AtariAge + Atari Q&A

[CapitanClassic]

1 hour ago, AtariLeaf said:

Basic math recharged would be a killer app for Atari, causing their stock to surge to epic proportions!

Would have to cover Calculus. Derivatives and Summations. Leave partial derivatives for the sequel.

[BIGHMW]

Will the new Atari brand support even the 5200 despite her niche following after all there are those of us that grew up with her first and then discovered and/or embraced the rest of the Atari family of consoles afterwards.

 

Just because Big Sexy (our affectionate nickname for the 5200 because if her size and design. the 7800 i referred to as "Lil' Sexy" as she is the same design only smaller) was the proverbial "black sheep" of the Atari family does not mean that she did not have her fair share of loyal followers, I hope that @TrogdarRobusto and those at the new Atari are aware of her 41 year history and will do whatever they can to provide support and/or technical expertise to keep her legacy alive and then some. Perhaps a 5200+ would be nice sometime in the short future, provided it supports both generations of the Atarimax Ultimate SD multicarts. And I hope that guys like our very own Paul Lay @playsoft, and @Ryan Witmer will be allowed to continue to plow out brand new titles for our beloved Big Sexy!!!

Edited September 8, 2023 by BIGHMW
spelling error

[+x=usr(1536)]

1 minute ago, BIGHMW said:

Big Sexy (our affectionate nickname for the 5200 because if her size and design. the 7800 i referred to as "Lil' Sexy" as she is the same design only smaller) 

For clarity: the 'our' above should read 'my', as @BIGHMW is the only person who actually refers to the console by that name.

 

He did get ownership of the pet name for the 7800 correct, however.

[rayr]

3 hours ago, tzok said:

I'm more afraid they will reclaim their copyright to whatever is possible, and what for the last 30 years was considered abandoned = free. They figured out, that they could make money on old stuff, by doing nothing more than PR. This Atari is not Atari from '80, and should not have any claims to classic ROMs. After 25+ years off the market, they should be irreversibly "copylefted", so no one would ever try to claim any financial rights. I don't like it at all. Of course congratulations on a good deal. If you wouldn't agree they'd probably force this site down forcefully. So I see this as "sometimes the only option to survive is to join our enemy". Atari platform was actually the last abandoned (=free) platform, without any company claiming rights to the vast share of the released software. Cloanto practically killed the Amiga retro community, or maybe rather took it hostage.

I hear you. I've been at several companies that have been taken over by corporations and it has never been a good experience. The community here that put so much passion in keeping Atari alive is the treasure and nothing should be done to hurt that. This new Atari has nothing to do with the old Atari. Do they really even understand the passion and wonderful feelings we have for the Atari brand. I seriously doubt that. I just hope this isn't a money grab for them and they respect all the work the community has done to keep classic Atari brand alive.

[+Neon Wraith]

1 minute ago, x=usr(1536) said:

For clarity: the 'our' above should read 'my', as @BIGHMW is the only person who actually refers to the console by that name.

 

He did get ownership of the pet name for the 7800 correct, however.

I won't tell you what I call "Big Sexy".

 

The wife.

[+Stephen]

3 minutes ago, x=usr(1536) said:

For clarity: the 'our' above should read 'my', as @BIGHMW is the only person who actually refers to the console by that name.

 

He did get ownership of the pet name for the 7800 correct, however.

I think Big Sexy is shorthand for Cindy?  But it couldn't be short hand because Big Sexy has more letters.

[BIGHMW]

1 minute ago, Stephen said:

I think Big Sexy is shorthand for Cindy?  But it couldn't be short hand because Big Sexy has more letters.

No not quite, it appears like Cindy has dropped the bomb on yours truly here, so much to the point of me wanting to finally wash my hands of her and much like I did with my ex Alice and put her in the rear view mirror.

[+Neon Wraith]

2 minutes ago, Stephen said:

I think Big Sexy is shorthand for Cindy?  But it couldn't be short hand because Big Sexy has more letters.

"Big hands, I know you're the one".  The Violent Femmes had it right.

[+Stephen]

Just now, BIGHMW said:

No not quite, it appears like Cindy has dropped the bomb on yours truly here, so much to the point of me wanting to finally wash my hands of her and much like I did with my ex Alice and put her in the rear view mirror.

That's the most coherent sentence I've ever witnessed you type.  Quoting for when it doesn't happen!

[+Lathe26]

I saw an answer that probably already covers this, but to make it more concrete...

 

Will AtariAge still allow discussions about modern recreation consoles that compete with the Atari 2600+?  These include items such as the FPGA Intellivision or if someone decided to rescue or resurrect (unlikely) the Amico or Coleco Chameleon and launch those as products.

[+Stephen]

6 minutes ago, joeatari1 said:

I won't tell you what I call "Big Sexy".

 

The wife.

Did I not warn of what would happen via the tagging?

[+jeremiahjt]

7 hours ago, TrogdarRobusto said:

I've got the list ... all arcade games. The Chicago Coin IP list is massive, we picked up a much, much shorter list. Berserk and Frenzy are the standouts.

The list of games from the Stern acquisition has been know for a while, what would really impress is if you could let us know the games acquired in the Accolade/GT Interactive deal and the M Network deal.  In fact, if you could supply us with the lists, you would jump to the top of the list of my favorite current Atari employees that I have contact with.  Of course that list right now only includes @davpa, but first is first, right?

 

Also, if Atari's acquisition of AtariAge could get Atari to start using the silver box artwork for their Gravitar releases, instead of the red box, I would consider it a win.  Why Atari's use of the red box for everything Gravitar bugs me so much I cannot say, but it really does.  The silver box, cartridge, and manual are just nicer than the red ones to me and are also the originals.

[Albert]

1 minute ago, Lathe26 said:

I saw an answer that probably already covers this, but to make it more concrete...

 

Will AtariAge still allow discussions about modern recreation consoles that compete with the Atari 2600+?  These include items such as the FPGA Intellivision or if someone decided to rescue or resurrect (unlikely) the Amico or Coleco Chameleon and launch those as products.

Yes, of course!

 

 ..Al

[Albert]

Just now, jeremiahjt said:

Also, if Atari's acquisition of AtariAge could get Atari to start using the silver box artwork for their Gravitar releases, instead of the red box, I would consider it a win.  Why Atari's use of the red box for everything Gravitar bugs me so much I cannot say, but it really does.  The silver box, cartridge, and manual are just nicer than the red ones to me and are also the originals.

I like the appearance of the red packaging, but the silver packaging is certainly more classic. 

 

 ..Al

[BIGHMW]

Yes Stephen, in fact I talked to a couple of my co-workers at Safeway and they said it would mean less stress on me if I did exactly that, they said if I could successfully move on from Alice like I did over 4 years ago then putting Cindy in the rear view mirror should be just as much a piece of cake as that. I know it's gonna be hard, considering how much time/money I invested in both this business and on impressing her to land me that now-non-existent contract offer but they said I can do that.

Edited September 8, 2023 by BIGHMW
spelling error

[electronicsibley]

9 hours ago, TrogdarRobusto said:

We get sooooo many questions about IP/games that we published at some point but don't own the license to, or that other people published for our hardware that we don't own the rights to. 

Our hope is that the resurgence of retro hardware and games, including the new 2600+, will encourage more rights holders of games that have been out of circulation to re-release them, or assign the rights to someone else. We will see. It seems to be working for Nightdive, they keep getting their hands on great titles.

Congrats on everything! I’m 100% behind this. It makes so much sense. 

And on the topic of rights and IP, I’d love to see you guys bring the “Atari Games” collection of arcade IP back into the fold! I’m talking everything from Paperboy to Primal Rage. In my mind that would truly make Atari whole again.
 

Any chance folks there are thinking about this?

[+jeremiahjt]

2 minutes ago, Albert said:

I like the appearance of the red packaging, but the silver packaging is certainly more classic. 

 

 ..Al

And I just realized my list of current Atari contacts should include you to Albert, sorry for the oversight.  Whoever gets me those lists will be at the top though.  While I am here, congratulations.  I do have a quick question about Halo 2600.  When it announced in the last chance sale, I was confused because I thought it had been done on the corporate up and up.  Was it more of a wink and a nod from Microsoft on that one, and nothing official?

[electronicsibley]

9 hours ago, TrogdarRobusto said:

I wish we had a comprehensive library of all our packaging, key art, and marketing materials. We really don't. Too much was lost in the many transitions. The Strong National Museum of Play has a rather large trove of Atari documents that they have been cataloging for quite some time. The team at Digital Eclipse worked with Strong to get a lot of the assets in Atari 50.  My goal is to go up there and look about next year. And Tim Lapetino has done an amazing job of tracking down and document all the old key art and marketing illustrations.  Beyond what we have managed to save, we kind of rely on fans to scan originals and post them. AtariAge and MobyGames are as much a resource to us as they are to you.

I’m sure you’re aware, but The Ted Dabny Experience podcast is a great resource for experiential storytelling by key former Atari employees. Lots of nuggets and leads to follow up on from their library. 

[SwanSong]

Jaguar? Did anyone say jaguar yet? I said jaguar, that would be amazing to buy stuff you didn't have at a regular price again!

[Gregory DG]

First I'm hearing of this and honestly it's a little concerning. Not sure the point of Atari buying AA if the site is going to stay the same anyway? How long does that last?

 

I do wish you the best Albert.

[Rev]

17 minutes ago, Lathe26 said:

I saw an answer that probably already covers this, but to make it more concrete...

 

Will AtariAge still allow discussions about modern recreation consoles that compete with the Atari 2600+?  These include items such as the FPGA Intellivision or if someone decided to rescue or resurrect (unlikely) the Amico or Coleco Chameleon and launch those as products.

Im waiting for Amico 2 personally, Amico technology is already 10 years old. 

[+swlovinist]

1 hour ago, famicommander said:

Yes, it's just a Retron for twice as much money that plays some 7800 carts. Except it isn't even as capable as a Retron because it lacks the SD slot. Big disappointment. 

I love it when someone is stating what something is when its not even out.   

[Albert]

3 minutes ago, Gregory DG said:

First I'm hearing of this and honestly it's a little concerning. Not sure the point of Atari buying AA if the site is going to stay the same anyway? How long does that last?

 

I do wish you the best Albert.

There's a lot more to it than that, I went into this in some detail in my public statement.  If you haven't read that, it should have some answers for you.

 

 ..Al

[Rev]

https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2023/09/zap-atari-acquires-beloved-retro-homebrew-vendor-atariage/
 

Some more press on it. 

[+OLD CS1]

24 minutes ago, joeatari1 said:

"Big hands, I know you're the one".  The Violent Femmes had it right.

Without the stained sheets.