there is a fantastic article about fixing bugs in the game, I am pretty sure that HN will appreciate:
E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
21–30 of 47 posts
Re: E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
#22I'm both amazed and disappointed that this urban legend turned out to be true. The former because who the would do that in the first place? The latter because who the would do that in the first place?
Also, there were about 14 million Atari 2600 consoles in existence, and this number includes the ones in closets. Atari manufactured many millions more than that, apparently on the theory that the game would drive 2600 sales as well. I'll tell you, Atari marketing was terrible . They had no earthly clue what they were doing. Oh, I've got stories...
Tell us some. Please.
Re: E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
#23I saw a funny, but also sad, bit by a comedian once. I wish I could remember his name. " Everything you've ever owned is still out there," he said. "Remember those rollerblades you used once in 1994? Those still exist. Except maybe in little pieces. Maybe in the ocean." Maybe in 20 years someone will dig up a few of those millions of plastic Guitar Hero guitars that are now wasting away in landfills for a documentary…
That would be the great Bill Burr:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vJty38k7n4
Re: E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
#24I'm both amazed and disappointed that this urban legend turned out to be true. The former because who the would do that in the first place? The latter because who the would do that in the first place?
I don't think it was ever in doubt, or really an urban legend. It was an openly reported fact at the time, in multiple newspapers, and confirmed by an Atari spokesperson. The Alamogordo Daily News ran a series of articles, and the main controversy at the time was local indignation that Atari might be dumping electronic waste in New Mexico without permits, which led to some changes in dumping laws. That a bunch of unsold E.T. cartridges were among the waste was reported matter-of-factly, and only seems to have gained mythical status sometime later, as a kind of symbol of the '83 crash. And then that mythical status morphed into people doubting that it happened at all! But now they dug it up and found exactly what the 1983 newspapers said.
It's being reported as having confirmed something that was previously mere rumor or legend, but it wasn't actually very mysterious or hidden at the time.
Re: E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
#25I actually liked the E.T. game. It was probably one of the games I played the most as a child (next to Pitfall). Pac Man, on the other hand, was terrible on the Atari.
Atari Pac-Man was terrible, but my dad loved it. My first Atari (along with that game and many others) ended up in the closet throughout the 80s. In the early 90s, while I was playing SNES with all of my high school friends, my dad pulled the Atari out of the closet to "show us kids a real game". Apparently he had grown up on arcade Pac-Man in the 70s, and found the Atari Pac-Man to be much more difficult and therefore a worthy challenge.
Re: E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
#26I saw a funny, but also sad, bit by a comedian once. I wish I could remember his name. " Everything you've ever owned is still out there," he said. "Remember those rollerblades you used once in 1994? Those still exist. Except maybe in little pieces. Maybe in the ocean." Maybe in 20 years someone will dig up a few of those millions of plastic Guitar Hero guitars that are now wasting away in landfills for a documentary…
This isn't always the case. In Norway, for example, landfills are rare and most non-recyclable trash is incinerated to provide heat. So if you put something in the garbage here, odds are it'll be turned into carbon dioxide by next week.
Re: E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
#27Earlier quoted context omitted.
Well this happened back when we really didn't give a shit about the environment AND just before conspicuous consumption more or less defined the 80s. What I'm dumbfounded by is why they didn't simply give them away? It reminds me of all the stupid YouTube videos of people who wait in line to buy the latest Apple product only to smash it in front of everyone else waiting in line...
It Is a shity game. Allowing people to play it would have been bad for the brand. Where I work, we(someone) burns the stuff that we can't sell not cause the stuff is bad, it is done to make shore the brand does not get associated with Cheap stuff. Brand status is important. (I know it is somewhat insane but it is the way capitalism works)
One of the local super markets sends containers full of new TVs, washing machines, and more, to the local scrap yard. They didn't sell them within the period that they expected, and instead of discounting them (which would drive away consumers from more expensive products), they 'recycle' them.
Re: E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
#28This story reminds me of the B-17s used in the 1963 Steve McQueen movie "The War Lover".
3 B-17's were procured, put in flying condition, and flown to England. With some clever photography and editing, the movie makes those 3 airplanes look like a fleet. After the movie, what was to be done with the planes?
The British government wanted some large import tax on them, but the movie production budget was exhausted. They couldn't even afford to buy the gas to fly them back to the US. The movie company tried to GIVE the airplanes to a British museum, but the government still wanted their import tax, and the museums couldn't pay the tax, either.
The solution was to pour gasoline on them and burn them to the ground.
Re: E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
#29I saw a funny, but also sad, bit by a comedian once. I wish I could remember his name. " Everything you've ever owned is still out there," he said. "Remember those rollerblades you used once in 1994? Those still exist. Except maybe in little pieces. Maybe in the ocean." Maybe in 20 years someone will dig up a few of those millions of plastic Guitar Hero guitars that are now wasting away in landfills for a documentary…
That would be the great Bill Burr: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vJty38k7n4
Thanks for pointing to the hilarious source!
Re: E.T. cartridges found in infamous Atari landfill
#30I saw a funny, but also sad, bit by a comedian once. I wish I could remember his name. " Everything you've ever owned is still out there," he said. "Remember those rollerblades you used once in 1994? Those still exist. Except maybe in little pieces. Maybe in the ocean." Maybe in 20 years someone will dig up a few of those millions of plastic Guitar Hero guitars that are now wasting away in landfills for a documentary…
I look forward to the day humans are forced to mine landfills to get previous goods.
It will be amazing when the cheapest (maybe only?) way to get is to recycle old discarded stuff.