Who Buys This Shit?
Atari Joystick Gum!
By Kevin Hickey - January 23rd, 2010
Welcome to this first installment of Who Buys This Shit?, a column where I report regularly on some of the really cool, as well as some of the incredibly awful, merchandise that’s available to me as a comic shop owner1.
You may be asking yourself, “What right does a guy who owns a comic book store have posting his thoughts on a gaming website?”
It’s a legitimate question, and if I were asked it in person my immediate response would be, “When are you going to stop asking stupid questions and go to hell?” Seriously. There’s a lot of crossover right now between the comic and gaming worlds. Comic-based videogames are more successful than ever (ever hear of Batman: Arkham Asylum?), and it seems every major videogame release also has a comic series associated with it.
That said, let’s be positive here, and take a look at some really cool shit that we received this week: Atari Joystick Gum!
These miniature tin versions of Atari’s classic 2600 joysticks serve the dual purpose of storing the delicious chewing gum that comes with it and being extremely badass. The stick in the middle is actually moveable, which allows me to mimic playing some of my favorite Atari games such as Missile Command, River Raid, and many others2.
There is definite nostalgia value with this joystick gum. It brings back memories of a simpler time where gaming consoles were decorated with wood grain, had settings for colour or monochrome, and were accompanied by RF switches instead of HDMI cables.
Rigorous testing of the moveable “stick” portion of this gum tin has yet to reveal if it will wear out, lean to one side, and be rendered useless like many of the original 2600 controllers. Time will tell.
Shameless plug time: this retro-gaming nostalgia piece is available in-store at Stadium Comics. At only $2.99, I think the Atari Joystick Gum tin is an awesome find, and can definitely be classified as “cool shit.”
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I’d totally buy this!
Thank You for the information, I will be purchasing upon next visit.
Only if the gum inside tastes like the one from the old hockey cards from the 80′s.
Peter, I still have some Ghostbusters II trading cards in the pack with the gum. You wanna try some of that?
Not sure if want. Will I get some kind of mid 90′s infection from rotten gum? Still, it could be worth it…
I wouldn’t actually let you eat it.