What was the "price at launch"?

[digitalpress]

So this is for the "system-specific pages" I'm working on.

This is a list of game consoles and their original retail prices in the USA. Please help fill in the blanks if you know the answers. Please don't guess or speculate. In fact, proof would be nice

Here's what I've got so far.

System Original Price
32X 159.99
3DO 699.99
AdventureVision 74.99
APF M-1000
Arcadia 2001 199.95
Astrocade
Atari 2600 249
Atari 5200 329.95
Atari 7800 149.99
Atari XE
CD32 399.99
CD-I 399.99
CDTV 999
Channel F 170
ColecoVision 175
Commodore 64 595.95
Creativision
Dedicated Consoles 0
Dragon 32 455 Francs
Dreamcast 199.99
Game & Watch
Game Boy 109
Game Boy Color 79.95
Game Gear 149.99
Game.com 69.95
GameCube 199.99
Genesis 189.99
Handhelds 0
Intellivision 299.99
InteractiveVision
Interton VC4000
Jaguar 249.99
Laseractive 969.99
Lynx 159.99
Mattel Aquarius
Memorabilia 0
Microvision
MSX
N64 199.99
Neo Geo 699
NGPC 69.99
Nintendo NES 199.99
NUON
Odyssey 99.99
Odyssey2
PC Jr
PC-FX
Pico 139.99
PlayStation 299.99
PS2 299.99
Publications 0
RCA Studio II 149.95
R-Zone
Saturn 399.99
Sega CD 299.99
Sega Master System 199
SG1000
Sinclair Spectrum
SNES 199
SuperGrafx 39800 yen
SuperVision 49.95
Telstar Arcade
TI-99/4A 1499
Tomy Tutor
TRS-80 599.95
TS 2068
Turbografx-16 189
Vectrex 199
VIC-20 299.99
Video Brain
Virtual Boy 179.99
Xbox 299.99

[MarioAllStar2600]

Why was Neo Geo 700 bucks!!!! Im lost.

[Raccoon Lad]

I remember the Sega CD being $300 dollars, 'cause that's what I payed x_x

[icbrkr]

My original Intellivision had a 249.99 price sticker on it.

Brian

[kainemaxwell]

I remember the Sega CD being $300 dollars, 'cause that's what I payed x_x

The CDX was $300 at launch, I know that much.

N64- $199.95 (was $249.95 orginially).
Pico- $49.99

[Drexel923]

N64 was $199.99.

[Pantechnicon]

Why was Neo Geo 700 bucks!!!! Im lost.

You're not the only one who is/was lost by this, and thanks to Leonard Herman for illuminating all this for me in his book Phoenix

The NEO-GEO home system contained the exact hardware as SNK's Neo-Geo multi-game arcade hardware system. There was literally no difference - with respect to source code or performance - in what you saw at the arcade and what you played at home. The cartridge-based software (and the games themselves ran for around $250 brand new ) was actually interchangeable between home and arcade machine, provided one had a pin adapter to accommodate the different connectors. So for $700 one could have the literal arcade experience of Neo-Geo in their home.

It was around 1989 when those came out. I was in the USMC at the time stationed in Jacksonville. My knoweldge of the video game world up to this point was confined to the sub-$100 world of Atari 2600 clearance bins and my then-brand new Game Boy. So one day I'm at the mall and I see this Neo-Geo retailing for $700 (and those were 1989 dollars, mind you) and I just thought "Great God in Heaven! Who would ever buy something like that? Who could afford it?" Incredible. Fifteen years later and to my knowledge nobody (not even Microsoft) has ever tried to sell a game console for such a staggering amount of money.

BTW, Neo-Geo is a very cool system. I've played some of its ROMs in emulation and it's pretty good stuff. I especially like Metal Slug and Bust-A-Move.

[NoahsMyBro]

I recalled the 5200 being either $249.95, or $299.95 at launch.

BUT, according to this:
http://www.msu.edu/user/reicher6/5200/5200.htm the original price was $270. (I'd assume it was actually $269.95.) btw, is this Matt's page?

From IC When ( http://www.icwhen.com/book/the_1980s/1982.shtml ):

Atari, Inc. releases the 5200 (codename "Pam") gaming system. It features 16K RAM and sells for $299

Hmmm.....

[evilmess]

I think i read somewhere that the Sega Nomad was $189 at launch

[YoshiM]

TRS-80: I'm assuming you mean the Color Computer? There were different ways to get the system (4K Color BASIC, 16K Extended Color BASIC, etc.). To get a "good" model (the 16K with ECB) I want to say it was $599 (computer only, as per the 1982 catalog). I'll see if I have any info at home. I'll check on the Dragon 32 as well. With proof if I can russle it up.

I think the Game Boy Color came out at $99, if I'm not mistaken.

[Kroogah]

NGPC - $70 ($100 with Sonic Pocket Adventure)

[The Unknown Gamer]

Atari 7800 $149.99 That's what I paid for mine

[Mayhem]

C64 was $595 upon launch in August 1982...

[sniperCCJVQ]

My NES Deluxe Set have a 249,99$ CND tag on it. Probably the same in the US (~ 250$ USD)

[rolenta]

When the PS2 was released, the officail US Playstation Magazine had me do an article called "Console Launches Through The Years", which included launch prices. This is what I came up with:

Magnavox Odyssey - May 1972 - $100
Fairchild Channel F - August 1976 - $169.95
Atari VCS - October 1977 - $199.95
Mattel Intellivsion - 1980 - $299.99
Colecovision - August 1982 - $175
NES - Fall 1985 - $249 with ROB - $199 without ROB
Genesis - August 1989 - $199.99
SNES - September 9, 1991 - $199.99
3DO - October 4, 1993 - $700
Sega Saturn - May 11, 1995 - $449 with Virtua Fighter, $399 without game
Playstation - September 9, 1995 - $299
N64 - September 29, 1996 - $199.95
Dreamcast - September 9, 1999 - $199.99

Retrotaku, thanks for the plug! I'm happy that you found Phoenix helpful!

[mikeetler]

When the PS2 was released, the officail US Playstation Magazine had me do an article called "Console Launches Through The Years", which included launch prices. This is what I came up with:

Colecovision - August 1982 - $175
Sega Saturn - May 11, 1995 - $449 with Virtua Fighter, $399 without game

You sure about hese two? I remember the Colecovision being $199 at Toys R Us in October '82 when I got it and the Saturn was $399 at launch with VF packed in.

The Genesis was definitely $199. I don't know where Joe got the $249 figure from in his original post. Also, The original Gameboy was shelved at $99.99 though it's possible the MSRP was $109.

[Raedon]

C64- $595 but dropped to $299 from what I remember seemed like only a year.

Vic-20 - $299.95 1981

[IntvGene]

Gamespot had a history of Sega article here:
http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/fea...ega/p3_01.html

In the article, they list the following launch prices:

NES $159
Master System $199
Genesis $190
Sega CD $299
Saturn $399

The 32X FAQ, by Barry Cantin lists the launch price at $159.
http://www.gameconsoles.com/32X_faq.htm

Sega.com has a nice history of the company, but doesn't list any launch prices that I could find.

And, you can remove the Sega SG-1000 from your list, as their was no American release for it. But, you already knew that! :P

[Half Japanese]

I can't help out a whole lot, but I can tell you that launch prices for the NUON are not going to be all the same. The NUON was basically a half-assed game system that was built into some different dvd players (or something like that). So your prices on NUON's is going to vary depending on which dvd player.

[GaijinPunch]

I thought my Genesis was either $189.95 or $289.95... can't remember exactly.