markheus

I tested asteroids and it also looks the same. I don't own Sub Scan myself. The verdict: Your heavy sixer is just fine. Have fun! I guess we've gotten spoiled with our Xbox's and such... Thanks again!

Thanks - But I'm actually from St. Louis. I'm just working up here temporaily ( 2 or 3 weeks). I thought I'd take the chance to do some out of market video game hunting.

This may not be new to everyone else, but I stumbled across this site Kaotic Games You can create a list of all the systems and games for that system you own. It allows you to create a printable checklist of games that you own and games that you want. The list seems to be woefully incomplete but I'm sure there's some type of submission form. There are also some inconsistencies in naming and label variations. For instance, here is my (somewhat pathetic list) of games that I currently own. I'm in the process of working on an access database for my game collection - but I thought this was kinda nifty in the meantime. Has anyone else done anything like this? My Checklist BTW _ Any Iowans in here know of any good used game shops around the Cedar Rapids area?

I was mistaken about each system having the scanlines in a different place. I was almost positive about this, but I just tested it out and it looks the same as yours on my heavy sixer. Sorry about the bad pic: Take a glance at the above photo of "Asteroids," is that normal as well? They're not so much scan lines as variations in left edge of the screen. While playing the game one can see asteroids appear and dissapear at different distances from the edge of the screen. Or maybe is it a bad cart? Also, in Sub Scan, the game is unresponsive and there are zeros at the top and bottom of the screen? I think I remember reading somewhere that some people had problems with sub scan on their "sixer"

Yep, each system seems to have the lines in a different place....but they all have them. Welcome to the exciting world of Atari. Thanks - Now that I've encountered my first "quirk" I feel officially indoctrinated

Ok - So someone needs to edit the post to show that is Miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine aaalllllllllllllll mine !!!!!!!!11 Wow - it never ceases to amaze me how much corn there is in Iowa Seriously - the left edge of the screen on Asteroids is normal?

I'm glad I could "keep it in the family" as they say... Anyway - Very happy to see that everything is as it should be - Thanks !

Hey everyone. I finally got my new atari in the mail today. I figured I'd go for broke the first time and get a heavy sixer - must be those curves - so enticing lol. Anyway, I've gottta go to Cedar Rapids, IA for a few weeks for work so I've only had a few days to play with it. I wanted to test it out right away though, in case there were any problems. That way I could let the seller know. So I took a few screen shots and thought I'd solicit the expert opinion of the group. Right now I'm running it with the co/ax adaptor through a VCR. I can't run it straight to my TV for comparision because the barrel connector on the back of the TV broke off years ago. I'd like to try it on a different TV but, crazy as it sounds, its the only one I have in the house. I know its probably sacrilege here, but I'll probably do the av mod on this unit eventually... I apologize in advance for the blurriness of some of the pictures. I took them in kind of a hurry (I've gotta leave tomorrow morning) The artifacts in the pictures are a result of my poor photo taking skills as well. Its been years since I've played an Atari so a couple quick questions first off, mainly - should I expect it to fill the screen on my TV - there's a significant black border on either side of the main video. Also - on some of the games, notably asteroids - that border devitates... You can actually see it in the photo - where the edge is uneven. In Space Invaders there are a series of lines on the left side of the screen.... However - the edge of the screen is fine - it doesn't go all the way to the side but it is even.

So many choices - so many games. Its really nice having so much to choose from. I guess that's part of the allure of collecting for the 2600, there's simply so much to choose from... so many ways to approach it. I'm just trying to think ahead... of course if I came across a rare cart I'd buy it with or without the manual, knowing that eventually I'm going to want the manual - so why not go ahead and get it now - instead of having to purchase it later, separately - at additional expense. My girlfriend and I love flea markets and garage sales - so of course that gives us another reason to go as well. I was paging through the atariage store and got a couple boxed games. Not so much to have the box, but the price wasn't that much more than a loose cart or a cart with manual - and now you're telling me not to open them? aggggggghhhhhhhh Guess I'm not a serious collector after all hehe. Also, while paging through the store I noticed that they give you a .50 cent credit for every cart you send them. That's a great excuse to purchase that massive lot when one only needs a few titles. Then you'd earn credit toward those awesome homebrews I've been reading so much about!. anyway - I guess that's part of the fun.. active collecting.....

My apologies if this has been asked and answered recently... How do you collect cartridges? Have the majority of you owned your games since originally purchased? Do you buy them in large lots and then resell the ones you already have? It seems a lot cheaper to buy cartridges in lots but it'd be easy to get a lot of overlap. Then you'd have to resell most of them. Of course, that's even considering that they'd sell. I mean, does the world really need another copy of combat? Another question, when you first started collecting, did you concentrate on loose cartridges, carts w/ manuals, or complete boxed games (obviously very expensive for some games) I recently bought a heavy sixer off eBay (I couldn't resist !) along with 30 loose carts for $65 bucks. I'm pretty happy about that purchase (I'll post pics of it when I get it) but there are quite a few games that didn't come with it. I bought a couple of other lots with titles that I definitely wanted but I think pretty soon I'm going to be approaching the point where I'll be buying singles. Trade n Games has a shop that I'm definitely going to be visiting to get quite a few titles that I want, but the expense could definitely add up. Shipping on individual games is more than the game itself and I like to support local businesses. Just for reference. I'm mostly interested in collecting to have the widest variety of games. Label variations and such are not that important to me, but I definitely want the manuals with them. I'm a manual geek; I've got manuals for stuff I've long since gotten rid of! Boxes I'm not sure of. It seems that the boxed games are still relatively inexpensive, but contrary to my reasons for collecting - I'd still be hesitant to open the box! Any hints, tips, and advice is appreciated.

Ahhhh - The truth is known. I wasn't aware of the difference. I guess I should have payed more attention to that "space."

It's an awesome game. I loved the fact that you could actually get in and out of a vehicle. That was pretty revolutionary at the time.

Hi again. Anyone remember the game Frontline? We had a blast on the arcade version but I never realized it was ported to the Atari as well. I was surfing over at Atari Times and found this... So I came back here to check on its rarity, etc and found the screenshot for Combat. Does anyone know of the relative rarity of this game?

Ah Yes, the flashback. I blame the flashback for getting me started back into this. I spent a few hours on it and it was just a teaser. The games (most of them) were definitely not how I remembered them to be. I was reading a website describing how to hack it to that it can play cartridges, but with all that trouble, I'd rather just buy an actual console. Its funny that you mentioned the 7800. By the time that came out I'd already bought a Nintendo, and to me it seemed superior to the 7800 at the time. That, and most of my friends had NES' so we could swap games. I may end up getting a 7800 in addition to my 2600 that I'm looking for. I guess the only main reason I want a six switch unit is that they look "cooler." You know, more buttons to push and knobs to turn I've noticed the vaders seem pretty common though. And they definitely look cool. But I've gotta have something to match that fake woodgrain storage unit In regards to the pricing, I've been looking at some of the bids for the "rare" cartridges, and no offense to those that buy them, but $2300 ( a recent winning bid on a game cart ) seems obscene to me. It would be nice to have the manuals but I don't care about shrinkwrapped boxes and all that. I can't begin to praise AtariAge enough for having scans of the overlays and a pdf of all the manuals. That's priceless. One thing that I definitely want to do once a get a decent collection of games is to try out the AV mod. I don't wanna go too far off topic but I was reading about the cybertech mod - that's seems like an awesome idea. Then I could run it through my JVC and have blips and blings in full surround sound (ok, sound coming from different locations - not *real* surround!) I'll definitely read up on the multicarts. Right now I just can't wait to flick though 27 (or whatever) variations of combat! Thanks for all your advice and definitely a big kudos to AtariAge (and others) for thsi fabulous website! I'm sure you'll be hearing more from me ! I'll let everyone know when I find a system. Mark

How many people have a fake woodgrain console TV in the basement with the 2600 hooked up, the way we had them way back when? The only thing better is the console TV with the Atari 2600 hooked up in the living room, right? Absolutely - And don't forget about the fake woodgrain storage center and cartridge organizers! My girlfriend was looking over my shoulder, groaning, while I placed a bid for the "Video Game Center" with a smoked plastic cover We've already been having "discussions" about how every thing is going to be organized in the living room. She gets the bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom. I think I at least deserve a 3 foot area around the entertainment center! Experience tells me I'm probably going to end up in the basement regardless...

Thanks for the info guys. I was pretty nervous about buy 30 year old electronics. But its good to know I'm not really taking a chance on the system itself. I'll post back if and when I win a couple of auctions. I think I'm most excited about star raiders and tac-scan. Those are probably the biggest games that I knew of as a kid that I never had a chance to play. I've played around with stella, but it just doesn't have the same feel....

Thanks for the reply. I'm pretty sure cleaning the exterior or the system isn't beyond my abilities. I've read a couple of auctions where people have used some type of sealant on the exterior as well? If I remember correctly from back in the day they had a problem with the on/off switch being kinda flaky? Is this something a little electronic cleaner could fix or was it a faulty on/off switch? How about the cartridge insert contact. I would imagine this would be something that could get gummed up pretty easily. Is this also something contact cleaner could take care of if its not too major?

Hi all. Recently I've been bitten by the retro gaming bug. I've been surfing ebay looking for a good 2600 system. I've decided that I definitely want the 6 switch system. Mostly because it has more buttons I've noticed the "heavy sixer" and read about the differences between them but as of right now, it doesn't seem enough to justify the difference. I'm more interested in buying one to use, rather than to collect. I've seen units that have been completely refurbished as well as some that are selling as simply used. I'd like to buy a refurbished sytem as I simply don't have the time nor desire to mess with that myself. Are there any sellers ( on ebay) that you'd recommend above others? better refurb techniques, parts, etc? Also, if I decided to get one that hasn't been refurb'd, what are some things that I should look for and what types of questions should I ask the seller about the units. I'd rather not pay more than $50 for the unit and joystick. Any guidance would be appreciated. Mark