How My Family Survived The Video Game Crash Of 1983 - My Retro Life 

Hey guys! Most of the archival news footage in this video was used with permission from archivist Vampire Robot - www.youtube.com/@vampirerobot - A must watch found footage channel! Big thanks to him! Definitely give it a watch. Hope y’all enjoyed this My Retro Life origin story :-)

For all the people who say video games are evil, I just want to point them in the direction of this channel. So much love in a family with gaming at it's very center. I hope you never run out of footage

Man your dad was an absolute legend. He probably would never have believed that all his filming would pay off the way it has with thousands and thousands of people appreciating it. The way he did it though its almost like he knew and it was on purpose. So crazy. Footage is gold.

Your dads home videos has brought so much joy to us all mate. I lost my mom a few months ago and your videos of this loving family really helps. Don't stop your dad would be well proud.

Wow, an actual video showing a sealed retail copy of Halloween during the time it was relevant! Absolutely mind blowing. That is probably at least $10,000+ in today's money that she's holding in her hands. 😲

I know everyone's told you how ahead of the time your dad was for recording everything, but man your dad was an absolute pioneer for this

Footage like this will never cease to make me ACHE to have that time back. Partially because it was my childhood, yes, but the world was simply a better place, back then.

The fact that your family was able to video tape all this back in 1982 and 1983 tells me that they had a lot of money. Video cameras were very expensive back in those days. VCRs were somewhere north of $500 and camcorders north of $1000. That's 1982 dollars!

You are really lucky to have this footage of your parents as this age. The best most of us can hope for is some photos.

I had an Atari 2600 back in the late seventies I was ten years old back then I’m 57 today still gaming!

Tyler's mom: "Get over their buddy" Tyler: "Watch it buddy"

Watching your mom play with the Atari was so wholesome... I was a child when I first played with the Atari in 1984. I remember the bad games lol. We would play some knock off games and get bored within minutes and just go outside to play. It's amazing how much things have changed since then... I just got through playing Horizon Zero Dawn... Astonishing how far things have come since the "bleep bleep boop boop" days. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful video with us. 💫

This footage is priceless! Your dad was amazing!

Wow. Beautiful footage. I’m just now appreciating the Atari as a 35yr old. Lol. I’m really starting to just enjoy the simple type games.

For most consumers who lived during the crash, they barely or didn't even know what's going on. They even enjoyed the price of video games dropping cheaply. It was just the video game industry that had to worry. They would only become aware later of the crash when it was being discussed as part of history of video games.

My family bought the camcorder in '87 when I was born. My dad had an Intellivision before I was born, but no footage of that. I did recently see footage of my dad playing NES in videos of me as a baby, though. Your content is great and brings me back for sure.

As a 48 year old gamer that's been around since the beginning I just want to say thank you for sharing these memories with us.

Dad was sure rocking that 80's Duran Duran hairdo!

I really loved watching this footage. My parents were very opposed to video games for me growing up in the 2000’s, and it really caused a division between them and me. They would always tell me _”you’re wasting your life, grow up”_ and all it caused me to do was not play video games when they were home. I would only play video games when they were working at their jobs. Video games brought me such great joy in my childhood. It’s a shame my parents couldn’t share that joy with me.

I love how present people are back then. No phones to distract. Everyone was in the moment.

I remember in 84 how emotional I was as Atari games just were not at the stores as much anymore compared to the hundreds in the past.. Yes I am that old.

My dads mom recorded footage of him opening Halloween for Atari 2600, he was a big gamer. I watched it a long time ago but it got lost in the process of moving a few years ago yet the game was passed down to me and the crazy thing was my dad never opened it because he knew it would be worth a lot of money and it sits in a special sealed vault I have, along with other rare games that have never been opened.

While watching your video, I was thinking about my mother and the first game that she let me play that I can remember was Q-Bert for the Atari 2600 and when your cousin showed that he got this game for Christmas a shot when up and down my spine and arms. Dad wasn’t around much because he was in the Military but my mother was. She loved Q-Bert and PacMan and later on my father introduced me to PC gaming. But it all started with my mother and even though she passed away back in 2020 I still appreciate her for introducing me to video games. I still have that 2600 and her favorite game Q-Bert to this day and they both still work. So thank you for sharing this video and your family with us.

After the crash, you could find bargain basement bins with cartridges selling for 5 dollars. An Atari 5200 sold for 50 dollars, with two cartridges.

Hands down one of the best channels on RU-vid. Tyler we all thank you so much for keeping this part of our history in rotation my friend. Always looking forward to seeing more content. Keep it coming.

As soon as I read the title, I knew the answer was “ By buying them all up for really cheap” 🤣. This is so wholesome. My face hurts from smiling.

I was wondering if you would ever have your aunt Michelle on the channel and talk about some of the videos that she's in

I was only 4 at this time and never knew there was any kinda video game crash. We had Bally astrocade, intelivision and coleco around that time and eventually a nes. I had an uncle who passed last year and he was the guy who always filmed every Christmas and family get together, hoping my cousin eventually takes time to put all those tapes on a computer. I used to get nes games every Christmas from a few uncles back then so would be crazy to see that again. These videos really are amazing i don’t know how you haven’t ran out of them yet

I was born in 83 so I only got to experience the rise of Nintendo and so on, which I'm glad. It's crazy to believe this is 40 years old, makes you realize how much time flies by. This reminds me of my brother who is no longer with us, the holidays are definitely not the same, and it makes me wonder if it's been difficult for you, or helped you, going through all this old footage and dredging up all the old memories.

Opening the Dustbuster made me think of Back to the future 2

THE HALLOWEEN GAME...OMG...YOU WIN BRO...🔥

I'm addicted to your channel!!! You and I are virtually the same age, which allows me to relive my childhood through your family. I can literally almost compare your footage to my families' moments. Thank you for all of this!

Wow, this one hits the nostalgia pretty hard. This was my family and probably every other gaming family.

This had to be such a surreal time; the console division of Atari desperately trying to get out of their tailspin (too late to prevent Warner Communications from selling them), retailers furious at being overloaded with cartridges to the point of putting everything on discount to get space, and gamers in North America having a pretty fun time getting all sorts of games for cheap. That was the telling contrast of this period; game companies, retailers, & investors were all suffering the effects of the industry collapsing while actual fans of games had so many options because so many were on clearance. It's no wonder why so many younger gamers don't specifically recall a crash because at the time you could play so many titles; you just couldn't make real money on them.

I was born in 1987 and live in the UK, but if I lived in the US and was around for the 1983 Video Game Crash, I would’ve continued to hold onto my Atari, Intellivision and/or Colecovision controller(s) with pride, gotten any games I can for my system(s) and I would also enjoy any games we get for our Atari computer, Apple 2 or Commodore 64!

Thanks for making my morning that much better tyler

I like to point out that ain't a Duran Duran record that's a Duran Duran laserdisc and your father to be into LaserDisc that early in that format run that cool😎

How cool to have video footage of your parents so young at Christmas.

My father used to be an Atari dealer, and I remember when Atari went bankrupt. I still have all my Atari games, and I have these games from Sesame Street, complete with the controllers and plastic covers.

Sharing your life is one of the most precious things in life. Even more precious than that copy of 2600's Halloween.

Tyler You have done it again! So much nostalgia. We were both born around the same time. I was born in 1985 and watching your videos brings it all back. Your Dad has made me Video more of my own kids . It brings us all so much joy to be taken back to our childhood. Thanks again!!!

These are the types of memories we want our kids to have in the future. Love this channel mate. Your dad was a hero.

The black MGM shirt your dad wears is absolute fire my guy. Along with the mullet. Freaking rockstar man.

Those brand new boxes of Atari games are so beautiful...

The wholesome love and fun your family had is amazing to see. A lot of kids are missing out in this type of childhood. I had a very similar experience we are truly blessed.

love this. i was able to take my older cousin to see Duran Duran last summer. that memory will last forever.

Barnstorming, Tutankham, Spider Fighter, Freeway, Q*Bert, Crypts of Chaos. I played all of these as a very young kid and it’s good to see them get some screentime, Tyler. These were awesome times, for sure, and this is just a treasure for anyone who lived through them. Thanks, man.

It’s so cool that your family had the idea to record everything. Yeah the crash era was great for getting previously cost prohibitive games for cheap. I remember a haul of Atari games I got from Kay-Bee Toys and Hobby in December 1984 that consisted of Stargate, Ms. Pac-Man, Dig Dug and Pigs In Space with each game being $5 a pop. I couldn’t believe it since each game cost around $30 mere months before.

it's so touching how you love your dad and family. it makes me think of my family and the memories i'll never forget!

this episode once again is so beautiful, seeing your family, especially your parents before you were born and the environment was very gamer friendly already.

Wow this gave me so much nostalgia. This footage is priceless and you have a amazing family. Would love to see more of your aunt Michelle and hear about her experiences with video games

That Halloween game was one of the best games I ever bought from a old-school bus at a flea market. He had all of those behind the curtain games that you couldn’t get anywhere else. It was actually pretty good for what it was.

Your family went through nothing compared with mine. My daddy invested everything into Atari back in 1982. I tried to protest but he whipped me with one of the red vines (licorice) until I was exhausted and crying. When the bank came to kick us out of our house he produced a revolver and (using my mom as a human shield) shot a cop and escaped to Mexico. I saw the bastard the other day on an emulator.

Your videos really help me to appreciate all the video games and video game systems my mom bought for me, even sometimes without me asking. I used to just think “Oh she’s just buying me these games because she’s always at work blah blah blah” but no she really understood that her son really liked video games and it was more than just a hobby. I’m really glad she lowkey encouraged me to explore gaming, even to this day 😊

miss these times man ., thanks amigo for sharing these happy moments in your life … coolest dad ever 😎

Funny thing about living outside of the US in Australia, I had to learn about the video game crash later in life through the internet. Had no idea, we even got another Atari in the '90s with 128 games built-in.

Just seeing the 80’s on film 🎥 is amazing … I was born in 94 and it’s just cool to see life even before me and with a controller in hand

Watching these home movies like this make me feel like your family is my family too. Great content Tyler ❤

Aunt Michelle is always so pumped about everything!! Love it, love the vids as always mate peace

This is great. I have seen that footage of someone playing Donkey Kong inside a Sears before. You are unlikely to find footage of people experiencing the Atari VCS console when it was current simply because consumer video cameras didn’t exist until the tail end of the console’s life before the crash.

That’s so crazy there’s footage of someone getting Halloween as a gift. I have the manual and cartridge with the label where they wrote halloween in marker but I’m missing the box. That thing goes for thousands of dollars. I hope she still has it and all those games

To get over the crash of 1983 my family and I purchased the Sega Master System and Nintendo Entertainment System

I remember when i was just a young guy, my dad introduced me to his Intellivision. It was so awesome, something ive never seen before, it was amazing to me. I used to love playing Downhill Skiing and Dungeons and Dragons. Then in the late 80s, early 90s, a brand new system came into our household, the Nintendo!! The coolest system ever!! I still remember playing super mario before and after school, i would race home just so i could play it. A couple years passed by, Super Mario 2 and 3 had come along, i absolutely loved those games. Then one xmas morning, i unwrapped what would be the most amazing console id ever seen, the Sega Genesis!! To this day i still remember all of those memories and hold them very close to my heart. I wish i had some footage but all i have now is memories. Such a wonderful thing to be able to look back and watch all these amazing times full of love and family enjoying Xmas!!

I bought a Commodore 64 back in 1984 and that was my first introduction in home gaming.

Another great video Tyler. Thank you for making these and letting us all into your awesome retro life.

I remember the crash. I had NO idea it was happening. All I remember is all of a sudden, Zayre's had Atari games for $1.99!

Now this video is right up my alley. Another reason why your channel is one of the best on RU-vid my friend. The collaboration of your voiceover and your dad's video is both incredible and heartwarming! Thank you!

They got a 9.2 Halloween Atari game on eBay for like 75k lol my god.. your aunt Michelle is the best. They are the true OG’s of gaming.

Ha! The Uncle realises at one point that his present was really for Aunt Michelle.. I also had a chuckle at the Dad asking everyone to keep their conversations down while filming.

Thank you for sharing these awesome memories with us, and happy Valentines Day to you and your family

Everybody keep your conversations down. Respect + never fails to impress.

Bless the man with the camera. What a legend. I was just having a conversation about how I don't even have a single photo of me as a child gaming. Makes me so sad.

I was born and raised in the UK, and when the Video Game Crash happened in North America, we honestly didn't notice. It was the microcomputers, like the Spectrum and Commodore 64, that was the saviour in that case. I don't think most in the UK became aware of it's impact in North America until years later. The Atari 2600 was very popular, but by '83, the micros had a firm foothold in the market, probably spurred by cassettes being far cheaper than cartridges.

The video game revolution began for me in the mid and late 1970’s growing growing up as a kid, It was a great with the TVG-406-6 . I’m still gaming now, I have every console and a PC with the highest specs, how gaming as come on to back then which was an ‘Amazing’ moment back then, although now games are increasingly getting unbelievably incredible especially graphics.

I remember playing Atari with my sister around this time. I'm about your cousin's age. Great times

My favorite thing about playing video games? Moral choices and multiple endings. Games like Chrono Triggers, Castlevania symphony of the night and Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 1 and 2.

“Virtually over night” was very clever, also that’s probably when the term came too be lol

It's absolutely incredible you have footage of your families interactions before you were even born. How many can say that? Your dad filmed like he was making a documentary. Really awesome stuff. I was born in 82. Can't believe how time has gone.

Fave atari 2600 games (in no order): Enduro, spider fighter, haunted house, missile command, asteroids, centipede, crystal castles, pit fall, adventure, gravitar, warlords, break out, super break out, hero, demon attack, frost bite, kaboom, river raid and battle tank. Video game crash caused by two things: 1. aging hardware that reached its limits a couple years prior 2. people getting privy to the "slot machine" game design of arcades.

Did I hear Cyndi Lauper? Cool!

Man it’s always a good day when I see an upload from MRL!

The footage you have is priceless, I was born in 1982 and my first system I had was nintendo I wish i had footage of that. Im in the process of transferring family footage to digital.

Wow, I feel like I just travelled back in time. There was nothing I wanted more than Atari 2600 (VCS) when I was a kid. My parents never bought it despite me wanting it so much, but I had fond memories of playing it at someone else's home.

During the crash, my brother came back home one day with a huge box of games. Some store was just giving them away or something. Best time of my very young life. My brother got me into gaming with that old 2600. He gave it to me before I got the NES. I still have it today.

As someone who was a teenager at this time and into the gaming scene, i can tell you that nobody noticed any video game crash at the time. It wasn't the big thing people today make it sound like. I had the Atari and then Colecovision in 1983-84, then around 1987-88 got the Nintendo NES. The entire time spending every weekend in gamerooms. Its not as if video games went away and nobody was playing them anymore.

your dad is a legend.

this is beautiful 1980's gold, I was a younger teen then and I cherish these years myself. the Atari VCS is my childhood along with original Star Wars action figures , I was born in the early early 70's so I absolutely remember this incredible era, awesome work my man!

I can relate so much to this video! My brother and I received an ungodly amount of Atari games during the Christmas of 83 and 84. My brother and I had no idea there was a video game crash. Fast forward to 2023. I ended up with all of our old Atari games. My wife bought me an Atari 2600+ for my birthday. It's been a blast playing all the old games again!

My first system was an Atari 2600 Jr (the thinner, black & silver version), and it was after the NES was already out. Likely because the games were so much cheaper at that time (probably 1987-88 timeframe). Apparently my grandma had purchased the OG in the late 70s to keep at her place and all of her kids would come over most weekends to play it along with cards and pool. We were over there one night and there was a box with all of the games, and she gave them to us. So my Dad and I went up to Montgomery Ward to grab that Jr system. So many memories.

Really cool video footage! Thanks for sharing it. In 1983 i was 13. My mother was NOT interested in video games even though i got a Sears Atari in 1979. She didnt mind if i played it but she didnt want to. Very awesome video

Thank you so much for sharing these. It's a time capsule from another era, an era before video games really took off. It's so cool how much your dad and aunt were trailblazers when it comes to video games.

My family loves your videos! It hits the nostalgia and the feels for family all at once. Keep it up, Tyler!!

I was around and gaming back then. Man, do i feel old

Me and my older brother had an Atari 2600 in the early 80's that our Dad brought home one evening after work. We didn't suffer here in the UK from the video game crash like you guys did in the States.

Absolutely unbelievable footage. Lots of people had video cameras in the 90s, but man, seeing this home footage from the 80s is something else. Thank you for sharing, Tyler!

This is awesome Tyler!!! This would have been my first Christmas!! Boy do i love the 80s!!! Lol the Duran Duran record IS EPIC!!!! lol!!!! How magical! Proof of how magical and awesome 80s Christmas's really were!! They're nostalgic to think back but..your father did one better..he preserved it for all time!! What a Legend!!!!!

Man you're really spoiling us with all this retro footage I can't stop watching your content🙂👍🏼

It's really pleasant to watch and relive these happy emotions with your family Tyler! I wish my family had a camera in late 80s-early 90s. Thank you for uploading these videos!

I've watched all your videos and I got choked up seeing your mom and dad so young. That video is an absolute treasure. Thanks for sharing.

Man, this is golden footage.