New Atari Console that Ataribox?

[godslabrat]

This is the adult version of the playground kid who keeps saying "My uncle works at Atari".

[tschak909]

The AMD mention was in a quarterly earnings report:

 

http://www.amd.com/en-us/press-releases/Pages/press-release-2017oct24.aspx

 

• Atari disclosed that a customized AMD processor featuring Radeon™ graphics technology will power the upcoming Ataribox game console, which is targeted for global launch in spring 2018.

This is not the same thing as announcing a strategic partnership (which Atari tried _REEEEALLY_ hard to insinuate!). This is: "Oh, Atari decided to use our silicon."

-Thom

[The Historian]

If you're not in their employ, Mr Smug Historian, then how in the hell do you have a fucking secret? You literally are more bloviated by the day.

 

Seriously dude, you're just a troll in different clothing.

 

-Thom

 

I volunteered to help with GameBand and that also turned in to helping with AtariBox. Along the way I signed a couple of NDAs.

 

Sorry If I've come off smug. I certainly didn’t mean to have perorated.

[SignGuy81]

 

I volunteered to help with GameBand and that also turned in to helping with AtariBox. Along the way I signed a couple of NDAs.

 

Sorry If I've come off smug. I certainly didn’t mean to have perorated.

 

If you don't mind my asking, why would you do that? To add to your resume perhaps? Big fan of Atari and just want to see it happen? Bored? etc.?

[+Nathan Strum]

The Ataribox is over.

 

This

 

 

thread

 

 

needs

 

 

more

 

 

tacos.

 

[x=usr(1536)]

A most engaging suggestion.

 

[CPUWIZ]

 

Honest, I swear! Not just an empty cup.

[Osgeld]

 

Honest, I swear! Not just an empty cup.

it would be if I had it, I love goofy raman

Edited December 15, 2017 by Osgeld

[CPUWIZ]

Puke Taco

 

[The Historian]

 

It is interesting, you keep bringing up money. First you said there is no money in video games (LOL), now you say they can't afford you, yet I am sitting here wondering if your salary is more than 5 digits.

 

It was a joke.. but I don’t actually work in the video game industry. I did at one time. Most gaming community manager salaries are in the mid 5 figures. http://www.gameindustrycareerguide.com/video-game-community-manager-salary/

Non-gaming here: http://cmxhub.com/article/cmgr-salary/

 

 

If you don't mind my asking, why would you do that? To add to your resume perhaps? Big fan of Atari and just want to see it happen? Bored? etc.?

 

I think boredom is a good answer and I'm pretty passionate about getting other people interested in Community Management. Part of my volunteering for GameBand and AtariBox was that I would be building teams to help with both products. 80 to 90 percent of Community Manager with 10 or more years experience started out as volunteers that eventually got hired.

[CPUWIZ]

I had deleted the post, but I guess I'll leave it, now that you quoted it.

 

[leech]

 

• Atari disclosed that a customized AMD processor featuring Radeon™ graphics technology will power the upcoming Ataribox game console, which is targeted for global launch in spring 2018.

This is not the same thing as announcing a strategic partnership (which Atari tried _REEEEALLY_ hard to insinuate!). This is: "Oh, Atari decided to use our silicon."

 

-Thom

But that they put it on their quarterly earnings imply Atari actually bought hardware from them? I mean it isn't like they can just randomly say that, right? And if it is on their earnings that someone said they bought stuff, it must have been more than like 10 units or something?

 

Granted, I never said it was a strategic partnership. AMD would have tgat splashed a bit more on their pages, like I am sure they do with Sony and Microsoft.

Edited December 15, 2017 by leech

[CPUWIZ]

This may kill the Taco trend, WARNING!

 

 

 

[The Historian]

 

• Atari disclosed that a customized AMD processor featuring Radeon™ graphics technology will power the upcoming Ataribox game console, which is targeted for global launch in spring 2018.

This is not the same thing as announcing a strategic partnership (which Atari tried _REEEEALLY_ hard to insinuate!). This is: "Oh, Atari decided to use our silicon."

-Thom

 

I would agree with Thom on this point.

[leech]

I really should figure out how/if there is a digest setting. My email is getting flooded with replies to thos thread!

[Albert]

Guys, enough with the tacos, how about staying on topic?

 

..Al

[leech]

I would agree with Thom on this point.

I agreed as well. All the other media sites made it out like Atari had made this huge partnership with AMD, which if true could mean awesome t hings like using their fabrication plants. But I doubt any deal was like that. I am betting more along the lines of "They promised to buy a million, but we sold them 10k for now."

 

I wouldn't think yields lower than 10k would be worth mentioning at all, would it?

[bojay1997]

I agreed as well. All the other media sites made it out like Atari had made this huge partnership with AMD, which if true could mean awesome t hings like using their fabrication plants. But I doubt any deal was like that. I am betting more along the lines of "They promised to buy a million, but we sold them 10k for now."

 

I wouldn't think yields lower than 10k would be worth mentioning at all, would it?

 

The statement doesn't indicate that they have committed to purchase anything. It's literally "Atari said they are building something and they are planning to use our chips to do it.". If there was an actual order, they would have said, "Atari committed to build 20,000 units using AMD components".

[Albert]

Keep it up with the insults, I'm going to start booting people from the thread.

 

..Al

[CPUWIZ]

Keep it up with the insults, I'm going to start booting people from the thread.

 

..Al

 

Can't we just lock this now?

[Albert]

Can't we just lock this now?

 

No.

[leech]

The statement doesn't indicate that they have committed to purchase anything. It's literally "Atari said they are building something and they are planning to use our chips to do it.". If there was an actual order, they would have said, "Atari committed to build 20,000 units using AMD components".

Why even show it then? Shareholders want money not potential money. Kind of thought that that was the whole point of "Quarterly Finacial Summary" Can they (if publically traded, only guessing if AMD is) add that to their financial hig hlights if no money changed hands? (Legitimate question, I do not know.)

 

Edit: Yay I did find the 'just send me a daily digest' option. Like seriously this thread is so active, I missed that the fantastic 1088XEL was shipping!

 

2nd Edit: Holy crap, created a folder and moved what I had in there... 1032 of them were unread...

Edited December 15, 2017 by leech

[bojay1997]

Why even show it then? Shareholders want money not potential money. Kind of thought that that was the whole point of "Quarterly Finacial Summary" Can they (if publically traded, only guessing if AMD is) add that to their financial hig hlights if no money changed hands? (Legitimate question, I do not know.)

 

Edit: Yay I did find the 'just send me a daily digest' option. Like seriously this thread is so active, I missed that the fantastic 1088XEL was shipping!

 

2nd Edit: Holy crap, created a folder and moved what I had in there... 1032 of them were unread...

 

The answer is that AMD has been in competition with Intel and NVIDIA for years now and AMD has been losing money for the last few years. They are becoming more and more desperate to show shareholders that they are gaining an advantage, any advantage over their largest competitors. I have reviewed many annual reports over the years and while certainly not the norm, I have seen many companies report highlights that do not actually involve any money changing hands. For whatever reason, the name "Atari" still resonates with people and I'm sure AMD just saw it as a positive thing to include because in the recent media at least, this current incarnation of "Atari" sounds a lot bigger and more prolific than it really is.

[+Nathan Strum]

Guys, enough with the tacos, how about staying on topic?

 

I already posted on-topic once in this thread today. That's pretty-much my limit.

 

However... just to prove I'm not completely taco-obsessed... let's think for a moment about how Atari could have come back as a relevant game company.

1. Research the gaming industry as it exists today. Examine the different markets - hardcore PC gamers, dedicated console gamers, casual console gamers, casual mobile gamers, retro gamers, hobbyists, etc.
2. Find out where the largest potential profit is, given the least possible investment. This would be mobile games, incidentally.
3. Determine what assets Atari has. Specifically: your name, which carries a certain amount of buying power due to familiarity and nostalgia; and a handful of games that were popular 30+ years ago, and are still somewhat regarded as cultural icons. Learn to accept that most of your games are obsolete relics as far as the general game-buying public are concerned.
4. Examine how other game companies with old IPs have managed to stay relevant. Nintendo, for example. Take note of their mistakes - like the Wii U. Take note of their successes - like the new Mario and Zelda games for the Switch, which are being universally lauded as excellent. Is that because of the Switch? No. It's because of the software. Those games would still be good anywhere.
5. Talk to Sega. See how their hardware business has been doing lately.
6. Read up on the Ouya.
7. Walk through a Bed, Bath and Beyond, and see what the public face of Atari is today: The Flashback. Note the price.
8. Figure out if you really still want to try to develop, manufacture, and market a $300 console, without an engineering department, a programming division, any support infrastructure, a marketing team, third-party software, licensing partnerships (the Blade Runner SpeakerHat does not count), serious retail presence, or recent history of any sort of mainstream success whatsoever.
9. The answer to #8, by the way, is "no".
10. Sell T-shirts. Coffee mugs. Key-chains. Cut the price of the SpeakerHat (if you must sell it) to $29. Get your logo out there. Everywhere. More films. TV shows. Wherever you can be seen, be seen. Sell iPhone cases, PS4 dust covers, wallets, Xbox skins, tea cozies. Build the brand's awareness in the public eye - even if it's just a logo. But do it well. Work with a design firm that knows what it's doing. Attach yourself to quality products. Don't make crap.
11. Remember that research? Look for the hot mobile games. Find out who's developing them. Dig into your pockets, and partner with them to put their next game out under your brand name. It's their game. They get the lion's share of the profits. They get to keep the IP. You get your name out there. You begin to become associated with modern, relevant gaming again.
12. Once you've established a reasonable reputation as a publisher of quality indie mobile games, and have saved up some money from the t-shirts, then start hiring some of these developers to create new properties for Atari, and all-new takes on your better classic properties. Give the developers creative freedom. This is when the original Atari was at its best. This is what has been driving the best of mobile gaming - innovation and creativity. Now Atari not only builds up a reputation as a publisher, but as a creative force. Start dipping your toes into markets beyond mobile gaming. But keep the games simple, fun, and addicting. "A minute to learn, a lifetime to master." This is your niche. Leave the AAA titles for the big boys. Don't overextend yourselves. Keep the quality high. Treat the developers fairly. No shovelware. Manage your expectations. Let others bear the burden of hardware and ecosystem development. If you get tempted to build your own console again, read up on the countless failed ones that litter the landscape. Some already say "Atari" on them.
13. Now that you've got some new IPs of your own, and have re-established some of your old ones in new, relevant ways, consider buying up some others - specifically, other classic arcade IPs. Williams, Midway, Atari Games, Stern... see what might be out there that you can buy or license for your first actual venture into new hardware:
14. The Arcade Flashback. Effectively, MAME in a sub-$50 box with 100 arcade classics on it. Throw in some of the better 2600 titles as an Easter Egg if you want, but that's not the point here. This is where the new Atari says to its fans, "Hey - you liked the SNES Classic? How about some actual classic arcade games?" Want to do a portable version? Publish it for smartphones, and knock $10 off the price. Publish it for consoles, PCs, cereal boxes if you can find a way to do it. This is no longer your primary business. But it's part of your legacy. Treat it, and your fans, with respect. Know your audience. All of it.
15. Speaking of which, stop with the legal action, unless someone is actually, genuinely causing you harm. Work with the community. Not against it. Recognize that positive exposure is a good thing. Even if you're not being paid for it, you're still profiting from it.

So there you go, Atari. Don't reach for the stars until you can learn to tie your own shoes. Or something like that.

 

Now, it's time for tacos.

[toiletunes]

I would buy an Atacobox companion book, a sequel to the Chameleon book. Even a condensed version of the relevant threads would make a great purchase.