SLASH products have been called a bane to
retro PC game collectors,
everywhere. They are sometimes presented by eBay (among others) sellers as
original software - whether knowingly or unwittingly - and although
such titles are not counterfeits, they are worth only a fraction of
the price of the original releases. This article contains
information to help retro game collectors learn how to avoid
purchasing a SLASH title for the price of an original release.
HISTORY
Based in Minneapolis, the SLASH Corporation was a game company which
repackaged and resold classic 1980s PC titles from such companies as
Sierra On-Line, LucasArts Entertainment, Electronic Arts, The Software
Toolworks, and others. Its President (founder?) was Charles F.
Bond, and it existed as an independent company from 1991 to
1995. In June of 1996, GT Interactive Software Corp purchased
SLASH, and reintroduced it as part of their Value Products
Division. Mr. Bond was given a seat on the board of directors
and the title of Vice-President, SLASH Division.
HOW TO TELL
THE DIFFERENCE
So how can a collector of classic games distinguish between an
original PC game and a re-published SLASH version? Well, this
guide would be fairly pointless f it couldn't answer this question,
wouldn't it! In fact, there are FIVE (5) distinguishing features
of a SLASH product. (Note: not all characteristics will be
common to every game; some will have one or two features from this
list, some more, some all.)
- The Box
- The Label
- The Box
Cover Art
- The
Diskettes
- Manuals
& Other Documentation
1. The
Box: SLASH re-releases come in cheap, white, one-piece cardboard
boxes with flapped openings on either end. Original releases are
usually come in higher grade cardboard boxes, often with the company
logo affixed in some way upon them.
2. The Label:
Most system requirements labels for older games were affixed onto the
box or slipcover casing AFTER it had been manufactured. This
permitted companies to use the same box for different platforms (such
as MS-DOS, Apple II or Macintosh). SLASH re-releases have their
labels as part of the box itself. Further, SLASH re-releases
often use black lettering on white labels, whereas original releases
will have color within the label or graphic images (such as the
company logo). For those SLASH re-releases that use the original
system requirements box on the cover, and not the white
background/black print, the lettering is difficult to read. The
reason is:
3. The
Cover Art: Original releases often have crisp, breathtaking
covers. Due to the inferior quality of computer graphics of the
day, covers were not of game images, but of conceptual art. A
SLASH re-release uses those same covers, but since they are reprints
of scanned images, the quality is somewhat poor. SLASH covers
seem out-of-focus, fuzzy and difficult to read the printing.
Often, the black print/white label stands in stark contrast to the
cover image, appearing to have been placed over the original release
cover, scanned in, and then reprinted.
4. The
Diskettes: The 3.5" and/or 5.25" disks found in original PC
game releases usually have color labels, company logos or graphic
art. SLASH re-releases use plain black lettering on a white
label.
5. Manuals
& Other Documentation: SLASH re-releases use photocopies of the
original game documents, printed in monochrome on cheap paper, clearly
in an effort to keep the cost of their reproduction as low as
possible. No special brochures, high-quality glossy covers, or
any other extras that the original PC game releases used!
One last
thought: if your goal is to play one of these classic games, a SLASH
re-release is one of the least expensive methods of acquiring a
physical copy of it. Don't forget that your new computer may not
be able to play those ancient games, though!
