3 previously unreleased 2600 games: Hobo, Spiders, R2D Tank

[Tempest]

4 hours ago, Glorkbot said:

This ROM of Pleiades behaves differently than the ROM I already had in my collection. The title screen on this one wiggles up and down. (The rom I already had also doesn’t work correctly on my Analog Pocket…it plays the various screens totally out of order…I’m hoping this version doesn’t match that behavior).

Correct.  I'm not sure if the version AA released back in the early 2000s was patched to fix this or if this version truly is different.  The code that causes this is the only difference between the two roms.

[Rom Hunter]

9 hours ago, Tempest said:

Correct.  I'm not sure if the version AA released back in the early 2000s was patched to fix this or if this version truly is different.  The code that causes this is the only difference between the two roms.

I've put it as an [a]lternate ROM in my collection.

Cat Trax also had two versions: the only difference is that the color black is being stored a scanline earlier.

Edited February 16 by Rom Hunter

[Tempest]

7 hours ago, Rom Hunter said:

I've put it as an [a]lternate ROM in my collection.

Cat Trax also had two versions: the only difference is that the color black is being stored a scanline earlier.

Where was the alternate Cat Trax rom from?  A pirate cart or the Game Brain?

[Rom Hunter]

1 hour ago, Tempest said:

Where was the alternate Cat Trax rom from?  A pirate cart or the Game Brain?

I have no idea where it came from.

Been in my collection for ages.

[Shawn]

On 2/14/2024 at 5:23 PM, johnnywc said:

  Of course we have about a dozen other projects in the works so this will have to wait, but maybe someday! 🤞

 

Still holding on strong for your Ice Hockey we spoke of many, many years ago.

[Supergun]

On 2/13/2024 at 3:53 AM, Rom Hunter said:

Many thanks for sharing these, Ianoid.

 

Do you know if Spiders and R2D Tank came in retail boxes as well?

Yes, a thousand thanks to Ianoid for these. And I’m also curious about the above question. (but assuming a yes because I have already seen pics of the sides of those boxes, so surely they exist.)

 

Also a side note to Rom & Tempest:

 

So are we supposed to just accept the fact that in 1983 UA Limited designed, programmed, and produced SIX Atari 2600 video games, all of them with fully dressed retail ready packaging, (cart shells, cart stickers, manuals, and boxes), even numbered them 1 through 6, but then for as of yet unknown reasons, decided not to release them and simply took the huge financial hit from it?

 

And before you say: “well perhaps they were officially released to retail market”, don’t forget to take into account the totally inconsistent factoid that only a tiny handful of these “retail samples” have surfaced in over 40 years since.

[Tempest]

8 minutes ago, Supergun said:

Yes, a thousand thanks to Ianoid for these. And I’m also curious about the above question. (but assuming a yes because I have already seen pics of the sides of those boxes, so surely they exist.)

 

Also a side note to Rom & Tempest:

 

So are we supposed to just accept the fact that in 1983 UA Limited designed, programmed, and produced SIX Atari 2600 video games, all of them with fully dressed retail ready packaging, (cart shells, cart stickers, manuals, and boxes), even numbered them 1 through 6, but then for as of yet unknown reasons, decided not to release them and simply took the huge financial hit from it?

 

And before you say: “well perhaps they were officially released to retail market”, don’t forget to take into account the totally inconsistent factoid that only a tiny handful of these “retail samples” have surfaced in over 40 years since.

My best guess is that they very close to going into full production but pulled out due to the collapsing market and these were marketing samples for salesmen.  I'm curious if they have EPROMs or roms in them.

[Supergun]

I’m curious now as to just how much information we might have on UA Limited. Has anyone done a deep dive into researching them?

 

Do we know any former employees and/or programmers? I mean, if we can find just one person that worked with them or for them, then they should be able to shed some light on this decades long mystery.

 

I’m pretty sure if I worked at a company 40 years ago that let’s say made cookies. And we compiled recipes for 6 different varieties, designed 6 boxes with full color art, baked them, packaged them, prepared them for market, and then never sold a single cookie and just closed up shop and walked away…

 

…yeah I think it’s safe to say that I would remember that. I’d remember just how frustrated it left me and how much of a waste of time it would have been of a year or so of my life. It would be quite hard to forget that disappointment.

[Tempest]

UA stood for Universal Appliance and we only know a few programmers for the Arcadia games.  Some were Hong Kong based and some were contractors over here in the US.  I doubt they would know anything about the 2600 programmers.  Maybe someone else knows more?

 

I'm curious if these games share any code which might mean they ever programmed by the same person.  Funky Fish and Hobo seem to have similar title screens so maybe they share the same programmer?

[+Atari_Warlord]

The US Trademark database has some limited (pun intended) information on Universal Appliances:

 

Address:

Flat B, 4/F, Kaiser Estate

41 Man Yue St.

Kowloon Hong Kong

 

Attorney:

Harold L. Novick

Larson and Taylor

727 23rd St S

Arlington, Virginia  22202

 

Looks like he passed away in 2023 and the last place he may have worked was Novick, Kim, & Lee PLLC.

 

First use of game names = January 10, 1982 (Winter CES?)  Does anyone have an exhibitor list?

 

Video Game Trade Names Filed:

3D Bowling

Breakaway

Cat Trax

Space Vultures

Robot Killer

Space Raiders

Brain Quiz

Escape

Hobo

Alien Invaders

Crazy Gobbler

Tanks A Lot

Ocean Battle

Capture

Missile War

Space Mission

Space Attack

Star Chess

Space Squadron

Grand Slam Tennis

Super Gobbler

 

[Rom Hunter]

13 hours ago, Tempest said:

My best guess is that they very close to going into full production but pulled out due to the collapsing market and these were marketing samples for salesmen.

This.

I'm not even sure to call these prototypes anymore.

And then there's the (IMO older) label type of Cat Trax not mentioning the Gemini and Coleco Vision Expansion Module):
http://www.atarimania.com/2600/boxes/hi_res/cat_trax_cart_10.jpg

Edited February 17 by Rom Hunter

[Supergun]

I think Cat Trax was their killer AP. Or at the very least, their flagship title, being a Pac-Man clone when Pac-Man was king. So it would make sense that it had more “production samples” then the rest of their product line and that it was also marketed through the multiplexer device as a “pack in” bonus title.

 

Again, there is a HUGE difference between finding 1 or even a small handful or so production quality samples of UA’s titles over the span of 40 years, versus dozens or hundreds of them surfacing.

 

And, I’ll go even further with this…

 

At this point in time, even if hundreds of cases of these games were or are someday found in some long forgotten warehouse someplace, it would still not elevate the status of these games to “released”. Rather it would be a scenario similar to Off your Rocker.

[Rom Hunter]

37 minutes ago, Supergun said:

Again, there is a HUGE difference between finding 1 or even a small handful or so production quality samples of UA’s titles over the span of 40 years, versus dozens or hundreds of them surfacing.

 

And, I’ll go even further with this…

 

At this point in time, even if hundreds of cases of these games were or are someday found in some long forgotten warehouse someplace, it would still not elevate the status of these games to “released”. Rather it would be a scenario similar to Off your Rocker.

These are all interesting thoughts.

So this raises the question: when is a game still called a prototype?

 

[Supergun]

35 minutes ago, Rom Hunter said:

So this raises the question: when is a game still called a prototype?

 

That’s a fair question.

 

We do use the term “proto” quite loosely. We say “alpha, beta, proto, dev, loaner, sample, test, etc.” all in the same context, yet they all describe a game at different stages.

 

But I think your question is more “when does a game program enter the stage where it is called a “prototype” and when does it pass from the “prototype” stage to the “final” stage; eventually becoming a “released” game.”

 

With regards to UA’s games one thing is certain. We have no evidence of them ever having been sold at a retail store and/or having been made available through a mail order offer; during the natural lifespan of the console. And that is the required criteria to be called a “released game”.

 

So are these games protos or finals? Not sure. But I am sure that fully dressed or not, they are NOT released games.

[Rom Hunter]

55 minutes ago, Supergun said:

So are these games protos or finals? Not sure. But I am sure that fully dressed or not, they are NOT released games.

I agree.

I don't think these were ever officially released and sold.

They remind me of Words-Attack (although that one still has 1K free space left):
http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-words-attack_15914.html

Edited February 17 by Rom Hunter

[ianoid]

Yeah, I wouldn't call them prototypes at this stage. They are probably better referred to as samples. I sometimes say 'betas' broadly for uncertain stuff. To call these prototypes is a misnomer. 

 

I would also refer to the mask ROM red label Activision carts as samples. Most of the tiny label Parker carts are similarly probably samples as well.

[Impaler_26]

Thanks for sharing these ROMs! I have fond memories of playing these games on a Schmid TVG 2000 (german Arcadia version/clone) at a friend's place. 🙂

 

[TrekMD]

Just amazing to see these!  Remarkable that new games for the 2600 are still being discovered!

[BassGuitari]

There was apparently a copy of the 2600 version of Pleiades that sold on Mercari a couple of months back. If it's real (I don't see much to suggest it isn't), somebody got a heck of a deal.

 

[Joey Kay]

Great stuff!
 

My burning question is whether or not the spelling error on the Hobo box art (tresspassing with the X through the erroneous S) was on purpose, or someone realised the error late in the process and just crossed out the S as a cover for the mistake. 

[Tempest]

1 hour ago, Joey Kay said:

Great stuff!
 

My burning question is whether or not the spelling error on the Hobo box art (tresspassing with the X through the erroneous S) was on purpose, or someone realised the error late in the process and just crossed out the S as a cover for the mistake. 

I wondered the same thing actually.

 

2 hours ago, BassGuitari said:

There was apparently a copy of the 2600 version of Pleiades that sold on Mercari a couple of months back. If it's real (I don't see much to suggest it isn't), somebody got a heck of a deal.

 

Is that the same one that was posted here?  If so I've talked to the owner (he's not too far from me) about getting it dumped but I don't have the equipment to do it anymore.  I hope we can work something out in the future.

[Living Room Arcade]

On 2/15/2024 at 9:38 AM, sramirez2008 said:

I’m all for a 3D golf game, as long it comes after that nine inning game.😉

@sramirez2008 That's okay with me.  Play Ball!  

[Jason_Atari]

Thanks for sharing 😀

[Living Room Arcade]

Did everyone see?  A new video about it from The Immortal John Hancock @swlovinist 

What's especially nice is, first, he shows the Arcadia console (which I never saw before) and then he compares the graphics of all three versions of each game; the arcade version, the Arcadia console version and Atari 2600 version (if the game had all three versions).  

Edited February 19 by Living Room Arcade

[+swlovinist]

7 hours ago, Living Room Arcade said:

Did everyone see?  A new video about it from The Immortal John Hancock @swlovinist 

What's especially nice is, first, he shows the Arcadia console (which I never saw before) and then he compares the graphics of all three versions of each game; the arcade version, the Arcadia console version and Atari 2600 version (if the game had all three versions).  

Thank you for the kind words.   In hindsight, I should've shown the Spiders handheld which I do not own.