Greetings and a few questions on managing my Atari 2600 Collection

[yanbu]

Hi All, long time Atari 2600 fan here, and looking to get connected with the community at AtariAge. Hello! My parents bought my brother and I an Atari 2600 once it hit, and spent countless hours with it over the years (mostly Adventure, Montezuma's Revenge, H.E.R.O. and a handful of other favorites). I actually have a pretty awesome photo of my brother and I opening our xmas presents and the new Atari 2600 box, complete with crappy 70's polaroid fading.

 

I got a little more serious about collecting in the late 90's / early 2000's but stopped for financial reasons, and am for some reason a little obsessed with filling missing carts in my collection today in 2018. So my current collection is a little over 400 carts, with about 260 unique titles (not counting cart and label variations). I guess, or think I'm only focused on and interested in the NTSC releases from back in the day at the moment, and completing some of the more accessible manufacturer sets. Not sure I'll get too crazy about the real rare ones as I just will not ever make that much money to support pursuing them. Also not too crazy about getting carts in box, or even with a manual for that matter. It just makes me (for unexplained ridiculous reasons unknown to myself) happy completing some sets.

 

Right now I'm more or less kinda sorta going off this list as a reference for collecting: http://atariage.com/forums/blog/279/entry-5704-how-many-atari-2600-games-are-there-answer-470/ (I know that's an older post but looked legit enough for me to use as a beginning).

 

I've completed a few sets and getting close to completing on a number of others, which is fun! But it's getting to be expensive, obviously. I used the above post by ihatethebears to export to excel and have been ticking off ones I have.

 

I have a list of carts I'm looking for and want to get, and wanted to get some input from the community here on any tips on filling these in. Are there any members here who do trading often privately that might be interested in anything I have and might want to trade/swap? I can put together a list, I haven't done much homework on my collection in regards to rarity but know I have a number that are fairly rare, and multiple versions of some that I believe are not all that common. Just looking for some 'outside the box' options to avoid ebay.

 

Some other questions I have that I'm hoping someone might be able to help answer for me:

1. Is there a good list anyone might recommend that shows how to determine the 1st version / revision of carts?
2. Is there any consensus on a 'preferred' version of individual releases as it relates to collecting?
3. Does anyone have an iPhone app to recommend for managing my collection? I'm currently using Google Sheets on my phone which is a little cumbersome.
4. Should I just stop this madness now while I have my sanity?
5. Anyone have any recommendations on storage options to display my carts? I built a custom wall mount thing that holds 150 carts with individual slots for each cart, but have exceeded this and trying to come up with some new solution
6. Tips on gluing labels that have fallen off? I recently used a can of Elmers spray adhesive on one that worked well, but thought I'd ask.

Appreciate any input, and hope to have something to contribute to the community here!

[fiddlepaddle]

I'd suggest going through the forum topics and reading for a few days. Many of your questions are addressed in lots of detail. How and where to find games is a constant learning experience. First, try to find someone (in person) who has lots of extras and then talk to them directly about their collecting and maybe doing some trades. Go to video game stores and talk to the owner, and other collectors who come in. Go to game shows. If you try to deal only online, it will probably boil down mostly to price.

[Flojomojo]

I think #4 falls under the category of, "the way you asked the question suggests that you already know the right answer."

 

Welcome to Atari Age!

 

You've come to the right place for this kind of thing. Personally, I'm more interested in the games themselves than the boxes they came in, but there are lots of knowledgeable collectors here.

[yanbu]

I'd suggest going through the forum topics and reading for a few days. Many of your questions are addressed in lots of detail. How and where to find games is a constant learning experience. First, try to find someone (in person) who has lots of extras and then talk to them directly about their collecting and maybe doing some trades. Go to video game stores and talk to the owner, and other collectors who come in. Go to game shows. If you try to deal only online, it will probably boil down mostly to price.

 

Hi @fiddlepaddle, thank you for the suggestions! I'll be sure to go through the forums more to find answers to these questions.

 

I think #4 falls under the category of, "the way you asked the question suggests that you already know the right answer."

 

Welcome to Atari Age!

 

You've come to the right place for this kind of thing. Personally, I'm more interested in the games themselves than the boxes they came in, but there are lots of knowledgeable collectors here.

 

@flojomojo - that's a great point! Thank you for the input on this. I'm a gamer at heart and grew up with the 2600 from a gameplay standpoint, I definitely still love playing a bunch of the games I own. I'm quite into retro gaming, real consoles and emulation, and new games. I recently opened my crypts of Atari 2600 games and it kind of rekindled this desire to find more unique titles. I think for me it's also a physical item thing, I really appreciate the label design and varied cart shapes between manufacturers. So much of the experience for me is around just handling and looking at a cart, even if the gameplay is not great. There are so many cool carts out there, it's part of the driving force. But the same kind of thing doesn't really extend to music for me, I don't seem to buy vinyl LP's just for the lovely cover, more just for the music. Not sure why it's currently different for Atari 2600 carts for me, but trying to follow my instincts currently (which have often led me to trouble).

[cvga]

Welcome to AtariAge! I use the 2600 Collector app to track my games on my phone. It works well for me and will show you the value of your collection. I think I paid $3 or $4 for it.

 

You can probably find lots of people here that have carts that you need. I've been collecting for nearly 30 years and have a ton of duplicates. Feel free to send me your want list and trade list if you're interested.

[yanbu]

I found the photo! Christmas 77? Maybe 78.... I can't seem to see the date, but remember I lost my mind opening the wrapping.

Edited March 21, 2018 by yanbu

[yanbu]

Welcome to AtariAge! I use the 2600 Collector app to track my games on my phone. It works well for me and will show you the value of your collection. I think I paid $3 or $4 for it.

 

You can probably find lots of people here that have carts that you need. I've been collecting for nearly 30 years and have a ton of duplicates. Feel free to send me your want list and trade list if you're interested.

 

Thank you cvga! I will check out that app, and will reach out to you once I add the rest to my list.

[cvga]

I found the photo! Christmas 77? Maybe 78.... I can't seem to see the date, but remember I lost my mind opening the wrapping.

 

That's awesome! I received my Atari for Christmas in 1980 (by best friend got an Intellivision that same Christmas).

[redsteakraw]

I just want to say, you are maybe over reaching with this collecting. Collecting should be fun, and it should be based on your own satisfaction. You should choose the versions you like the most, there is no consensus. The text labels can show what modes are without the manual, the artwork labels look good and are well a work of art. You can simple make your own call because this is all down to personal preference. I would suggest pick a small but easily obtainable goal for your collection. For example I recently had a goal completed of getting games that my dentist office had when I was a kid. If you find something you like and it doesn't break the bank you can get it. Just think about what you want and what you don't care about. I personally don't care for Telegames so I pass them up. I won't pay any large amounts on any game that is't fun regardless of the rarity. I am new to collecting but I more or less know what I want. I also play every game, I do so to test them but also to know which ones I personally find the most enjoyable. I have my collection on a bookshelf separated by publisher / in alphabetical order. I have them stacked up. For notable game I want to show off I Have them standing up label side showing. I have Tapper showing now because I love that game and I like the label. Boxes are on a Separate shelf with lose manuals next to them. As for apps I am slowly adding my collection to Tellico as it also can track other collections. I also take pictures of my collection for reference when buying. So have fun and happy hunting!

Edited March 21, 2018 by redsteakraw

[yanbu]

I just want to say, you are maybe over reaching with this collecting. Collecting should be fun, and it should be based on your own satisfaction. You should choose the versions you like the most, there is no consensus. The text labels can show what modes are without the manual, the artwork labels look good and are well a work of art. You can simple make your own call because this is all down to personal preference. I would suggest pick a small but easily obtainable goal for your collection. For example I recently had a goal completed of getting games that my dentist office had when I was a kid. If you find something you like and it doesn't break the bank you can get it. Just think about what you want and what you don't care about. I personally don't care for Telegames so I pass them up. I won't pay any large amounts on any game that is't fun regardless of the rarity. I am new to collecting but I more or less know what I want. I also play every game, I do so to test them but also to know which ones I personally find the most enjoyable. I have my collection on a bookshelf separated by publisher / in alphabetical order. I have them stacked up. For notable game I want to show off I Have them standing up label side showing. I have Tapper showing now because I love that game and I like the label. Boxes are on a Separate shelf with lose manuals next to them. As for apps I am slowly adding my collection to Tellico as it also can track other collections. I also take pictures of my collection for reference when buying. So have fun and happy hunting!

 

This is great, and thank you for the first few sentences. I really agree too, I need to keep myself in check during this phase of getting interested in Atari again. All great points.

 

I realized that I had multiple carts of certain games, and each cart had a different year on it. Some had a better condition label from later years, but thought to myself, wait I kind of want the cart from the first year it was released. Then I couldn't recall which carts I had that were from when I was a kid, and when my parents might have bought them. To be honest I also thought it doesn't matter at all and just chose the cart with the best condition label! Honestly not all that crazy about keeping multiple copies of something around, though I've had trouble getting certain carts to play and some of my ultimate favorites I do keep another around in case. Yeah I also don't care too much about the Telegames carts and am not including those in my collection, though I do have a bunch I'm planning to sell or trade.

 

It's interesting to me though how many weird variations there are for carts, like I have two copies of Fast Food, one in a shell that has a lip protruding from the front and one without. A couple copies of Carnival, one that has 'The Official Carnival by Sega' and one without on the spine. Other weird like Grand Prix 'International Edition' cart and one without, two versions of Space Cavern with completely different artwork but both by Apollo, the list goes on.

 

Oh also I totally agree about Tapper, I have it too and one of my favorite Atari games to play! It would be nice to have boxes too, I've always been drawn to the Starpath artwork. So cool.

 

Also @redstreakraw, you had a dentist that had an Atari 2600 at his office!?!? That's seriously cool.

Edited March 22, 2018 by yanbu

[redsteakraw]

 

Also @redstreakraw, you had a dentist that had an Atari 2600 at his office!?!? That's seriously cool.

 

To be honest it was a Sega Genesis, display model with a five game cart switcher. I did get all of the games I brought it up because it is an example of a simple yet obtainable goal.