Bill Loguidice Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 I still like the Idea of an Intellivision App for iPad where an iPhone works as a "real" controller. You should be able to emulate the wheel and keypad pretty closely, maybe even using the volume Up as one side button and down as another? In the end there is no substitute for the real thing. What I've seen of the mockups of the interface, it looks like the touchscreen controls will be logical recreations of the original controller, but I really don't know if they're going to support any alternative control methods. I doubt they'd do remote control from an iPhone, and I'm not even sure they're going to support a physical controller (like the iCade or iOS7 standards). The Intellivision, unlike the ColecoVision or Atari 2600, really is a challenge for just about anything to properly replicate because of that darn controller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Lathe26 Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 I still like the Idea of an Intellivision App for iPad where an iPhone works as a "real" controller. You should be able to emulate the wheel and keypad pretty closely, maybe even using the volume Up as one side button and down as another? In the end there is no substitute for the real thing. jzintv4droid is an Intellivision emulator for Android phones. All in all, it does a very nice job. The only problem I run into is the same one that using an iPhone as a real controller would: the touch screen does not provide tactile feedback. Sometimes when I am playing a game in jzintv4droid, I don't notice that my fingers have slowly drifted off of the touchscreen-rendered buttons since I can't feel the buttons. Other than that, this emulator is an excellent way to play games on-the-go. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.libsdl.jzintv4droid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atariboy Posted December 9, 2013 Share Posted December 9, 2013 If they were to release their app version on the Wii U eShop, the Wii U gamepad would be perfect for it. Touch pad, buttons, d-pad for games that need precise 4 way control, and an analog stick for games that took full advantage of the Intellivision circle pad's 16 directions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharkcharmer Posted December 9, 2013 Share Posted December 9, 2013 I got curious about the sales numbers, so I looked into it. According to the press release announcing the Intellivision 10 2nd Edition plug-n-play units, the combined sales of the previous 3 products in Techno Source's line did not surpass the units sold number of the original Intellivision (and they were using 3.2 million for that number), but that figure was expected to be surpassed with the release of 2nd Edition. So, it wasn't too far away at that time. Next, the Intellivision Lives history page notes that by Christmas 2005 (the year of 2nd Edition's release), the combined sales of the line had in fact crossed the original Intellivision sales total and approached 4 million. I couldn't find any data for sales beyond that Christmas, but I'd guess they were not too significant, so 4 million sounds like a good rough figure for the final tally. I think 5 million or above would be pretty unlikely, considering that 2006 was a year of decline for plug-n-play in general. If we go with 4 million, then, the average for each member of the product line is 1 million. I e-mailed both Techno Source and Intellivision Lives for more solid numbers, but I never got a response. Actually, it seems I only sent the latter an inquiry about the status of Night Stalker Gen2 (supposed to have been released in PlayStation Home by now, joining the existing Astrosmash Gen2 and Shark! Shark! Gen2 from about a year ago), but in any case, I never got a response. No answer at their toll-free number, either. onmode-ky Yeah man - I remember getting Ms. Pac Man Plug n Play in 2005. So what I would say about that is, it's not 2005. Kid's have their wireless play device, AKA their iPhone, with them all day. In 2005, American consumers purchased approx 598,000,000 CD's in. In 2012? 193,400,000. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyle22 Posted December 16, 2013 Share Posted December 16, 2013 (Parts of) this may be slightly off-topic, but, I promise, it'll make sense. I love the idea of bringing all the games back. I feel they should be as true to the original as possible. I wish it wasn't cost-prohibitive to reproduce actual pin compatible TIAs, ANTICs, GTIAs and POKEYs. I own an at-games Genesis handheld with cart port. I'll give it an 8 out of 10. I never really played IntelliVision much, I am mostly an Atari / Sega guy. Now, the idea of an emulation app... I can't think that could possibly be a success unless there is a way to use a "real" controller, not a touch screen simulation. I have an htc dual core Android with the Atari 8 bit Coleen emulator on it. The emulator people did a good job with it, but, my main point is: That touch screen controller, the entire concept SUCKS, and is Un-Playable. An Emulator app might look nice, and be ok for demos, slideshows, etc. But, to play games, A REAL Controller is necessary. just my $0.02 worth. -K 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey Bouchard Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 Bill, Has there been any more news on this announcement? Thanks for the update. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 Bill, Has there been any more news on this announcement? Thanks for the update. Nothing new, but I can tell you that the marketing is ramping up behind the scenes. It doesn't mean we'll be getting any of their 2014 products soon, but it does mean progress continues to be made. In that regard, I'm still liking what I'm seeing a great deal. Of course, I still have not seen any final products yet, which is the most important part, but what's been presented to this point is very promising. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Gemintronic Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 There was already that Intellivision in a joypad system. I kinda liked the portability compared to the mini-me Flashback units. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 There was already that Intellivision in a joypad system. I kinda liked the portability compared to the mini-me Flashback units. True, but the Flashback series is meant as modern simulations of the original to target the nostalgic consumer. That theme will be maintained with all the upcoming 2014 Sega, Atari, Intellivision, and ColecoVision products. I think that's probably what most would prefer (in terms of form factor). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bikeguychicago Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 If they do a cart-compatible Colecovision, I may consider purchasing one of those vs. trying to add an original unit with questionable reliability to my collection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 If they do a cart-compatible Colecovision, I may consider purchasing one of those vs. trying to add an original unit with questionable reliability to my collection. None of the upcoming 2014 units will be cart-compatible except for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Posted January 16, 2014 Author Share Posted January 16, 2014 I wonder if a cart port could be modded into one of these systems? Anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Gemintronic Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 Nope. Cheap emulation is the way. The Flashback 2 was the black sheep of the bunch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+LS650 Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 I'm guessing we'll see units similar to the Flashback 4, with an ARM processor running an emulator and pre-loaded ROMs. If that's the case, that the units are unlikely to be easily modded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 They mostly use custom chips, actually, but yes, since there's an emulation layer, you can't add a cartridge port. The only one of their products that recreate the original hardware like the Flashback 2/2+ did is the Sega Genesis stuff. When I get review units, I'll try to find out which of their custom chips are inside each product. Personally, a cartridge port is not that appealing to me. I'd much rather have SD card slots. That's always a possibility for future versions of these products (some of the Sega ones already have it, of course), pending the success of these initial products and minimal resistance from the license holders whose games will be included. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+JasonlikesINTV Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 I wonder if a cart port could be modded into one of these systems? Anyone? Pimpmaul modded an Atari Flashback with a cart port for me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey Bouchard Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 good news. I can't wait Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Posted January 17, 2014 Author Share Posted January 17, 2014 Pimpmaul modded an Atari Flashback with a cart port for me. Pimp is da man! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebelhaki Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Pimpmaul modded an Atari Flashback with a cart port for me. I've got one ready to mod in a pile of to do projects. 2 kids under the age of 3 don't allow for much modding time... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algus Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Bill, your vague I can't talk about it to much posts are like torture to me! I didn't know they were working on Coleco stuff as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Bill, your vague I can't talk about it to much posts are like torture to me! I didn't know they were working on Coleco stuff as well. Yeah, it was discussed in another thread. To sum up, they're working on new Atari Flashback 5, Intellivision Flashback, and ColecoVision Flashback TV game products, as well as new versions of their Sega Genesis/Mega Drive and Sega Game Gear/Master System stuff. There will also be apps and other digital products/services related to at least the Intellivision and ColecoVision. The vast majority of this is expected out in 2014. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+LS650 Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 (edited) The Colecovision sounds very interesting, but I wonder how much of the old software library is available to them. Many of its best games were licenced from other companies. I can't see Nintendo giving them permission to use Donkey Kong, for example! Edited January 17, 2014 by ls650 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Gemintronic Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Unfortunately, there's no longer anyone like Curt Vendel or Jeri Ellsworth involved to put some sort of JTAG or TF slot embedded in these devices so we can hack in our own ROMs/features. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Unfortunately, there's no longer anyone like Curt Vendel or Jeri Ellsworth involved to put some sort of JTAG or TF slot embedded in these devices so we can hack in our own ROMs/features. There's no technical reason why there can't be an SD slot, and it's certainly something on the table for future products, but right now it has to be released with only the built-in games. The Intellivision selection is far more robust than the ColecoVision selection, but I don't think fans will be disappointed with either. Naturally, the obvious ones, like anything from Nintendo, will be missing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlsson Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 As for cartridge ports, at one place I read about the competing Retron 5 that one of the reasons why it doesn't handle any Atari, ColecoVision, IntelliVision etc is that they were unable to source cartridge connectors?!? I may have misunderstood that or it was just a poor excuse, as I would imagine most of the pre-NES consoles actually have cartridge ports with pin fingering and spacing relative to industry standards, although different amounts of pins. Does anyone have a brief insight in that? When it comes to legal issues, a cartridge port seems much more "safe" than both a ROM with buit-in games and memory card slots for adding your own games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.