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Alternate Atari History


JJohnson

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Let's talk alternate time lines, what could have happened to the 7800, if I was born just 10 years earlier (or make it even better, Bob and me both, since we are exactly the same age anyway)? 

 

And what if that tiny shot bottle of Jaegermeister hitting me straight in the forehead, in the 80's had anything to do with Pac-Man World?

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I already did the "what if Atari still lives" thing myself over a decade ago and still have the outline on my hard drive.  Basically it involved Bushnell not selling Atari to Warner, releasing the Super VCS (3200) and letting Steve Jobs manage the computer division.  Atari branded iPhones & Xboxes anyone? :)

 

Looking back I realize it was a form of wishful thinking on my part and a longing to have some kind of closure with a brand that gave me pleasant memories that just 'died' in spite of multiple ownerships.  Although I still missed using my Atari STe from my college days, something that symbolized my happier times, I now find the same enjoyment with my current Windows 10 PC & Xbox One setup which now includes my Android phone and Amazon Fire Cube.

 

If anything, my research into the history of Atari to find out that "one thing" that went wrong turned up many things that went wrong.  So rather than be an angry young man from before or an old grouch, I just learned to enjoy whatever Atari game or product I can play with instead of wishing the company became as big as Apple or Nintendo.

 

I do wish the OP best luck with his book and recommend doing a lot of online research (like looking up old magazines).  But I will say that there's a far more receptive audience on the Alternate History Web Site for this stuff than on any retrogaming forum.

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2 hours ago, CPUWIZ said:

Let's talk alternate time lines, what could have happened to the 7800, if I was born just 10 years earlier (or make it even better, Bob and me both, since we are exactly the same age anyway)? 

 

And what if that tiny shot bottle of Jaegermeister hitting me straight in the forehead, in the 80's had anything to do with Pac-Man World?

What if instead of the Jaguar, Atari had released the 10400? Or maybe they would have gotten distribution rights for the CD32?

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Atari VCS released.  Changes:

-6502 chip with 16 rather than 13 pins

-read/write pin is present, allowing in-cart RAM expansion, and with bank switching, up to 512KB ROM, 32KB RAM

-256 bytes (not 128) of RAM (or 512?)

-2 colors per sprite

-4 sprites per scanline without flicker

-256 colors, but 8 per scanline

 

The console is now so expensive to produce that Warner has to raise the price. Even selling it at a loss, few can afford it. Atari limps along until 1980, when Space Invaders is released. Customers ask, "why spend hundreds to play at home when I can play at a seedy pool hall for a quarter?"

 

1982: 5200 released for $199. The console sells better than expected, so Warner is bleeding money and files for bankruptcy. Disney buys Bugs Bunny.

 

The 7800 is released with tile maps etc. Jack Tramiel still focuses on the computer line instead because that's what he knows best.

 

This is my honest, snark free, opinion on what would have happened. 

 

 

 

 

 

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25 minutes ago, atarialoha said:

Here is a MAJOR alternative universe thing.


Let's say it was ATARI programmers who invented the spreadsheet... with all the legal power of Warner behind them to stop others from using such a concept, at least for a decade or two.

I doubt the concept of a spreadsheet ever was patentable or copyrightable; it’s just a financial ledger on a computer.

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15 hours ago, CPUWIZ said:

 

Too late, much fun has been had with the report feature. :lol:  Man, it doesn't matter where you look anymore, everyone is just bitching and moaning 24/7.  Why do people torture themselves this way?  It is very simple, if you don't like people that disagree with you, or find your ideas silly, stay off the internet.

 

And to the OP, as a serious side note:

 

1.) What do you want to accomplish with your book?  If it is just for your enjoyment, I wish you the best of luck!

2.) Will you be super disappointed, when nobody buys it?  If you are in it for the money, you are in for a surprise.

3.) Will you visit critics at their home at night and stalk their families? :ponder:  Just making sure, you sound like you are already on the edge.

 

 

Help.gif

1. The act of being published for my own enjoyment.

2. No.  I would be proud that I got it published.

3. No, that would be weird.

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13 hours ago, MrMaddog said:

I already did the "what if Atari still lives" thing myself over a decade ago and still have the outline on my hard drive.  Basically it involved Bushnell not selling Atari to Warner, releasing the Super VCS (3200) and letting Steve Jobs manage the computer division.  Atari branded iPhones & Xboxes anyone? :)

 

Looking back I realize it was a form of wishful thinking on my part and a longing to have some kind of closure with a brand that gave me pleasant memories that just 'died' in spite of multiple ownerships.  Although I still missed using my Atari STe from my college days, something that symbolized my happier times, I now find the same enjoyment with my current Windows 10 PC & Xbox One setup which now includes my Android phone and Amazon Fire Cube.

 

If anything, my research into the history of Atari to find out that "one thing" that went wrong turned up many things that went wrong.  So rather than be an angry young man from before or an old grouch, I just learned to enjoy whatever Atari game or product I can play with instead of wishing the company became as big as Apple or Nintendo.

 

I do wish the OP best luck with his book and recommend doing a lot of online research (like looking up old magazines).  But I will say that there's a far more receptive audience on the Alternate History Web Site for this stuff than on any retrogaming forum.

Looking back, there are certainly multiple things Atari did that were missed opportunities.  If they had made one or two changes here and there, perhaps the computer division could've stayed around longer as could the console.  If they could have used the computer cartridges straight over to the 5200 without any changes other than perhaps repackaging, that might've been helpful on that console as well.

 

Any alt-timeline can be wishful thinking, of course.  Thanks for the recommendation for the Alt-Hist site.  I'll check it out.  Have a good one.

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

boomers-millenials-gen-x.thumb.png.44c2cce68774e31244a9e198dbd798df.png

 

Sooooo, an almost entirely ineffectual slacker who becomes a deadbeat dad because you cucked your ex-wife's brother, only to die pathetically in the big climax without even putting up a fight, all the while still dressing like a chick at Lilith Fair well into his 70s?  

 

download.jpg.b547d03964a0ebf517db26a9eb5262cb.jpg

 

What?  No, no, I'm not judging, man.  That's a super cool thing to aspire to.

Edited by MrTrust
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2 hours ago, MrTrust said:

 

Sooooo, an almost entirely ineffectual slacker who becomes a deadbeat dad because you cucked your ex-wife's brother, only to die pathetically in the big climax without even putting up a fight, all the while still dressing like a chick at Lilith Fair well into his 70s?  

 

download.jpg.b547d03964a0ebf517db26a9eb5262cb.jpg

 

What?  No, no, I'm not judging, man.  That's a super cool thing to aspire to.

Good to see that your sense of humour remains about the same as it has for as long as you've been here.

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

Good to see that your sense of humour remains about the same as it has for as long as you've been here.

 

Sorry, I'll try to make my shitposting more on-brand:  Ha ha!  Yeah, and also what if Atari sold missile guidance systems to Iraq '84 and Tramiel is dragged into the Hague and charged with an international crime?  The 7800 launches in '84 with the best home conversion of Bubbles ever and sells 4,000,000 units by '87!  They're so successful that Reagan taps the company to help with the tech for the nuclear defense program, and they're so flush with cash they hire, get this, THE Bill Murray as their spokesman, pictured here announcing the initiative.

 

Star Wars Singing GIF by Saturday Night Live   

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In my version of Atari alternate history (in my head only) the Atari 400 was released in 1980 as the VCS II. The VCS III with 16 bit CPU is released in 1985 and NES fails in US. 32 bit Atari Checkmate released in 1990 and the 64 bit VCS IV released in 1993. ??♥️✌️

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