Any info on prototype retro handhelds?

Hi,

I've browsed through many pages of this forum but I haven't seen any information on the development or prototypes of retro handhelds (Game Boy, Game Gear, Lynx, etc)

I'd love to see prototype Game Boys. Imagine if they settled for a different design..!

 

I have 3 prototype sega handhelds. You can also find pictures on atarimuseum of several atari prototypes including Atari cosmos and a handheld space invaders that were never released.

 

Any chance you can post pics of them?

 

Here's a picture of the box for the handheld Space Invaders (well, it would have been the box if it went into production):

http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Atari/SpaceInvadersSuperBreakout.htm

Curt (of Atari Museum) actually sold the wood mock-up of Super Breakout on eBay a few months ago... For a little over $800 I think.

Pictures of Cosmos and it's box too:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Atari/Cosmos.htm

The working one is from Atari Museum, the mock-up and box are from Classic Gaming Expo...

While I'm here, other prototype handhelds (not cartridge based):

From Atari, these might have been manufactured, but they seem incredibly rare:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Atari/ProBall.htm
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Atari/ProDarts.htm
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Atari/Tronic2.htm
(A Tronic 2 sold on eBay for $1500 in Nov 2007)

Original Parker Brothers Merlin prototype:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/ParkerBros/MerlinProto.htm
Actual game in case you don't recognize it:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/ParkerBros/Merlin.htm
Parker Brothers Wildfire Pinball with prototype pictures:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/ParkerBros/Wildfire.htm

Coleco Star Trek:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Coleco/StarTrek.htm
Never went into production, but they did make some case samples from the molds (pictured on the site)

Castle Toy Kingpin Pinball with pics of original prototype:
http://www.handheldmuseum.com/CastleToy/Kingpin.htm

and I have pictures of the original prototype of Mattel Football somewhere... I'll post if I find them...

 

Here are the 3 I found. I might have more. I forget.

The 2 yellow slide up and down. I left one open and one closed to give you a better idea of how it operates. The pink purple one flips out. These are mockups with no working electronics that were thrown away by Sega but rescued by Sega employee Clint Dyer.

 

Haha that's a nice idea with the "slide/flip out" screen I think. They could have used the idea with their McDonalds Handhelds :110:

How can they throw away things like that? Guess they didn't care.

 

Are those prototypes for the game gear or nomad, or are they for unreleased consoles?

It would be fun to gut a game gear and put it inside one of those cases
Awesome finds!

 

I wasn't really thinking about the cartridge based handhelds. Here is a prototype Atari Lynx I have.

 

I have THE prototype UK Barcode Battler! Bad Influence! had an article on the system before it was released here, and they had one on the show, saying it was one of only 3 in the country... but IIRC mine looked different. Mine looks like the Japanese one, but it runs in English. It came in a Japanese box with Japanese manuals, but also came with the English QA manual, which has several mistakes altered (it has been years since I looked at it, but I think it was correcting Engrish!).

Oh yeah, thanks for reminding me, BuyAtari! I have a Cosmos hologram, too. Hmm, Clint Dyer, eh? Do you know him? He's someone I wouldn't mind talking to!

 

Wow, those are cool! I never knew Clint worked at Sega... (Has anyone heard from him in a while?) Since I took over the Handheld Game FAQ he's disappeared...

When you are ready to pass on the Sega protos, I know someone that wants them! :110:

Is the Lynx functional at all? It looks like it might have some electronics in it...

 

Clint worked at the Sega call center answering phone calls. He helped the kids solve the puzzles back in the days of the Master System. It wasn't the only nice find in the trash he made. He also found a mockup Sega Neptune which is now part of the CGE museum.

The Lynx does have electronics in it but I'm not sure if its fully populated. Never tried it but I was told it was just a mock up and does not work. if the guy selling it to you says it doesn't work it usually doesn't. I recently sold it to an Atari collector for 1k and it will be shipping it off this weekend.

The Sega handhelds I'd be willing to pass along as well as you can't keep this stuff forever.

 

Man... this is thing rules!

Pure beauty, I tell you. I would sleep with this under my pillow at night.

 

wow, I love those prototype sega handhelds! Great find!

 

That three-button Sega prototype resulted in at least one retail product. I've got an Eternal Champions LCD game lying around somewhere that uses exactly that same button and screen configuration. I'll post pictures if I can find the thing.

EDIT: We appear to have discussed this before.

http://assemblergames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13473

 

Those are pretty cool! Does anyone have some of the LCD watches you could get with Starfox and so on on them? Were there ever any Sega ones?

 

I have one of those lcd watches (a Zelda one, not Starfox). I think they were made by a company called Nelsonic or something, I'm not sure though. You can get them on ebay for about $50.
I don't know if sega made any watches but they definantly made lcd games. They even used to give them out at Mc Donalds.

 

Yep, Nelsonic... Even the 'Nintendo' ones were licensed to Nelsonic. Here's all the ones I know of:

http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Nelsonic/index.html

 

I've been trying to get ahold of him for quite some time now... I think he works at/has a brick and mortar shop somewhere now.

 

yep,

i see your atari lynx prototype but it's just a classical model somes lynx is paint and the body under is the same color i don't know why but my 2 lynx mk1 are diffrent in the manufacture one is just paint in grey and the other is made directely in grey plastic. inside noting different ^^.

 

Hey, that's pretty awesome.. looks like it came straight outta star wars or something. ^^