AtariAge + Atari Q&A

[Thomas Jentzsch]

42 minutes ago, Sauron said:

Considering the length of this thread and the fact that several questions have been asked numerous times, perhaps it would be a good idea to post an FAQ? 

Good idea. Maybe with some important answers which are still missing.

[Thomas Jentzsch]

27 minutes ago, Albert said:

This is something I can add to the store easily enough, not sure I'd put this directly on packaging, though.  It's definitely too late for the current crop of games as most of those boxes are already at the printer. 

I would have objected anyway.

[+Sauron]

2 minutes ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

I had the idea of a community driven AtariAge, where Al is distributing the workload to other people. I am quite sure we would have found voluntaries for almost everything.

Probably, and in many ways AA really has been a community-driven effort. However, volunteer work will often only go so far, especially when it comes to certain things that are tedious but necessary to do. Simply put, I don't think AA would be able to remain the same as it is without a central figure putting time and money into it. Perhaps I'm wrong on that, but again I prefer to see this all through a positive lens.

 

[zzip]

15 hours ago, Albert said:

15 hours ago, Raiu said:

The funny part is that I doubt Warner even knows it.

This would not surprise me at all.

Just like Disney probably doesn't realize they own rights to Ballblazer or Rescue on Fractalus, or they would have been turned into live-action movies by now 

[Albert]

3 minutes ago, hizzy said:

This is my only worry about the merger. Atari's official products have been nowhere near as good as stuff from AA. This is like hearing your favorite steakhouse was bought over by 7-11.

I will continue to be responsible for working with the authors, artists, and designers to create new packaging for games published through AtariAge, that's not going to change.  I will also be providing input for similar products that Atari is publishing.

 

 ..Al

[Albert]

4 minutes ago, Kal said:

Sorry if this has been asked already but does this mean the games will once again ship to the U.K.? 
oh and a big congratulations!

Right now shipping is hit and miss to the UK only because the store software isn't handling UK addresses very well.  If you want to buy something and you're in the UK, and you're seeing an error or some other issue when attempting to check out, please let me know and I can help you around the issue.  Once the store is moved to a new platform, this will no longer be a problem.

 

 ..Al

[Thomas Jentzsch]

1 minute ago, Sauron said:

Probably, and in many ways AA really has been a community-driven effort. However, volunteer work will often only go so far, especially when it comes to certain things that are tedious but necessary to do. 

There are people for virtually every task who are happy to do it. E.g. I hate to iron, but a friend of mine loves doing so. Unbelievable for me, but true. Most other, larger community projects will have tedious parts. And yet they are done.

[+OLD CS1]

1 hour ago, zzip said:

Right after they call Nintendo back and say "you know what?  Actually we DO want to distribute your Famicom in North America!"

Once distribution is stable, maybe we will start seeing some hints of an Atari 520ST Mini.

 

1 hour ago, Thomas Jentzsch said:

This is an overly broad assumption. Period.

I am going to "name drop," again, but having met and hung out with Albert and assessed him for myself, I am banking on this broad assumption, period.

 

1 hour ago, Rick Dangerous said:

I don't blame Albert one bit; money is real, you can use it to take care of yourself and your family, for a better life, etc.  I might well have done the same thing.

Indeed.  From a business stand-point, it is every businessman's dream and, frankly, the American dream, to hustle and bust ass on an idea, on a vision, to see that blossom and become successful, then be able to sit back and take it easy, still the captain but able to pass off the helm from time-to-time to people and an infrastructure you can trust.  To take an opportunity to benefit from what you have built, not just monetarily, and I have never gotten the impression AtariAge was all about the money, to focus on things which become important later in life, and even focus on things you always thought could be done better or differently but never had the time.

 

1 hour ago, Rick Dangerous said:

For the community and this forum, I think its a huge and unfortunate blow.

This has been in the works for over a year, the last nine months in earnest.  That tells me a ton of work and negotiation has gone into this marriage, including safe-guards for what has been built over the past two and a-half decades.  I do not think Albert is stupid by any means, nor that he went into this a doe-eyed dunce.  I am certain he had at least one attorney working this with him to get exactly what he wanted, and given his involvement for this long and how that has always been in parity with us, what we want.

 

1 hour ago, Rick Dangerous said:

Our layoff equivalent here are the freedoms and fun and creativity and sharing that took place on this site.

[...]

Will give it a few months before final judgement, but as mentioned above, indicators are trending in the wrong direction.

1 hour ago, FarmerPotato said:

I'll trust Al that nothing's changing, right now, but I wonder about the future.

These are my exact concerns.  Far too many corpos in the gaming industry have gone to the Dark Side of intrusion and invasion of their users.  Far too many companies are investing not in product and quality, but in taking successful IP, to distort for a "modern audience" while at the same time claiming to honor heritage and nostalgia.  For too many companies willing to use nostalgia and good will to take every dollar possible from everyone they can, sucker or prudent.

 

As well, far too many corpos are dropping bits of themselves which do not fit their core mission, profitable or otherwise.  This is a frightening proposition.

 

As I noted elsewhere, I am viscerally dubious and distrusting of corporations these days.  Well beyond what my own roots instilled.  That said, I have faith that we have some warriors on our side in the face of this dragon and will continue to contribute and participate in the forums, buy the products for which I find value, and do whatever I can to help keep this alive.

 

1 hour ago, FarmerPotato said:

Weird to think that the TI-99/4A and other classic home computers are now "supported" by an entity known as Atari.

We 99ers have been afforded an amazing home here, and I bow to @retroclouds for approaching, and @Albert for agreeing to take that chance.  (I only wish the Commodore and Amiga subs could have taken off so well.)  Of course, sadly, it being "Atari" is what keeps some of the curmudgeons away.  Nonetheless, we have an immense amount of knowledge and experience gathered in the 99 subs, for which I have to fall back on Al's previous presentations and engagement (he still frequents our threads) as a commitment that we will not suffer from this.  Nonetheless, we can, and should, work to provide preservation for what we have here before it gets more out-of-hand than it has in the past decade, not out of faltering trust, but out of reasonability: it behooves us to have layers or redundancy, no matter the situation.

 

Sometimes it is difficult to separate pessimism from risk assessment.  I can either have a complete lack of faith and distrust in Atari, or I can maintain a cautious optimism and place my faith in someone, albeit just a man, who has never to my knowledge demonstrated untrustworthiness.

 

No pressure, @Albert

 

 

 

1 hour ago, Rick Dangerous said:

I assume they made him an offer he couldn't refuse.

Maybe??

[TrogdarRobusto]

13 hours ago, x=usr(1536) said:

My suggestion would be for Atari, SA to make a concerted effort at actually understanding that culture.  Be a part of the communities that exist, both here and elsewhere and not just for the sake of marketing.  This would go a long way towards bridging certain gaps, and hopefully improving communication and understanding in the process.

Culture is important. It is very much a topic of discussion within Atari.  Al is on the team now, such a great and critical link. We speak with homebrew developers more, like Dennis and Mike. We can go further and will. Atari historians like Marty and Tim (and Al). Matt on prototypes. We just launched the Atari Club. It feels like we are getting the band back together ... but it will take time and I know you can't pre-judge the outcome. Culture is also not static, so it will shift very slowly over time as we fold younger audiences into the brand. 

And hold us to it. Let us know when we are sounding tone deaf or off culture. We can handle the constructive criticism.

Off topic perhaps, but perhaps not ... no one inside Atari refers to this company as Atari SA ... that feels like a purposeful dig. Not saying that is how you are using it. But to me it is like when people refer to Atari as Infogrames or "the company that used to be Atari" or "French Atari." These alternatives names that are meant to say "you aren't the real Atari and you never will be." If Atari ceased to exist in 1979 when Nolan left the company then why are where are we all here? 

Just call us Atari. 

Edited September 8, 2023 by TrogdarRobusto

[+OLD CS1]

9 minutes ago, zzip said:

Just like Disney probably doesn't realize they own rights to Ballblazer or Rescue on Fractalus, or they would have been turned into live-action movies by now 

What is it with all the heresy in this thread?!  Besides, everyone knows "Monkey Island" is way, way past due.

[MrBeefy]

38 minutes ago, TrogdarRobusto said:

My taco preference varies with mood. Sometimes I like soft, sometimes I like a hard shell. Big fan of Pollo Asado. Sometimes fish is the right call, especially on a nice spring day. Always have to have cheese. I love cheese. I am basically Wallace from Wallace and Grommet in that regard.

Over time I migrated from Tabasco to Cholula Original Hot Sauce, I mean, I am always open to recommendations. I live in Northeast, not really the hot sauce capital of the world.

[romeoteknik]

17 hours ago, TrogdarRobusto said:

Well, we want to commercialize our IP / re-release games we own. Al can help us figure out some of these edge cases, and of course the community can weigh in.

@TrogdarRobusto

 

I'm more into modern gaming now (Xbox, PS) and on the digital side of things. I love the perfect pixels on our modern displays.

 

As much as I think it's great to see more Atari physical products, to me it seems like they are all one-offs. "We'll get to that <feature, game, legacy console, etc> next time!" Like many, I don't have much physical space to "collect them all" as much I'd like to. 

 

For digital, I wonder why Atari doesn't create an all-in-one that could be updated over time should you acquire more gaming rights in the future. The thing is, you have this with Atari 50, a fantastic app with all generations of legacy Atari. Let's say XBOX finally gets ActiBlizzion done, Atari gets into talks and now Activision games can be made available for it. You could release an update for Atari 50 to plug in the holes in the timeline, maybe offer the Activision pack DLC for $9.99 or something feasible. Atari 50 now starts to become the all-in-one. Later down the line, Atari 8bit/PC side of things comes along, other IPs/licenses secured, update/DLC, etc, etc. Over time, you have a digital museum of all things Atari checking off the preservation box and one modern place to play.

 

If Atari can't do this with Atari 50, maybe a new app then similar to Sega Genesis Classics or XBOX 360's Game Room. The hub being a retro game room that you can customize. New games being offered over time and can be added to your library. Imagine some of the homebrew games on AA being offered in this new application. I don't have to worry about modding, digging out old consoles, just launch the app on my XBOX/PS/PC, see the new games available, buy/download/play in glorious 4K.

 

Having access to someone at Atari is great and this merger I feel will lead to new possibilities, but as with many things, being cautious is always good. The amount of ideas on this forum is second to none, hopefully they can be realized. Al has been a champion of this since the get-go.

 

 

Edited September 8, 2023 by romeoteknik

[TrogdarRobusto]

20 minutes ago, zzip said:

I'm less bothered by the noise on the VCS than how rapidly it spins up and down,  not sure if that's good for the fan's lifespan or if it would be better to run at a more constant speed for longer periods/  

I am pretty sure you can change that setting in the bios.

However, if there is one useful thing I ever do in the AA forums, here it is. I have my VCS sitting on an AC Infinity AIRCOM S6 cooling blower fan system, which is super, super quiet. As a result, I never, ever hear the VCS fan because it never turns on. $49.99 and it looks nice. 

[TrogdarRobusto]

By the way, serious props to Al who is also answering questions non-stop in the AtariAge Facebook group. We need to let him get a little work done, he is still prepping for PRGE.

[Zoyous]

2 minutes ago, TrogdarRobusto said:

Off topic perhaps, but perhaps not ... no one inside Atari refers to this company as Atari SA ... that feels like a purposeful dig. Not saying that is how you are using it. But to me it is like when people refer to Atari as Infogrames or "the company that used to be Atari" or "French Atari." These alternatives names that are meant to say "you aren't the real Atari and you never will be." If Atari ceased to exist in 1979 when Nolan left the company then why are where are we all here? 

Just call us Atari. 

That notion of who is "the real Atari" is nothing new and extends back to some of the earliest years of the company and the relationship between the coin-op and consumer divisions. But my advice would be to not take it as a dig since it is literally the legal name of your company and it serves a purpose in discussion of differentiating the various eras and ideas about what Atari should be. The reason why we're all here is because of the work this community has done in a self-organized manner. It's not because the brand name changed hands from time to time and was to be applied to hotels and cryptocurrency ventures.

 

Personally I'm not sure if the hotel and cryptocurrency was you guys or the previous owners of the name. I mean, I like the direction you're currently heading in and have several of the Recharged games and Atari 50. But the hotel and cryptocurrency thing was foolish. Was that you guys?

[zzip]

15 minutes ago, OLD CS1 said:

What is it with all the heresy in this thread?!  Besides, everyone knows "Monkey Island" is way, way past due.

I thought I heard recently they were working on that? 

[MegaManFan]

So I've had 24 hours to ruminate on this (and I do live in the Midwest, so we have a lot of rumination to go around, you can throw a rock in any direction and hit a cow) and a lot of lively feedback on my YouTube video (thanks for that whether you're on the forums or not) so I'm going to add a few more cents.

 

1.) It appears @TrogdarRobusto is a good dude. I don't know his official title with the current version of Atari, but if he's a representative of that Atari, it gives me continued good faith in the decision @Albert made for the future of AtariAge.

 

2.) Speaking of "the current version of Atari" there is much hay to be mowed here. Now I've been open about this subject so it's no secret - you can watch my Atari VCS unboxing and I say it there - this Atari is not the Atari we grew up with. I don't need to lay out the whole timeline of sales, acquisitions, mergers, reverse mergers, bankruptcy, asset liquidations, restructuring and new acquisitions. This site has a wealth of knowledge about that and so does the internet at large. I think for my own sanity my dividing line is when Atari stopped making consoles with the Jaguar. That's "classic Atari" for me even if they were already very different from the company of the 1970's and early 80's by then. Others will have their own definition. I think this ultimately proves the definition of what "Atari" is to you is malleable. No two people will 100% agree.

 

3.) As someone who started collecting Atari after the Jaguar ceased production, met both of the Als at CGExpo in Vegas, and became a forum poster from the very earliest days of the website, I could easily be skeptical of the current Atari buying AtariAge. But I think that's where I refer back to #2 - what is Atari to you? To me it's classic consoles, computers, and games. I'm not saying this Atari is our 1265 Borregas Avenue Atari, but here's what I like about this Atari -- they are respecting the legacy of those classic consoles, computers, and games. It's not perfect. It can't be, because of #2, but I see a good faith effort in things like the Atari 50th Anniversary on Switch, Xbox, PS5. The games play well. The interviews and behind the scenes footage are well preserved and fascinating to watch. The timeline lays it out for people who weren't there. It's hard to look at it and go "man this Atari is taking a dump on everything we love." They're not.

 

4.) You can love or hate the current Atari's products, but even as someone who collects all things Atari, my rose colored glasses aren't so tinted that I think "everything Atari did in the 70's, 80's, or 90's was good." Man they made some colossal blunders, some very questionable decisions, and some incredibly poor choices. Even when they made better products than the competition they didn't go about marketing or supporting them the right way, dooming them to failure from launch. Whatever the current Atari is, let's judge them for what they do now, because they deserve to succeed or fail on their own merits. Call them Atari 2.0 if you like, I think it fits. They're not the old Atari, but they acknowledge their predecessors, and even if their respect for history is out of financial interest it's better than having no respect for history at all.

 

5.) There are obvious downsides to a corporate overlord. I'm not predicting doom and gloom, but I can certainly understand all the concerns raised here and elsewhere. I can tell you this much though -- if AtariAge were to be crushed by the new regime, the community here wouldn't disappear, they'd just form AtariAge 2.0 somewhere else. That's why I'm not going to be pessimistic. We will thrive regardless. I'm happy for @Albert though and I think he made this decision very carefully and very thoughtfully. He didn't rush it. That to me is the best indicator things will go well for everyone. Look at the possibilities this opens up -- digital rom sales, homebrew games licensed for wider distribution, and new products or consoles we can't even currently imagine. I'm excited to see how it plays out.

[+x=usr(1536)]

23 minutes ago, TrogdarRobusto said:

And hold us to it. Let us know when we are sounding tone deaf or off culture. We can handle the constructive criticism.

Fair enough, and thanks for the reply.  The background is definitely appreciated.

23 minutes ago, TrogdarRobusto said:

Off topic perhaps, but perhaps not ... no one inside Atari refers to this company as Atari SA ... that feels like a purposeful dig.

It's not intended as a dig, but rather as a differentiator.  I do see your point, though.

 

FWIW, I don't believe in any one particular iteration of Atari as being the One True Atari.  From 1972 to 1996, each one produced things that in some way, shape, or form caught my interest.  From that point on...  Not so much.  I am willing to accept that that may change, however, but am very much in the wait-and-see camp on it. If I should appear skeptical or critical please bear in mind that it's borne out of both experience and wanting to see that improvement.

[Zoyous]

I'd like to say one other thing about the notion of being the "real" Atari. This is something that becomes unintentionally apparent when looking at something like Tim Lapetino's beautiful book, "The Art of Atari." In an unfortunate way it shows how the incredibly high standard of artistic excellence from the original Atari gradually declined over the course of many years.

 

Art is subjective but I'd wager that most people would agree that the cover art for something like Fatal Run or Klax is not on the same level of technical and artistic excellence as the work of graphic designers and illustrators from earlier eras like George Opperman, Steve Hendricks, Cliff Spohn, etc. The original leadership at Atari understood the value of that superb art and design, and invested in it accordingly. This resulted in works that have stood the test of time.

 

It's not something that needs a whole lot of explaining. If you want to be the "real" Atari, the bar is very high and it's out here in the world for everyone to see.

Just from my POV, that is something that the homebrew community that coalesced around AtariAge has clearly understood all along. The various business entities that have controlled the name brand "Atari" during the past couple of decades have demonstrably not understood this all along. So, count me among those who are cautiously optimistic that this new arrangement is a step in the right direction. There will be many more steps to take along that way to get back to the high bar set by the original Atari.

[Raiu]

33 minutes ago, TrogdarRobusto said:

Off topic perhaps, but perhaps not ... no one inside Atari refers to this company as Atari SA ... that feels like a purposeful dig. Not saying that is how you are using it. But to me it is like when people refer to Atari as Infogrames or "the company that used to be Atari" or "French Atari." These alternatives names that are meant to say "you aren't the real Atari and you never will be." If Atari ceased to exist in 1979 when Nolan left the company then why are where are we all here? 

Just call us Atari. 

I would think it's a matter of distinguishing Atari, the parent company, from its two subsidiaries also named Atari. So they're Atari SA, Atari Interactive, and Atari Inc, rather than Atari, Atari, and Atari (plus Atari, the original configuration of the company from the 1970s, Atari, the company that split off from that company, and Atari the other company that split off from that company.... there's a lot of Ataris over the years, including right now, is what I'm saying here)

[+OLD CS1]

26 minutes ago, zzip said:

I thought I heard recently they were working on that? 

https://www.polygon.com/features/2021/2/21/22291761/curse-of-monkey-island-movie-lucasfilm-spielberg-canceled

[Emehr]

Here's my take, for what it's worth: this is Atari. Let's do the math:

 

Atari = Albert + Nolan Bushnell (as advisor) + the powers that be at Atari

 

To me, it really doesn't get any more Atari than this. I'm in.

[BIGHMW]

12 hours ago, roadrunner said:

What Atari really needs to do is make a 5200 Big Sexy T Shirt! 

 

it would probably need to be oversized for one thing!!! lol

 

They would be perfect for all of these girls who to wear over their minishorts or panties or whatever these daring young ladies wear underneath their oversized sweatshirts/t-shirts like Madison Beer used to wear a few years ago.

[TrogdarRobusto]

14 minutes ago, Zoyous said:

Personally I'm not sure if the hotel and cryptocurrency was you guys or the previous owners of the name. I mean, I like the direction you're currently heading in and have several of the Recharged games and Atari 50. But the hotel and cryptocurrency thing was foolish. Was that you guys?

Our new games are solid, and I am really excited about many of the titles we have announced that launch in the next few months.

The Hotels are a licensing deal. I am still really curious to see how that plays out. It was signed by the previous admin, but it has potential. The concept is cool, but the pandemic blew a huge whole in their plans. I know a lot of people thought it was odd/silly/strange ... but remember it is a licensing deal, we didn't decide to suddenly become a hotel operator. It isn't going to distract in any way from our core business. But if those hotels are successful, wow what brand building.

Even if you thought the Atari Token was a good idea, and many, many people did not, the execution was not up to the standards of the new team which is why we shut it down. That was started under the previous administration, but we inherited it and we owned it. Had the execution been better, had they picked better partners overall ... it was an innovative play and innovation is something Atari has always been known for (some innovation went great, some famously not so well.) But some of the licensed crypto partnerships were truly cringeworthy. It also happened during a period when Atari wasn't making games, so it probably seemed even more directionally bizarre. The Atari content in The Sandbox metaverse is really cool, by the way. I would think any Atari fan who got to romp around in the environment would think it was pretty fantastic. I should share some of that creative work in here ... it is really well done, great celebration of Atari games.

Web3 technology holds long term promise ... and we are keeping a finger in that to see where it leads, but we think it is a good thing that all the crypto froth has dissipated and the get rich quick moment is over. 
 

[TrogdarRobusto]

19 minutes ago, Zoyous said:

I'd like to say one other thing about the notion of being the "real" Atari. This is something that becomes unintentionally apparent when looking at something like Tim Lapetino's beautiful book, "The Art of Atari." In an unfortunate way it shows how the incredibly high standard of artistic excellence from the original Atari gradually declined over the course of many years.

 

Tim is actually helping us source artists now for new key art. We usually do two illustrations per game, so we have an alternate for special physical versions. Atari created key art, we need to return to that standard from the golden era. That is a big focus, and important to me personally. We may not always nail it, but we are trying.