Intellivision Amico - Tommy Tallarico introduction + Q&A

[MarioMan88]

5 hours ago, Intellivision Master said:

Some just want to complain the price is too high for Amico.  I say wait for a sale then.  I don't think it's that bad.  I pre-ordered the FE and that costs more.  But you get a lot of nice perks with the FE.  I remember when the Nintendo Wii released at $250.  I bought it a year later at the same price and paid for it in cash.  I was fine with the $250 and I really enjoyed the Wii.  The Wii U not so much, lol.

Heck I’m a huge Nintendo mark and missed out on the Wii U altogether 🤣 Finally picked one up at GameStop on the cheap to simply mod it and play a few exclusive Wii U titles. 

Edited December 3, 2020 by MarioMan88
Typo

[RREDDWARFF]

On 12/1/2020 at 12:59 PM, bigdaddygamestudio said:

Great idea. perhaps like this but rocking Astro Smash instead and maybe throw in some 8/16bit santas and/or snowballs/snowflakes for good measure?

 

This seriously needs to come with some fuzzy darts. Ultimate holiday drinking game.

 

(If you tag an invader you give away drinks. If you miss, you drink)

 

Reds = 1 drink

Blues = 2 drinks

Greens = 3 drinks. 

 

Giant baddies on either arm, the House (whoever is wearing the sweater) drinks.

[RxScram]

4 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

During the final phase of hardware production one of the important things we do is stress test every aspect and element of the hardware. Here is just a small example.

 

Let me know if you'd like to see more behind the scenes videos like this.

 

This is on my personal YouTube channel so please make sure to LIKE and SUBSCRIBE.

 

Thanks!

 

 

Yes, we definitely want more behind the scenes videos!

 

(Speaking for the masses, I can make these videos whenever I want.   )

[+Intellivision Master]

Tommy,

 

Did you move into the new office location yesterday?

[RxScram]

2 minutes ago, Intellivision Master said:

Tommy,

 

Did you move into the new office location yesterday?

The engineering team has slowly been moving in for a month, particularly the mechanical engineers so that they can have a centralized place for their testing equipment. Electrical and software engineers are making their way in as well. We're still very limited about what we can do due to Covid restrictions, so most people are still remote. 

[1980gamer]

1 hour ago, Barley Farquahr said:

Thanks for sharing!!

 

I REALLY WANT AN AMICO IN THAT BRIGHT GREEN COLOR!!!  It's right around 3:15 of the video.

 

I couldn't tell if it was a hard drive shell, or if it was a failed controller mock-up.

 

Neon green is my jam!

 

Used to have a Jeep Wrangler that color!

 

Please make it so!

 

Thanks!

B

 

Did you have one of these as a kid?   I did!

 

[1980gamer]

What if I showed up at work on this?

[+Intellivision Master]

 

[IMBerzerk]

2 hours ago, 1980gamer said:

Did you have one of these as a kid?   I did!

 

Yes!  Last year I lent my Cherokee to my daughter who was home from college on Xmas break.  She comes home one day with the more recent version of this thing in the back of the Cherokee.   Her and her friend were out driving around the neighborhood and someone tossed it to the curb.  She brings it home, I clean it up and kept it my my garage loft.  This summer we took it out and had a ball with it.  Best little road rocket in town.  So much fun to ride, even better being that it's been modernized with a normal rubber front tire, hand brakes on the sticks, and a beefed up frame.

If you find one, or can buy one for the kids... go for it.  Just wear a helmet, it flips real easy... how do I know that??

 

Here it is in my garage as a joke picture... Usually my Fury is parked there. Lol.

 

 

 

Edited December 3, 2020 by IMBerzerk

[RxScram]

7 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

During the final phase of hardware production one of the important things we do is stress test every aspect and element of the hardware. Here is just a small example.

 

Let me know if you'd like to see more behind the scenes videos like this.

 

This is on my personal YouTube channel so please make sure to LIKE and SUBSCRIBE.

 

Thanks!

 

 

Hey, @Tommy Tallarico,

 

We should make a black and white console! That hybrid unit looked pretty sweeet!

Edited December 3, 2020 by RxScram

[Silverbot]

10 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

During the final phase of hardware production one of the important things we do is stress test every aspect and element of the hardware. Here is just a small example.

 

Let me know if you'd like to see more behind the scenes videos like this.

 

This is on my personal YouTube channel so please make sure to LIKE and SUBSCRIBE.

 

Thanks!

 

 

It’s very interesting to see the design and development process, you wouldn’t see this from any other company. Please do some more  👍😀

[GD Mof]

On 12/1/2020 at 4:32 PM, Tommy Tallarico said:

Yeah... if you haven't released a game before I would highly recommend doing a demo in Unity and showing it running on an Android.  Would make a big difference.

 

 

Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I've been working on multiple demos suitable for the Amico, see which one works out the best. How important is it that the demo is running on Android, out of curiosity? I've got New 3DS dev hardware so I'm used to making stuff that runs well on less powerful hardware (and where everything gets rendered twice to boot). I'm currently aiming the demos at New 3DS level hardware, then I can crank up the settings as needed, if and when I get a better handle on what the Amico is capable of.

[RxScram]

1 minute ago, GD Mof said:

Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I've been working on multiple demos suitable for the Amico, see which one works out the best. How important is it that the demo is running on Android, out of curiosity? I've got New 3DS dev hardware so I'm used to making stuff that runs well on less powerful hardware (and where everything gets rendered twice to boot). I'm currently aiming the demos at New 3DS level hardware, then I can crank up the settings as needed, if and when I get a better handle on what the Amico is capable of.

I'd suggest getting in contact with the developers email that Tommy mentioned earlier. They can answer your questions better, and help you through the development process. I wouldn't worry about targeting your demo specifically for the Amico until you have it up and running on other hardware.

 

The Amico team is very much about helping developers and small studios, but they do like to see a proven track record on any type of hardware first. Finish a game demo or two (even better if you release a game!), come up with a killer concept, and then start talking to the team. 

[GD Mof]

On 12/1/2020 at 1:57 PM, Tommy Tallarico said:

No.  But I know the YouTube channel you are talking about and I love it!  The way that fox laughs is hilarious!

It's spelled different as well (we spell ours with two i's in Finnigan). 

I had gone through all the boy names beginning with the letter "F" (an old Stan Lee trick he told me once and taught me!) and I narrowed it down to about 2 or 3.  I remember Finneas Fox was another contender.  I just kept going back to Finnigan Fox or Finn Fox for short and just felt like it rolled off the tongue the best.  The name "Finnigan" is spelled with an "i" or an "e".  The two "i's" look better from a font & logo standpoint (which we created in-house). 

 

It was only when I was searching Google after our August 5th event that I saw there was a YouTube channel with a real fox named (and spelled) Finnegan.  It's a great channel that folks should check out and the whole Save A Fox rescue is a great cause.  I immediately donated.  If anyone else is interested, you can do so here:  https://www.saveafox.org/donate

 

Here's the ABOUT section of the website:  https://www.saveafox.org/rescues

 

And here's the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/spookelliot

At some point I'd like to reach out to the organization so we can help to promote their rescue.  Maybe put some info about it on the menu screen and/or final credits.

Here's the logo btw...  Atari Age exclusive!

 

A little Indiana Jones adventure vibe on the "F's".

 

🦊💗

 

 

 

🦊

Yeah, he definitely has a great laugh! I noticed after I posted that they were spelled differently, oh well. Makes sense why you spelled it the way you did and definitely a nice logo!

 

Yeah, it'd be cool to do something with them, for sure.

[GD Mof]

9 minutes ago, RxScram said:

I'd suggest getting in contact with the developers email that Tommy mentioned earlier. They can answer your questions better, and help you through the development process. I wouldn't worry about targeting your demo specifically for the Amico until you have it up and running on other hardware.

 

The Amico team is very much about helping developers and small studios, but they do like to see a proven track record on any type of hardware first. Finish a game demo or two (even better if you release a game!), come up with a killer concept, and then start talking to the team. 

Thanks for the advice. Sounds like you're in the know! So a PC demo aimed at less powerful hardware would suffice then?

[GD Mof]

On 11/29/2020 at 4:16 PM, Pac in Blac said:

Tommy, I apologize if this was discussed before but what are your feelings on Pilotwings and would you ever consider developing something similar for Amico? You could probably even make individual games of each minigame...couch co-op skydiving anyone?

 

I feel like the vibes of that game, the music, the intuitive gameplay, and just the overall atmosphere would make for a really cool experience on Amico.

Pilot Wings was definitely a great series, one of my favourites, it's crazy that we've only had one new entry in the past 23 years. And hardly any rival series, though Ultra Wings was good on the PSVR. A game like that certainly seems like a good fit for the Amico. Monkey Target was a very popular mode for the Super Monkey Ball games as well of course.

[Pac in Blac]

3 hours ago, GD Mof said:

Pilot Wings was definitely a great series, one of my favourites, it's crazy that we've only had one new entry in the past 23 years. And hardly any rival series, though Ultra Wings was good on the PSVR. A game like that certainly seems like a good fit for the Amico. Monkey Target was a very popular mode for the Super Monkey Ball games as well of course.

Agreed! It's baffling why Nintendo sits on certain IP for decades like they do...but all the more opportunity for a company like Intv to pick up the ball!

[martianman2012]

On 12/1/2020 at 7:59 AM, Tommy Tallarico said:

 

Brilliant!

 

 

I'm telling you Tommy, IE may wanna hire Curly. Everyone of his pics immediately looks good and legit from your company 😄

[Hwlngmad]

22 hours ago, atarifan88 said:

I know this has been addressed here before, but even though you can't compare consoles due to hardware and graphics, let's look strictly at value since many are claiming the price of the Amico is too expensive.  I will try to keep this as simple as possible (*pricing per GameStop):

 

*PlayStation 5 - $500 (includes 1 controller & no games). New regular priced games range from $30-$130.

*XBox X - $500 (includes 1 controller & no games). New regular priced games range from $30-$130.

*Switch - $300 (includes 1 controller & no games). New regular priced games range from $30-$60.

Amico - $250 (includes 2 controllers & 6 games).  New regular priced games range from $5-$10.

 

Just looking at value, since it has been said that the Amico is too expensive, when compared what you get to the other consoles, it's laughable when you realize there is no comparison.  Amico wins hands down!  So after looking at this again, if the same conclusion is reached that the Amico is too expensive, then I would love to know your thoughts about the value of other consoles.  Terms like price gouging, way over priced, etc. would come to mind.  After all, if the Amico is being called too expensive, then it must be compared to another system.  Even the comparison of the cost of games is laughable!  Can someone who still disagrees with this comparison please explain to me why it's too expensive?  Is $50 really a tipping point (Amico cost $250 vs $200)?  Look at it this way, for the extra cost of $50, you are getting a second controller and 6 games!  If you were to purchase that for any of the new consoles you would be spending at least another $250 which ironically enough is the cost of another Amico!  I'll end with this...

 

 

 

Some good information and I will say that the Amico does have some good value with it.  However, regarding the Switch, it frequently does come bundled with a game and the joy cons can be used individually.  Granted, they are not great to use, but I have seen and done so myself.  Regardless, it is whatever floats your boat.  Definitely I think have the Amico entering the console gaming space is a good thing and hopefully it finds success.

[Bixler]

Just popping in to say this console looks far more promising of a product than whatever it is Atari is about to put out... good luck! It looks like the Amico won't be able to play original carts, but all the same, this reminds me that I believe I have a few boxes of Intellivision CIB games at my parents' house that I should call about soon... wonder what happened to them.

 

EDIT: Just going to add that the woodgrain limited edition is so, SO tempting. I've bookmarked the page to really take a look at this over the weekend.

Edited December 3, 2020 by Bixler

[+Tommy Tallarico]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US!

On December 3, 1979 the original Intellivision was launched. Today celebrates our 41st birthday!
 

Thank you to everyone who has followed Intellivision over the years and shown such great support. We all consider you a part of our Intellivision family and look forward to new generations of people enjoying Intellivision the way we all did when we were growing up.
 

Thank you all!

Have some cake!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jaybird3rd]

1 hour ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

On December 3, 1979 the original Intellivision was launched. Today celebrates our 41st birthday!

Quite an impressive legacy!  It's even more impressive that in all those years, the Intellivision never really went away; as video games grew and changed, the Intellivision maintained a constant presence, always finding innovative ways to introduce the Intellivision library to new audiences.  Happy Anniversary, and cheers to everyone who has kept Intellivision going strong ... from Mattel and INTV from 1979 to ~1990, to Intellivision Productions into the 2010s, to Intellivision Entertainment—and the many independent developers and publishers still supporting the original Intellivision—today!

[RxScram]

9 hours ago, GD Mof said:

Thanks for the advice. Sounds like you're in the know! So a PC demo aimed at less powerful hardware would suffice then?

I'm only tangentially "in the know" from what I overhear in the office (or overheard, when that was still allowed). But, based on that, I would pay much more attention to having fun and unique ideas, rather than worrying about what platform it runs on. Technology/hardware is just the tool to enhance the experience.

[bigdaddygamestudio]

1 hour ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

On December 3, 1979 the original Intellivision was launched

Christmas 1979, ah  good memories.  I remember we got the Intellivision and my dad was all into kerosene heaters back then to save heating money, so dependent on where you were in the house it was either 50 degrees or 100 degrees.  LOL..  So me and my brothers played that system on xmas in our shorts, sweating and having the time of our lives.

 

I recall my mom was the bookkeeper for a big sporting good store back then, and for some reason they were going to sell the Intellivision, and once we heard that, we bugged and bugged my mom, and sure enough she made sure we got the first one off the truck.   Our friends were amazed by the Intellivision since it was so new and so much better than Atari, which in 1979 was still the big newish game system. I know that she also let us open it and play one game a week early, before xmas since we were driving her nuts.

 

The Intellivision wasnt cheap I know since me and my brothers had to "pool" our big xmas gift into it. Back then, each Xmas me and my 2 brothers would get one big gift each ( 100-150 bucks in 1979) and maybe 3 or so mid level gifts $30-50ish and a bunch of you know.. crap ( socks, shirts, shoes LOL)  So in order to get the Intellivision we had to negotiate with our parents, i think it cost us all our big gifts..  it was so so worth it though.  They got us 4 or so games as well ( we were a lil spoiled) and from there on out, me and my brothers (who all did odd jobs growing up with my dads company to make our own money) would pool together our money into an Intellivision slush fund, and for the next two years or so we bought every intellivision game released.  We would go to Kiddie City every few weeks and if there was a new game, we would buy it with our slush fund.  

 

Great times, and best console I ever had.  

[bigdaddygamestudio]

I was never able to take care of a fish tank, but this one, this one I think I can handle. Now just to find a place for it.