) I really cant say for sure! The cart is definitely PAL, and the sticker on the case is a Big W sticker, a discount department store in Australia. My original photos and post here: https://twitter.com/atarispot/status/1003762889877057536?s=21 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted June 9, 2018 Share Posted June 9, 2018 Other than 86 I have in B/W boxes Home Run 88 Night Driver 87 Canyon Bomber 87 Canyon Bomber 88 RS Volleyball 88 Ah, you know what? I think I have actually seen a couple of those before. I bet I probably just assumed they were '86 boxes and didn't look closely enough. Learn something new every day! Interesting that the screenshot on the back of Canyon Bomber is actually the "B-Side" of the cartridge, Sea Bomber. Which is actually the better game anyway. (Of course, the fact that a game as dusty as Canyon Bomber was still being sold toward the dawn of the '90s is interesting in and of itself!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zwackery Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 Would be great, Zwackery. I also miss the boxes of Canyon Bomber, Maze Craze and Night Driver. BTW: did you know there's a special Street Racer as well? I forgot to bring these with me to work today to scan, but here are some placeholder pics. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 They appear to be from the era when everything in the world was in black and white. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rom Hunter Posted June 12, 2018 Share Posted June 12, 2018 I forgot to bring these with me to work today to scan, but here are some placeholder pics. Many thanks, Zwackery! And if you have the chance to scan Night Driver and Outlaw (Canyon Bomber not needed) at your work, please do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atari-dna Posted June 16, 2018 Share Posted June 16, 2018 They’re sad relics of Jack Tramiel’s business acumen Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.