Catsmasher

Your screen works great, it is also free of stuck/dead pixel. You have to be happy! Please on which label is printed your serial number? white label or silver label? I am pretty happy with it. It looks great in my collection and I am having fun playing with it. The screen doesn't bug me much once get used to it and some games look better than others. The vertical streaking is actually helpful on the T-Tris game I got today - they help show where the blocks are going to fall! Still bugs me a bit that the GameGear I bought has a better screen (no streaks). It bugs me that Sega had a better quality product back then. I do like the Atari games better. Sega made PacMan a scrolling screen and that frustrates the heck out of me. THe SN is printed on a white label. What does that signify? Rob

Here is their website http://www.mcvans.com/aboutus.asp Here is a link to one of thier completed Ebay auctions http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...em=330301985551 I heard him wrong since this auction was $150 instead of $100. Still a good deal with 20 new games. Consider the games at $5 each and the system is $50! Like I said, they have some Lynx stuff on the webpage. You will need to call the Maplecrest store in Ft Wayne to see if they will sell the other stuff over the phone. I don't see why not. Good Luck. You can tell them I sent you, but they would just go "Huh, who? Oh, that old Atari nutball pain in the rump!" Keep Playing! Rob

OK here is the scoop. I went there again during lunch today. They have 10 units left. The guy today told me they were 70 dollars. But they will deal on the older stuff though so who knows. I was buying some other stuff that day, too. I walk in there pretty regular bugging them about Atari stuff. I guess sometimes I catch them in a good mood. I asked if he took phone orders or website orders and he said yes, but he also suggested that we keep an eye on ebay in a week or two- they plan to sell a few sets of a new Lynx, a carry case, a few other goodies and a bunch of new games for about 100 dollars. He said their ebay name was McVan's Video or something close to that. Apparently the former owner was a big Lynx nut and he went around buying up all the Lynx stuff when Atari dumped it. The store is called McVann's Video Games in Fort Wayne, IN. If interested, you need to get ahold of the Maplecrest Ave store - that is the one with the basement full of goodies.. The guys at the other stores don't know anything about it. Today I got 5 Atari Lynx games and two others that were not Atari (Fat Bobby and T-Tris) for about 50 dollars. All new. I thought about buying the whole lot, but I am a collector not a hoarder. And I figured I would leave some deals for others. Plus my wife would kill me. Keep Playing! Rob.

I picked up a new Lynx for 50 dollars last week and was thinking of getting another as a "backup". Is that a good price? If the guy has more than one left I could post a wesite or phone # if he is OK with it. Also, how much are NIB Lynx games worth. He has quite a few, but wants 12-20 dollars for most of them. Thanks Keep Playing! Rob

Thanks for all the feedback. It WAS exciting finding a brand new Lynx and it was really cool opening the box and knowing I was the first person to tickle its buttons. I mainly got it for my collection, not so much as a "daily driver", so having one in perfect condition rocks! I will be playing it, though. Can't help myself. Collecting stuff that you can play with and bring back all those memories is the best kind of hobby! Keep playing! Rob

Wow! Looks like the feedback is unanimous. I guess I was expecting more after watching my kids play those darned Nintendo GBs and DSs all these years. My how things have changed. Thanks everyone! Keep Playing! Rob

See the photo below - if you look at the hinge side, the shade is notched to fit. The other end is not notched. It can't be reversed. I guess you could flip the whole thing over, but then you would be looking down into the shade (and the other Atrai log would be upside down. Yesiree - this thing is dorked up! Kind of adds to the character. I also attached a few photos of my screen in action. The Ms Pac Man screen shows it best, the red streaks that go across the screen vertically. These pictures actually show it pretty well. Is this typical? It sounds like I should expect some of this, but this much? Like I said - I could see if he will swap for another one, but I don't want to waste his time if they will all look the same. Thanks Keep Playing Rob

Thanks for the replies. I will see if I can get a pict or two to post. It is slight on Ms Pac Man, but really bad on the "between the levels" scenes in Xybots. Looks like total crap. Both with brand new batteries. The comparison to a transporter effect (movie not TV) is a good one. The dealer thought he might have another, but I hate to bother him if it is typical. It is a shame - The used GameGear and NeoGeo handhelds I own both have crystal clear screens. My daughter collects the Nintendo handhelds (she bought a DSi yesterday) and my son collects the Nintendo consoles - they are giving me all kinds of grief for buying an antique with such "issues". Sometimes it is tough to be an Atari fan...kind of like being a browns fan - you take the good with the bad and keepsmilin Keep Playing! Rob

I purchased a new Lynx today from a local game dealer who had some in the warehouse. They weren't on display, but when I asked he went and looked and came back with a Lynx (the model that flips from right hand to left hand), a nylon carrying case, a snap-on sun shield and four games (all new in-the-box and unopened!). We struck a pretty good deal and I drove all the way home giggling like a school girl (a manly school girl). The thing seems to work great, but when I play the games, large colored areas on the screen seem to have a faded 'streak' from top to bottom. It is a muted effect, and the game is still playable, but it bugs me. This is my first experience with the Lynx. Is this a common thing with the Lynx screens? I also noticed that the ATARI logo on the snap-on plastic sunsheild is molded in upside down! Is that common, too? Thanks Keep Playing! Rob

This is my first year on AA and I fell for it hook line and sinker (I didn't know any better). I even told my wife about this lucky dude that found an undiscovered game in some of his Dad's old stuff. "See there?" I said "All this game collecting can pay off!" I haven't told her it was a setup - she would just use it against me I downloaded it and played it on the emulator. Is there any thought to making a cart or putting it in the Pac Man Collection cart? Keep Playing! Rob

The guy just tries to be funny - but it is all relative. It is not a bad video for a loser who lives in his mother's basement. If I worried about what other people thought, I wouldn't spend so much time playing old video games. Keep Playing! Rob

Keep Playing Dude! I know how you feel. I got a big box yesterday with the following games for my new (to me) Atari 7800: Dig Dug Centipede (this one is great!) Zaxxon Donkey Kong Galaga Desert Falcon BallBlazer Asteriods I also got Spider Fighter and Fantastic Voyage for my 2600 I know how you felt when the UPS man dropped off the box. Like Christmas in March! Keep Playing! Rob

I don't know what dem stinky old ladies think, but when I was a teen, the kid up on the hill had an Atari 2600. The girl I liked kept going up there to play Atari. After I got an Atari 2600, she came over to my house because I had Pac-Man and he didn't. I got some other games he didn't have. She went where the newest games were. That wasn't my motivation for getting an Atari 2600 and games, but it was a good side effect. So how did things work out with that girl? Did she leave you for somone with an NES?

The great thing about growing old, getting married and earning your own money is that you don't have to give a hoot what anyone else thinks. You can let all your dorkiness and nerdliness just shine right out. As a result - I like this shirt. My wife will roll her eyes whenever I come downstairs with that big doofy grin and my 'stupid' shirt on, but who cares! I once owned a really obnoxious green hawaiian shirt and I was so bummed when it wore out. One day my wife came home with a brand new short just like it that she found! I now realize that my dad wasn't actually trying to embarass me when he mowed the yard with his bermuda shorts and dark socks - he just didn't care anymore.

Actually you might be surprised how many chicks like the Atari... Name two... None of the girls in high school ever seemed to be hanging out at the arcade with us. I know my wife sure is not one of them. That being said my favorite new t shirt is from Jay4 games and says "Got Classics" with all the old game logos all over the back. Pretty cool. Well, My wife doesn't think its cool.

I noticed that my 15 yr old is very interested in my Atari consoles. In fact, he bought me a 2600 with some games for Christmas last year. He also started collecting Nintendo consoles and now has all of them. I also give presentations to local high school kids about engineering as a career. They seem to get a big kick out of the part where I go through the history of video games. Most have never seen anything older than a PS2. As far as the raging debate, my opinion is - get ready - both sides are right! I love dragging out the old consoles and playing on the TV, and the collection makes great decoration for my basement. No one ever goes downstairs without commenting on all the consoles and games I have on the shelves. I also have a MAME cabinet in the corner with the 6000+ games. There is nothing like the experience of standing there and playing Galaga, Centipede or Tempest just like when I was a goofy skinny (man those were the days) teenager in the arcade blowing my Hardees paycheck on Battlezone or Space Invaders. Those arcade memories just come flooding back. If the monitor is big enough and the controls are in the right place, You can't tell that you aren't playing the real thing. For me it's not about practicality, technology or cost. All the arguments aside, for me it is all about what memories I want to have again. Whether it is sitting on the living room floor playing combat with my sister or eating pizza and playing Galaga with my buddies at Mr Gattis, I can have all those memories back now! PS I have the 6000+ games on the MAME and I find myself playing the same 20 or so games over and over. Keep Playing! Rob

I got a MAME machine and specifically had a spinner knob installed. Tempest is just like I remember it! It is a total blast. You can only get that standing up and spinning that slick, smooth metal spinner! I guess if I could have only one dedicated machine, it would proabably be Centipede. I used to think Galaga was my favorite game, but I find myself playing Centipede more often than anything else. That "charge" sound it makes when you get a free guy just makes your day when you hear it! Keep Playing! Rob

You will pick up a lot of chicks with that shirt!

"Coins detected in pocket"

My parents bought me and my two sisters an Atari 2600 for Christmas and it was ALL we got (back then $200+ was a lot of money). I think the first game I bought was Space Invaders. My sisters eventually lost interest, but not me. I played the crap out of that game for years. I used to put the whole system in the box and then put that in a paper sack and haul the whole mess over to my friend's house. There were about four or five of us, and we told everyone we were studying, but we were hooking it up to his basement TV and playing video games for hours! We made the thing portable! Good thing we were smart and got good grades anyway. Remember the game on SI where the aliens were invisible and flashed on only when you hit one?! We used to have invisible SI tournaments because we were all so good at it otherwise. Our system is still at my folks house, but now all of a sudden my stupid sisters won't let me just take it. They wanted me to PAY THEM for their share of it! The thing is worn out anyway (two of the buttons stick) so I told my kids I wanted one for Christmas and my 15yr old son bought me a sweet one off of ebay. Good times are here again. Keep Playing! Rob

I will take a stab at it: Loverboy, the Cars (Let's go), Hewey Lewis and the News, Dire Straits (I want my MTV), B52s (Rock Lobster), Randy Newman (Cars), Foreigner (Urgent, Jukebox Hero) Man it is all coming back to me now - I have to go downstairs and fire up Pac Man. Keep Playing! Rob

... with my wife in the background scraping decades of hardened sludge and rust from my tractor... You are in the garage building a MAME cabinet and your wife is in the driveway scraping sludge off of your tractor! Holy Cow! You are the man! My new hero! I really am enjoing this thread. Keep it coming.

For someone to say they are saved, but then to trivialize prayer (it burns!?) and claim that taking the Lord's name in vain is "almost common speech" and we have to "deal with it", that IS ironic. It is also troubling. I will pray that much harder for them, for they have strayed from the path. I am no prude and not a mother hen. But I think it is proper to say something in a respectful tone when I see the Lords' name being used in vain. This reaction is not what I expected. I will let this go now. I thought I might get a few people to think about what they type. Guess not - I appologize for wasting the time of all you 'adults'.

Golly gee This turned out to be a lively post. Think about it. I will see yall around the other forums.

No cats were smashed in the making of my login. I know this is a public forum, but it is also a bunch of video game nuts _ not a bunch of drunken sports fans. All I ask is that everyone think about cleaning it up a little. Video games are supposed to be fun. Hey Tempest, I think I see part of the issue when a "moderator" has a hostile reaction to s respectful request to clean up the language then makes a statement demeaning religion. Now that's ironic. I will pray for you, because prayer changes people. And anyone who likes old videogames can't be all bad.. Thanks