PackratVG

Krytol, Have you thought about offering a limited run of Rescue Invaders, similar to what Scott Dayton does with some of his hacks? I've talked to a few people about it and they'd like to own a copy. Best, Jarett

Good. It's a great hack. -Jarett

You might try simply adjusting the RF cable of your system. Modern-day hacks and homebrews don't have the same sheilding that original Atari games had. They're more prone to interference like what you're experiencing. Is it just this one copy of Rescue Invaders that has the problem, or do other copies exhibit the same problem? Thanks, Jarett

I've also noticed that cart size is a factor for the VG Wiz clear, red, and blue carts. They fit in the six-switch slot, but they're a little snug. -Jarett

Adam, Just an FYI, Dark Mage isn't the only text adventure for the 2600. Adam Thornton wrote Lord of the Rings, based off of Greg Troutman's text engine. Thomas Jentzsch helped Adam to improve the code a bit. Check it out here: http://www.packratvg.com/lotr.htm Best, Jarett

Certainly. I'll send you a PM right now. Thanks, Jarett

I'll be coming all the way from Utah with one of my staff to run our booth. We'll be releasing several new homebrews and hacks at the show, as well as have quite a bit of used stuff for sale. I look forward to meeting everyone! Best, Jarett Waite Owner Packrat Video Games www.packratvg.com

A while back we had a similar problem with a few of our copies of Skeleton+. The games would start fine, then part of the screen would start flickering. Eventually the whole screen would flicker and the game would crash. We did quite a bit of homework and found out that the homebrews that had this problem were all made with 2732A eproms. These eproms were a bit slower than 2732's and caused the problem. This might be the case with your copy of Skeleton+. Best, Jarett

Nathan, LED carts actually have been made. CPUWIZ made the first one, here's the thread: http://www.atariage.com/forums/viewtopic.p...ht=worlds+first And here's our version: http://www.atariage.com/forums/viewtopic.p...hlight=led+cart We're planning more stuff like this for the near future! Best, Jarett

Thomas is right, it's a game much like Lunar Lander. We'll have screen shots of Planet Lander up soon, and hopefully we'll have it ready for sale in a week or two. Thanks, Jarett

If anyone is still wondering whether or not they should attend NWCGE 2K4 in May, here's another reason: These and several other games will be released at the show! Sincerely, Jarett Waite Owner Packrat Video Games www.packratvg.com P.S. These are only prototypes, so the final versions may differ slightly. Also, X3V0LuX will have an end label .

Again, sorry guys. I can edit my posts or the mods can erase them if that would be best. I don't want to cause any conflicts. Thanks, Jarett

You're right CPU. I was thinking that my post would fit here since this is a thread about the new colored carts. I should have posted this in the events section. Sorry! -Jarett

Sorry, wrong thread.

Wrong thread...

Sorry, wrong thread .

All of our clear labels are printed on a specialty stock that we picked up from our label company. It's called "clear on clear permanent." I'm very pleased with how the labels came out. Thanks, Jarett

Kepone, Here's the direct link: http://www.packratvg.com/cosmicbowling.htm Be sure to check out the other homebrews and hacks while you're there! Best, Jarett

Cybergoth, What are the dimensions of the Videopac manuals? If the measurements aren't too different from our current manual, I could probably make the changes before we sell any more copies. We plan on sending out all of the pre-orders on Monday. Thanks, Jarett

We sold out of KTAA at the show, and we're running short on O2 cases that are in really good condition, so we're waiting for a shipment that's on its way. KTAA should be available by the weekend. Also, Planet Lander is a new and relatively unknown O2 homebrew that we'll have ready in about two weeks. Thanks, Jarett

All of the homebrews and hacks that we released at Philly Classic 5 are now available for purchase from our website: www.packratvg.com Highlights include our clear cart releases, Pressure Gauge (boxed), Battlezone TC, and several of Scott Dayton's hacks with all-new labels. Please feel free to send any questions my way. Thanks, Jarett Waite Owner Packrat Video Games www.packratvg.com

I was very excited to see the first issue, and I was not let down. It's a full-blown magazine, no shortcuts have been made in its production. It was refreshing to sit on the plane home and read reviews of some of the classics and homebrews out there. In case anyone is wondering, from my personal experience with Jayson (the chief editor and owner of the mag), he is a great guy and has only the best intentions. Sincerely, Jarett

Thanks to everyone for your support and for making PC5 such a great show for us. It was great to finally meet many of you. I hope that I can adequetaly respond to MMF's questions. All of the games that we sell in common with AA were sold at the show for the exact same price as our online prices. We did not cut any of our prices, nor were there any gimmics. In fact, I was shocked when I heard that AA had dropped their prices to $15 for several of the games that we sell in common. We sold the same games for $17.95. I'm not sure if this price change was made before the show, or in reaction to something at the show, but either way, that's Al's perogitave. The one game that I know we priced lower was Venture II. AA had it priced at $15 (the online price is $13). We sell it for $12.95 (online and at the show). We used to sell it for $13.95, but matched the AA price drop from about a month ago. We absolutely have permission from all of our homebrew and hack authors to produce their games. In fact, when we decided to begin offering clear case games, I contacted all of our authors for permission to offer their game this way as well. I've been very careful to respect authors' decisions, just ask the many that have turned us down . Yes, we pay the standard royalty of $5 to all homebrew authors. Occasionally these royalties will be a little more or a little less than standard royalties, but this is always the decision of the author. Regarding the question of my staff (family) photographing and spying on the AA booth, there is a perfectly good explanation. We've attended several shows and always come back with photos of just our booth. This time I asked my little sister (16 yrs old, oblivious) to take photos of the entire convention so that I could post a good re-cap after the show. This was after the show began, not before. She went on her way and came back with about 30 photos of all of the booths. I didn't see these photos until Sunday night. The three photos of the AA booth that my sister took suprised me when I saw the show prices. I really don't want to start a price war. A price war would only hurt the homebrew scene in general. I never went over to the AA booth, just to make sure that there were no problems. We heard several rumors at the show, including spying from the AA booth on us, but who cares? There's nothing wrong with looking at the competition's prices. This is just a part of business. In addition, check out the photos of our booth. The displays behind our homebrews had all of our prices clearly posted. These signs were printed before the show and not altered at the show. To be honest, we're moving towards offering homebrews and hacks that AA doesn't offer. This would be ideal for everyone involved. When we first started making homebrews over a year ago, I contacted just about every homebrew author out there. Six authors replied showing interest, all of which had their games offered on AA. We didn't have much choice but to offer these games and make an effort to distinguish them from the AA offerings. I want everyone to know that there was no spying going on, nor any price cuts at our booth. In fact, I wish that we could have known about AA's lower prices, we probably would have offered a discount on some of our games. Oh well. If anyone is wondering whether or not competition is good, just look at the games that we offer that AA doesn't, as well as some of the lower prices on both sides of the line. It's competition that drives innovation (our clear cart releases) and makes it a buyers market. Competition keeps everyone on their toes. Isn't everyone always complaining about Microsoft and their monopoly? I'll be more than happy to reply to anyone's questions or concerns, either here or via PM. I know that Packrat and AA can peacefully co-exist. No one should have to take sides. This sort of a discussion was bound to happen some time, so I'm glad that it's all out in the open now. Sincerely, Jarett Waite Owner Packrat Video Games www.packratvg.com P.S. All of the games that we released for the first time at PC5 will soon be available to purchase on our website!

We sold out of KTAA at the show, so hopefully someone else will post their reviews. It really is a great game. We also made plans at the show with an new O2 programmer to begin producing his O2 homebrew called Planet Lander. More details to follow... Best, Jarett Waite Owner Packrat Video Games www.packratvg.com

All of the clear carts will be sold at PC5 and made available for purchase after the show on our website. Thanks, Jarett