MrMaddog Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 Now I get it... After reading that VentureBeat article and looking up past interviews with Fred Chasnis (Atari CEO) it's all starting to make sense. Atari have three types of games available as digital downloads...PC, mobile & of course 2600/arcade games. I'm speculating that this Ataribox will be a microconsole for playing thoseAtari branded games that you can purchase and download. That way people can play "Atari" games on a on a single box, with the Fuji logo, as oppose to having to play across different platforms like a smartphone, a PC or a Flashback. And no doubt they'll be looking for developers to make new games for their microconsole as well. It would have to be based on PC hardware in order for the PC based games to work but I don't know how they can mix in the old Windows games with the Android based mobile games... I believe this was Atari SA's plan all along since 2014 and they were using licensing, mobile games and even gambling to raise funds to do this. Like many here on AA I only looked at playing the original Atari games while seeing everything else they did as "crap". But now things are starting to fall into place. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDTAY Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 Ataribox gets its first clickbait op-ed from Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2017/06/17/prepare-to-be-disappointed-by-whatever-ataris-new-console-turns-out-to-be/ Truly, it has arrived. I think Forbes was warning people to be disappointed by the Switch too before that was revealed, and look how that turned out. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 Ataribox gets its first clickbait op-ed from Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2017/06/17/prepare-to-be-disappointed-by-whatever-ataris-new-console-turns-out-to-be/ Truly, it has arrived. I think Forbes was warning people to be disappointed by the Switch too before that was revealed, and look how that turned out. There were many good reasons to be skeptical of the Switch's chances. There are considerably more for the AtariBox. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 I believe this was Atari SA's plan all along since 2014 and they were using licensing, mobile games and even gambling to raise funds to do this. Like many here on AA I only looked at playing the original Atari games while seeing everything else they did as "crap". But now things are starting to fall into place. Interesting theory, but, as far as I know, they have not been stockpiling funds. This is just another attempt at leveraging the brand among many. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDTAY Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 There were many good reasons to be skeptical of the Switch's chances. There are considerably more for the AtariBox.Ouch, hype killing from Bill himself. I just noticed you said this in another thread: "Unless things have changed, I would not consider this an innovative product per se. If the intended price/hardware/performance targets were somehow met, it could be a good relative value, which might ultimately be its most significant market differentiator." I guess it really is just a PC in a box then? Meh, if that's the case, my hype hinges entirely on whether development is open for it or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDTAY Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 I have one more guess. It's been said this a niche device, some guesses have been close, it's not a console in the traditional sense, but it's not necessarily innovative either. I've been wondering... ...will this thing run full Linux? Some people have said Steambox or Android box, which are similar. If so, that's the type of thing that gets me all hot and bothered. Most of the mass market would be like "wut?" though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 Here's the thing... Anyone can do commodity hardware, right? It's just a matter of what services/value-adds are bundled with it. That's the x factor here, not anything else. That's the part I'm in the dark about as well since that's the aspect most likely to change. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDTAY Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 (edited) Value adds. Hmm... Sigfox said in their Atari partnership announcement that they would be targeting both the mass market and charities with their hardware. That's why I guessed "third world PC that's also marketed to first world" once earlier. I wonder, with Sigfox's boasting of affordable internet solutions, does this thing do internet without a connection, like, through satellites, for low cost? That'd be quite the value add, even in the US, where broadband penetration is low compared to the rest of the first world. Edit: Sorry to keep the guesses coming, I know I must be getting annoying by now. Edited June 17, 2017 by JDTAY Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 (edited) Value adds. Hmm... Sigfox said in their Atari partnership announcement that they would be targeting both the mass market and charities with their hardware. That's why I guessed "third world PC that's also marketed to first world" once earlier. I wonder, with Sigfox's boasting of affordable internet solutions, does this thing do internet without a connection, like, through satellites, for low cost? That'd be quite the value add, even in the US, where broadband penetration is low compared to the rest of the first world. Edit: Sorry to keep the guesses coming, I know I must be getting annoying by now. I doubt it would be changed to that. Broadband penetration is pretty good in the US all things considered. It certainly doesn't hurt digital downloads and online gaming, nor services like Netflix. Edited June 17, 2017 by Bill Loguidice 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDTAY Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 I doubt it would be changed to that. It, eh? So we're talking about one singular value add or service that makes Ataribox unique then? Nah, I'm probably just splitting hairs now, I bet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillLoguidice Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 It, eh? So we're talking about one singular value add or service that makes Ataribox unique then? Nah, I'm probably just splitting hairs now, I bet. Yes, splitting hairs. I'm saying I doubt the basic premise would be changed to something like a different type of Internet access. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDTAY Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 Man, this mystery is killing me. I have a condition that can cause me to obsess over certain things at times, and it looks like Ataribox is my flavor of the week. I need to find something to distract myself, or at least bug the Ataribox guys themselves for more info instead of Bill. >_> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDTAY Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 http://gizmodo.com/ataris-new-console-sounds-like-a-bad-idea-1796193721 Whoops, Gizmodo says Atari has a bad idea on its hands. Time to abandon ship. :-P Still wish we even knew what the idea is... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 I think the forefront of "classic Atari" is happening right here on AtariAge and with the Harmony ARM + VCS platform. So many cool things have been done and continue to be done. Additionally so much knowledge is being created and shared among the community it is like the real Atari from back in the day. It just happens at a slower pace and involves more people over a larger geographical area. Not the concentrated marijuana filled corporate halls of Borregas Avenue. Today we are seeing homebrews that are equal or better than many of the first games we played as kids. We have development tools only dreamed of in the olden days. Emulators, Arm processors, new insights into programming.. And a hella lot more. The type of talent in this community is missing from shell companies looking to make a buck "because of their name". They don't even know they need the kind of talent present in the community. This goes for both Atari and Coleco. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nathan Strum Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 I think this whole thing is a clever ploy orchestrated by Coleco to draw attention away from themselves. 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 I think this whole thing is a clever ploy orchestrated by Coleco to draw attention away from themselves. ...says Artie. Correct? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted June 17, 2017 Share Posted June 17, 2017 I think this whole thing is a clever ploy orchestrated by Coleco to draw attention away from themselves. You think Cardillo's that smart? 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andromeda Stardust Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 Whatever it ends up being, Atari has certainly got everyone's attention at the moment: Ugg... The more they hype this piece of crap up without revealing what it actually is, the less interest I have in it. I expected maybe a full on e3 reveal, but nope, just crickets... Ataribox gets its first clickbait op-ed from Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2017/06/17/prepare-to-be-disappointed-by-whatever-ataris-new-console-turns-out-to-be/ Truly, it has arrived. I think Forbes was warning people to be disappointed by the Switch too before that was revealed, and look how that turned out. Wow, I love this piece. Describes my sentiments to a tee... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwyjib0 Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 Probably just something like the Ouya with Atari running their own eshop and making virtual console games with their own IPs. Doesn't really sound that impressive, but if it does well it could open the door to Atari publishing some retro-inspired games of their own, sort of like what Adult Swim has been doing. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 I'm betting it's a Steam Box at this point with Atari slapped on it. Hard pass from me. Pretty sad that Hyperkin is gonna be the one getting my "modern retro" money for an Atari themed product this year and not Atari themselves. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwyjib0 Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 I'm betting it's a Steam Box at this point with Atari slapped on it. Hard pass from me. Pretty sad that Hyperkin is gonna be the one getting my "modern retro" money for an Atari themed product this year and not Atari themselves. I thought that too because they say it's based on PC technology, but what does Atari stand to gain from that? They aren't a PC or laptop manufacture, so it seems unlikely that their goal would be to make money from hardware sales. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDTAY Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 Here's the thing... Anyone can do commodity hardware, right? It's just a matter of what services/value-adds are bundled with it. That's the x factor here, not anything else. That's the part I'm in the dark about as well since that's the aspect most likely to change. This post still has me racking my brain. I've got nothing though. Hopefully this doesn't keep me up all night. >_< Does it even play games? Neither the Atari CEO nor my dev response email used the word 'game'. You said not to expect a games console in the traditional sense, but can we even expect one at all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S1500 Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 2017 is going to be an interesting year here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andromeda Stardust Posted June 18, 2017 Share Posted June 18, 2017 2017 is going to be an interesting year here. I don't think I've had a boring year since before I signed up for AtariAge in 2012. There's always popcorn drama and exciting developments going on... 1 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