How easy are games to find?

[Atarinvader]

I live in the UK and the main source of retro games related stuff (other than ebay) is car boots. But to get ANYTHING I have to be out of my house at 6am on a Sunday morning, which aint gonna happen. And in a year of collecting Ive found....wait for it....a total of 2...yes 2! carts.

 

We dont have thrift stores. But Im asuming thats where most stuff comes from in the US right? But say on your average afternoon of 'thrifting' how many carts would you see?

 

Im going traveling next year, so I maybe able to hits some of theses stores and boost my collection.

[StanJr]

Well, here in KY on an "average" thrift outing I see 0 carts. However, on a good thrift outing I can see around 3-7 carts. (I can always go to the little comic shop hole-in-wall type place and look at the Frogger with no label and the faded Frosbite with rubbed off label if I HAVE to see carts). Sadly, the good thrift outings only happen about once every two months...

[Atarinvader]

Hmmm, that makes me feel a bit better about my situation.

 

There are a few 'retro' shops that sell atari games, I picked up Time Warp in one once which I found weird as it is a NTSC only release.

[Junie]

I get my Atari stuff from Yard sales and Thrift stores. It's a hit and miss affair.

 

Sometimes I'll find systems with 20 + games, only a system, one or two games, or nothing at all.

 

There is a huge Flea market north of where I live and my Grandma goes to it quite often, I think she says it covers something like 15 acres. Hopefully they will have something when I go, it isn't getting to late in the year thought, so I bet it's over with until spring.

 

Hmm, my AtariAge rating has now turned to Atari Pro

 

[ 11-20-2001: Message edited by: Junie ]

 

[ 11-20-2001: Message edited by: Junie ]

[Sylentwulf]

OK, I've seen the term car boot a couple times now. What the HECK IS A CAR BOOT?

Oh, in answer, Just classic carts? on average, 1 or 2 (combat pacman that noone buys) sometimes I'll find 10 or so though.

 

Including 8/16 bit, I find about 5 on average (just got 16 genny games today for $15)

 

[ 11-20-2001: Message edited by: Sylentwulf ]

[ubersaurus]

Michigan and California seem to be a thrifters paradise.

[Lemmi]

quote:

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Originally posted by Sylentwulf:

OK, I've seen the term car boot a couple times now. What the HECK IS A CAR BOOT?

 

[ 11-20-2001: Message edited by: Sylentwulf ]

---

 

 

Its the device that the police put on your car if you have to many outstanding parking tickets

 

[ 11-20-2001: Message edited by: Lemmi ]

[Hakogame 箱亀]

OK, unlike Lemmi, I'll be the staright-man. As I understand it "Car Boot" is UK slang for an automobile's trunk, to my knowledge the term "Boot Sale" is roughly equivalent to the US term "garage sale", as many europeans sell their wares from the "Boot" of their car instead of from their garages.

[Stella'sGhost]

Heres what I've learned. 2 years ago I had 0 Atari games. I used to have alot but I lost them sometime around 1989. Then in 1999 I decided to get them back. Now I have 150. Here's how I found em: Flea makets/newpapers/thrift shops and lastly ebay. Most of my games have NOT come from Ebay, some rare ones yeah, but you gotta look hard. Remember Atari was in MILLIONS of homes around the world, so these carts are not that rare, they are just under your nose in peoples basements, in storage, in a forgotten box....just keep looking, use Ebay as a last resort if you can't find anything. It also depends on where in the world you are I think...and what the market is like. I've been to all the probable places in my area and stilll come across games in the most unlikely places. It also hepls if you have psychic powers over time and space.

[atari70s]

well finding games is easy over my thrift of 2 years 140 atari games. with that knocked a biker dude over to get Crazy Climber. finding is easy getting is another story. risking death for a rare game in NJ is quite normal. also same shop boxed 5200 system complete 4 atari 2600s working 1 vidoe game orginizer. a busted 7800 ( but i burried in my backyard with a tomb stone in a box. for safe keeping for later dig up). also 1 atari VHS tape. its now broken but i believe it was something about advertising for games that would come out. i dont got it anymore. i think some of the titles listed in the tape gravitar Video Cube (atari) and Garfield. i paoid a 1.00 for it it got distroied in my VCR so out it had to go totally mangled and melted. it was quite somethign odd. also 2 atari shirts. i got a 400 from the sameplace. a few manuals and about 20 atari 5200 games. come to think of it this is a gold mine im sitting on . hehehe its mine all mine noone will take it from me. NJ is my place

[King Atari]

I actually see many carts. One thrift shop has at least 40 (!!!) carts on a shelf. But unfortunately, they're all pretty common. I only go there once in awhile to see if they have anything new, but they never do. I honestly believe they haven't sold a cart in at least two years (although that "Raiders..." went somewhere...).

 

quote

I think she says it covers something like 15 acres

 

Junie,

 

I've heard of that place from a friend, apparently you can find some good video game stuff there.

[Ze_ro]

Well, you should have found more cartridges than that in the time you've been looking... As with everyone else here, I don't find stuff all that often. But I still check anyways. It's gotten to the point where my other game systems are starting to catch up in the number of games, simply because I keep not finding Atari stuff. Every once in a while though, I'll run across a half-dozen games in a thrift store... and there's always the guy at the flea market with about 30 or 40 games, all pretty expensive, and all pretty common...

 

--Zero

[Atari-Jess]

ive not been finding too much lately...

my last find was a box of controllers

no games!? (and they didn't sell any all of em said (i brought one in to show)

but im going there tomorrow (wednesday)

WISH ME LUCK!

(im hoping for a indy500)

[+cvga]

quote:

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I think she says it covers something like 15 acres

 

Are you guys talking about Shipshewana?

[Lemmi]

50 -- 2600 carts from childhood

the other 130 from Flea Markets/ Gibralter Trade center/ Garage Sales/comic shops / (and soon i hope about 30 more from that friend he's coming up for X-mas break)

 

5200 games- all 30 came with my first 5200 system at the fleamarket

 

7800 games- 30 from biglots (new) , 2 from the flea market (fatal Run and Ms pacman),8 i payed for

 

3 2600's (2600jr boxed toys R us), heavy 6 flea market , Sear telegames 2600 Flea market

2 5200's (1 boxed)-Flea market

4 7800's - 2 flea markets, 1 from a girlfriends mom she said if i got it to work its mine, 1 i payed for

 

 

plus -Colecovision/2600 adapter + games, Intelivision/INTV 2/intelivoice + games, 2 Odyessy2 systems (both boxed) +20 games, 2 sega master systems (1 boxed)+ games, 1 TG-16 system

plus many other various things all from flea markets

 

ONLY 1 thing i wish i would have got at a Flea Market that i had to pass on cause of Money (i didnt have enough) was a Vectrex with 8 games for $120 bucks

 

Alot of this stuff was between 1996 and 1999

 

[ 11-21-2001: Message edited by: Lemmi ]

[Lemmi]

Oh and i got my "Philips CD-i" system out of the Garbage, i thought it was a CD player so i took it home to check it out, the cover was already unscrewed and when i removed it i saw "Hotel Mario" in the CD tray.

 

The system works fine the only problem was the CD tray wouldnt unload the game and after some tinkering i got it to work

 

it had the roller ball controller and a beat up looking stick thing for a joystick next to it, i took all of it and i was soooo happy i did

[Atarinvader]

Just to clear up the car boot thing. Its where aload of people drive their cars into a field and then do actualy sell things from the 'trunks' or boot of their cars. It is genraly individual sellers, yet you do get some retailers selling new stuff.

 

Maybe I could take some photos to show you guys. The only time Ive ever seen a thrift store is in the film 'Mallrats', where there was a topless fortune teller with three nipples

[StanJr]

quote:

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Originally posted by atarinvader:

there was a topless fortune teller with three nipples

---

 

 

IF ONLY!!!!!!!!!!

[ubersaurus]

I'm still searching for a fabled Channel F, but it's not going well enough for me.

[Atari-Jess]

if only eh?....righto,right-o

*shudder*

[Lemmi]

quote:

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Originally posted by ubersaurus:

I'm still searching for a fabled Channel F, but it's not going well enough for me.

---

 

My 5th Grade Teacher had the Channel F in her class room, I remember playing the Learning games on it, and 12 years later i went back to see if she still had it somewhere, and she had passed away

 

[ 11-21-2001: Message edited by: Lemmi ]

[weaselbrains]

Hi Atari invader,

 

I am surprised that you say there is not much Atari stuff at the car boots you go to. Take a look at this website, it a guy who details his weekly finds at carboots in the UK and he always finding ridiculous amounts of atari and other video game things. It looks like the site was last updated back in 1997 but surely things haven't changed that drastically.

 

The site has some photos of car boot sales too for anyone who's interested.

 

I don't know if this UBB code will work so here's the link again just in case

http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~pinwhiz/brag.htm

 

You say you don't have thrift stores, but I remember visiting thrift stores in London last year, I found some good stuff at a thrift store in Windsor (just near the Queen's house which I made a point of not visiting) as I recall.

 

Also what brand was your time warp cartridge, I have 2 different PAL time warp cartridges - they are both made by Hi-Score and have a picture of a skull mountain on the label.http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~pinwhiz/brag.htm

 

That's all from me for now

Mitchell

[Junie]

quote:

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Originally posted by King Atari:

Junie,

 

I've heard of that place from a friend, apparently you can find some good video game stuff there.

---

 

Well now I can't wait until spring then to go. Just hope I have enough money to get everything Atari related.

 

Running out of money with more Atari stuff left is a nightmare I have, I imagine it will happen sooner or later though. That would be just about as bad as not finding anything

 

quote:

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Originally posted by cvga:

quote:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I think she says it covers something like 15 acres

 

Are you guys talking about Shipshewana?

---

 

I'm not sure where it is. I'll find out, probebly later today. When I do I'll post the details about the place.

[Nostalgic]

Most of my collection is a holdover from my childhood. I got a few carts back in 1996 when I learned you could directly order some from Atari's warehouse. I bought the first edition of the Stella CD soon after that came out.

 

I didn't get anything new again until this year. I ordered a few carts from Collectors' House. I picked up a few more CCAG.

 

I've had no luck "in the wild". I went to a couple of subdivision garage sales and the oldest games anyone had were for the NES. At a big flea market at Greenmead (a historical village in Livonia), only one both had 2600 games, and most were old and faded commons with no boxes or manuals.

 

I'd say the Internet or shows like the CCAG are the best resource for games these days.

[beattheindierock]

I have been finding a ton of games recently at the flea markets here. I asked the head stocker at the local Goodwill to pull out all their video games for me and they happy obliged. Try doing that if you live in the states. They had a HUGE box of Atari and Collecovision games that the stocker said they had no intentions of putting out anytime soon. I usually do this about every 2 months or so. Just a suggestion.