I have the Donkey Kong Junior (got it at a kid). I recently restored the battery contacts (acid corroded) and had a friend make me a 3d printed replica battery door.
I still have my Pac Man from childhood and it still works great. I also had the ms pac man, donkey kong , dk jr, and the Parker Brothers version of Q-Bert. So many great memories with these. Thank you for the video!
Thanks for watching! That's great you have your original from childhood still. Definitely a keeper in my book. These truly are like a time capsule to our past memories. Always puts a smile on my face 😊
Me to when I opened mine on Christmas morning I freaked out and I ran upstairs to show my dad and I had to wake him up because he was out getting drunk on Christmas eve lol.
That's awesome! I love that you have something physical to tie back to happy childhood memories. I find myself having to look at the old wishbooks and catalogs to remember what I might have gotten on Christmas since those toys have been long gone. Thanks for sharing!
@@erwinlopez7205 Sorry for the delay. Today I've been responding back to people from comments left 6-8 months ago that I didn't get the notification, so I apologize. As for the value, I know many will say it's all about what's in circulation and the game's uniqueness. With that said, Pac Man, Ms Pac Man, Donkey Kong Galaxian and Frogger are on the lower end but for a decent one you could expect it to be worth $75-$125 depending on the decal's condition and if the box & instructions are included a lot more. Donkey Jr and Zaxxon in decent working condition without box will go easily at minimum $200. Hope that helps.
Thanks for checking this video out. I'm glad it brought back some good memories. I think we all can use some walks back down memory lane 😉. For me it keeps my mind fresh.
There was just an 80's nostalgia kick about the mini arcades that couldn't be matched. They can be seen in so many 80's movies like Vacation for example. Great collection.
You are so correct on that. I'm glad it continues to live on today with our somewhat younger generation. Although, I'm not sure if it's fully appreciated with my son's generation - Gen Alpha, but someday it will. 😉 I'm glad you enjoyed the video. I appreciate the comment. Thanks!
These table-top VFD games were big ticket items back in the early 80's, state of the art in portable/personal video games. You'd definitely be crowned King/Queen of the Day if you showed up in homeroom with one of these.
So true! I remember everyone wanted to be friends with the kid who brought it in and then kids being mad at their parents for not getting one. When my son was in 5th grade, last year, I was hoping for an opportunity to have him bring one of these in to show others in class how we progressed from 40+ years ago. Unfortunately no such luck but he can always show his friends when they come over 😉. Thanks for sharing that memory.
Beautiful collection !!!! I have absolutely none of them but I wish that I did . I do play the Colecovision on my channel though . I am glad that I found your channel and I subscribed .
I have all the original 7 plus a perma power which is still in the packaging (pretty beat up though). All 7 still work too. I also have the Nintendo version of DKJ which is same cabinet but just colored tan with no stickers. I have the Nintendo tabletops of Snoopy, Popeye and Mario's cement factory as well as a Q-bert tabletop game. Donkey Kong was the first one I ever got and I remember getting it for Christmas from my uncle back in 198? whatever year it was. I loved that thing and collected the others. Great video!
WOW! That is a nice collection you have! I'm looking at those new in package Perma Power Battery Eliminator but debating on pulling the trigger at $80-90. Thanks for reminding me of Snoopy and Mario's Cement Factory which I need to pursue 🙂. It's funny how we can remember when and who gave us gifts like these because they no doubt made a lasting impression that continues 40+ years later. Thanks for positive feedback. I really appreciate it.
Nice! It seems like the majority, from what I'm reading here, did like Galaxian. I still equate Galaxian with what I remember on the Atari 400/800 which is probably why I'm bias with liking it.
Got Donkey Kong as Christmas present. Played the hell out of it. Loved that game. It has 2 levels, 1st is the basic jump barrels and get to the top, 2nd is the rivet level where Mario goes over the rivets.
I have incredible nostalgia for the Zaxxon game which I had as a kid. I wish I still had it but somehow it disappeared from my parents' house after I left for college.
I still have Zaxxon. It still works and well kept living on a shelf in a closet here.. However it is arguably one of the hardest games to play. I think this Coleco port is more difficult than the actual arcade game
I have owned Pac-Man since I was five. It still has the box and manual. I also acquired Donkey Kong, Zaxxon, and the similar Q-bert (boxed) seen at the end of your video. All decals are original and in good condition. I also have two sets of power adapters, one of which is from childhood. Such a great set of little cabs. Kids lined up at my door to play Pac-Man as if I had gotten the arcade.
That is pretty amazing! I really envy and appreciate those like youself who have their childhood games still today. That is so cool! Thanks for sharing that.
You could almost rent them out to friends or others to earn some money on the side, lol. It's nice that you had the experience of owning these back then.
Still have the galaxian one, got really good at it back in the day. A great game. If you get time should do a play video for 5 minutes of each of your games. Hearing those sounds again is really cool. Havent played it since i showed it to my kids around 2002!
Thanks for checking out the video and the suggestion as well. I know these were only played for a minute or so each on this video. Probably because it was one of my early posts and I wasn't sure how bored one might get watching me play. I may do something like a 5 minute play of all my games with no narrative to just allow one to see and hear the sounds like you mentioned. Great idea!
I had 6 of the 7… bought from eBay and then resold back on eBay. They were pretty cool games from ‘81-‘83. I think I need to get them again :) I remember only Zaxxon used Ds while all the others used C cells. :)
I had Galaxian back in the day. I’ve now Zaxxongot 5 of the 7. Missing DKJ and Zaxxon. They’re my favorite part of my collection. I always liked how they were shaped like an arcade cabinet.
I can hear Digital Derby's crash sound as I was reading your comment 😉. I love that game too. Definitely a good variety of them (condition based) on eBay so that's great. @@pacebrison1453
My neighbor was super lucky enough to have five of these (he didn't have Zaxxon or PacMan), but he let me play with them a ton. Such great times! Seeing these again, my memory made me think these looked better and more interactive than they are though.
Thank you and thanks for sharing that memory! It's awesome to know that many of us, like you, realized there was joy in playing these even if you didn't own one. I totally relate.
I never had these as a kid, I had Tron, Scramble, and Space Invaders instead. I did have friends who had some of these and egad, that sound in Pac Man and Donkey Kong used to (and still does) drives me crazy. They should put those sounds on a loop and use them for interrogations. After about an hour of listening to that whoever they were questioning would break and start singing like a bird.
I'm not sure if you ever checked this out but if you go on Amazon Music and search '8-bit arcade' you will find 100s of albums and 1000s of songs/tracks created with the sounds of the 8-bit games we all remember... even Pac-Man, lol.
@@VintageGamingMemoriesAnother good way to get good intel from an interrogation is to force the person to play Castle Excellent (NES/Famicom). After an hour of that crap they'll tell you anything you want to know.
Coleco didn't have to market to hard when friends and department stores had these on display to get us kids to ask mom and dad for it. Remember their motto, "The arcade games you can take home with you".
I found one of the Donkey Kong games like this in some bushes outside church as a kid. It was missing the battery cover but worked fine and my sister and I played with it for years.
Oh I totally hear you. About 99% of my overall collection all had a history from another owner which makes it interesting but I always wondered what happened to those games I actually owned as a child that "disappeared". Brings sleepless nights 🙂
I have the Zaxxon and Frogger, got the Zaxxon from my Uncle who didn't play it anymore in 86 or so and bought the Frogger from a Church sale for 2 dollars in the early 90s.
Those are great pick-ups! What a nice uncle to pass that Zaxxon down and keep it in the family. I hope my 10 year old appreciates this too when he gets it 🙂.
I remember camping trips with my puerto rican friends Jason and Fernando where at night we'd sit near the barbecue grill and put our consoles on the park bench tables and play while Fernando's dad grilled burgers 🍔 and chicken and hot dogs 🌭 we each had one, mine was Pac - Man. Jason had Donkey Kong and Fernando had Frogger. Simple games, but great at the time for when you were out with friends! They were costly, but that encouraged kids to share with eachother and recreate the arcade experience lol. Quintessential 80's 😅😅😅😅😅😅😮😮
That's a great story and memory! I can almost picture it too. Nothing bring friends together more than Coleco 😄. You're right though, these $$$ games did teach us all about sharing more than ever. Thanks for sharing this.
ive started my collection. started with donkey kong because of gremlins, i enjoy working on these and repairing them. Super clean collection, i enjoyed the history lesson
There's something about bringing back to life these games from the early 80s that gives us the satisfaction, sense of accomplishment and more knowledge of early gaming history that we enjoy. That's awesome you get it too! Thanks so much for the comment and continued success with your collection!
I remember seeing the ads for these in magazines back in the day, and they used a real pic of the arcade game to show the gameplay inside these little cabinets. needless to say I was slightly disappointed when i finally got try mine! Haha, early photoshop daze!
The marketing or possibly false advertisement was out there. Even the commericals had the real arcade games shown but then zapped into the handhelds. We sure have come a long way with what we now can have in our home "arcade caves". Thanks for sharing that memory!
Aww, that's too bad you don't have it but I'm glad you have the memories still! Thankfully these are still able to come by on eBay for a reasonable price 😊
You are correct. The 1 mirror is in between the 2 VFDs. Apparently the mirror is what produces the images in the air. Here's a nice picture of the inside: handheldmuseum.com/Guts/Coleco-ZaxxonGuts.jpg
NICE!! I think these are fun to play too. I wouldn't say that I'd be addicted to playing these in today's world but back in the 80s, I can see myself looking forward to playing after coming home from school 😁
😄I always wondered how kids would play this at night and not wake up their parents. I guess one could try to muffle the sound with covers. An earphone out would have been nice.
I still have my Donkey Kong which I bought in 1982. This past weekend I found a Pac Man. I have 2 perma power battery packs as well. I recently did a video comparing 1982 Table top arcade compared to what's being produced today.
I have ,pacman ,ms pacman & frogger. I need to replace the label on pacman. I also have a few other from different company. Love these games. Awsome video.
I frequent a lot of antique and vintage shops and have noticed that Pac Man. Ms Pac Man and Donkey Kong are easy finds but the rest are slim pickins. I think because the first three I mentioned were the most popular at the so more available years later.
Most definitely. Plus DK Jr & Zaxxon came last in the bunch so didn't get to be part of the initial buying freenzy in 1981/82. Would have been great to find actual production and sales figures for each. Millions for sure 🙂. Thanks for the comment.
That's excellent! It's a great hunt since it's all out there and you have the control to decide which seller to get it from. Wish you the best and have fun with it!
I rencetly bought PacMan and Zaxxon in marketplace :) Nice editions !! Planning on buying all :) I am in the process of making arcade with spare room I have and trying to buy vintage stuff also like colecovision console and atari and others to put on display
I had Zaxxon, which I got for Christmas (83?), I really wanted the Donkey Kong one, but got that instead. Sold it just a few years ago. Now I wished I kept it.
The Pac Man one can be seen in the 1983 movie, National Lampoon's Vacation, but it's not being used, it's in the back of the station wagon, and later on , sitting on the bed as Russ looks at the magazine... I don't think these pop up often in film/TV
also seen in the backseat is a Milton Bradley Super Simon in it's box, and , if memory serves me right ( as I haven't seen the movie in awhile ) is a Coleco Whiz Quiz , also in it's box @@VintageGamingMemories
Had Ms. PacMan, PacMan, Donkey Kong, & Zaxxon. Great for car trips. Problem was, they took 4 or 5 C or D size batteries. Was always going to Radio Shack for these.
That's a nice bundle! Yeah the batteries make it a costly toy. I know they had rechargeable batteries back then but they were pretty expensive too. I guess that's the price we (our parents) had to pay for having the coolest toys in the early 80s 😁. Thanks for sharing.
Well done buddy. You sure said it, for a second there i thought you were “The No Swear Gamer” but you turned out to be not-2-shabby there partner’ not too shabby. However, there is still much more that needs to be discussed, & I hope you’re still at it buddy
Thanks for checking out the video! I'll take a "not too shabby" when commented with The No Swear Gamer, haha. You're right, there's always more to be discussed. Seems like it never ends but that's a good thing when it comes to bringing back these types of memories 😀
Thanks for viewing and I'm glad it brought back memories. That's one of my 2 objectives for this channel: (1) Keep you entertained and (2) bring back some good memories 🙂.
I grew up with the donkey kong jr. one, I really like the rendition of opening song on this one. Unfortunately I can't find it anymore and it's now really expensive on ebay.
Sorry to hear that. DK Jr. started to grow on me, especially when I noticed at 20:57 all the details to each position on the display. I think I set a saved search for it on eBay and jumped on it quickly because sometimes you might find a Buy it Now option that is reasonable.
Thanks for that suggestion. I see there were also Cosmic 2000 and Cosmic 3000 Fire Away versions too but I think the Cosmic 1000 in yellow looks the best from a first impression. Game play appears to be similar to the Bambino UFO Master Blaster Station (ruclips.net/video/ctQyz231-VI/видео.htmlsi=nPtg7ctYJhtxCCwI) but different enough that I put an offer on one 😁. I do take advice from my viewers / subs so thank you!
Hopefully not too hard of a fix on the joystick. This site has been great for me on many handhelds. Here's a link on troubleshooting your Pac-Man if you want to try: www.handheldmuseum.com/Coleco/ColecoRepair/index.html @@thinkblue8089
Received Galaxian for my birthday 1982 and ultimately got the rest of them with the exception of Zaxxon which I really wanted but it was too expensive. My favorite is Frogger as it looked and played most like it’s arcade big brother but I still have fond memories with Galaxian my first. Something about the VFD display that keeps me coming back to play.
Remember, Pac-Man was in the back seat of the family truckster in National Lampoon's Vacation while they were on the road trip to Wally World. You can see it behind Clark in a few scenes.
Yup and also in the scene where Rusty is on his cousin Dale's bed looking at the magazine, Swing Shift. It takes a backseat to that magazine as it just lays on the bed behind him, haha.
Yup. Nintendo really knew how to stand out with their G&W in many of their games back then (e.g. Popeye, Snoopy, etc). I thought it would have been a novelty forgotten but apparently we continue to notice it 40 years later 🤣
You are correct. I do have that green Popeye game and it's a game & watch like DK Jr. It does differ from the arcade version because if I remember correctly, the arcade version has floors that Popeye can go up and down while the tabletop you are on a pier battling with Bluto to avoid getting knocked in the water.
I had a Zaxxon when I was maybe 4 or 5 years old. I struggled with the isometric perspective, being so young, but I remember being entranced by the sheer "arcade--ness" of the whole package--the way it smelled, the size and heft of it, the decals, the form factor, the way it sounded, the way it lit up a dark room with its dancing LCD lights. 'Wonder what ever happened to that thing.
It would have been nice to know how coleco ended up selling a game and watch tabletop. The donkey kong Jr one is a copy of the nintendo one in different colors. I never found out how coleco managed the right to sell the exact same unit. Thats also the reason behind the clock btw, all game and watch games had a clock.
Those licensing rights seem to extend across many game developers which would make sense back then. Still happens today with the old made new concept tabletops you see out there. I just don't know what type of licensing Coleco got from Nintendo and the other gaming developers - whether it was trademark, copyright, patent, or ?? Yeah, I mentioned in comments to others on the G&W concept here. I know Nintendo was the innovator of that concept but I just didn't think it would persuade me as a kid to want to get that over something else. It's a novelty that apparently worked for many. As a parent, I could see using it as a time management tool with game play for my kids 🙂.
The Donkey Kong Jr. is just a rebranded Nintendo Game & Watch, isn't it? It would explain the different form of lighting, the clock, Game A and Game B modes, the sound effects, and it only mimicking the arcade game's level design in the most general sense, with Nintendo kind of letting the Game & Watch arcade adaptations "be their own thing"
Yes, you are correct. It wasn't supposed to be a G&W while in production but it did. Nintendo really took that G&W concept to many of their games, mostly the smaller handhelds. I have the Nintendo Popeye tabletop which is also a G&W and I believe they have a couple more tabletop G&W ones.
I have Frogger and Donkey Kong. I used to have Pac man, but I broke it taking it apart. >.< Eat and run was a fun variant. I would have really loved if Berserk was released! Galaxian looks nice with all the various play options.
Nice! I completely agree with you. I did pre-order the Berzerk replicade from newwavetoys.com which I'll do a video on it once it comes in. Pre-orders are still available on their site 🙂.
I had Donkey Kong and Zaxxon. I remember not really getting into Zaxxon until a few years later because I didn't understand the 3D screen. I was always crashing into stuff. I was a youngin though and everything seemed hard in retrospect. Plus, everything was new and I didn't have parents who understood those things. Now, today, almost every parent is a gamer!
@@VintageGamingMemories Truth! I remember my Dad buying Pong in the 1970s and Atari in the 1980s and then it was up to me to teach myself with everything that came after. I was born in 1971 and always amazed at dudes my age who still game (not to mention my friends). I only wish kids would find time to go play outside and still play video games. Kids don't play outside like we did and we did both!
Good point. You and I had a very similar upbringing 🙂. I want to blame the Internet for today's lack of outside playing but I think we can embrace technology and still enjoy playing outside. I guess it all comes down to parenting. I have a 11 year old and I can attest that it's difficult to balance both of those worlds.@@ThePassionOfTheMarc
Yup, you are correct. Some have commented here about how it was interesting that Coleco got the licensing rights to sell the Nintendo G&W DKJ game but they (Coleco) and other companies back then and even today obtain these rights to circulate their products. In the end, business is business, lol.
Always wanted one of these as a kid but never asked my parents for one because of the price. I think $199 is what they cost back then. I found Pac Man at a thrift shop in the 90's for $5 and got it, brought it home put batteries in and it worked. My then girlfriend at the time told me if I didn't turn that sh@! off she was going to break it over my head. Galaxian looks like the most fun of the lot. The new 1/4 and 1/6 scale machines play the real arcade roms so now I have a 1/6 scale arcade thanks to New Wave Toys and the volume is adjustable.
Nice pick up on the Pac Man. Do you still have it or did it eventually get broken by your girlfriend, lol. I agree on Galaxian. Coincidentally I just played that on my Atari Flashback Portable. Never gets old for me. 😀 Yes, those New Wave Toys replicades are nice. I have my pre-order for my Berzerk and Frenzy so I just need to remember to look for them in the mail sometime in February, haha. Thanks for sharing your experiences!
Don't give up on them 🙂. I've found sometimes when I opened the non-working ones I purchased that it's only a wire that needs to be soldered back or even something as simple as the battery contacts not fully making contact with the batteries. Using a multimeter to test the traces on the PCB is always fun.
I was supposed to get one of these in the mail, but it was either lost or stolen by a neighbor kid if left in front of our apartment door. Pac-Man fever was such that kids would play anything like it. It's interesting to see that they came up with a couple variations, but strange that they didn't have a volume control or switch. Boy, I can imagine going through C-batteries without an AC adapter! Even K.C. Munchkin for Odyssey² allowed you to make your own mazes (but not save them). It just makes me wonder what Pac-Man for Atari 2600 could have been like if they sprung for the 8K ROM chip and made it more authentic, or with variations. Or if they retired the 2600, how many Atari 400, 800, or 5200s could they have sold with Pac-Man? Maybe the Crash of 1983 wouldn't have happened?
You had me remembering about batteries back in the early 80's and how Radio Shack had their battery-a-month club. I had to check pricing and to think 1 C size "alkaline" battery in 1982 cost around $1.25 or approx $3.95 in today's dollar. There were cheaper types of batteries but they wouldn't last as long so I think people (parents) caught on to the AC adapter investment real quick, lol. I hear you about the 2600 Pac-Man. I never owned an Atari 2600 as a child which is probably why a lot of these 2600 games amazes me today. Good question on what would have happened if they didn't over produced the 2600 or just retired it to slow down the quantity of games and the quality that were being produced. A good economic lesson on market saturation.
That's awesome! I love hearing (reading) that. The good thing is you can still find a very clean (no blemishes) tabletop out there within reason but I know they get pricey when the box and manuals are included. Thanks for sharing that!
do you have all the boxes, Styrofoam and instructions? Donkey Kong junior I used to steal it from a friend back in 1983 we were 11 years old, I would sneak it out at recess time, hide with it and play it, till one day me and another friend got caught playing it lol
Thanks for checking out the video. I don't have boxes for any of the 7. I think I only have the original instructions for 1 so this would not be considered a CIB set. At least that saves me storage space by not having to keep the boxes, lol. I've read a couple stories of people taking these to school to play.... and getting caught like you, haha. My 5th grade memory is a blur but I think there were kids that brought them in class to show other or maybe more so to envy them :-) Thanks for sharing your story!
I had the Frogger one back in 1982. It looked good on my shelf but it wasn't much fun to play. Playing on my Colecovision was much better. With no volume control no way a parent would put up with the noise for long on a car ride.
Yea, it would be hard to compete against the Colecovision. As for the lack of a volume control, you'd have thought in the development or QC phase that the idea of an earphone jack was emphasized and worth the extra cost.
Donkey Kong Junior is actually the same thing as Nintendo's Game&Watch Tabletop, just distributed by Coleco with a new color and removing the Game&Watch branding.
You are correct. I just never understood how it drew consumer interest with the time on the G&W. I've read the background on all that with Gunpei Yokoi who came up with that G&W concept but at the end of the day, it's a novelty which made Nintendo stand out.
Cool vid. I had the Pac Man one when I was a kid. Wanted Donkey Kong got a NES instead. By the way they didn't call him Mario in DK, he was called Jump man
Thank you for checking it out. I'm glad you liked it! Good call out on Jumpman. Not to be confused with Jumpman the game from the early 80's where you defuse bombs on different levels. 😃
Omega Race was one of my very favorite video games of the era. I'm having trouble seeing its fast-paced kinetic action working well in this format. Berzerk could have been pretty good though, despite losing the iconic voice synthesis.
I agree with you on both points. Not sure if you saw this mock up on Omega Race of how it would look on the exterior but this is interesting: handheldmuseum.com/Coleco/OmegaRace.htm Thanks for your insight!
Actually not too bad. Each of mine were anywhere from $60 to the $160 range but there is luck with that too 🙂. I like using the 'saved search' on eBay to get alerted and then the negotiations begin.
My friend had one of these and would never let me play with it. I was so jealous of him!
Ouch. And he still was a friend! You're a better person than I 🙂
@@VintageGamingMemories He could be selfish sometimes, but he was one of my best friends.
I have the Donkey Kong Junior (got it at a kid). I recently restored the battery contacts (acid corroded) and had a friend make me a 3d printed replica battery door.
Nice job on the restoration! Nothing better than bringing back to life great memories!
I still have my Pac Man from childhood and it still works great. I also had the ms pac man, donkey kong , dk jr, and the Parker Brothers version of Q-Bert. So many great memories with these. Thank you for the video!
Thanks for watching! That's great you have your original from childhood still. Definitely a keeper in my book. These truly are like a time capsule to our past memories. Always puts a smile on my face 😊
the Christmas i got the Donkey Kong one was one of the greatest Christmases of my life.
That's awesome! I think it only took 1 of these games to make a Christmas or birthday that much better 😀
Me to when I opened mine on Christmas morning I freaked out and I ran upstairs to show my dad and I had to wake him up because he was out getting drunk on Christmas eve lol.
@@Criticalthinker0515 I'm guessing that was a good Christmas for both of you lol. Happy New Year!
I still have my working frogger from my childhood. It was an awesome Christmas that year!
That's awesome! I love that you have something physical to tie back to happy childhood memories. I find myself having to look at the old wishbooks and catalogs to remember what I might have gotten on Christmas since those toys have been long gone. Thanks for sharing!
Any idea the worth? I got pac man and donkey Kong!
@@erwinlopez7205 Sorry for the delay. Today I've been responding back to people from comments left 6-8 months ago that I didn't get the notification, so I apologize. As for the value, I know many will say it's all about what's in circulation and the game's uniqueness. With that said, Pac Man, Ms Pac Man, Donkey Kong Galaxian and Frogger are on the lower end but for a decent one you could expect it to be worth $75-$125 depending on the decal's condition and if the box & instructions are included a lot more. Donkey Jr and Zaxxon in decent working condition without box will go easily at minimum $200. Hope that helps.
Had Pac-Man & DK. Brings back fun memories. 🤙🏼
Thanks for checking this video out. I'm glad it brought back some good memories. I think we all can use some walks back down memory lane 😉. For me it keeps my mind fresh.
@VintageGamingMemories I hear ya. I have a few arcade machines. Turn on the 80's music and it's totally awesome. Cheers! 🤙🏼
There was just an 80's nostalgia kick about the mini arcades that couldn't be matched. They can be seen in so many 80's movies like Vacation for example. Great collection.
You are so correct on that. I'm glad it continues to live on today with our somewhat younger generation. Although, I'm not sure if it's fully appreciated with my son's generation - Gen Alpha, but someday it will. 😉 I'm glad you enjoyed the video. I appreciate the comment. Thanks!
I had the 1st pac man one as a kid. Then i took it apart to see how it works too many times. The display part was pretty cool
Curiousity killed some of my childhood games too but I don't think I used a screwdriver to open them 😀.
I got the pac man game for Christmas back in 1981. I knew what it was already because I peeked. I had that adapter so I can plug it into the wall.
That's great! The adapter ensures no downtime and then the batteries for when you are in the car, lol.
These were great. I also had a really cool one called Transylvania
Nice! Was it Epoch's Dracula game that was red and black? I don't have that one but I'm working on getting it.
@@VintageGamingMemories yup! Very cool. Wish i held onto it!
Always wanted to grab the pacman out of the Griswalds station wagon
😄@@uhill74
I still have the Donkey kong and pacman ones. Both work perfectly. I've owned them for over 30 years.
Those are the best types to own... the ones that you are the original owner 🙂! That's awesome. Thanks for sharing!
These table-top VFD games were big ticket items back in the early 80's, state of the art in portable/personal video games. You'd definitely be crowned King/Queen of the Day if you showed up in homeroom with one of these.
So true! I remember everyone wanted to be friends with the kid who brought it in and then kids being mad at their parents for not getting one. When my son was in 5th grade, last year, I was hoping for an opportunity to have him bring one of these in to show others in class how we progressed from 40+ years ago. Unfortunately no such luck but he can always show his friends when they come over 😉. Thanks for sharing that memory.
Beautiful collection !!!! I have absolutely none of them but I wish that I did . I do play the Colecovision on my channel though . I am glad that I found your channel and I subscribed .
Thank you so much for the support and feedback. I really appreciate it 🙂!
I have all the original 7 plus a perma power which is still in the packaging (pretty beat up though). All 7 still work too. I also have the Nintendo version of DKJ which is same cabinet but just colored tan with no stickers. I have the Nintendo tabletops of Snoopy, Popeye and Mario's cement factory as well as a Q-bert tabletop game. Donkey Kong was the first one I ever got and I remember getting it for Christmas from my uncle back in 198? whatever year it was. I loved that thing and collected the others. Great video!
WOW! That is a nice collection you have! I'm looking at those new in package Perma Power Battery Eliminator but debating on pulling the trigger at $80-90. Thanks for reminding me of Snoopy and Mario's Cement Factory which I need to pursue 🙂. It's funny how we can remember when and who gave us gifts like these because they no doubt made a lasting impression that continues 40+ years later. Thanks for positive feedback. I really appreciate it.
I had Pac-Man and Frogger. They were Christmas presents.
Now those are nice Christmas gifts!
I have the Galaxian one. It was lots of fun
Nice! It seems like the majority, from what I'm reading here, did like Galaxian. I still equate Galaxian with what I remember on the Atari 400/800 which is probably why I'm bias with liking it.
I had the Donkey Kong one, as a kid. I now have Pacman, Ms Pacman, Galaxian, Frogger, and Donkey Kong.
Nice job on the collection! I think they can dress up any room 😅
Got Donkey Kong as Christmas present. Played the hell out of it. Loved that game. It has 2 levels, 1st is the basic jump barrels and get to the top, 2nd is the rivet level where Mario goes over the rivets.
Thanks for commenting. You got me to throw some batteries in it again this evening to relive your Christmas 🎄. I do love it too.
I have incredible nostalgia for the Zaxxon game which I had as a kid. I wish I still had it but somehow it disappeared from my parents' house after I left for college.
Me too. That 3D view from a third person perspective blew my mind. I had to reprogram how I played flight games back then., lol
Would have LOVED getting one of these games when I was a kid. They were the Raspberry Pi & Arcade1up of the time.
Yes, you are so right on that! 😃
I still have Zaxxon. It still works and well kept living on a shelf in a closet here.. However it is arguably one of the hardest games to play. I think this Coleco port is more difficult than the actual arcade game
I have issues with it too but I'm blaming my eyesight and hands being too big now as an adult, haha.
I have owned Pac-Man since I was five. It still has the box and manual. I also acquired Donkey Kong, Zaxxon, and the similar Q-bert (boxed) seen at the end of your video. All decals are original and in good condition. I also have two sets of power adapters, one of which is from childhood. Such a great set of little cabs. Kids lined up at my door to play Pac-Man as if I had gotten the arcade.
That is pretty amazing! I really envy and appreciate those like youself who have their childhood games still today. That is so cool! Thanks for sharing that.
I’m looking to replace my DK game. One of these days i’ll get around to it. great video
I hope you do 🙂. I'm glad you enjoyed the video. Thank you!
i had a bunch of these back in the day. Frogger, Pac-Man and a few others that came into and out of my hands over time.
You could almost rent them out to friends or others to earn some money on the side, lol. It's nice that you had the experience of owning these back then.
Thanks for taking the time to share the collection.
I'm glad you enjoyed it. It was really fun to relive all of these at once. Thanks!
Still have the galaxian one, got really good at it back in the day. A great game. If you get time should do a play video for 5 minutes of each of your games. Hearing those sounds again is really cool. Havent played it since i showed it to my kids around 2002!
Thanks for checking out the video and the suggestion as well. I know these were only played for a minute or so each on this video. Probably because it was one of my early posts and I wasn't sure how bored one might get watching me play. I may do something like a 5 minute play of all my games with no narrative to just allow one to see and hear the sounds like you mentioned. Great idea!
I had 6 of the 7… bought from eBay and then resold back on eBay. They were pretty cool games from ‘81-‘83. I think I need to get them again :)
I remember only Zaxxon used Ds while all the others used C cells. :)
I might have one of yours, lol. You're right on those batteries. I needed 22 C's and 4 D's to have these all up at the same time 😄
I had Galaxian back in the day. I’ve now Zaxxongot 5 of the 7. Missing DKJ and Zaxxon. They’re my favorite part of my collection. I always liked how they were shaped like an arcade cabinet.
You are so right about that. The design was perfect back then and still today. Nice on your collection! Are you planning to complete the 7?
Tron?!
lol, good catch. Yea, Tomy Tron is not part of the Coleco line. @@madderbob100
@@VintageGamingMemories. I’m satisfied with what I have. My last handheld I’m looking for is Tomytronic Digital Derby. My best friend had it.
I can hear Digital Derby's crash sound as I was reading your comment 😉. I love that game too. Definitely a good variety of them (condition based) on eBay so that's great. @@pacebrison1453
My neighbor was super lucky enough to have five of these (he didn't have Zaxxon or PacMan), but he let me play with them a ton. Such great times! Seeing these again, my memory made me think these looked better and more interactive than they are though.
Thank you and thanks for sharing that memory! It's awesome to know that many of us, like you, realized there was joy in playing these even if you didn't own one. I totally relate.
I never had these as a kid, I had Tron, Scramble, and Space Invaders instead. I did have friends who had some of these and egad, that sound in Pac Man and Donkey Kong used to (and still does) drives me crazy. They should put those sounds on a loop and use them for interrogations. After about an hour of listening to that whoever they were questioning would break and start singing like a bird.
I'm not sure if you ever checked this out but if you go on Amazon Music and search '8-bit arcade' you will find 100s of albums and 1000s of songs/tracks created with the sounds of the 8-bit games we all remember... even Pac-Man, lol.
@@VintageGamingMemoriesAnother good way to get good intel from an interrogation is to force the person to play Castle Excellent (NES/Famicom). After an hour of that crap they'll tell you anything you want to know.
Haha, I had to refresh my memory on that game and now I see, I mean hear, what you mean, lol
I remember seeing someone play around with the PacMan one at the local Radio Shack. I so wanted one.
Coleco didn't have to market to hard when friends and department stores had these on display to get us kids to ask mom and dad for it. Remember their motto, "The arcade games you can take home with you".
I had the Frogger one, this was amazing technology back then.
Definitely! It was just enough fun to keep us entertained so that we still would want to go outside and play 😉
I found one of the Donkey Kong games like this in some bushes outside church as a kid. It was missing the battery cover but worked fine and my sister and I played with it for years.
Wow! Was that a heaven-sent sign from above? Cool story!
My family had the Donkey Kong one. I really really wish we still did. It disappeared in the mid-90s from our garage.
Oh I totally hear you. About 99% of my overall collection all had a history from another owner which makes it interesting but I always wondered what happened to those games I actually owned as a child that "disappeared". Brings sleepless nights 🙂
I had Galaxian and many hours of fun.
I like that! Another Galaxian fan 😊. Can't beat the sounds and color from it!
I have the Zaxxon and Frogger, got the Zaxxon from my Uncle who didn't play it anymore in 86 or so and bought the Frogger from a Church sale for 2 dollars in the early 90s.
Those are great pick-ups! What a nice uncle to pass that Zaxxon down and keep it in the family. I hope my 10 year old appreciates this too when he gets it 🙂.
I remember camping trips with my puerto rican friends Jason and Fernando where at night we'd sit near the barbecue grill and put our consoles on the park bench tables and play while Fernando's dad grilled burgers 🍔 and chicken and hot dogs 🌭 we each had one, mine was Pac - Man. Jason had Donkey Kong and Fernando had Frogger. Simple games, but great at the time for when you were out with friends! They were costly, but that encouraged kids to share with eachother and recreate the arcade experience lol. Quintessential 80's 😅😅😅😅😅😅😮😮
That's a great story and memory! I can almost picture it too. Nothing bring friends together more than Coleco 😄. You're right though, these $$$ games did teach us all about sharing more than ever. Thanks for sharing this.
Had the pacman one as a kid
I'm starting to think I'm the only one that never had any one of these as a kid. I guess better late than never. 🤣
@@VintageGamingMemories don't worry mine got taken away when I took it to school lol
ive started my collection. started with donkey kong because of gremlins, i enjoy working on these and repairing them. Super clean collection, i enjoyed the history lesson
There's something about bringing back to life these games from the early 80s that gives us the satisfaction, sense of accomplishment and more knowledge of early gaming history that we enjoy. That's awesome you get it too! Thanks so much for the comment and continued success with your collection!
I remember seeing the ads for these in magazines back in the day, and they used a real pic of the arcade game to show the gameplay inside these little cabinets.
needless to say I was slightly disappointed when i finally got try mine! Haha, early photoshop daze!
The marketing or possibly false advertisement was out there. Even the commericals had the real arcade games shown but then zapped into the handhelds. We sure have come a long way with what we now can have in our home "arcade caves". Thanks for sharing that memory!
Playing the Pac-Man are among my earliest memories. Wish I still had it.
Aww, that's too bad you don't have it but I'm glad you have the memories still! Thankfully these are still able to come by on eBay for a reasonable price 😊
The zaxxon game also has mirrors in the game to give it the 3D effects
You are correct. The 1 mirror is in between the 2 VFDs. Apparently the mirror is what produces the images in the air. Here's a nice picture of the inside: handheldmuseum.com/Guts/Coleco-ZaxxonGuts.jpg
I have them all except for Ms. Pac, Galaxian and DK Jr. I hope to finish off the collection soon!
Very nice! You're almost there. Congrats on your journey towards completion!
I have all of these except for the Donkey Kong Junior. These are so much fun to play!
NICE!! I think these are fun to play too. I wouldn't say that I'd be addicted to playing these in today's world but back in the 80s, I can see myself looking forward to playing after coming home from school 😁
I got zaxxon and my brother got dk junior for xmas one year and it was amazing!
That's a win - win! 😁
I had the Donkey Kong game. It was pretty loud. I remember waking my parents up in the middle of the night playing it.
😄I always wondered how kids would play this at night and not wake up their parents. I guess one could try to muffle the sound with covers. An earphone out would have been nice.
I still have my Donkey Kong which I bought in 1982. This past weekend I found a Pac Man. I have 2 perma power battery packs as well. I recently did a video comparing 1982 Table top arcade compared to what's being produced today.
That is awesome! Those perma battery eliminators are a keeper. I did watch that video of yours. Great job on the comparison!
I have ,pacman ,ms pacman & frogger. I need to replace the label on pacman. I also have a few other from different company. Love these games. Awsome video.
Thank you, I really appreciate the support. It's great that these labels are either able to be made at home or for purchase online.
I frequent a lot of antique and vintage shops and have noticed that Pac Man. Ms Pac Man and Donkey Kong are easy finds but the rest are slim pickins. I think because the first three I mentioned were the most popular at the so more available years later.
Most definitely. Plus DK Jr & Zaxxon came last in the bunch so didn't get to be part of the initial buying freenzy in 1981/82. Would have been great to find actual production and sales figures for each. Millions for sure 🙂. Thanks for the comment.
I just got the donkey kong one yesterday but I am going to try to find all of these.
That's excellent! It's a great hunt since it's all out there and you have the control to decide which seller to get it from. Wish you the best and have fun with it!
The Donkey Kong JR game was just a port into the big box from the 'game n watch' games..that's why it has the clock.
Yep. Nintendo perfected the G&W in many of their games back then (e.g. Popeye, Snoopy, etc). It's a novelty concept which did stand out.
I always wondered what those were sitting on AVGN's wall shelf behind him.
Yup, good eye! He also has the Popeye tabletop from Nintendo on that wall shelf which I'll do a video soon. Thanks for watching!
I rencetly bought PacMan and Zaxxon in marketplace :) Nice editions !! Planning on buying all :) I am in the process of making arcade with spare room I have and trying to buy vintage stuff also like colecovision console and atari and others to put on display
Nice job on those pick ups! I like where you're going with this. Definitely would like to see how it turns out.
I had Zaxxon, which I got for Christmas (83?), I really wanted the Donkey Kong one, but got that instead. Sold it just a few years ago. Now I wished I kept it.
Oh wow. At least you had it for almost 40 years to sometimes enjoy. I know how you feel 😢
The Pac Man one can be seen in the 1983 movie, National Lampoon's Vacation, but it's not being used, it's in the back of the station wagon, and later on , sitting on the bed as Russ looks at the magazine... I don't think these pop up often in film/TV
Awesome call out! I just played the movie and saw it in the beginning of their drive, right behind Audrey in the back, lol. Thanks for sharing that!
also seen in the backseat is a Milton Bradley Super Simon in it's box, and , if memory serves me right ( as I haven't seen the movie in awhile ) is a Coleco Whiz Quiz , also in it's box @@VintageGamingMemories
When we were kids, I had the Donkey Kong, my brother Shawn had the Pacman and my sister Sheri had the Frogger Coleco tabletop game…
Oh, I like that idea of "sharing" the fun! Thanks for "sharing" that memory 😉
Had Ms. PacMan, PacMan, Donkey Kong, & Zaxxon. Great for car trips. Problem was, they took 4 or 5 C or D size batteries. Was always going to Radio Shack for these.
That's a nice bundle! Yeah the batteries make it a costly toy. I know they had rechargeable batteries back then but they were pretty expensive too. I guess that's the price we (our parents) had to pay for having the coolest toys in the early 80s 😁. Thanks for sharing.
Do you have Burgertime???
Yes but only in the Super Impulse Tiny Arcade version 🙂. What version are you referring to and do you have one?
Well done buddy. You sure said it, for a second there i thought you were “The No Swear Gamer” but you turned out to be not-2-shabby there partner’ not too shabby. However, there is still much more that needs to be discussed, & I hope you’re still at it buddy
Thanks for checking out the video! I'll take a "not too shabby" when commented with The No Swear Gamer, haha. You're right, there's always more to be discussed. Seems like it never ends but that's a good thing when it comes to bringing back these types of memories 😀
This makes me want to go to my attic and pull them out of the box. Full collection.
Wow, that''s awesome you have all of those! I hope they are in something labeled, "Handle with care!" 😉
Cool memories, thank you
Thank you for watching! It was fun to get all of these out and really understand the nuances between them. I definitely learned a few new things 🤔
i got the zaxxon one for my birth day from my grandmother in the early 80's
That's a cool memory and a really nice grandmother! Thanks for sharing that.
@@VintageGamingMemories You're welcome
I need that sign on the wall at the end of this video.
lol. I think I got that from Hobby Lobby. Thanks for checking out the video. I appreciate it.
I had donkey Kong in the 80s brings back memories haven’t seen these since neat
Thanks for viewing and I'm glad it brought back memories. That's one of my 2 objectives for this channel: (1) Keep you entertained and (2) bring back some good memories 🙂.
I grew up with the donkey kong jr. one, I really like the rendition of opening song on this one. Unfortunately I can't find it anymore and it's now really expensive on ebay.
Sorry to hear that. DK Jr. started to grow on me, especially when I noticed at 20:57 all the details to each position on the display. I think I set a saved search for it on eBay and jumped on it quickly because sometimes you might find a Buy it Now option that is reasonable.
Yeah and the fack that its an original game and not a port of the arcade dk.jr is really cool, makes it exclusive!
another cool one that I think your missing is Comic 1000 Fire-away by Tandy radioshack. sweet game.
Thanks for that suggestion. I see there were also Cosmic 2000 and Cosmic 3000 Fire Away versions too but I think the Cosmic 1000 in yellow looks the best from a first impression. Game play appears to be similar to the Bambino UFO Master Blaster Station (ruclips.net/video/ctQyz231-VI/видео.htmlsi=nPtg7ctYJhtxCCwI) but different enough that I put an offer on one 😁. I do take advice from my viewers / subs so thank you!
I have the original pac man one I got as a kid. I then added some of the others in the last 10 years.
Excellent! I'm assuming you still have them? That's a great collection that is more often harder to find in good condition. Thanks for sharing!
@@VintageGamingMemories I still have them. Although the joyce stick on the pac man game hasn't worked for a long time.
Hopefully not too hard of a fix on the joystick. This site has been great for me on many handhelds. Here's a link on troubleshooting your Pac-Man if you want to try: www.handheldmuseum.com/Coleco/ColecoRepair/index.html @@thinkblue8089
Received Galaxian for my birthday 1982 and ultimately got the rest of them with the exception of Zaxxon which I really wanted but it was too expensive. My favorite is Frogger as it looked and played most like it’s arcade big brother but I still have fond memories with Galaxian my first. Something about the VFD display that keeps me coming back to play.
You had to be the envy of the block with all of those tabletops back then! I hope you still have them all today 🙂
Remember, Pac-Man was in the back seat of the family truckster in National Lampoon's Vacation while they were on the road trip to Wally World. You can see it behind Clark in a few scenes.
Yup and also in the scene where Rusty is on his cousin Dale's bed looking at the magazine, Swing Shift. It takes a backseat to that magazine as it just lays on the bed behind him, haha.
is the DKJR game a rebranded Nintendo Game and Watch Table Top machine? The form factor looks almost identical
Yup. Nintendo really knew how to stand out with their G&W in many of their games back then (e.g. Popeye, Snoopy, etc). I thought it would have been a novelty forgotten but apparently we continue to notice it 40 years later 🤣
What about the original Pop-Eye mini gat was a different game then the arcade game? It looked similar to DK Jr. but green.
You are correct. I do have that green Popeye game and it's a game & watch like DK Jr. It does differ from the arcade version because if I remember correctly, the arcade version has floors that Popeye can go up and down while the tabletop you are on a pier battling with Bluto to avoid getting knocked in the water.
I had a Zaxxon when I was maybe 4 or 5 years old. I struggled with the isometric perspective, being so young, but I remember being entranced by the sheer "arcade--ness" of the whole package--the way it smelled, the size and heft of it, the decals, the form factor, the way it sounded, the way it lit up a dark room with its dancing LCD lights. 'Wonder what ever happened to that thing.
That was an awesome description and experience of it! You had me feeling it was 1983! Thanks for sharing that. 🙂
It would have been nice to know how coleco ended up selling a game and watch tabletop. The donkey kong Jr one is a copy of the nintendo one in different colors. I never found out how coleco managed the right to sell the exact same unit. Thats also the reason behind the clock btw, all game and watch games had a clock.
Those licensing rights seem to extend across many game developers which would make sense back then. Still happens today with the old made new concept tabletops you see out there. I just don't know what type of licensing Coleco got from Nintendo and the other gaming developers - whether it was trademark, copyright, patent, or ??
Yeah, I mentioned in comments to others on the G&W concept here. I know Nintendo was the innovator of that concept but I just didn't think it would persuade me as a kid to want to get that over something else. It's a novelty that apparently worked for many. As a parent, I could see using it as a time management tool with game play for my kids 🙂.
Hi, just subbed. Nice, i always wondered what Zaxxon looked. Its the only i know i never played.👾
Thank you. I'm glad you liked the video. I really appreciate that.
I have the Donkey Kong with box and all inserts......from my childhood !
Most definitely rare and awesome! That's a keeper to stay with the family. Congrats!😁
These take Sea-Batteries? That would be good for playing on the Beach.
lol.... nice one! 🤣
The Donkey Kong Jr. is just a rebranded Nintendo Game & Watch, isn't it?
It would explain the different form of lighting, the clock, Game A and Game B modes, the sound effects, and it only mimicking the arcade game's level design in the most general sense, with Nintendo kind of letting the Game & Watch arcade adaptations "be their own thing"
Yes, you are correct. It wasn't supposed to be a G&W while in production but it did. Nintendo really took that G&W concept to many of their games, mostly the smaller handhelds. I have the Nintendo Popeye tabletop which is also a G&W and I believe they have a couple more tabletop G&W ones.
I have Frogger and Donkey Kong. I used to have Pac man, but I broke it taking it apart. >.< Eat and run was a fun variant. I would have really loved if Berserk was released! Galaxian looks nice with all the various play options.
Nice! I completely agree with you. I did pre-order the Berzerk replicade from newwavetoys.com which I'll do a video on it once it comes in. Pre-orders are still available on their site 🙂.
No one I knew had any of these as a kid. I always assumed they were little CRT TVs 😂.
lol, that's funny!
I had Donkey Kong and Zaxxon. I remember not really getting into Zaxxon until a few years later because I didn't understand the 3D screen. I was always crashing into stuff. I was a youngin though and everything seemed hard in retrospect. Plus, everything was new and I didn't have parents who understood those things. Now, today, almost every parent is a gamer!
Yup, we were on our own with these games back then but now we're the OG of gaming as parents or grandparents 🤣
@@VintageGamingMemories Truth! I remember my Dad buying Pong in the 1970s and Atari in the 1980s and then it was up to me to teach myself with everything that came after. I was born in 1971 and always amazed at dudes my age who still game (not to mention my friends). I only wish kids would find time to go play outside and still play video games. Kids don't play outside like we did and we did both!
Good point. You and I had a very similar upbringing 🙂. I want to blame the Internet for today's lack of outside playing but I think we can embrace technology and still enjoy playing outside. I guess it all comes down to parenting. I have a 11 year old and I can attest that it's difficult to balance both of those worlds.@@ThePassionOfTheMarc
The Donkey Kong Junior Tabletop was actually made by Nintendo, because it was a Game & Watch Tabletop.
Yup, you are correct. Some have commented here about how it was interesting that Coleco got the licensing rights to sell the Nintendo G&W DKJ game but they (Coleco) and other companies back then and even today obtain these rights to circulate their products. In the end, business is business, lol.
Always wanted one of these as a kid but never asked my parents for one because of the price. I think $199 is what they cost back then. I found Pac Man at a thrift shop in the 90's for $5 and got it, brought it home put batteries in and it worked. My then girlfriend at the time told me if I didn't turn that sh@! off she was going to break it over my head. Galaxian looks like the most fun of the lot. The new 1/4 and 1/6 scale machines play the real arcade roms so now I have a 1/6 scale arcade thanks to New Wave Toys and the volume is adjustable.
Nice pick up on the Pac Man. Do you still have it or did it eventually get broken by your girlfriend, lol. I agree on Galaxian. Coincidentally I just played that on my Atari Flashback Portable. Never gets old for me. 😀
Yes, those New Wave Toys replicades are nice. I have my pre-order for my Berzerk and Frenzy so I just need to remember to look for them in the mail sometime in February, haha. Thanks for sharing your experiences!
We've still got the "Pac-Man" and "Galaxian" units, but neither one still works. =(
Don't give up on them 🙂. I've found sometimes when I opened the non-working ones I purchased that it's only a wire that needs to be soldered back or even something as simple as the battery contacts not fully making contact with the batteries. Using a multimeter to test the traces on the PCB is always fun.
I was supposed to get one of these in the mail, but it was either lost or stolen by a neighbor kid if left in front of our apartment door.
Pac-Man fever was such that kids would play anything like it. It's interesting to see that they came up with a couple variations, but strange that they didn't have a volume control or switch. Boy, I can imagine going through C-batteries without an AC adapter! Even K.C. Munchkin for Odyssey² allowed you to make your own mazes (but not save them).
It just makes me wonder what Pac-Man for Atari 2600 could have been like if they sprung for the 8K ROM chip and made it more authentic, or with variations. Or if they retired the 2600, how many Atari 400, 800, or 5200s could they have sold with Pac-Man? Maybe the Crash of 1983 wouldn't have happened?
You had me remembering about batteries back in the early 80's and how Radio Shack had their battery-a-month club. I had to check pricing and to think 1 C size "alkaline" battery in 1982 cost around $1.25 or approx $3.95 in today's dollar. There were cheaper types of batteries but they wouldn't last as long so I think people (parents) caught on to the AC adapter investment real quick, lol.
I hear you about the 2600 Pac-Man. I never owned an Atari 2600 as a child which is probably why a lot of these 2600 games amazes me today. Good question on what would have happened if they didn't over produced the 2600 or just retired it to slow down the quantity of games and the quality that were being produced. A good economic lesson on market saturation.
Im currently trying to collect all of these. So far I have dk, pacman and galaxian. I thought there were only 6 but I see zaxxon exists lol
That's awesome! I love hearing (reading) that. The good thing is you can still find a very clean (no blemishes) tabletop out there within reason but I know they get pricey when the box and manuals are included. Thanks for sharing that!
my uncle had all of these when i was a young kid.
Your uncle had great taste in gaming! 😃
do you have all the boxes, Styrofoam and instructions? Donkey Kong junior I used to steal it from a friend back in 1983 we were 11 years old, I would sneak it out at recess time, hide with it and play it, till one day me and another friend got caught playing it lol
Thanks for checking out the video. I don't have boxes for any of the 7. I think I only have the original instructions for 1 so this would not be considered a CIB set. At least that saves me storage space by not having to keep the boxes, lol. I've read a couple stories of people taking these to school to play.... and getting caught like you, haha. My 5th grade memory is a blur but I think there were kids that brought them in class to show other or maybe more so to envy them :-) Thanks for sharing your story!
I have all of them like you do
Awesome! I think we're in good company with others. Thanks for sharing!
I had the Frogger one back in 1982. It looked good on my shelf but it wasn't much fun to play. Playing on my Colecovision was much better. With no volume control no way a parent would put up with the noise for long on a car ride.
Yea, it would be hard to compete against the Colecovision. As for the lack of a volume control, you'd have thought in the development or QC phase that the idea of an earphone jack was emphasized and worth the extra cost.
Still have my Galaxian, ms Pac-Man and zaxxon
That's an awesome trio, especially when you're the original owner. Nice job on keeping a hold of them!
Donkey Kong Junior is actually the same thing as Nintendo's Game&Watch Tabletop, just distributed by Coleco with a new color and removing the Game&Watch branding.
You are correct. I just never understood how it drew consumer interest with the time on the G&W. I've read the background on all that with Gunpei Yokoi who came up with that G&W concept but at the end of the day, it's a novelty which made Nintendo stand out.
Cool vid. I had the Pac Man one when I was a kid. Wanted Donkey Kong got a NES instead. By the way they didn't call him Mario in DK, he was called Jump man
Thank you for checking it out. I'm glad you liked it! Good call out on Jumpman. Not to be confused with Jumpman the game from the early 80's where you defuse bombs on different levels. 😃
I have the PacMan and Frogger ones. 🙂 I'm pretty sure my brother has Zaxxon.
That's a solid group of games you both have and I'm sure there are some great memories to go with them too 🙂
i had Ms Pac Man and was surprised at how competent it was.
I know these are not exactly how it played in the arcades but it served its purpose nicely..... especially if you were a kid. I agree with you!
Omega Race was one of my very favorite video games of the era. I'm having trouble seeing its fast-paced kinetic action working well in this format. Berzerk could have been pretty good though, despite losing the iconic voice synthesis.
I agree with you on both points. Not sure if you saw this mock up on Omega Race of how it would look on the exterior but this is interesting:
handheldmuseum.com/Coleco/OmegaRace.htm
Thanks for your insight!
Damn those cost 60 dollars in the eighties... How much are they now 1000?
Actually not too bad. Each of mine were anywhere from $60 to the $160 range but there is luck with that too 🙂. I like using the 'saved search' on eBay to get alerted and then the negotiations begin.
i have Zaxxon, Frogger, and Donkey Kong Junior!
Nice! Those are definitely great ones to have plus you have 2 of the most prized ones covered! Thanks for sharing.
I only have 3 of them so far
That's great! It's more than I had a year ago.
I have 3 zaxxons .. 2 DK 5 PAC man. ..one cant have enough
Whoooooaaaaa! That is quite a collection. I do love that desire to have just 1 more (or many) of something you like. 😀
Funny how Coleco keeps making broken PSP games with a widescreen aspect ratio lately instead of just remaking these.
Have you seen the Coleco Revival series? I'm reading/seeing many complaints on that front with Coleco too.