HDN

That's awesome. It's cool that you held on to these things 👍

@socrates63, you don’t know how many times I have had to dig these out of the garbage! I have lost a few over the years. Tapes break, parents recycle notebooks that seem to be “old”, “used up”, or “not of any use anymore” (I don’t blame them for making the simple mistake), a few were simply misplaced and haven’t turned up yet and some have just been lost to the sands of time. Most of these items are accounted for and are safely stored in the HCA (Harry Closet Archives).

My Metroid and other comics, books, cartoons, audio recordings, etc. of old are really bad. Crude art, horrible dialog, one-dimensional characters, godawful humor; these have virtually nothing going for them. They suck, plain and simple. Despite that, however, I am oddly proud of them.

Here is the last “episode” on the first tape, simply titled MTT. In the last few minutes of each tape I sang an ending song not to cut off anything important. And wow, young Harry thought diabetes was f****ng hilarious. Of course now I know that diabetes is no laughing matter.

I have the means of ripping these tapes to my computer rather than just taking a video of it. If anyone is interested, I would gladly upload some of these tapes.

No. I meant the Seattle area. Sorry for the confusion.

Congrats!  I spent my very first paycheck on my Mother and got myself a 2600 junior with a few games. Celebrating that first paycheck is expected.  

Congrats!  I spent my very first paycheck on my Mother and got myself a 2600 junior with a few games. Celebrating that first paycheck is expected.  

A bit of advice.  After your first paycheck, whatever you decide to do with it, subtract 20% of your take home pay.  Stick that 20% you subtracted in your pocket, save the rest.  That 20% is to pay yourself and you should always pay yourself first.  If 20% is too much then find another lower percentage that works best for you.  

“Read the manual”

Oh great wise @RickR! Very good advice.

I had the 5200 Star Raiders long before I ever seen the 2600 version.  So playing Star Raiders on the 2600 was a major setback for me.  Not that I didn't like it as I knew the 2600 could never handle anything like what I was use to.  It wasn't as good as what I was use to in my opinion.

Of the several cockpit view space games on 2600, Starmaster is my favorite as it had well balanced action, map screen,  and shooting mechanics.  Star Voyager though being the simplest is really fun but there is something cool about having the map and feeling like you are in a cockpit which is why I still gravitate towards Star Raiders with that touchpad though it is limited. 

However I did recently try the 8bit version of Star Raiders and that just perfects everything.   Definitely my all time favorite now of this genre.  If you like those other games on 2600 you will love the 8bit version. 

GOOD LUCK

🍀

Looking forward to Sunday, though it’s a little scary. But I’m confident I’ll be okay. Let’s just hope I don’t screw anything up.

That’s great, Rick! I like this model much, much better than the purple one.

What GBA Video cart is that?

"Cartoon Network Collection - Special Edition"

Gotta get your Johnny Bravo fix somehow.

Looks and sounds good.  Very professional if you ask me. 

New test video. This one worked out loads better. The Doki Doki one had something like 435 dropped frames in a four minute video (I assume most were in that birdo fight). This one had only 5, all of which showed up pretty much as soon as I clicked the “Start Capture” button. It sounds much nicer now! I haven’t noticed any times when it was out of sync yet.

I love the music and sound design of SMB and this coming from someone who hasn’t played the games. 

He was on my dad’s side. The grandfather I mostly talk about on here is still alive. If he had died of COVID I would feel really, really guilty as we have gone over to visit recently and I would blame myself for killing him.

 I haven’t seen my dad’s dad in about a year (kind of sad that coronavirus has been going on for so long).

I had no idea that when we went to visit in late December 2019 that that would be the last time I saw him. It’s pretty depressing when I think about it.

Thank you all for the prayers and kind words and thoughts. I truly appreciate it.

My condolences to you and your family, Harry. 💐

My condolences as well. My mother died of COPD in November of last year. I know how it is. She did not have COVID, but she did have COPD and heart failure. So, I can understand the COPD aspect of it.

Thanks, Harry.  I know I've asked before, but is there a model of Switch I should avoid?  I think you said to avoid the cheaper model that does not have the detachable joy-slidey things, as they tend to break after a year. 

Yeah. Avoid the “lite” model.

Yup, dad and I just got it.  Down to play! 

Thanks but no thanks, Phil. That's actually a lot more than the one I was looking at at the game store.

Why is this game so pricey?

I thinks it's mostly due to the the novelty of Mario Bros appearing on an Atari system and not being as common as Space Invaders or Pac-Man. It you think that is bad, you should see how much the XE version sells for!

The least expensive Ebay copy needs a RickR end label. 

Wiimednafen here actually has several 3D glasses options, including Red/Cyan. You should try loading this up on your broken Wii, Rick. It is crazy good at everything it does. It emulates VB, Game Boy, GBC, GBA, NES, TG16, Lynx, and more, all flawlessly as far as I know. A must-install for any Wii or Wii U.

You got a Virtual Boy, @RickR? You da cool cat 👍😎 I've really enjoyed the 3D in 3DS games.

Yes.  I got one 15 years ago or so.  It's one of my favorite systems.  The 3D effect is really well done, and the graphics are a lot better than I expected.  They also nailed the controller, which is very similar to the Gamecube controller. 

They should have called it "3D Boy" instead of "Virtual Boy".

It's good that your pops is out of the hospital.  I hope he takes his time for a full recovery.  Pamper him a little!

His body finally convinced him that he needs to shut down the dry cleaner, so he's going to have a lot of time to recover 🙂 

Ooof!  That's hard.  To shut down something he's worked so hard to build up.  Ah, but it's time.  The body does not lie.  Blessings to him on a well-earned retirement.  May the good Lord bless him with a long, relaxing, and rewarding retirement. 

No, Rick! It was Fernie Sanders! He is staying inside for the winter so he doesn’t freeze over.

Argh. Too many puns today!

Dang, man, that's rough.

Hoping things improve in time for the new year.

That will work.  And you can get them free at your local post office. 

The good news is that the box art looks perfect.  Once you square up the sides, that box will look great. 

Here you go, Harry.  This Yars' box is probably the very worst in my collection.  Here's a picture of the innards to give you an idea.  I can't pull the liner out, as I Elmer's glued the bottom shut. 

 

Last night I sat down and devoted some time to this game. I had played it only to test it out before this.

And, it's great! I love all the different variations. I'd have to say my favorite is #3, the one with two balls and two paddles. I really, really like the graphics, colors, and sound in this game as well. 

@Gianna would be proud.

Listen, bud.  I'm telling you straight away.  You did something amazing.  Putting yourself out there is not easy.  Many don't.  And they regret it.  You feel bad today, and that's perfectly normal.  But keep on going.  Keep your eyes open.  Make friends with as many people as you can.  Be you.  Keep growing and learning.  Trust me, that special person just for you will come along. 

Things aren't as bad as I thought. They certainly aren't IDEAL, but it could be much worse.

@Atari 5200 Guy I won't. I'm trying to just get through the night. Tomorrow hopefully it will be a bit better.

I'm starting to think that my mom is going to take my stuff indefinitely. She is threatening that if she ever moves out she will take all of the games with her and throw them out. I hope she doesn't follow through with it if my parents get a divorce. However I did make a list of priorities: Tunnel Runner, Super Metroid, Conker's BFD, etc. I can hide those someplace if it gets bad enough and she decides to get rid of our entire collection.

I think my parents are going to get divorced someday and I am okay with that. Though I don't think it will be for a couple months and I hope she changes her mind about those games and other various things she wants. I hope we can improve our relationship and start getting along better.

Sorry to hear of your home life trouble, Harry. Being a teen is already tough enough.

I like those custom labels!

Oh my. I told him it was national Pac-Man day today (he doesn’t know he’s getting this) and he said that he got it for Easter when it first came out. I guess he’s getting it for Easter again!

My woody is gone now. But I did get this!

@nosweargamer anything he had as a kid, like Armored Encounter/Sub Chase, War of Nerves, Matchmaker/Logix/Buzzword, Volleyball, Pocket Billiards, and Computer Golf. That’s all I can remember now. He also wants Alpine Skiing, which he said he always wanted as a kid but never got.

As for me, I’m pretty happy with what I have right now for the time being. Eventually I’d like to get Alien Invaders Plus, KC’s Krazy Chase, and ESPECIALLY Electronic Table Soccer. But for right now, I’m pretty pleased with what we all have.

What an awesome system this is!

I'll check my duplicates in the next day or two and get back to you.

@nosweargamer seems like the type of collector to have duplicates of Air Raid.

In all seriousness, thanks for looking. 

@socrates63 We should celebrate by… playing Atari!

Suggestion:  Asteroids level 8/a! 

I’m game.

Had I not already deleted it, that would have made for a good April Fools video.

I am thinking either 2600 adventure games or Activision next. What do you think?

There's no wrong answer. 

Enjoy!

They took liberties. Many changes were made to the story.  Many characters combined or missing entirely.  That's fine, though.  I appreciate that the movie is 90 minutes, and to do that changes had to be made. 

In general, the spirit of the book is all there. 

I just found the CGI dogs to be fake looking. 

We had a wonderful valentines day here, we went to play 18 holes of mini-golf and then later in the day we went out to eat at a favorite restaurant. It was a beautiful day and we had a lot of fun. I hope this year is tremendous for you 🌞

We also had a very nice day, @Justin.  We could not leave the house due to the weather conditions, but that's ok.  A Sunday spent with family, doing whatever we please is always worthwhile.  We had a team effort on dinner, watched the Blazer game, and caught up on WandaVision.  Have you been watching that?  It's really good. 

We play a lot of Atari together as it's quick and not too complex. Some favorites are One-on-One, Video Olympics, Outlaw, and Miniature Golf. We emulate a lot of games that I don't have physical carts for. Artillery Duel, Flag Capture, Home Run, Maze Craze, and Sky Diver are all great games we like to play on compilations and emulators.

That's awesome. 

In our house, it usually goes like this:  if the game uses one button, Dad dominates.  If 2 buttons, it's close.  If more than 2, the kids dominate. 

My kids are no longer kids, but we'll probably settle on multi-player Mario Party DS later today. 

We play a lot of Super Smash Bros three player, and I almost always lose first.  My only winning strategy is to avoid trouble, stay out of the way, let them duke it out, then try to take on a weakened survivor at the end. 

I'm terrible at any Smash game except for the 64 one. I'm a Yoshi or ROB main. My dad hates it so I mainly play with my sister. We mostly play Melee or Ultimate.

Not a huge Mario Party fan but DS is one of two that I play. I will always be a Mario Party 9 defender. Love that game!

I’m sorry about your dad, @RickR. I’m certain he’s looking down on you as well. The deceased live on in our memories and the stories we share about them.

This will lighten the mood for us both. Unless you’re afraid of snakes.

The ragtime giant snake is hilarious! 

Here's an oldie that I'll never get tired of.  A dude that sneezes into his trombone.
 

It’s also easier with a functioning R button! Back to square one I guess...

No R on your dsi?  I should give you the pink ds. It's fully functional. 

You are right about my DSi; no working R or L triggers. However, this is a DS Lite that I’m using here. This one has a broken touch screen (super unresponsive no matter how many times it is calibrated) and apparently R trigger as well.

Thankfully, now that my DSi is hacked, I can remap the trigger buttons for GBA games to face buttons that work. Metroid Fusion won’t work on there, and the thing doesn’t have a GBA slot like the DS Lite does. Minor trade offs for the amazing hacked goodness my DSi now has in abundance.

This sucks a fair amount. I had hoped to play some O2 games multiplayer with my dad later. I mean, a lot of those games benefit from two players.

At least this way I have something to look forward to when the actual system inevitably arrives. Still sucks though.

And some games use the "right" joystick for one player games, right?  Do those work?

You have an option to toggle between the two. I guess we can take turns.

”Here, Dad, you can play Spinout! for five seconds and then it’s my turn!”

My dad had an Odyssey 2 growing up. Some of his favorites were Football! Computer Golf! Crypto-Logic! Quest for the Rings! And Attack of the Timelord! Until I told him about it a few years ago, he didn't even know that Odyssey 2 had a voice module. He had some other games I can't remember at the moment. It's a shame he got rid of it, but at least his cousin and best friend kept his 2600 collection. It's really trippy that I'm playing on the same console he played on when he was younger than I am.

Here's the thing: my dad remembers some games his cousin had for his 2600 collection but I don't have. Games like Pitfall, Frogger, Adventure, and, get this, Crazy Climber. He thinks there might be another box somewhere in his cousin's house. He may just be misremembering, but his theory holds water; I own the boxes for Star Trek SOS, Spider-Man, and Super Challenge Football. Not sure if Crazy Climber is in there, but I'm pretty sure he has another box somewhere. I will have to ask him sometime.

How cool if you could get the games with the family history!  Do it!  Be a pest! 

Almost all of my retro consoles have some family history. My dad's SNES he got in college. My NES was my uncle's from college. The 64 was a present from my mom to my dad when they were first married. The XBOX was won in a raffle in 2001 or 2002. Atari 2600 as previously mentioned from his cousin. 7800 and GBA are exceptions. My dad had an OG Game Boy before I was born but my mom apparently threw it out. Game Boy of some kind and 2600 from a-tar-i were my two dream retro systems, and I'm happy to have them both now. Especially these specific 2600 consoles with all that history. I was going to give the Woody back to my dad's cousin someday, but COVID happened so it's chilling at my grandparents for now. I'm trying to think of a good starter set for him. I don't want to part with any of these sweet games, though, so I was thinking of buying some cheap duplicates sometime later when the virus is over and I have some more money from Christmas and Birthday and hopefully from a job sometime soon when it's safe.

I'm not sure if Crazy Climber was in there or not, but my dad swore by it even before I got the system or knew the game was rare. My dad's cousin kept a lot of his boxes but not all. If there's another box of boxes someplace and Crazy Climber just happened to be CIB (if it was there), I would lose it. When I was fixing his systems (he had two), the manufacture date on the Woody was June 27th 1981. That's after his birthday, so he may have gotten the system in Christmas of 81 or the first half of 1982, unless he got it earlier than Christmas of 81. That one appeared to have had soda or something spilled on it. The Vader model I think came out in late 1982 or 83. I don't know when that one was made as it didn't have a date in it. He might have gotten it secondhand later in life for all I know. Neither of them remember the Vader even existing. Anyway that would have put it at the right time for Crazy Climber. That was an '83 game I think. 

He kept the manuals almost all of the games, boxes for some as well, but not all. Like I said there is plenty of evidence that there are more games somewhere, but there is no evidence I could find of him being in the Atari club. Unless Crazy Climber went to stores somehow for a limited time, but that's highly unlikely, especially in our area. 

TL;DR: Lots of system memories. There has got to be some games somewhere. No concrete evidence that CC is among them, but no evidence that it's not there either.