We Need To Talk About AtariAge...

[@TheAtariNetwork]

Just to clarify, I got the timeline wrong on the Coleco Chameleon Retro VGS thing. I was going off memory, oops.

[@littaum]

Sounds like you need to make an update to correct the inaccuracies of your video. I would suggest titling it "We Need To Talk About The Atari Network".

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@littaum sounds like a job for you my friend.

[@jeremiahthomas8140]

I believe Albert said that the Last Chance Sale was TWO years worth of regular orders. I am glad he gave us a chance to buy those games instead of just pulling them. I do want my order, though. I want to play Popeye.

[@delfmeek5481]

I'm still waiting on my last chance sales orders from last year.

[@LinuxRocks101]

I got my last chance copy of Stargate for the 5200 a few months ago. I truly appreciate his hard work. He even sold me just the box for Adventure II after I learned that they made boxes in a reprint once. Now I've got a nice complete copy. I love all of my stuff that I've gotten from them over the years. I was unaware how long it could take before, but I came to understand why. Hopefully he gets everything sorted out. It's truly a great site still. Now I just wish someone would make Adventure III for the 7800! lol

[@jeremiahthomas8140]

A couple of points, the Last Chance Sale was not a pre-order. All of those games had already been released. Second point, I am sure once the Last Chance Sale orders are done things will gp back to normal. Atari is supposed to start helping with manufacturing, but Atari really cannot get involved until all those Last Chance Sale orders are done. I am sure they want to stay at arms' reach for legal reasons.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@jeremiahthomas8140 understood about them not wanting to get involved. After the video was released I've talked to a few people and I think the reasons are numerous. In my opinion it all comes down to communication. If there was better communication with people who are waiting, they wouldn't be reaching out to anybody and everybody with Atari in their name for answers.

[@dad7275]

Im still waiting on my last chance games too. STILL not getting any response even from the last time I talked to you about this. Nothing. He needs to send out a email to everyone involved. At this point there is no excuse. Atari does need to step in at this point. Ive been nice and respectful with every email.

[@dad7275]

At March 13th this year he told me my last chance games would be shipped out in 2-3 weeks. I just looked up the gmail. Hopefully he'll get them shipped out soon. Ive been very understanding on this but the time has come to to get what I ordered around a year ago. Not trying to throw hate, but the time has come to get our games.

[@jimmybrazell2645]

I am also still waiting on my last chance games. In the past when I ordered just one game, they came pretty quickly, but when I had order multiple games, it always takes longer. Something told me to order each game separate and maybe I would have a few of them now, but I would have had to pay a lot more freight for that.

[@A31Chris]

Atari cannot step in. They can have nothing to do with IP's they do not own the rights to distribute

[@dad7275]

@@A31Chris well i figured they could send him some help or something since they do own Atariage which does make it in theory Atari. But Atari isn't much better with their pre-ordered games. I just recently received Mr Run and Jump limited edition I ordered around 10 months ago. So, I guess I haven't much choice but to wait it out. I have ordered from Atariage before and recieved games much quicker. I actually ordered 3 games AFTER I ordered the last chance games and have already received them a while back. So obviously the last chance games are being put on the back burner which is sad considering how long people have been waiting. I still have faith I'll get them, but trust has been damaged.

[@seanshepard2000]

This really spoke to me, because I am the demographic you mentioned: someone who had a 2600 as a kid, and just since the 2600+ got back into it! I actaully placed my very first order from Atariage during the last chance sale .. it took FOREVER to get my games, but I got them. It required me to send several emails asking for udates, but I got them. I placed another order last year, and I had to threaten to cancel my order (After several emails) because it was taking so long - in the end, I got my order. Now, since I satarted watching your channel, and since you confirmed that the Bently Bear game for the 7800 works on the 2600+, I went ahead 3 days ago and ordered it .... I knew what I was doing when I ordered it, lol, I know it's going to take forever - I'm a patient person, but I have my limits - I'm going to wait 4 weeks before I send an email out, but seems like every order I've made with them (I think this is my 4th order), I've had to email several times in order to get a response/results. I'm glad you brought this up, because, well, I never knew there was a resource for the old, atari stuff until recently - and now, I want to dive deeper into the new stuff - I hope they can improve, I hope they can hire more people, and I agree 100%: now that Atari owns it, it's even LESS acceptable for months and months of wait time.

[@RichardTroupe]

Fair points about AtariAge. I waited for around 18-24 months to get Bentley Bear's Crystal Quest due to a combination of Covid and Brexit, and it was tied up with a Jaguar game pre-order. After some communication, I was able to get some of my order shipped but had to remind about my Crystal Quest boxed game. Other than that, things have been reasonably prompt. I understand that it's largely a one-man operation, but hopefully things will pick up under Atari's ownership.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@RichardTroupe I think we can all be forgiving about outside factors like the world pandemic. But now it's just taking too long. Something needs to be done or they will miss out on a lot of sales from casuals who make up a larger segment of the market than the rest of us!

[@petewilcox3354]

@@TheAtariNetwork ya that world pandemic was more than a few years ago.

[@mullinsmw]

I put in an order for Bentley Bear and got my copy about 3 months later. I had done my research though and knew there would be a delay between ordering and shipping. I do agree it would be nice to get some kind of ETA, but I knew I would eventually get my game and to be honest, I got it sooner than I expected. I can’t speak to the last chance orders as I missed the boat on that, but I do read on the forums when people get theirs and it seems to come in batches.

[@johnketo2150]

Great video and you are not rocking the boat too much! Atari Age is the Michael Dell of the homebrew community. They build your game after you placed your order, or more precisely they start making your order after they have finished making the 10+ people’s orders that are in front of you. I never quite understood how a manufacturer can behave like this. Manufacturing takes deep pockets and they have to take some risk up front. When Carl at Songbird releases a game he manufactures 200 or 500 copies of a game BEFORE he starts taking regular orders (not preorders) for the game. When you order a game from Songbird Productions it is just matter of Carl pulling a game from a shelf, very lovingly packing the game or games in a box, attaching a label and driving one or more boxes to a shipper. This last part (the order fullfilment) is not as easy as it sounds, but Carl has a turn around from you placing an order to him getting it out the door of never more than a few days.

[@tommylakindasorta3068]

I think your position is reasonable. Perhaps they could do more to warn people about the slow nature of order fulfillment.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@tommylakindasorta3068 your right on the money in my opinion. Thanks for watching!

[@MarquisDeSang]

I restrain myself from ever buying again from them, they are not professional nor well organized. The lack of infos when you order, the lack of support and the time it takes. Never again.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@MarquisDeSang exactly my point and nobody blames you for that decision. AtariAge could avoid this situation with just some open and honest communication. Al needs to understand that he's throwing business away and he is better than that. Atari is better than that.

[@MarquisDeSang]

@@TheAtariNetwork It reminds me of David Paulides (Missing 411) who does not want to sell his books on Amazon and incist that we use his 1990 website sith 100$ shipping per book without any tracking. People prefer to pay 200$ per book on Amazon from a reseller than go to the troubble of buying his book from his own website.

[@petersatarigames2821]

It makes me sad to hear about how some people are still waiting for the game they ordered. The games I made are produced by Video61, and he almost always delivers within 3 weeks. I know we cannot deliver the same products, and I am working on new stuff for the 8-bit, 5200, and 7800. We were harassed and bullied about some of our game design choices and packaging. I have myself spoke to Video61 to see if there is anything easy and non-expensive we can do about the packaging. I understand no one complains to Lance personally about his current packaging. The facts he gets positive compliments since he switched to boxes 3 years ago.

[@ExcruciatingMinutae]

While I apprerciate what AA has done for the community, my main issue with them is how they are managing their social media. Their choice to have a certain man-child "retro games fan" involved with their social media after throwing so many public tantrums and treating people so poorly on his own groups. It is not a good look for AtariAge to be associated with this person. This person have a well known reputation for berating people that he feels have disrespected him - even if that "disrespect" is something as trivial as having an opinion that is different from his.

[@socrates0603]

tl;dr Jon, you make very reasonable points, and I agree with you. I placed three separate Last Chance Sale orders via the store front and ordered another couple of cartridges via AA forum personal message to Al. With the exception of the two cartridges, all three orders made through the store front arrived at the end of June. In total, my order was very large (in my mind anyway, north of $1k). My expectation when I made those orders was that it would take a year although I was hoping for six months. Even then, it if went beyond a year, I would have had zero problems with the wait and with Al's very sparse mass updates. I trust the man and the nature of the homebrew business. I'm not trying to provide excuses, but people (especially those who are experienced with AtariAge) need to have more realistic level of consumer expectations. Still, I understand that Al could and should have done better and agree with the points made in this video. I also placed two separate store orders (November 2023, June 2024), and they both arrived in a few weeks (2-4 weeks is the typical fulfillment time that I've experienced over the years with non-preorders YMMV). As far as the AA community goes, 99% of my visits are for buying stuff that members are selling and to look up info. I rarely interact meaningfully with the forum users, so I can't speak much about that. I also only witnessed the Amico fiasco from a distance. I use the forums at Atari I/O for community engagement and have made friends there. In the end, I still have a ton of respect for Al and his contributions to the Atari community and the commercial quality homebrew products that he's produced.

[@worldofretrogameplay6963]

I received my last chance order last year. It contained Galaxian and Boulder Dash. I also ordered Odynexus for Lynx 3 months ago, but I haven’t heard a word about it. Al is slow, but he does come through.

[@keithstone001]

I pre-ordered Penult 2600 in January and am still waiting, so he must really be behind. This is fine as I'm in no hurry. I just want to make sure my order wasn't lost or forgotten. After hearing this, I'm sure he's just swamped as I've never had to wait more than a few days for my atari age order. This is however the first pre-order I've made and it did say 2-3 months. But that was 6 months ago. Like I said tho I'm not angry or impatient because I understand how these small operation work, and I do feel better now knowing why it's taking so long. Thanks for the info😊

[@southtexasatlatl]

It's seems to be a common issue with a lot of these sellers of homebrew games. Wish they more transparent and realistic about how long it takes to fulfill your order. If there's delays, that's fine, just give me a heads up is all I ask.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@southtexasatlatl that's just it. I don't think they realize the value of typing an email for five minutes and updating everybody on what's going on. People just don't want to feel like their orders and money aren't important to the people they give it to.

[@southtexasatlatl]

@@TheAtariNetwork exactly! I did place an order at Atariage recently and it did say it could take up to 5 weeks, so there's some progress

[@Jolt7800]

I have great respect for Albert as well but I cannot see myself ordering in the foreseeable future. I was one of the 1st to get a small last chance order and mine took 7 months. I don’t understand why they won’t pause selling games either. Another mystery is that Atari Age has an eBay store that estimates delivery in under 2 weeks. I feel the worst for new enthusiasts and am glad you have brought this up

[@TheAtariNetwork]

I think it needs to be discussed. There needs to be communication and updates out of respect for those waiting. They've spent hundreds of dollars in some cases and deserve to know what's going on. But doing another wave of preorders was just a terrible move. If Atari wants AtariAge to be successful they need to step in here.

[@A31Chris]

Why would atari pause selling games to have the former owner finalize deals that happened before atari own them. Atari is not gonna wait on something that had nothing to do with them

[@brad3042]

I joined the AtariAge forums in 2002 and still maintain an account though I moved on from Atari years ago. I rode the first wave of retrogaming back in the early 00s and ended up selling a lot of my video games around 2008 economic downturn due to money issues and dropping prices. I'm getting back into retrogaming and computers but youtube is a better setting than an old fashioned forum. I'm unaware of any recent problems and I sympathize with anyone that's been wronged. I'm just baffled by the reanimated Atari...buying AtariAge. Made no sense when it happened and still doesn't today.

[@MrModaman]

The problem with the Intelivison scam involving TT was that at least one mod over at AA was a bigtime defender and deleted comments against the Intellivision left and right.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@MrModaman it was messy to be sure

[@TreasureCoastMultimedia]

I'm still owed two games from Last Chance, ordered 1+ years ago. Now Albert ghosting me on communications, going on two months now. Totally unacceptable. Not really understanding those excusing his poor customer service, no excuse to not giving his 1+ years ago paid customers a response or update.

[@calbrig1978]

Funny this just came out now, I got my order today that I ordered and paid for 13 months ago. I understand delays but this is just unacceptable.

[@gorillasapiens9809]

you're not wrong...

[@Zoyx]

My last chance order took about a year, but it finally came. I'm not going to order again until Albert fixes things. I've been ordering stuff since 2006. This is an old email snippet from Al from 2006. Having to wait for your order is nothing new. "I'm writing as you recently placed an order in the AtariAge Store. I just wanted to let you know that I am hard at work on your order and plan on shipping it soon. The 2006 Holiday Sale received a very positive response and I am attempting to dig out from a large pile of orders."

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@Zoyx thanks for sharing. Yeah it's been a problem for a while. It's just rubbing new customers and existing customers the wrong way. Which isn't good...

[@Monhamd1000]

While i did enjoyed their magazines back in the day, they still need criticism to improve the situations and the website as a whole.

[@chazb8948]

Thanks for clearing that up here, I order one of the 7800 game back in Dec 2023. Never got it! Since you say he is good, I can wait then.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

You'll get it but he is taking longer and longer to get stuff out. Thanks for watching!

[@chazb8948]

@@TheAtariNetwork Never got A.R.T.I. for the 7800 yet, since I ordered the game back in Dec, 2023. Getting upset here. He got himself in a mess taking too many orders if that's the case. I'm enjoying your videos, got the 7800 game drive with the free game, the game looks good! Oh, I did text him, he never responded and the text I sent got deleted. I may never buy of from him again. It's been 10 months and nothing from him at all. For the money I spent getting it, he should of reply back.

[@lurkerrekrul]

Average Poster: I just found a prototype of an Atari 2600 game. Atari Age Users: DUMP IT! DUMP IT! WE HAVE TO PRESERVE IT!!! Average Poster: Oh by the way, does anyone know where I can get a copy of the final ROM for the homebrew game Mega Space Blaster? It's been out of production for about a decade now, and the only copies on eBay are going for $200+ Atari Age Users: YOU FILTHY PIRATE!!! HOW DARE YOU ASK FOR A ROM OF A HOMEBREW GAME!!!

[@electricadventures]

Yep still waiting for my last chance order from last year. I know I will get them eventually but not even thing about ordering any more until those are delivered.

[@ThatWriterGuy]

A bit of advice, unless you are personally going to fulfill the orders or refund everyone's money, don't promise people that they will get their order. That's just irresponsible. Asking people to open up lines of communication sounds great but if Albert never responds, what then? I've had pretty much the opposite experience you've had with AtariAge over the years. Albert has never responded to a message I sent.

[@FunkmasterV]

Oh no!

[@Mrshoujo]

It was ignorant to let Atari buy out the website & then expunge all those homebrew titles from the store & then cut off ordering of those games. They kept some homebrews but the ones they removed was a disservice to fans.

[@KrunchyTheClown78]

It'll be 1 year tomorrow for my order. I know Al is working on it. I'm more concerned about new buyers not knowing how things work at AA. The first game I purchased from AA was Petscii Robots, at the time I was like "it's been 2 months! wheres my game?!?" thankfully I got a fast response from Al, along with a photo of all the games he had built for all the orders, and I understood why it was taking so long.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@KrunchyTheClown78 this is exactly it. People won't find this acceptable. Especially without communication. I believe a monthly mass email would go a long way into creating a little consumer confidence. But getting things out in a timely manner would be ideal.

[@dad7275]

@@TheAtariNetwork exactly!

[@KrunchyTheClown78]

@@TheAtariNetwork agreed.

[@tomflanagan3889]

I am still waiting for my last chance items. I understand Albert's situation and I know I will eventually get the games. That being said, I am not going to purchase anymore games from there until I do. I ended up buying muddyfunster's games digitally. Partially because I like the more freedom roms give, partially because I don't trust preorders right now.

[@MSBomberman94]

I wait my order at AA for more than a year now and that’s ok, not great but I can wait for it. It was always top quality and I’m very sure to get everything I ordered. Problem is the decision to remove all „sensible IP related titles“ but that’s Al‘s decision - he could even close the shop if he wants or likes to. You think waiting for a year is long? I ordered a game (Fast Striker 2nd edition from NG Dev team) at 8.3.2018 and hadn’t received it yet - THAT‘s what I call long. What worries me more is the influence and politics of the current Atari - but that's another topic…

[@Fools_Requiem]

I ordered Cybermorph for the Jaguar from the site. It was the cheapest place to get the game. I got it in a normal amount of time. But it also wasn't a pre-order item. I'm disappointed they no longer sell the Jaguar pro controllers.

[@LoveToGameOfCourse]

Wait for all the White Knights to jump in and defend Al. Apparently it’s still ok for him to not have hired additional help, even with the backing of Atari. People are so dumb, they just accept his excuse of being a one man band as ok, instead of asking the question “WHY are you still a one man band?, because you insisting on staying one does nothing but increase our wait time, hurt us customers, and increase your revenue!” . Does he really care about the buyers? Seems pretty selfish if you ask me.

[@erockbrox8484]

I will say, if you took orders and its been a year, you need to fulfill those orders before taking any new orders or give an explanation as to why the orders are taking so long and why you are asking for more orders without fulfilling the first round of orders.

[@ryanedwards976]

I know I’ll end of getting my games but it’s been over a year and still no preorder games delivered. I only ordered two at that. I did finally get confirmation from Albert earlier this year that I should see those two games in the coming weeks. That was 3 or 4 months ago and still no games. My issue is I see him on these vacations in Europe. Would you not finish getting these orders out first or get some help getting them complete. I plan on reaching back out to Albert and seeing if I can get another update on these two games from the pre-order from over a year ago. I will say I am going to be hesitant in ordering from the store in the near future or is going to take close to a year to get.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@ryanedwards976 that's just it. He should send a mass message to everybody saying "Im going to be taking some time off my apologies but here is where we are at" or at the very least don't do another wave of preorders. It rings very tone deaf. The man deserves a vacation, he deserves a personal life, but just a little communication and common courtesies goes a long way. And for the love of God let people help you get this stuff out, even if it isn't your parent company you could speed this up by getting some extra hands.

[@scottlinux]

I'm still waiting on my last chance order from June 2023. Three 2600 games. I long decided to never buy from that store ever again, sadly.

[@JetScreamer_YT]

The Facebook group lost their sense of humor.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@JetScreamer_YT yeah it's a little too serious for me...

[@robertdulany6811]

Frankly I find the forums on AtariAge toxic. It is true there are genuinely nice and super friendly people there, but there are plenty of people making money, I mostly used to hang out in the 8-bit computer forums. Where aging retirees with seriously degraded eyesight and soldering skills will still try to make a buck - and then vigorously defend their shoddy work. You know going in they'll fail half the time - but dancing around their egos is no longer a hobby of mine.

[@JetScreamer_YT]

@@robertdulany6811 I don't know too much about the forum. I was talking about the Facebook group.

[@BriansManCave]

Yeah the mods are super serious

[@Mrshoujo]

I got an innocuous post removed due to "drama." It was not drama. I was attempting humor. Geez.

[@Trialwolf]

I placed an order about a month ago and just got shipping confirmation E-mail today.

[@lanceringquist815]

in most cases, when a customer orders from the world oldest surviving atari dealer, video 61, me, they get their orders within thee weeks time.

[@darlinecorona6562]

Time frame of ordered products, yes quick, however quality of at least the homebrew handmade product not so great. AA's quality of homemade homebrew product, top notch, and honestly would rather wait a year and get top notch, than three weeks and be utterly disappointed.

[@shredhead76]

I’m still waiting now over a year for my last chance order, I wouldn’t be so irritated if he gave frequent updates. That being said spending over $350 I would expect better than the last email I received was in December of last year. I’ve dealt with home brew for years, I know and am fri with guys who are 1 man shows when it comes to production. A year isn’t the worst I’ve waited for big companies like limited games. However I can go to the website and see where the product is roughly in there process. It shouldn’t be a 7 month wait between notifications.

[@DragonKing987]

Atari Age needs to move more of their games to the VCS!

[@erockbrox8484]

I ordered a game from Atari Age, its been 10 years now, but I'm confident Albert will come thru, he always does and you can always count on Albert. God bless you Albert. A one man band.

[@robertdulany6811]

Same it's been 50 years and it was actually my grandfather that placed the order, but I'm confident it'll arrive. Good ole Albert.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

Not gonna lie I laughed out loud at this

[@markfostercrtgamer3201]

Very fair assessment. I'm on total pause too. I've read the new time table is to have most orders done by late February 2025.

[@FunkmasterV]

Youre firing Atariage? Sounds about right....

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@FunkmasterV how do you keep getting in here? I fired you months ago!

[@socrates0603]

LOL😂

[@sensibleperson1979]

You go out of your way to repeatedly say that Albert is a pillar of the community, but it seems to me he’s a self-serving opportunist. The Intellivision Amico was clearly a loser product from the start and Tommy Tallarico was sheltered and protected for YEARS before Albert finally woke up. It only happened because he was personally impacted.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

I mean he's given a platform for talented people to release a game on Atari consoles. Yes he has profited but I don't think he's an opportunist in the most negative way. However I have a hard time finding reason for what he's doing today so maybe I'm wrong...

[@danestegman155]

Good video! I have dealt with Atariage since they first started up years ago! I just got my order from July of last year, that I sent to Atariage in June of this year! I did get a heads up in an email from Albert! I know a lot of people are still waiting for there orders. I would have liked to have order some more items from Atariage, in there sale last year, but decided not too! I have not ordered anything from Atariage presale items this year! Going to see how it goes!

[@alanburnell3566]

Albert is an outstanding guy and I have very good dealings with him over the years. I just have the impression that his hands are tied somewhat now that Atari Age is owned by the newly resurrected Atari. I don’t have any great things to say about the Atari Customer Support. I ordered a Lunar Lander arcade PCB when they first came out. They were advertised as being able to add parts and have an operating arcade cabinet board. I have the real original Lunar Lander game. Problem is: There was silkscreened printing covering the through-hole parts of the board which prevented soldering components to make it an arcade-quality Lunar Lander. I contacted Customer Support. Two years went by with sometimes months of no contact from Atari, and even then it was always a different person and you felt like you were starting over again with the complaint several times. The final dissatisfaction came when they said that the board is sold that way period. Even though you could buy a silkscreened board from an alternate reseller or the reproduction one that should have been solder-able but was not. The board without the fancy silkscreened version is the one I chose, but never received the right one. Again, nothing to do with Atari Age, but with a new owner comes the inevitable thing of having to conform and accept the new ways, whatever they may be. I hope Atari Age remains intact, but the customer support by the new Atari has me skeptical.

[@kNeczpal]

I haven’t ordered from Atariage in a few years and don’t remember too long of a wait but over a year is silly imo. What is the benefit of Atari buying Atariage if they aren’t willing to help with Cartridge manufacturing and shipping of at least the carts that aren’t last chance. If you notice Bently bear game has different art on the VCS store than the original box art Atariage sold a few years back, maybe Atari are planning to rerelease these in a similar fashion they just did with Food Fight, Fatal Run and Ninja Golf for the 7800/2600+ in the past few months? I think that would be a great idea.

[@ressljs]

I'm not sure what's going on, but these long waits aren't the way it always is now. I put in an order a few months ago and got it pretty quickly. I'm not sure if it depends on what specific games are being ordered, non of the ones I ordered were "last chance" games. But if he was just behind on a lot of orders, I'm not sure why last chance vs just released would matter.

[@martinezdm9285]

I still order pretty regularly from AtariAge. I don't care if the wait takes years. The ROMs are available if I want to play the games sooner.

[@ressljs]

I've never had any issues with my orders from AA. I didn't order anything from the "last chance" sale, but I have placed orders AFTER that sale and got my games in a prompt manner. I don't know if I've just been getting lucky, or maybe I dazzled him with my charm in the reviews I left on the website.

[@GeneSimmonsBoots]

I'm still waiting for my last chance games, but I know they'll eventually arrive.

[@SomeOrangeCat]

I won't buy *anything* from Atari Age after the way they aggressively shilled for the Amico and protected Tommy from any and all criticism by banning long time members. Its every upstanding retrogamer's duty to pirate their homebrews.

[@JumboJosh-lv3mo]

Long as more than 83% of there games are good. WE ALL KNOW ATARI and 83 go together like E.T and video games.

[@erockbrox8484]

The only problem was, people were making hacks and homebrews of existing IP's and selling them, but because it was supporting the website, it was deemed okay for the time. You have to think, before true Atari homebrew games, there had to be hacks because people were familiarizing themselves with the system and carts and everything.

[@petewilcox3354]

glad I didnt order nothing from these people.

[@MarquisDeSang]

save yourself from the anxiety.

[@Lightblue2222]

I buy from their ebay store. Anything they sell on there youl get within a week. 💯 It's a smaller selection but worth it.

[@talon12020]

Did you tell them there's no reason to panic? Yes sir! Well, did it help? No sir, more of them are starting to panic...

[@HollandsBigHouse]

This is the voice of the resistance. People should report Albert to the Better Business Bureau or to the Security and Exchange Commission. If sent him a significant amount of money, consider legal action. Some of us were banished from the community because we did not agree with their criticism for games that would not be sold by AtariAge. We did not disappear completely, and we will rise when our day comes.

[@fensthespook]

My orders have been fulfilled within a month usually, but I didn't buy anything from the last chance sale, my orders have been placed since then...which begs the question why they were prioritized before the last chance orders?? I'll be totally honest..my disappointment is MUCH stronger with Atari than Atariage. I know everyone has heard my story and it's getting stale, but I am still in shock about the state the VCS ships in, the expectations Atari has for the consumer to fix it, and the unstable nature of the VCS OS (freezes, etc). Atariage's inability to get orders from a YEAR ago is totally inexcusable, but so is Atari brand customer service. Sadly at this point I'm not sure I can recommend either one, but at least Atariage has gotten me my stuff in a usable condition.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@fensthespook shhh that's the topic of next months We have A Problem video! It's the state of Atari. Just kidding though talk all you want but I agree. Atari is equally bad if not worse. I got some clarification on atariages issues with orders from somebody close to the situation but in my opinion... Well it's still unacceptable. I've been lucky to have received my last chance orders last year but I'm an exception not the rule...

[@MarquisDeSang]

AA is probably making 1000x less money than they would, if they were professional (like Video-Game Plus or Evercade).

[@ecernosoft3096]

Atariage has always been slow to deliver…. Not sure being bought by Atari will help that at all.

[@TheSocialGamer]

It's now owned by Atari so it's probably turned corporate.

[@BrianKnoblauch]

Long time AtariAge forum member, but only started ordering things in the last few years. I never got the impression that AtariAge "support" for the Amico went beyond hoping it would work out. I do recall plenty of skepticism on it. My first couple of orders took about twice as long as what I expected from my understanding of shipping lead times. I was very early placing my last chance order and have not received the games yet, but I did receive hardware that I also ordered at the same time. I do expect Al to deliver eventually as he always has before, but it is disappointing to wait so long. E-mail communication has been limited and for those depending on it I'm sure they're quite frustrated. There is much more frequent updating done in the forum. In my case, other events have helped reset my expectations as I continue to wait. Having to wait double digit months for an Atari pre-order, several months for an order from another homebrew company, a full year for brake lines for a motorcycle, and months for simple doctor appointments leads me to believe that this is our new normal. Too much demand for services and supplies, with too few people providing them society-wide.

[@AndyVanHalen]

I was honestly fine with waiting a couple weeks or months for my games back in the day. That was just the way of things. But now that Atari owns it, I just don’t understand how they can’t allocate some resources to make the process go quicker, and at the very least help Albert catch up. Albert has earned my trust from literal decades of quality service and delivery. I don’t blame him, I blame Atari. It seems like they bought something and then did nothing to support it. There will be an issue with trust from new customers… guessing a lot of them will never return after this and that’s unfortunate. I’m still waiting for my last chance games. I know I’ll get them and they’ll be awesome. I’ve waited longer for stuff from other sites (I think I waited over two years for an Odyssey2 multi-cart). It’s annoying but life goes on. There are a lot bigger things in life to get upset about than Atari games.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@AndyVanHalen thanks for the comment. Yeah the only hope is that once new customers get their games and have a complete transaction that they'll know that they can trust AtariAge. Or that they love the products so much that they know it's worth the wait. But likely... A fair number have been lost forever...

[@A31Chris]

Atari cannot legally have anything to do with the distribution of those games of the last chance sale. Albert is on his own and a Atari is not going to pause everything waiting for the former owner to take care of things that have nothing to do with them

[@AndyVanHalen]

@@A31Chris Is that verified to be true? I mean it sounds like a feasible enough theory. Although I’m sure that writing him a check to pay for some labor hours to let him do whatever he needs to with… you can’t really trace that. I’m not sure Namco or whoever else has an IP that is affected cares enough since they let things go for so long anyway with AA. No one is going to be launching a federal investigation regarding production of some homebrew Atari carts.

[@A31Chris]

@@AndyVanHalen the reason Albert had the last chance sale before Atari took over is because Atari said we can't have anything to do with this get rid of it. There was a Nintendo IP in that batch. This is Nintendo we're talking about. We're all lucky that Atari didn't tell Albert to cease and desist entirely or we have to let you go. Then you would all have to wait and get them on eBay with one game going for twice the price of what you paid for your entire batch.

[@AndyVanHalen]

@@A31ChrisYeah, I suppose that makes sense. It also seems like he underestimated the sheer volume of orders that would be placed. I know I suddenly had to mass purchase all the stuff that I “one day” would purchase, that likely would have been spread out over several years. Hopefully it all wraps up soon and the site can move forward more efficiently in the future.

[@mikewest6569]

Just download the ROM and play the game.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

Not possible for every game

[@kevinstrade2752]

I think with the purchasing of AA by Atari themselves kinda disrupted the already slow but good service. I know some makers like Champ Games publish from their own sites now. I've ordered from AA many times these last several years and you know when buying that games aren't finished yet and that it will be a while. I just had a Vectrex game arrive at my house I forgot that I ordered 2 years ago almost. Lol these smaller distributors always pull through eventually. I would hope money would be returned if the games can't be made and sent to purchasers. I do recommend AA still but with the understanding that there have been recent changes and that AA was just bought. This will change what games are available, and how often. I have a feeling the last chance orders maybe lost forever as it maybe too late to make and send them. Depends on the agreement made wich may have had time restrictions.

[@Alex_Valentine]

I got my last chance games. It took about 9 months.

[@jayschulz8060]

Champ games better

[@MikeY-gr5by]

I ordered a cart from Atariage that took a couple of months to arrive. I sent a couple of emails that didn't get a response but as I said the cart and manual were delivered eventually and they were both spot on. I had no idea Atariage was a one man band until watching this video. If I had known that I wouldn't have sent emails as quickly as it's obviously hard work to keep up with the orders on your own. I wouldn't hesitate to order again as the product was quality but I now realise that I may have to wait a while for my cart.

[@Gen-X-Memories]

I have a small channel 500 subs and I often plug the Atari Age website on my videos as simply a great retro gaming resource if you are just getting into collecting or playing retro games. I have been a member since 2006 but I've never bought anything from the AA store before. I have recently seen multiple post in the forums were members insist that if you can get it from Amazon then don't buy it from Atari Age because of the long shipping times. I hope I'm wrong but I would rather AA continue to be an independent forum and not have been bought by Atari. I have a feeling as time goes on saying certain things or posting negative opinions about the new Atari company might get you into trouble with the moderators. Like I said I hope I'm wrong though. Good video:)

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@Gen-X-Memories thank you. To this point Atari has had a very hands off approach with Atariage from what I've seen. But I hope you're right, I'd hate for the community to become censored in the future. If you want to post a link to your channel so we can easily check it out feel free

[@Gen-X-Memories]

@@TheAtariNetwork I appreciate it. www.youtube.com/@Gen-X-Memories

[@Gen-X-Memories]

@@TheAtariNetwork I thought I posted it already but I guess I didn't. www.youtube.com/@Gen-X-Memories Thanks:)

[@Gamma00Ray]

I think it was less Amazon vs. Atari Age and more Amazon vs. the official Atari store for the new official Atari products like the 2600+, but yeah. I preordered the 2600+ from Atari themselves (not Age), and it shipped so much longer after people got theirs from Amazon.

[@Gen-X-Memories]

@@TheAtariNetwork I appreciate you doing that but I think KZbin is taking my comment down with my YT page because I'm posting a link in it.

[@jayschulz8060]

Been that way forever . Slow

[@CSanykdotCom]

AtariAge is basically a sole proprietorship. Albert maintains the website, moderates the forums, runs the store, manufactures the products, fulfills orders. It's too much for one person. Over the years his business has grown and he has struggled to keep up. With his Last Chance sale, he was ceasing production of games that were encumbered by IP infringement issues (trademark or copyright; the old Atari console platforms had been abandoned by commercial interests, creating an "abandonware" gap in the market, which was filled by hobbyists, and their hobby development grew over time into a modest commercial micro-enterprise ) in order to focus on producing fresh new content and authorized works that he can get the rights to, so that he could partner with the newly revitalized Atari SA. Albert wanted to give the community one last opportunity to buy the games he was no longer able to offer due to the coming changes in order to go fully legitimate by no longer selling games that infringed on the abandoned or semi-abandoned trademarks of obsolete games from the 80s. The Last Chance sale resulted in a huge demand, two years worth of orders came in in just a month. He's been doing his best to fill these orders, while at the same time he's also continued to maintain the Atair Age community, work on the new partnership with Atari SA, attending events like Portland Retro Gaming Expo, and moving to a new house. So it's taken him a long time to fulfill the orders from the Last Chance sale. But he's doing it. I placed three separate orders in the Last Chance sale, and received one of them about six months later, and today I just received a shipping notification for another (or possibly both). People have the right to expect their orders in a reasonable time frame. But understanding the circumstances should help to set expectations. Albert works incredibly hard. He's been doing it for over 20 years, if not longer. We should appreciate him. He has done more than almost anyone else you could think of to name to sustain interest in the old consoles and keep them alive by fostering a great community of fans who taught themselves how to make their own new games, how to repair and maintain their old equipment to keep it functional for 45+ years. I find that amazing. So yes, let's talk about Atari Age.

[@BriansManCave]

Still my go to website! And yeah I am also waiting on my games too! But I see your point on new or younger people not understanding 🙂

[@retrodad8817]

It took me 11 months to receive my Last Chance order. I love everything Al has put into AtariAge, but I feel like it's almost too successful for one person to manage. I kinda agree with you though. Maybe put a short term "pause" on online ordering so he can catch up.

[@erockbrox8484]

Bro has been there 30 years and knows it takes 6 months to get their orders. New guys are like, Where is my order after 30 days.

[@gregoryshields9422]

You kind of state the answer, but Atari now owns AA. They must be making significant cash from the last chance sale. There is no reason why Al should be attempting to fill these orders solo.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@gregoryshields9422 Atari is a frustrating hobby in the sense that so many of the retailers have odd nuances. Especially Atari themselves but also Best, AtariAge etc

[@jayschulz8060]

I love atariage. Just the store front and availability of carts a disappointment

[@BrekMartin]

If you actually get ripped off by Songbird, and say so, it appears Carl is a protected species, and you’ll be made fun of for speaking out. If you’re making homebrew, it may then cause you to question who that’s for, and why would you continue.

[@OGHUGO]

first !

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@OGHUGO wow that's fast!

[@michaeltracie]

Albert is 1 guy and everyone will get their orders. He has been putting updates out on the forum. He probably could do it a little more often, but I would rather him working on the orders. Even some of the homebrew clubs have taken a while to get their orders out. Although, I have not heard of any others going over a year except maybe the CollectorVision Phoenix. Again, if it was fly by night, I would be concerned but Albert will come through. I just don't want him just to cancel orders. Only issue I have with AtariAge is letting little Robb Alvey be a moderator on the forum. This guy is polar as hell and kind of a douche.

[@FunkmasterV]

There's a lot of douches on that forum

[@decadentdave]

Albert did and has been updating people who were waiting for preorders and he has admitted he is swamped. It took 9 months for me to get my Last Chance preorders but I did get them and I trusted him when he sent out the e-mails about the delays. Give Albert a break. He’s no con man.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@decadentdave never said he was a con man and never said a negative thing. Just opinions and what has been reported by more than a few people and what I've observed.

[@decadentdave]

@@TheAtariNetwork I did not say you said he was a con man. I’m saying anyone who is worried about not getting what they ordered should quell their fears. He’s been overloaded with orders ever since the Last Chance sale.

[@TheAtariNetwork]

@@decadentdave gotcha. Misunderstanding then

[@atarimuseum_nl]

I can understand your position, but I think the title and the thumbnail should say "the problem with the AtariAge STORE". The first part of the video is almost completely about the cummunity (aka the forum members) and they have nothing to do with the AtariAge store. Plus you are generalizing these members and that is not fair.

[@FunkmasterV]

That's why the title is "The problem with Atari Age"... he is throwing shade at BOTH the Store and the Forum. LOL.............. Whats a matter with you?

[@A31Chris]

Albert responds on the forums. And in the relevant thread. He had gotten 2 years of orders in that one presale. Just because Atari owns it now understand Atari itself cannot touch or have anything to do with the distribution of IP's they don't own the rights to so that's basically a side project for Albert. I know that taking preorders for something new is alarming but think about it you own a company or you just buy a company a year before and they have to tie up loose ends from before you owned it and it has nothing to do with you and you cannot get involved with it. You are not going to hold off the rest of the business waiting on something that has nothing to do with you. In short Albert has to tie up those loose ends on his own and still go forward with business because Atari is not gonna wait on deals and business things that had nothing to do with them

[@TheAtariNetwork]

I understand where you're coming from but the communication can't be on a thread or forum. You can't assume people will see it. It needs to be in their faces via a mass email. And help could be garnered and additional presales could've been postponed. It's rubbing people the wrong way and they don't necessarily dwell on the forums or discuss it publicly. The only reason I know is because people assume Atari, Atari Network and AtariAge are all one and the same. I love Al. When I had issues on the forums he went out of his way to ensure I was okay and to explain what was going on. When my mom pre-ordered a gift for me and got upset he took her by the hand essentially and emailed her every step of the way. I only bring up any of this because I want AtariAge to become the golden mecha that it deserves to be. Not only as a forum but as a store front. Thanks for the explanation and reasoning.

[@robertdulany6811]

I joined AtariAge in 2008. People will take your money and make excuses for years, it is NEVER ok to sell something and take two years. That's the same as stealing. There has to be a limit, and when no time frame is given that limit is 8 weeks. The only exception is if you agreed in advance to wait two years. No communication makes it right, communication is one sided and not agreement. Anyway, as long as he issues refunds when demanded, all is fine.

[@A31Chris]

@@robertdulany6811 I can appreciate that. Hopefully these can be considered extenuating circumstances. I don't know if it would be possible to have agreed to this beforehand because I think the mass sale caught everyone by surprise. I'm sure Albert will honor refunds when damanded. However consider that after this the only way you'll be able to be likely to get these is at eBay scalper prices for five times the amount.