Atari Gamestation? What?

[ColecoGamer]

Check it out here:

 

 

[ColecoGamer]

I wonder if the Atari Gamestation is a redesigned New VCS without the PC functionality?

[Atari_JaguarVCS]

It’s definitely not a new VCS or designed to compete with the VCS. The VCS is a PC this is basically just another mini console that has the 2600 and 7800 game library on it and Arcade if I’m correct. I’ll probably pick one up like I do with most of these little plug and play type devices. This one looks cooler than most so hopefully it has the ability to load other games on it via a memory card. 

[+Sauron]

I'd say a memory card slot is a must for all three devices, whatever they are. 

[leech]

What would be epic (though don't see this happening as Atari Games arcades are not what is currently owned by Atari) on the Arcade cabinet is to have those greats like Stun Runner, Gauntlet, etc.  The little portable also has not enough buttons for all the 2600 stuff, but also too many main buttons for it not to be like the 7800...

 

But what would be interesting; is if they basically crammed all they could from the Atari 50th anniversary into that little portable. 

[THX-1138]

2 hours ago, ColecoGamer said:

I wonder if the Atari Gamestation is a redesigned New VCS without the PC functionality?

No.  Atari have already said this mini console has 2600, 7800 and arcade games.

[Tickled_Pink]

Why oh why oh why oh why oh why?

 

Just ... why?

 

I don't get the point of mini consoles. There was one I saw on LTT the other day that was a repackaged NES. THAT, despite the cost, made more sense to me as it used original chips. But if you want to use an emulator, even if it's on FPGA, use whatever you already have to hand.

[Rob Merritt]

14 hours ago, Sauron said:

I'd say a memory card slot is a must for all three devices, whatever they are. 

Its been confirmed that the hand held and the mini player will only have Atari 2600 games and NO sd card.

 

[+Stephen]

More plastic for the land fills.  How many more ways do we need to be able to play 45 year old games?

[MrMaddog]

1 hour ago, Tickled_Pink said:

Why oh why oh why oh why oh why?

 

Just ... why?

 

I don't get the point of mini consoles. There was one I saw on LTT the other day that was a repackaged NES. THAT, despite the cost, made more sense to me as it used original chips. But if you want to use an emulator, even if it's on FPGA, use whatever you already have to hand.

 

They exist as either novelity gifts or collectables.

 

And most people can't be bothered to set up emulators, which I for one have no problem with.  But it is easier for me to ask my family members for a new Atari Flashback for Christmas than a RetroPie setup.

[Atari_JaguarVCS]

Hopefully the game station has an sd card slot or it’ll just be a good looking mini console with not much else to offer after you’ve played through the games included. I might just skip on the handheld and just grab the console, even if that turns out to have no card reader slot it’ll look good sitting on the shelf. The handheld sounds like a nightmare for playing games due to the dpad from the above video posted hopefully that’s sorted prior to release. 

[The Helper]

Good news for Atari is they just license these games to these companies so they are going to make money anyway.

[THX-1138]

I really do not get the negativity for these, AtariRage strikes again.

 

I will be getting the pocket player for playing the 2600 games I like I've already seen some of my favorites on the 100 included, I don't play mobile games so it would be handy for me when traveling or just sat on the beach.  I will buy the console to replace the fugly Flashback console I have in the lounge, 200 games is more than enough for me, especially with 2600, 7800 and Arcade games included. 

[T.A.P.]

20 minutes ago, THX-1138 said:

I really do not get the negativity for these, AtariRage strikes again.

 

I will be getting the pocket player for playing the 2600 games I like I've already seen some of my favorites on the 100 included, I don't play mobile games so it would be handy for me when traveling or just sat on the beach.  I will buy the console to replace the fugly Flashback console I have in the lounge, 200 games is more than enough for me, especially with 2600, 7800 and Arcade games included. 

I'm just disappointed because I was hoping they were going to announce something related to the VCS.

 

I'm sure these are fine and will have their supporters, they just aren't for me.

[Rob Merritt]

Have some answers about the Gamestation

No SD card slot in any device

No wifi or networking. All games are embedded. 

Can you add games via usb in a firmware update? Vague answer. "never say never"

No paddle controller options and using other controllers is vague. because it has a usb port.

Price: $99.99 and will be released in June. Preorders open in May

 

Source:

 

[Snoww]

10 hours ago, Stephen said:

More plastic for the land fills.  How many more ways do we need to be able to play 45 year old games?

Got to agree. There are already so many gadgets with screens. Not to mention so many handhelds and consoles alike that have Atari emulators. Just today I was playing a rom on StellaDS. Gameplay and controls were perfect.

 

The Gamestation is kind of cool, but I'd just get the new VCS then.

 

On a more positive note. It is nice to see 2600 games hanging on and not fading into obscurity.

 

I'd love to see a Gamestation like console for Intellivision though. I know they're working on the Amica, but if they just made a console like the original - (I'll call it Intellivion 3) - and let homebrewers make games for it.. that would be flippin cool.

Edited January 7, 2023 by Snoww

[7800Knight]

The Gamestation doesn't look bad but it sounds like a glorified Flashback.

 

This might interest me if I didn't already have an Atari 7800 and an Evercade.  I have a good number of Atari selections available on those.

[King_Salamon]

Saw an image on one of the Youtube videos of the user interface for the gamestation and it shows a sample of 8 or 10 games on the screen and the one that stood out was Boxing as it was the Activision Boxing box art.  If there are Activision titles on here (similar to Flashbacks in the past) that would be kind of interesting. The Atari Gamestation has my interested piqued so I will continue to pay attention to learn more.

 

The mini and micro... is less interesting to me to that point that I will pass on those... especially when they only have a collection of 2600 titles.

 

There is also talk of new Arcade Microcades at CES.  I havent read what games but those could be fun... especially if they are actual arcade roms like Contra etc.  Time will tell.

[Pink]

So, basically basically just an Atari Flashback, with I guess some 7800 & arcade games on it as well now?

[stirrell]

I honestly don’t understand why they don’t release games for the 8-bit, Lynx, and Jaguar. At least that would be something “new.” I have no idea if the hardware needed to emulate the Jaguar would make it too expensive. But I can’t get interested in the same 2600 games getting released over and over.

[THX-1138]

2 hours ago, stirrell said:

I honestly don’t understand why they don’t release games for the 8-bit, Lynx, and Jaguar. At least that would be something “new.” I have no idea if the hardware needed to emulate the Jaguar would make it too expensive. But I can’t get interested in the same 2600 games getting released over and over.

I think it's just a strategy they have.  The current management and CEO at the 50th anniversary want to do new licensing deals for the stuff they most known for - worldwide.  Other consoles were more hit and miss and had varying levels of success, but the 2600 was flying off shelves right through the 80's into the early 90's outside the US.  Maybe after the 50th anniversary stuff is done, if the 3rd party demand for the IP from other systems is there (and that depends on the success of existing licensing), then perhaps we'll see other things.

I'd buy a low-price handheld, like the pocket player preloaded with Lynx stuff in a heartbeat.  Or an Atari Jaguar mini, 800 mini, or a ST mini.

 

Edited January 7, 2023 by THX-1138

[Lord Mushroom]

On 1/7/2023 at 1:13 AM, Rob Merritt said:

Have some answers about the Gamestation

No SD card slot in any device

No wifi or networking. All games are embedded. 

Can you add games via usb in a firmware update? Vague answer. "never say never"

No paddle controller options and using other controllers is vague. because it has a usb port.

Price: $99.99 and will be released in June. Preorders open in May

I am not surprised by the basicness of the console, but I think the price is too high. I know the target audience is middle-aged people who typically have plenty of money, but it is still a little steep. I was expecting it to be $60-70. It had better have many good games.

[Lord Mushroom]

On 1/7/2023 at 6:16 PM, stirrell said:

I honestly don’t understand why they don’t release games for the 8-bit, Lynx, and Jaguar. At least that would be something “new.” I have no idea if the hardware needed to emulate the Jaguar would make it too expensive.

We had a discussion of why the Playstation Mini was so expensive, and we came to the conclusion that it was probably more expensive hardware. So it would probably have been more expensive to be able to support Jaguar games. But, yes, more games should have been added.

[CapitanClassic]

I figure the Atari Gamestation is doomed to fail if the MSRP is $99.99. Even with the crazy inflation over the last 2 years, I don’t see how a MyArcade plug-n-play console could justify the additional $20 price tag.

 

The Atari Flashback X, MSRP ($60)

Atari Flashback 50th Anniversary Edition, MSRP ($80)

 

The ATARI 50: THE ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION (MSRP $30) collection that released on multiple systems included some 7800 games (only 7), and the normal 2600 and Arcade games. It looks like Atari only owns the rights to 10 or so 7800 titles, so I just don’t see many people buying a MyArcade with the same Arcade/2600 games we always see and a handful of new 7800 titles.

 

My prediction is that these MyArcade Atari GameStation consoles are going to end up in the bargain bins like the PSX Classic and Legends Flashback pnp consoles. At least with those consoles, you could hack them to make them much more useful set-top emulation box. 
 

PS: the button on top of the joystick is a horrible ergonomic design decision.

[Snoww]

On 1/10/2023 at 6:30 PM, CapitanClassic said:

I figure the Atari Gamestation is doomed to fail if the MSRP is $99.99. Even with the crazy inflation over the last 2 years, I don’t see how a MyArcade plug-n-play console could justify the additional $20 price tag.

 

The Atari Flashback X, MSRP ($60)

Atari Flashback 50th Anniversary Edition, MSRP ($80)

 

The ATARI 50: THE ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION (MSRP $30) collection that released on multiple systems included some 7800 games (only 7), and the normal 2600 and Arcade games. It looks like Atari only owns the rights to 10 or so 7800 titles, so I just don’t see many people buying a MyArcade with the same Arcade/2600 games we always see and a handful of new 7800 titles.

 

My prediction is that these MyArcade Atari GameStation consoles are going to end up in the bargain bins like the PSX Classic and Legends Flashback pnp consoles. At least with those consoles, you could hack them to make them much more useful set-top emulation box. 
 

PS: the button on top of the joystick is a horrible ergonomic design decision.

It definitely looks neat, but correct. If the price is too high, good luck not letting collect dust on the shelves or ending up in the bargain bin. A lot of these companies still have the old mindset when building these things. They don't see that not only is todays world saturated with all kinds of consoles and hardware that can play games, people's homes are also starting to amass more electronics than they need. I myself continue to have computers and laptops just given to me at work. Either take em or they get recycled.

 

So I remembered an idea I had over 20 years ago. I had this idea of packaging a USB dongle with attachable controllers. It would have a very limited Steam like interface that let you download and play games. It would essentially turn your PC or laptop into an instant console. I decided to pitch this idea to Atari. Because another problem I personally have these days - if I want to play a PC game with a dpad or joystick, I have to configure and remap keys to buttons. It's a huge pain. I made a multiplayer platformer that I wanted to play with friends, but could not get the correct inputs or buttons detected. Not to mention, half of my friends either don't have a USB controller or some shitty MadCatz one from 200 years ago. Back to the idea, I still don't have the funds or infrastructure to take the risk of creating new hardware and attempting to market and sell it. Atari might. Especially since it's still a household name. I pitched a more advanced version of my idea:

 

1. When the unit is plugged into a running PC, the minute a game or emulator or virtual console, etc, is opened, it runs a utility that can load a script which automatically assigns controller and button inputs, as well as proper player inputs, and lets you and buddy(ies) instantly start playing. Button mapping scripts could be community generated and included in firmware updates.

 

2. It has a microprocessor like a Pi, and can run low end 3d or 2d games, if plugged into a tv via HDMI.

 

3. It can also be a bootable USB. If it say ran AtariOS, if plugged in to a good PC, it could run like a console similar to their new VCS. Perhaps allow cross player capability, so that people who didn't own the VCS could still play multiplayer games with VCS owners. Right now, apparently, one of the biggests features of the VCS is that it can double as a PC. Great.. but, I don't need another PC. I'm sure the majority of people out there don't need another PC either.

 

The reply I got back was that they've talked about something similar (internally), and thanks for sharing. I don't really know if they might continue to consider it, but they should. We should start using what we already have, rather than creating more sreens and plastic. Plus having a kit like this would solve my own headache when I want to play some games with friends.