PIRATES from ETIC

[Nobbi-Germany]

Hi,

I can find only one game from the manufacturer/supplier etic. Therefore I show you some games from etic.
This game is named Pirates with a white original packaging.





Bye bye
Nobbi
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my own homepage, my own handheld collection:
www.lcd-games.de
My Youtube Channel: RetroGameCity

[MADrigal]

This is very interesting.

The adhesive tape resembles MUCH the one used in VTech factories (used to seal every VTech product, including the CreatiVision games).

This makes me think that the white cardboard itself might have been manufactured at VTech's.

Is there a code printed on the "internal flaps" of the box?

Code similar to 90-xxxx-xx ?

What about the manual? Have you got any manual with the game?
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[Rik]

Yeah, it's definitely a Vtech... Probably just a German company licensing them... The game I have on the website is a Matsushima game, so Etic (or is it ETIC?) obviously licensed from various manufacturers.

Vtech probably made the box too, just shipped them like that to the company for distribution.

[MADrigal]

If there's the 90-xxxx-xx code on the box, it's deffinately 100% made in HK
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[Rik]

Well, they are probably all _made_ in HK... It's just a matter of whether it was licensed through Vtech (possibly would still have their name on the back of it). There's absolutely no doubt this was made by (and in) the exact same factory that makes the Vtech Pirates, regardless of what's printed on the box... It's just a matter of whether it was licensed through Vtech (assuming they invented it), or if it was just a generic game any company could purchase.

Are the 90- codes specifically Vtech, or the manufacturer?

[MADrigal]

> Are the 90- codes specifically Vtech, or the manufacturer?

The 90-xxxx-xx code stands for "cardboard"
The 91-xxxx-xx stands for "manual"
The 95-xxxx-xx stands for "blister box" and "cassette tapes cover"
The 96-xxxx-xx stands for "warranty"
The 31-xxxx-xx stands for "sticker"
The 35-xxxx-xx stands for "electric PCB"

etc...

This is valid for every single item manufactured by VTech, including toys, videogames, CreatiVision cartridges, hardware, handhelds, etc.

I'm gathering all such infos, to make a "chronology" story of all the releases.

I'm finally able to understand the DATE when the items were released, and the order.

In xx-yyyy-zz you have:
xx: identifies what's the item (manual, box, etc.)
yy (earlier, values < 100) or yyyy (later, values > 100): identifies what's the item for (a certain handheld, or videogame)
zz: identifies the country/version (example international, or Dick Smith, Hanimex, German, French, Italian, etc....)

A few examples:

91-33-00 manual / Game Machine / international version
91-48-00 manual / CreatiVision console / international version 1st version
91-48-03 manual / CreatiVision console/ Australian version
91-48-04 manual / CreatiVision console / international version 2nd version
91-48-06 manual / CreatiVision console / German version
91-48-09 manual / CreatiVision console / Italian 1st version
91-48-11 manual / CreatiVision console / Swiss German
91-48-12 manual / CreatiVision console / Swiss French
91-48-14 manual / CreatiVision console / Italian 2nd version
91-51-00 manual / Time & Fun Monkey / international version
91-55-00 manual / Time & Fun Banana / international version
91-59-00 manual / CreatiVision Crazy Pucker game / international version
91-62-00 manual / Time & Fun Sleep Walker / international version

and so on...

If the item was NOT made by VTech (for example, the Japanese CreatiVision game box and game manual) there's no 91-xx or 90-xx code

I'm guessing whether the ETIC boxes were manufactured by VTech, or they were manufactured by ETIC (in the latter case, there won't be any code printed on the internal flaps).
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http://www.madrigaldesign.it/

[Rik]

Ahh, cool info... Mattel does something similar. There's a 4-digit code for the game itself (i.e., 2024 is Football), and then the manual is always marked xxxx-0920(a). 0920 seems to be a code for the manual (the box has a different number, the instruction sticker on the back of the game has a different one, etc), and the letter is the revision of the manual. So 2024-0920(C) would be Rev C of the manual for Mattel Football. (No letter means it's the first version)

I wonder if the model #'s for Vtech should be changed to just the 4 digit code... Like the model # for Home Sweet Home should just be 0088 instead of 92-0088-00 (is 92 the 'console' itself, or just the sticker placed on the console?) Now you've got me looking at these... I have one that ends in -01 also...

How are you able to get a date out of that though? Or are you just assuming they were released chronologically? (Which might not be the case, the numbers might have been assigned chronologically, but the games may not have been released in stores in that order necessarily... But it's still a good judgement for figuring it out.)

I've always wondered if there were 'release dates' like we have with games now... When a new game comes out for the PS3 (for example), we know about it in advance through advertising, and we know exactly when it becomes available in stores... And in some cases there's actually a 'release event' if the game is popular enough...

Obviously we didn't have the internet back then, but I always wonder if there was some build-up at all to (for example) the exact day Coleco's Pac-Man hit the store shelves at Toys-R-Us. I can remember wanting games that came out 'around the Christmas shopping season', but I don't remember anything about specific dates the games would be available. Even console games like Atari 2600 and such.

Rik

[MADrigal]

> Ahh, cool info... Mattel does something similar.
> ...




> I wonder if the model #'s for Vtech should be
> changed to just the 4 digit code... Like the
> model # for Home Sweet Home should just
> be 0088 instead of 92-0088-00 (is 92 the
> 'console' itself, or just the sticker placed on
> the console?) Now you've got me looking at
> these... I have one that ends in -01 also...

This is an example of all the codes for a whole game:

CREATIVISION CONSOLE, DICK SMITH VERSION - R2
- 90-0042-08 (box, Dick Smith v., later release)
- 91-0048-03 (manual, Dick Smith v.)
- 30-0574-00 (plastic button for "on/off")
- 30-0575-00 (plastic button for "reset")
- 35-0159-20 (PCB, revision 700319 D)

VTech codes appearing on other consoles are:
- 31-0213-06 (sticker on the bottom of the CreatiVision "international" console)
- 12-5704-2201 power supply, 240V @50 Hz


> How are you able to get a date out of that though?

by simply comparing the release dates printed on manuals, boxes, etc. and of course every item was "planned" chronologically.

for example, the "2nd batch" of Time & Fun games (Sleep Walker, Safari, Pirate & Condor) were all released at the same time.

If you look at the "box codes" you'll find them in the order: Sleep Walker - Safari - Pirate - Condor (90-62-00 to 90-65-00)

If you look at their "manual codes" you'll find a different order: Condor - Pirate - Safari - Sleep Walker (91-70-00 to 91-73-00).

This means that the games were all planned and designed at the same time, and then released at the same time.

By the way, the order is chronological. Games with (C) 1981 have lower codes than the ones marked with (C) 1982.

I simply had finally the chance to double-check the release period: early 1981/late 1981/early 1982 etc....

I also compare the release dates with catalogues/articles appearing in videogames magazines from the 80's.


> Or are you just assuming they were released chronologically?
> (Which might not be the case, the numbers might have been
> assigned chronologically, but the games may not have been
> released in stores in that order necessarily...

They were planned chronologically, but the release date might not be "exact". Maybe sometimes the release was delayed, but at least the order matches the "(C)" mark on games, manuals etc.

I found games which BOX shows "1981" and MANUAL shows "1983".
In such case, the game is a LOCAL VARIANT: the box was manufactured in 1981 for the international release together with the international manual.
Then in 1983, the game was released in other country, with a specific manual, which has (C) 1983.

By comparing the last 2 digits of a manual you can understand which country the game was first released:

Example for the Soccer game manual:
-00 international
-01 italy
-02 australia
-03 germany

But if you look at the Planet Defender game manual it's:
-00 international
-01 australia
-02 south africa
-03 germany
-04 unknown
-05 italy


> I've always wondered if there were 'release dates'
> like we have with games now... When a new
> game comes out for the PS3 (for example), we
> ...

we should ask VTech

PS: Rik, did you get my previous email, with an Excel file attached? I'm selling most of my collection, please reply asap. Tnx
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