Before the time when Nintendo dominated the console space in the 80s, and long before the console wars of the 90s took over the world, video games had a different industry leader. Atari was the company that captured the attention and minds of young people who played games at home or in the arcades, and it was a force to be reckoned with. The Atari 2600 is one of the most important video game consoles of all-time, and is still beloved to this day by people who did and didn't grow up during its heyday. The console itself was released at a point when video games as a medium were young and still evolving, with titles that were at the starting point of creativity with limited technology that pushed people's imaginations. You couldn't go anywhere in the late 70s or early 80s and not see a fan of Atari's home video game system.

The Atari 2600 had many different games released for it. Everything from original game concepts to licensed franchises at the time had an Atari 2600 game released, which was one of the factors that led to the big video game crash that happened in 1983. So many low-quality games were being released at a time that it led to a massive drop in sales. In spite of this massive change to the industry around that time, a select few games for the Atari 2600 became gems that collectors sought out over the years, often spending a lot of money to obtain them. They have become so rare that most people never had a chance to see them, let alone a chance to buy them, either. Here are five of the rarest Atari 2600 games that you'll never own.

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi: Ewok Adventure (Prototype)

The lost game of a franchise

Following the release of the original Star Wars movie in 1977, a variety of licensed products were released for fans of the film. It wasn't until 1982 that the first licensed Star Wars video game was released, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back for the Atari 2600. The game was followed up by other Star Wars titles for the console, including multiple games based on the other films in the original trilogy. However, there was one Star Wars game that was developed for the Atari 2600 that never got a full release. But a prototype cartridge of the game was made at the time it was officially canceled. That game was Star Wars: Return of the Jedi: Ewok Adventure in 1983.

The game has players taking control of an Ewok, which is believed to be Wicket from the film, and gliding over Imperial troopers while trying to destroy a Shield Generator. This is based on the later scenes of the movie where the story takes place on the forest moon of Endor, where the Ewoks fight the Imperial Stormtroopers. The game is a bit more complex than other Atari 2600 Star Wars games, since it requires players to aim their glider carefully over enemies. The player can pick up rocks and drop them on enemies they fly over, including AT-ST walkers that appear. They can also hijack speeder bikes and enemy AT-ST walkers to destroy enemies, as well as the Shield Generator at the end of the level.

To date, there is only one known prototype cartridge of the game to have been produced. This cart was given to the son of a friend in 1997 by Parker Brothers designer Larry Gelberg, who later sold the cart to a private collector for over $1,680. Today, the prototype cart is valued at around $1,200. There is no box or manual materials that were made with it at the time, despite unused artwork that was shared years later.

Lochjaw

Not like that shark movie

The Atari game Lochjaw has a goofy history attached to it. The game was first released under the original name in 1982, which was later changed to Shark Attack. The title change was made to avoid potential copyright lawsuits that might arise from the name being too similar to the 1975 movie JAWS. Various changes to the game itself were also made for the re-titled release to avoid any other issues that might be brought up, including background elements in the stage being modified. Lochjaw has players diving underwater to collect gems while a hungry shark stalks them. The objective is to gather as many gems as possible without getting eaten.

For some, the game seems to capitalize on the craze from the release of JAWS years earlier, even though it has nothing to do with the film itself. In addition to a shark, the game also includes the Loch Ness Monster lurking in the depths, which will attack players if they get too close. The first release of the game with the Lochjaw name is pretty valuable. Loose copies of the game can go for around $1,400 alone, with complete copies in their original box being worth almost $1,800.

Cubicolor

Figuring out the puzzle

A lot of the business for video games was very different a few decades ago. Some developers would try to get their creations published by any means necessary, even without the support of a publishing company. That was the case for Cubicolor on the Atari 2600, which was made by game developer Rob Fulop in 1982. Originally, the game was going to be published by Imagic for Atari's console, but the company refused to do so after Rob made a game that wasn't to their liking. When they refused to do so, Rob went ahead and sold cartridges of the game on his own for a time. The game itself is a puzzle game that is based on the design of a Rubik's Cube,

There were around 60 cartridges made of Cubicolor, most of which were held onto by Rob himself. At the time, each cartridge was sold by Rob for $100 a piece. Today, these cartridges can be worth around $1,800 each if they're loose cartridges. However, anyone who has the original packaging and materials that were made with them can skyrocket in price and be worth nearly $5,000.

Air Raid

Expensive shooter game

The Atari 2600 has a ton of shooting games released for it. One of those games is Air Raid, developed by Men-A-Vision in 1982. The game has players protecting two buildings from incoming enemies, using missiles to take down enemy ships that attack. But while the gameplay of Air Raid isn't anything too special, the release of the game is much more interesting. The cartridge of the game is uniquely shaped like a "T" and colored blue, and it also received a very limited run of units that were produced. The game is so rare that many collectors search far and wide for more copies of it to sell.

There have been a few known auctions of Air Raid for the Atari 2600 to have taken place that include complete copies of the game. A loose cartridge of Air Raid is valued at around $8,500 alone, mostly because of how rare it is. But a complete-in-box copy of the game is worth much more, often being priced at over $33,000. One auction in April 2010 had a boxed unit of the game selling for over $31,000, while another auction in 2011 sold a loose cart for around $3,500. The biggest online auction for Air Raid took place in 2012, and sold a complete-in-box copy of the game for $33,433 at the time of the sale. It is one of the rarest Atari 2600 games officially released, and one that many retro collectors would love to get their hands on.

Red Sea Crossing

A treasure of biblical value

There have been many different kinds of video games based on biblical stories, with varying degrees of success on various platforms. One of the earliest Christian-focused games made was for the Atari 2600 in 1983, and was only available by mail-in order. Red Sea Crossing was made for the console by Steven Schustack while he was at Inspirational Video Concepts. The game depicts the biblical event of Moses passing through the Red Sea in a side-scrolling platformer, very similar to other action games for the console at that time. The player controls Moses as he avoids obstacles in the sea, including giant clams and seaweed, as well as enemy Egyptians that pursue Moses.

The story behind the game's rarity is more interesting than the game itself. Only a few hundred copies of Red Sea Crossing were ever produced and sold by Steven himself back then. Originally believed to be very elusive to collectors, multiple copies were eventually discovered in different locations and sold at auctions online. Some of the original cartridges were used to make reproduction copies of the game for others to purchase, but the original carts for Red Sea Crossing remain very rare items. One cartridge alone can be worth up to $15,000, but earlier auctions of an original cart were recorded to have sold for around $10,000 to $13,000 back in 2011 and 2012, respectively.

Ancient relics of Atari

Older gamers love to revisit titles from the Atari 2600 because of the nostalgia it brings. It was a time when gaming was in a more infant stage of development, with visuals being primitive and gameplay being the driving force of experiences. And while things would quickly change in the years that followed, the Atari 2600 and its game library would forever remain a beloved part of gaming history. But as much as someone might love that era of gaming, chances are you won't get your hands on these very expensive and very rare Atari 2600 games anytime soon.