Back in August, SongBird Productions released new custom boxes for their Atari Lynx games. This article has been a long time in the making; Atari Gamer had a set of these boxes for some time, but we were too busy celebrating Atari Lynx 30th birthday! Now that there's some breathing room, we've had a better look at these boxes so you can decide whether they are worth getting.
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As mentioned in our previous article, these boxes are for Championship Rally, Crystal Mines Buried Treasure, CyberVirus, Lexis, Loops, MegaPak, Othello, Remnant, S.I.M.I.S. and T-tris. Each of the boxes will cost you $9 (USD) or as a pack of all ten - $69.95 (USD). Shipping is not included in that price.
Why on Earth would you want these boxes you say? Well simply that Songbird Productions shipped their games in CD Jewel cases in the past. These boxes add a professional touch to Songbird's releases. The boxes are a standard Atari Lynx size, they fit perfectly into clear plastic protector sleeves too (unlike some after market boxes we've come across).
By comparison to the original/official Atari Lynx game boxes, these are light years ahead! The cardboard is glossy and artwork is modern but retains the retro feel of Lynx games. There are nice surprises embedded into these too. Notice that the rear of the Championship Rally box has a race track as the surrounding border, with little cars racing each other?! That's a very cool touch! Other boxes get a similar treatment, but we won't spoil it for you - try and find all these Easter Eggs and share in the comments below!
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To save on shipping costs, these boxes are sent flat. That means that some assembly is required. It can be a little confusing to work out how to fold the inside cartridge holder, but after you do the first one, the rest are fairly easy. It's easier to show with pictures so just follow what we've done and you'll have them put together in no time. Note that we didn't glue these , though the intent is to glue one of the sides, however if you use a clear plastic protector, the box holds nice and sturdy without glue.
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Here are all 10 boxes assembled...
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Songbird Productions also advised that any of their games purchased now will automatically come with a box, so if you've been holding out on purchasing something from their big range of Atari Lynx games, now is the perfect time to splurge!