RickR

Developed by Konami and released by Stern, Turtles features the player taking the role of a mama turtle trying to rescue her babies in a 8 story building.
 
The game features four different mazes that change every 2 levels(floors) in the building.   The play field has eight mystery boxes scattered about the maze that the mama turtle must open.   six of the eight boxes contain a baby turtle, while the remaining  two contain additional enemies!  As the mama turtle opens the boxes, if a baby turtle is inside it will climb up on mama's back.  At that time a home graphic will appear in the maze, this is the safe area to drop the baby turtle off.
 
Enemies in the maze are beetles that will change color depending on how long it is taking to complete the maze.  Beetles start of a light tan color and just randomly wander the maze, then they will turn into a brown color and will pursue the mama turtle if they catch sight of her, finally the beetles will turn blue and will actively pursue the mama turtle.   However the mama turtle is not defenseless, she has bug bombs she can drop that will stun the beetles.  Only one bug bomb can be on the screen at once and additional ones can be obtained from the center of the maze.  A good strategy is to stockpile bug bombs early in the game.
There were some limited ports of this game to the home consoles as well!
 
Turtles! - Odyssey 2 - Very good home port of the arcade game.  has only six mystery boxes but all the gameplay elements from the arcade are represented.   If you have "The Voice" module attached to your Odyssey 2 you can enjoy some neat music while you play the game. this music changes as you progress through the levels as well.
 
Turtles! - Emerson Arcadia 2001 - interesting port of the arcade game, does have all eight mystery boxes however the enemies are now delivery trucks.  This is from another arcade game called Turpin or 600, but the gameplay is still the same.   This version also allows you to drop multiple bombs in the maze and there is no bomb pickup like the arcade version.  The intro screen looks like the arcade version with what sounds like Morse code playing as the mama turtle enters the building.   Once a maze is complete a door will open at the edge of the maze for the player to pass through.
 
Turtles! - Entex VFD game - This is a very good VFD (Vacuum Florescent Display) version of the arcade game.  The gameplay and maze are represented quite well from the arcade game.  This version of the game is what first made me aware of the actual arcade game!  A neat twist this version of the game has is its two player feature, one player controls the mama turtle while the other controls a beetle!
 
Turtles! - Entex Adventurevision - A very well done version of Turtles for this obscure LED (Light Emitting Diode) tabletop game system.   the maze is compressed vertically, but all the elements of the arcade game are there.  Has all eight mystery boxes, the bug bomb pickup in the middle and numerous enemies (that look like centipedes instead of beetles in this version).  I was able to play this game at CGE (Classic Gaming Expo) in 2014 and really fell in love with it and the system.
So how would I rank these ports?
Adventurevision Odyssey 2 VFD Handheld Emerson Arcadia 2001 My high score for the Arcade Game 11,490 points.   If you ever see the arcade game or use Mame, give it a try and post your high score below!

Most of us Gearheads are familiar with the name Haynes that publishes auto repair manuals.  Now they are getting into making electronic kits in that same style!  From retro radio kits to visible engines, these kits from Haynes are both educational and fun!
 
Being a avid gamer, I could not resist buying this kit when I came across it.  The build is quite simple and can be done in under a hour.  Just needs a small screwdriver, soldering iron and wire strippers.  The actual box is the game case, it is very sturdy and has magnets to hold the lid down.  It runs on three “AA” batteries and features a working “coin slot” to coin up the game!
 
The instruction manual is very well written (as you would expect from Haynes) and features lots of pictures to help put the kit together.  It also gives play tips and describes other play modes you can activate on the device (1 player versus computer, 2 player mode or computer versus computer mode).  Activating the computer player is simply done by placing one of the paddles at the bottom of the screen then coin up.  That paddle will flash to indicate it is now going to be a computer player.  You can do this with either paddle or both (for computer head to head play).
 
In playing the game it is quite challenging to play against the computer.  The paddle and ball animation are very good and scoring is displayed as individual dots on the players side of the screen.  Once a game is over, the unit will go to sleep and power down waiting for another coin.
Pros:
Easy assembly Minimal parts Very clear and concise assembly instructions Challenging gameplay Fun! Cons:
No hold down for the battery tray (I used double sided tape) Getting the coin detect working can be tricky while setting it up. Little pricey for what it is (39.99) Overall I really enjoyed building this kit, playing the game with my wife we found ourselves giggling and enjoying playing this little device!
 
Rating: (4 out of 5 minicades)
 

 
Retro Arcade Kit – Build Your Own Arcade
Some cool hacks for this device!
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Released in 2005 by Excalibur Electronics, this mini arcade machine is loosely based on the classic Coleco Tabletop Mini Arcades of the 80’s.    Although it does not have the “classic” VFD (Vacuum Florescent Display) screen, it does have a back lit LCD screen that kind of simulates that VFD look.    Four “C” sized batteries are required to power the unit.
 
Playing the game you will find that you simply cannot hold the joystick to one side to have your base continue to move, rather you have to release the joystick and push it again.   The control panel also has a on/off, pause, mute and start/fire buttons.  controls are responsive but the sound effects are lacking.   The screen is divided in two parts (Left and Right) so as the invaders disappear of the right hand side of the screen you can follow them with your base.   This gives you six total bunkers to hide behind and each bunker can take five hits before disappearing (they do show damage).   The overall game play is kind of slow and the early levels are not much of a challenge.  The invaders will not start marching down until you get up into the higher levels.
 
I did notice that it appears Excalibur Electronics has updated the graphic display.  I had a 2005 released version that shows a much different play screen than what this unit is showing.   The older units had the same graphics as the other hand held space invaders games Excalibur Electronics has made, whereas this newer unit has graphics that look like the original Taito Space Invaders!
Pros:
Very well built Nice artwork Backlit screen Improved gameplay graphics Cons:
Smaller than the original Coleco minicades Repetitive joystick motion to get base to move Playfield is divided into two screens Sound effects are “tinny” at best Overall this is a  fairly nice electronic game to add to a collection, especially if you like Space invaders and these little minicades.
 
Rating:  (4 out of 5 MiniCades)
 

 
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Over this past weekend I was at my childhood home, and I knew there were some hidden treasures waiting to be found.  It took some poking around the dusty basement, but I found pretty much everything I was looking for.  Here are two of the things I was most hoping to find:
 


I've got some LR44 batteries coming in the mail, but until they arrive these Nintendo Game & Watch beauties will have to remain untested.  I see no reason why they won't still work -- fingers crossed, anyway.
 
What I *didn't* know was that I saved the boxes and documentation, too!  I am typically *not* a box collector, but for whatever reason I hung onto these.
 

 

 
Jeez, Nintendo -- want to be a little more descriptively specific about the potential danger to babies?
 
More handheld goodness to come in the next few days!

From RickR -- two manuals I was missing (including the earlier 5200 Soccer manual, with entirely different artwork than the later RealSports Soccer version), plus an Atari Corp. label 3-D Tic-Tac-Toe.  I love the picture label carts with no controller information listed.  Atari Corp was just like, "welp, we continually screw this up SOMEHOW, so let's just nix it completely!"
 

From Ballblazer.  Penguins, plumbers, and Pontiacs. 
 
 

Spongebob works!  Tested it out today, and it's actually quite fun. 

From Ballblazer.  Penguins, plumbers, and Pontiacs. 
 
 

Spongebob works!  Tested it out today, and it's actually quite fun. 

From Ballblazer.  Penguins, plumbers, and Pontiacs. 
 
 

That is sweet!

Went antiquing yesterday and got this: Star Trek: Generations by MicroProse for the PC.
 
It's never been opened, original plastic still intact. I'm debating whether or not the game is good enough to open and play, or keep sealed in the box.
 
I must say, I love the box art. Kirk and Picard, together, on one box? Count me in!

I decided to do the Euro MOD to play pal games the only thing they can't guarantee it will play all 7800 pal games, as long as I can play ninja golf good enough for me he's is also doing an av mod for me way better than an rf switch I'll post pictures once I get the console back.
Total price including shipping 65 bucks

Rick Reynolds!  Sad but true:  whenever I pipe up on an Intellivision post over on AA, people think I'm him.  So please apologize for me.

yeah I only have mebbe 1 PnP with a key that fits a game ... it propitiatory to that particular PnP ....
 
mine isn't game key enabled ... or mebbe it's game key disabled :unsure: ... I never opened it up
 
I recall that Spongebob sports PnP to be pretty good .... most of the Spongebob ones are ... the pineapple house one is kind of a stinker but it looks cool anyways

I have a Ms. Pac-Man PNP with GameKey support, and it was sold with an extra GameKey. It slots in, and does indeed provide an extra game not already on the PNP. I have never seen any other GameKeys available, but I assume different types were produced. My GameKey has DigDug and... Rally X, I think.

Picked up an Intellivision 10 for a dollar at a flea market.
 

 
It works, and I'll give it a whirl, but even without knowing a single thing about this thing (and I don't) I feel it's probably junk, given that the Intellivision does not make use of four buttons PLUS TWO SHOULDER BUTTONS WTF. 
 
Will happily trade it for something else worth $1!

Half-price day at the Salvation Army today.  Got the stuff below.  The Spongebob plug and play is interesting because it has a slot in it (labeled "Game Key").  Could it be to add more games?
 
 

Rowsdower is a awesome trader!  I mean, who trades 49 games for two?!  That guy does!
 

Ep 251: RealSports Tennis (Atari 2600)

I had quite the eBay score this past week.  I was doing my usual Atari searching two weeks ago when a fairly nice looking lot of 2600/5200 games went up for sale.
 

 
So, a mixed lot of about 50 games.  Pretty standard-looking, with some quality stuff mixed in: an Atari Video Cube, the Mario Bros. label variation I was missing, a clean-looking Sorcerer's Apprentice to upgrade the poor one that I had...  not bad!  Sure, there are a number of games with writing on the labels, but all in all... nice lot.
 
Then, in an instant... I saw it.  A heavenly chorus reverberated in my ears...
 

 
I got tunnel vision.... suddenly, I could see only the boxed 2800 Super Breakout.  The reality around me started to break down a bit, I think -- it's hard to remember exactly.
 

             [ATARI 2800 BOX DESIRE INTENSIFIES]
 
Then I notice the seller... it's a Salvation Army ARC less than 10 miles from where I live!  HOW?!  I've never seen a 2800 box on eBay USA in my months and months and months of looking, and now there's one being sold by a seller less than a 20 minute drive away?  Turns out they *also* had a separate lot with a 2800 console, so... perhaps someone brought their collection from Japan here?  Who knows.  Whatever -- I immediately realize that I have a secret weapon; an ace up my sleeve... not having to pay shipping if I win!
 
Anyway, to make a longer story slightly less long, I won the auction for a great deal less than I was prepared to pay.  I was (and remain!) super excited about that fact; I might very well make back most (all?) of what I spent by selling the duplicate games and the boxes I don't want.
 
So, Wednesday rolls around and I go to the Salvation Army location to make my pick-up.  They'd packed everything up nice and tightly since they assumed they'd be shipping it out to someone.  I just needed to make sure the 2800 box was in there before I drove off with my winnings.  Once I saw that it was tucked in there, I left on cloud nine.
 
Later on that evening I opened the box back up to have my first look.  Okay, nice, nice... lots of upgrades to some games in my collection, a few label variations, good... some good trade bait...
 
Then I get to the beautiful, glorious Super Breakout box.  It's a little bit rough, but it's all good where it counts:

 
I wasn't expecting the manual, so that was a nice bonus!  The box, I'll probably either flatten or try to re-shape a bit, but it's plenty good enough for me as-is.
 

 

 
For some reason the end of the cartridge itself is all chewed up... but it's no big loss since it's not a label unique to Japan.
 
Okay, let's look at these other boxes.  Any japanese stickers on the backs?  Man, that'd be sweet.  Nah, no such luck.  Okay, wait, I have three loose copies of Amidar here... what's in the Amidar box, then?  Please don't tell me it's a fourth copy of crappy Amidar...
 
I pick the box up -- it's HEAVY.  What the?  MY GOD...  IT'S FULL OF STARS MANUALS!
 
The corner of one catches my eye.  HOLY S#!...
 

 
Suddenly I find myself riffling through a stack of about 50 manuals, and glints of silver keep catching my eye.  This is crazy!


 
I didn't even have time to start wondering where the boxes for these might be, because my fingers stop on one of the two pieces of 2800 paraphernalia I was most wanting:
 

 
THE 2800 CONSOLE OWNER'S MANUAL.  The one thing that I didn't get with my 2800 that I'd really, really wished it had come with.  And now, here's one that's fallen into my lap totally out of the blue.  Serendipity!
 

 
"Table of Contents"
(learning Japanese I think I'm learning Japanese I really think so...)
 
I
 
It even still has the insert sheet explaining how to hook it up with a switchbox.
 

 
I'd love to see a Sears Video Arcade II manual now, just to compare!
 
Anyway, this lot is where many of my latest additions to my trade list come from.  I don't know if I'll ever get so lucky again.  One can only hope!

New addition to the game room/ man cave

This went here.     Still a horrible game, but its ALL MINE!   Thanks BB!

Vanguard is good. Focus on that.