Finally got a 2600 and several games – have some questions

[Finally got a 2600 and several games – have some questions]

By the way, that's a nice Game Center too. If the cover is intact, then this deal just gets better and better. Also noticed that you have a pair of Heavy Sixer paddles. They are rarer and becoming pricey (on eBay).

 

Thanks!

 

I assume the Game Center I have is this one?

 

 

There aren't any additional pieces outside the bottom and lid, and the lid has a crack running through the middle to a corner that is broken and missing a piece. Also the sticker is missing. Still, it looks good from the front. Do the Game Centers come with additional parts to fill the holes on the left and right of the console?

[Finally got a 2600 and several games – have some questions]

Welcome, and nice score!

 

The wireless joysticks are by RGA, who also made the Game Brain cartridge selector unit. I've got a boxed pair of the joysticks. IIRC to use them you plug all the cords from the receiver into their appropriate jacks on the console, including power, and then connect the console power supply to the receiver. I think the joysticks still require batteries.

 

The most interesting game in the set, to me, is Slot Machine. The game is definitely an artifact of its time and is sort of obscure now (not rare, just not a game people think of when they talk about Atari games). Box examples are fairly uncommon. As someone else said, your rarest game here is Pengo. We're not talking Holy Grail or anything but it's not a game you see every day.

 

For future reference, the easiest way to tell a heavy sixer from a light sixer is, looking at the front, whether the sides of the base curve out gently or if they're straight and angular; other factors such as Sunnyvale stickers can sometimes be deceiving because there was a little bit of crossover between the two models, and the thickness of the base (it IS thicker on heavies) can be hard to judge in photos and/or by inexperienced collectors. So just look at the front, and for curved sides vs. angular sides. But yours is definitely a heavy.

 

Thanks for the info on the wireless joysticks!

 

And never have I been happier to be heavy.

[Finally got a 2600 and several games – have some questions]

Excellent find! Nice start to your 2600 collection.

 

When you get a chance, please add your console to The Official Atari 2600 Heavy 6-Switch list: http://atariage.com/forums/topic/186498-the-official-atari-2600-heavy-6-switch-list/

 

Thanks and will do! I was actually reading through that topic earlier today.

[Finally got a 2600 and several games – have some questions]

Thanks guys! I was especially happy to get Pengo in the lot, seeing as I'm a huge SEGA fan. Collecting all the SEGA titles on the 2600 is one of my goals.

 

Still wondering about that wireless controller. It appears to use the same power cable that the console does, but I don't want to risk it and break it. I made a similar mistake once using the wrong power cable with a SEGA CD.

[Finally got a 2600 and several games – have some questions]

Hi all! New to the forums, and new to 2600 collecting, but not new to retro game collecting. I help run SEGAbits.com and have been big into collecting everything from the Master System to the Dreamcast and modern games on the SEGA side, but rarely dip into other companies - though I have a bizarre soft spot for the Philips CD-i and own a far too large CD-i collection. I have, however, always wanted a 2600 but never came across the ideal purchase. Way back in the late 90s, a home near my family's cabin was having a yard sale. They had a full console and several games on a swanky third party cabinet with wheels. It was cash only, so we left and came back with the needed money and it had already sold.

 

Since then, I've kept an eye out but never found a deal that caught my eye until yesterday. I hit up a local movie and tv memorabilia shop for their warehouse sale, and in the back they had a boxed Atari on top of two more boxes labeled Atari Games and Atari Console. I asked about them and it turned out they did not have the AV cables to test it so it was in the back (away from the public, except for that weekend's sale) being sold as-is. An employee offered $30 for the empty console box and the box marked Atari Console which was where all the hardware was. I asked about games and he showed me the third box which had a TON of boxed titles. I know from experience that carts go for $1, but complete boxed games can go for more so I tried not to show too much excitement. I asked what he would give for the whole box and he said with the console he'd throw them all in for an additional $20.

 

So $50 total for the whole lot! I got home and cleaned and tested it out and it works great! From what I've read here on the forums, I believe it is a heavy sixer (Sunnyvale, CA sticker on the bottom, plus it is rather heavy).

 

I was curious, are any of the games at all rare or hard to find boxed? I was also wondering if anybody had any info on what I assume are wireless controllers. Are these third party? Whats with the controllers not having antennas but rather dangly cords? The transmitter did not have a power cable, but I assume it can be found easily online?

 

I also got (not pictured) an empty box for Keyboard Controllers. They were not included, I just have the box (though the box is in perfect condition), but I assume these aren't really vital accessories to own.