Hypothetical Question- Part 2

[black dog]

Okay, so say our beloved Atari carts last forever. When those of us who grew up with Atari get old and for some reason have to or want to get rid of our collections will there be any interest by younger generations to obtain these items. I'm talking 50 years from now. Will Atari carts be viewed as valuable collectibles or obselete junk by those who did not grow up in the "Atari era".

[Inky]

Okay, so say our beloved Atari carts last forever. When those of us who grew up with Atari get old and for some reason have to or want to get rid of our collections will there be any interest by younger generations to obtain these items. I'm talking 50 years from now. Will Atari carts be viewed as valuable collectibles or obselete junk by those who did not grow up in the "Atari era".

 

I think they'll be held in the same regard as silent Charlie Chaplin comedies...

 

Some people will like them, some hate them for their primitiveness, but most won't have heard of 'em.

[Pitfall Harry]

I can't speak for the rest of the world, but I don't see any end in sight to the collectibles mania that has such a firm grip on the American consciousness. Spent coffee grounds are "collectible" so long as they're ten years old or older.

 

Atari cartridges will be considered collectibles fifty years from now. Heck, it's time to admit it. Atari cartridges have arrived already. Show an Atari Pac-Man cart to anybody outside the hobby -- just some random schmo shuffling down the street -- and chances are they're gonna say something like, "Wow! I'd bet that would fetch a small fortune on eBay! It's old. It looks cool. I haven't seen one in years and years. Man, that has GOT TO BE A COLLECTORS' ITEM!"

 

Fifty years from now, nobody will think Atari cartridges are junk. Everyone will think them valuable. But will they be? The fact that so many cartridges were made, and that they're so gosh darned durable, means fifty years from now there will still be plenty of them around. It's a bit like silver dollars from the 1800's. Sure they are old, and they sure look cool too. But the government minted so many of them and they are so darned durable, millions of them survive today. You can go online any day of the week and pick one up for $10 or so. Wow! A tenfold increase in value! Hardly. How many grocery bags do you think a silver dollar could fill in 1880? You could feed a family of six for a week on a dollar back then. The ten bucks you can get for that same silver dollar today buys you hardly more than a loaf of bread and a handful of celery.

 

Fifty years from now, Atari cartridges will be cool collectibles. But not in the way most fanatics collect them today. Most people won't be able to play them because they'll have no simple means of hooking them up to their futuristic TV sets. TV's a half-century from now will be lightyears ahead of what we have today. As it is, today's high-definition, digital wonders already make interfacing them with the Atari's crude, analog RF signal a baffling mystery to most. The set of technophiles who'll be capable of breathing life into antique Atari consoles fifty years from now will be vastly smaller than it is today. If you were given a song recorded on a wax-cylinder for an Edison phonograph, would you know how to play it?

 

Most folks will look at Atari carts fifty years from now and say, "Man, that's cool! And old, and such an icon of technology and culture... I just have to have one!" But they won't care which one it is, because they won't be able to play it anyway. It will be a conversation piece on display in a knick-knack cabinet. Friends will come over and gaze at the faded Pac-Man label and say, "Cool! My grandfather has one from when he was a kid."

 

And everybody who's out there right now raiding the thriftstores, scooping up every old Atari cartridge in sight like plankton feeders aren't doing themselves any favors by hoarding and hiding them away so they can get rich fifty years from now. Fifty years from now Atari cartridges may well sell for $100 a pop, but in a time when a C-note may be just enough to buy a loaf of bread and a handful of celery.

 

 

Ben

[+wavemotion]

I can'r speak for the rest of the world [snip]

This was an amazingly coherent post - well written and well thought out. I can tell you from years of "collecting" stamps that almost nobody got rich collecting the things - no matter how old they get. Sure, a few stamps are worth a quarter million - but those are so few and far between - millions of stamp collectors worldwide have their stamp collections sold at estate auctions post death for a loss on investment. Which is why I don't collect anything more than for the sake of having fun with the collection or, in the case of Atari games, enjoying the actual games (that is, I am realistic that my Atari Carts will be worth... probably less than the equivalent money I paid for them 50 years hence). Hopefully most of the people here collect for fun - not for profit.

 

As for the future - there will always be enthusiasts. The internet and places like Atari Age have brought together a lot of interested individuals from around the globe... possibly converting some here and there. But Atari enthusiasts are like the classic physics question of the universe expanding at a high enough rate of speed to keep expanding or will it eventually contract back as gravity takes over... Only two things can happen here - that new younger enthusiasts will keep pace with our outnumber older enthusiasts who pass away. In this case, the hobby and Atari lives on forever... The other side of the coin is that older enthusiasts depart faster than new enthusiasts come on board. I assume, given enough time, the latter will happen - with some rate of decay that I can't predict. If there is decay (less new blood coming in to old blood going out), then in 50 years most Atari carts left will be in the hands of a relative few diehards or those looking to place the cart on a nick-knack shelf. Getting new people involved in the enthusiasm and hobby is critical - otherwise EPROM bit rot won't be the biggest of our concerns.

[Zeus]

I'd say at this stage of the game the Atari universe is expanding. Although I don't really "belong" in the Atari generation, being merely 23 years of age, I am old enough to have played them, post-crash, circa 1984-89. I am surprise, however to see new members join who are in the 13-18 year old range, people who grew up well after Atari faded and Nintendo took over. I predict this sort of growth to continue for a number of years. It will take a lot of time before we start "dying off" because at this point, most us are between the late 20's or early 30's.

[Ehrbad]

My girfriend's brother is 15 years old and thinks that Atari is cool, and he appreciates the retro value of the old system as well. This is coming from a kid who owns and plays XBox, PS2, Gamecube, ALL the time!! I realize that this example has no statistical value at all, but I have a feeling that a fair proportion of adolescents today can appreciate the "crudeness" of the Atari but get over that and still have fun.

[Mr.FoodMonster]

im 14, and i have a ps2 and as of the past couple months, the atari has gotten more play then that, plus my great computer is another system all together. i like that the games were so simple and they were incredibly fun, and that i cant just go to the store and expect to pay $50 for a game and have to turn out that it blows, where i can spen $50 in atari games and get a big box full of them. so id say some people are intrested and others couldnt care less. i always get old video game jokes (up,up,down,down,left,right,left,right,b,a,start)and people think im nerdy for it, and id have to agree!

[Raijin Z]

The konami code is far from old and obscure. Try "what's your phone number?"

 

007 373 5963 (Mike Tyson)

005 737 5423 (Vodka Drunkinski/Soda Popinski)

 

I'm the world's greatest street fighter My friends call me DRULY B.

[rockman_x_2002]

The konami code is far from old and obscure. Try "what's your phone number?"

 

007 373 5963 (Mike Tyson)

005 737 5423 (Vodka Drunkinski/Soda Popinski)

 

I'm the world's greatest street fighter My friends call me DRULY B.

 

Gotta love Punchout!

[Rob Mitchell]

I can tell you from years of "collecting" stamps that almost nobody got rich collecting the things - no matter how old they get.  Sure, a few stamps are worth a quarter million - but those are so few and far between - millions of stamp collectors worldwide have their stamp collections sold at estate auctions post death for a loss on investment.

 

So you are a philatelist because you practice philately ie stamp collecting.

 

What would an Atari video game collector be called? Anyone want to invent a new word?

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

[Pitfall Harry]

What would an Atari video game collector be called?  Anyone want to invent a new word?

 

A geek.

 

 

Ben

[Rob Mitchell]

A geek.

 

Ok ... I'll try to invent a new word ..

 

How about Fujiiology?

 

Rob Mitchell, Atlanta, GA

[Chadivision]

I predict that 50 years from now the three most valuable cartridges will be Combat, Pac-Man, and E.T. because by that time just about all of them will have been scrapped to make homebrew carts. Those of us who are wise enough stock up on these currently common games will have collections that are worth millions of dollars.

 

On a completely unrelated note, does anyone want to buy a Combat cart for $100?

[MegaManFan]

Ahh, comedy.

[Keir]

I'll trade my Combat for a loaf of bread and a handful of celery.

[surfnmadness]

Looking at some of the other things people collect from the past (everything from canon balls to old toilet lids from outhouses). I have no fear in that someone will hold value with Atari Cartridges.

 

This was once the same question presented back in the 60's about older 78 records and such. At that time 45's & 33 1/3 LPs was the deal. But even now even with the invention of digital media (mp3, etc), my old 78 records and Jukebox carry a value that exceeds the value of my truck!

 

Now, Beany Babys and Barry tapes may be another story.

[candiru]

I think what will occur might be similar to what is happening somewhat to the classic car hobby. People will appreciate Atari as a curiosity and as gaming history but it won't hold the same appeal to people that didn't grow up with it. I know we have some younger people here, (said the aged and wise 24 year old) but they are the minority.

 

In the car hobbyist world a lot of the oldsters are dying off. Sure, they liked their Model Ts, their buddies liked their Model Ts, but the younger generation of hobbyists isn't as interested. Even though the cars are still valued, demand is down and takes prices with it.

 

In 30 years retrogamers (they'll call us antiquegamers) will be talking about the Xbox they found at the Salvation Army for only $800, asking how to get it working again and how to hook it up. There will be what-if discussions like, "I wonder what Microsoft would be like today if Bill Gates had never discovered it was possible to imprint Windows onto human brainwaves?" Then if they are into cars, they'll go down to the autoshow and drool over the 1999 Honda Accord with a whaletail spoiler and a muffler made out of an economy size coffee can. Brrrrr...