Rummage Sale Prototype Brag!

[Goodwill Hunter]

Went rummaging this morning, with the rummage that advertised “video games” at the top of my list. Arrived 20 minutes early, and they had already opened for business. I walked right up and found a Gamegear in a soft case and 4 common games with books. All in great shape, but with the stickered price at $30.00, I didn’t even bother making an offer.

 

Picked up a big, $5.00 tub of legos for my girls, and as I was going to pay, I noticed a Vader 2600 sticking out of box under a table. Under the 2600 was one of those woodgrain game holders with a hinged, smoked plastic lid. Inside were 25 games, and manuals for all (well, almost all) of the games tucked neatly into the side slots…I wish everyone took care of games the way these people did.

 

Quickly scanned the titles, and the closest thing to an uncommon was Journey Escape. But then this cart with a blank, red end label caught my eye. Pulled it out of the slot, and it was just more red paper running up the length of the cart until I got to the small white paper label that read:

 

TAPPER

ATARI 2600 – STK #010-01

SEGA CONSUMER PRODUCTS

 

And I thought, Hot Damn!…this looks like a prototype…but what’s it doing in a standard 2600 rummage lot in Milwaukee? I calmly put it back in the box and took it and the legos up the the cash box. The 2600 box hadn’t been priced yet, so I asked how much for the games…and didn’t dicker when she came back with “5 bucks?”

 

Raced home to try it out, and (for the first 3 screens anyway) it seems identical to my stock 2600 Tapper. The case has no screw, so it was easy to open up and find this inside…pretty much easing my fears that the label was a fake:

Oddly enough, the chip at the top center of the PCB has its top, rightmost pin not socketed like the other pins on the chip…is this common to protos? Never thought I’d find one of these in the wild as I’m fairly distant from Silicon Valley…but persistent rummaging has paid off for me again. Sure is nice to find one of these things that everyone is always talking about.

 

Rich

[video game addict]

I don't know if there is a real rhyme or reason to protos. As they typically are preproduction versions of games, and they could be made out of anything possibly. So whatever spare parts, or mods to make it work, all sorts of weird things out there.

 

But I'm curious as to whether this is a proto or not.

 

Whats up with that DEICO Electronics PCB & Sticker? If this was a proto, would it have DEICO on the label too? Not sure what the deal is with them, but I have some PCBs that they made, I kind of thought they were boots, made on order type, or mailorder, something along those lines?

 

That label looks familiar to something I've seen somewhere thou, can remember now.

[King Atari]

That label looks familiar to something I've seen somewhere thou, can remember now.

 

I'm pretty sure I've seen an Activision proto with a label like that somewhere.

 

No matter what, that's great find for only $5, not to mention everything else you got.

[video game addict]

Yes it was some Activision protos with the same type of labels. I'm wondering about the Deico company if they were hired to create games, for some reason?

 

Here's some 8-bit games I have with Deico cases & PCBs:

http://www.atariaddict.com/images/

 

I've had 3 copies of Epyx Pitstop, all with the Deico Electronics case, PCB, and socketed eproms, but with a production label on the cart. One I sold Tempest awhile back two I have currently. I've seen several other Epyx games on eproms in the same fashion, made by the same company.

 

Also my copy of Captain Beeble, by Inhome Software is in a Deico case, and PCB, but it's a blob style game. Not eprom. It says:

 

NON US PCB

PHILIPPINES

 

and

DEI 1004

REV A

 

 

The Pitstops are:

DEI 1007

REV-A

EPROM

PCB

 

 

I also have Math Encounter, by HSU Software, it's also in a DEICO case, it's turned around backwards from Captain Beeble & my Pitstops. I haven't opened it up thou as it has a screw under the label.

 

Also just going by looks BBSB & Meteorites both 5200 have very similar cases. I would imagine they too were made by Deico, Also I have a 2600 game I think is Scuba Diver by Panda, the PCB to it is opened up in pic above. It says AP2001 on it, but it too looks similar in design to the other Deico cases & the BBSB & Meteorites cases. It does not say Deico on it thou.

 

What is the story behind this DEICO company?

[Tempest]

That is most definetly a prototype. I've seen an Up n Down proto that looked exactly the same. Congrats!

 

Tempest

[RangerG]

Tempest has spoken . Congrats. - what a find. Now you can imagine how it got there.

[video game addict]

I'm curious who made it thou? Why would Sega print out an eprom cover that has DEICO on it? Did they use pre-made window covers, by DEICO? What's up with that? This looks like it was an outside source of games. DEICO made the PCB, the case, and even the labels that cover the eprom, then why did other actual Sega prototypes look more like Sega official parts? This looks like some third party eprom game service. I'm sure it was made back in the day, but I'm not too sure I'd label it a true prototype.

[Tempest]

this looks like some third party eprom game service. I'm sure it was made back in the day, but I'm not too sure I'd label it a true prototype.

 

Believe what you want, but I'm telling you this is an official Sega proto. Also keep in mind that Tapper, Up n Down, and Spy Hunter were all made in the short period after Sega decided to change its cartidge and label styles. That may have something to do with the DEICO on the label.

 

BTW here's my 400/800 Up n Down proto that has been confirmed to be official by Tom Sloper who was the producer on the game. Look at how the label is virtually identical.

 

http://www.msu.edu/user/reicher6/prototype...tos/upndown.htm

 

Tempest

[MegaManFan]

So the real question here is obviously not if it's real but where it came from.

[Goodwill Hunter]

So the real question here is obviously not if it's real but where it came from.

 

That's easy...8815 W. Schlinger Ave., just west of the Wisconsin State Fair Park ...the real question is how in the heck did it get there? Now I wish I would have asked.

 

Rich

[moppetkid]

Someone move this topic to 2600 section.??

 

DEICO = Deico Electronics.

They were a CA based PCB manufacturer - mainly know for the production of XT/286 Motherboards, VGA Video cards, other PC cards etc. Went out of business circa. 1992?

 

The company was orginally located in Sunnyvale CA and later moved to Fremont CA.

 

My theory is they were contracted to produce small runs of PCBs such as those used for prototypes etc.

 

Various web & google searches reveal the DEICO name has been found on odd cartridges for a number of different systems.

 

http://groups.google.co.nz/groups?q=%22dei...0one.net&rnum=3

 

8Bit

"I recently picked up a bunch of stuff. I need help in identifying a

cartridge. It is in a black case and has no label. The inside of the

case has Deico Electronics, Sunnyvale CA. embossed on it. The circuit

board doesn't have a chip on it, just a small (1.2 in. square) blob of

epoxy. It also has Deico Electronics on it."

 

C64

http://groups.google.co.nz/groups?hl=en&lr...news.chorus.net

"I recently came upon a cartridge for the 64. On start up, It displays the

Commodore Basic V4 instead of V2 and under that it says Turbo-Dos 64. Then follows with the standard start up after that.

Inside it has a 2764 EPROM, also 7407hex buffer cap, resistor and diode. The

printed circuit board says... DEI 1256 Rev A1 Deico Electronics Sunnyvale

CA."