From a cave in Missouri, Atari's video game reign returns
JEFF BALTRUZAK
Short Circuits
Back in the early 80s, Atari captured the hearts and minds of an entire young generation with horrible graphics and unforgettable titles like "Pac-Man" "Dig Dug," and "Asteroids."
Many a game of "Pole Position" was played with Van Halen's "1984" blasting on the tape deck, and the game system was widely successful, with more than 35 million units sold.
Like denim jackets, but unlike leg warmers, Atari is coming back after almost 20 years of garage sales and obscurity in America's attics and basements.
For years, Atari dodged being completely forgotten, thanks to the efforts of a small contingent of hardcore fans that never moved out of their parents' house and can quote entire 10 minute sections of "Return of the Jedi."
Right now, Atari 7800 systems are selling for $60 on Ebay, which is funny when you consider that Sega's Dreamcasts are going for $99 in stores these days. Atari was the first truly mass-produced video game system. It came in two models, the 2600 and the more sophisticated 7800 system, if "sophisticated" is the correct word.
The core video game designing theories pioneered by Atari are still used today, but whereas it took a month to design an Atari title, today's games can take more than a year from drawing board to production.
Now O'Shea Ltd. has commercialized the whole Atari re-revolution.
When the Atari Corporation went bankrupt in 1996, O'Shea bought their entire inventory of unsold games, more than two million cartridges in all, of which they currently still have 1.1 million.
But it gets weirder. The company stores the games in neat stacks in a limestone cave in Missouri the size of a football field. Nearby is a working mine, and everyday at 5:30 p.m. the warehouse shakes when miners blast dynamite.
All games are "brand new," in the original packaging. Apparently, storing the games 150 ft. underground keeps the temperature in the warehouse at a constant 68 degrees, which is the optimal temperature for Atari cartridge storage, as concluded by a Harvard University study.
Underground caves have been used for a wide variety of important activities: nuclear bomb shelters, housing priceless heirlooms and secret hideouts for villainous cartoon characters. Add Atari game storage to that prestigious list.
O'Shea sells the games on a Web site at www.atariclassic.com, where every game goes for $2, but a minimum of 12 games must be purchased per order.
"These games are definitely collectible items, and they are fast approaching antique status, thus raising their collectible value with each passing year," claims O'Shea employee Bill Houlehan
It is expected that when Atari games actually are considered antiques, they could be worth as much as $2.10, but judging by O'Shea's enormous inventory, supply is currently outstripping demand.
Jeff Baltruzak is a sophomore business major. Short Circuits appears every third Wednesday in Scene.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
All Scene Stories for Wednesday, April 4, 2001
