Intellivision Amico’s trademark changed to ‘abandoned’

[mr_me]

Some of the exclusive games on Amico can remain exclusive as long as they want them to be.  And that includes the remakes as well as any original games, even more so with things like the Biplanes flying mechanic and some of the multiplayer modes in other remakes for example.  Would like to see how well Missile Command plays with the touchpad.  While some remakes might be closer to the original others offer much more in gameplay.  For new audiences, they're all new experiences.  The unique 64 point pressure sensitive thumbpad control should also add to the experience for some games, thumbsticks can duplicate the function but not the ergonomics.

 

5 hours ago, roots.genoa said:

...

So even if I think it couldn't succeed anyway, I think Intellivision Entertainment should have focused on this feature a lot more from the beginning, rather than show remakes of games most people don't know about, and that could clearly be played with any controller. Except for Bomb Squad (and the board games of course), we haven't seen any interesting use of the touch screen imho.

They are holding some of it back until they have Amicos to sell.  Don't know if that works for or against them.  They haven't shown much of the sixth packin for example.  Games like Blank Slate and the one card game they've shown make use of the controller display in multiplayer, Shark Shark does as well.  Emoji Charades on other systems require a second device, preferably hooked up to the TV. 

 

To start, they only need one or two good examples that make use of the controller displays, and then build from there.  And I agree, it should have been a bigger focus of their game development.

 

Edited July 9, 2022 by mr_me

[youxia]

20 minutes ago, mr_me said:

Some of the exclusive games on Amico can remain exclusive as long as they want them to be.

For that to happen there would have to be an Amico first, as well as games (no, some WIP previews or codes in a box don't count). And it's safe to say that cash-desperate as they are they'd license any notable titles - the likes of which you can count on fingers of one hand, btw. Also, no sane dev of note will agree to an exclusivity deal for a console which at best will be released either in tiny batches or not at all. It's not the heady days of 2018, with 3 billion target audience, but the harsh reality of 2022.

[mr_me]

They paid for the development of many if not most of their games so they should control what happens to those.  They have lots of games that are well beyond wip previews.  They said that all but one of the eight rfid games are ready, and that was last year.  And a game doesn't have to be a "first" to be exclusive. 

 

One game I'm curious about is Amico Night Stalker.  As each developer deal can be different, we don't know who funded its development and controls its rights.

Edited July 9, 2022 by mr_me

[Cebus Capucinis]

5 hours ago, youxia said:

So all that differs is just names and bits of plastic used to house the electronics, with an occasional gimmick thrown in.

In the words of a certain former CEO:

 

ItS nOt FoR yOu!!!!11!

 

But yeah, I agree - there definitely is some degree of mindless consumerism in these things. "just consume product and get excited for new product!" That's actually why I always felt the value vs. price was so off-kilter.... it's just another piece of plastic to play the same games. Ultimately that's the same way I feel about Amico, coupled with a jaded sarcasm because they can't deliver on any of the promises they made.

 

Not to get into this (and of course this is just a general reply and not directed at you) because it really makes the record spin right round, baby, right round, but "they said" the games are done....these are the same people who "said" the console would be released like what, five times now? Why should we trust what they say? "There's no evidence they're wrong." There's no evidence they're RIGHT, either, except for "they said," and "prove a negative" is a logical fallacy from moment one.

 

Forgive me if "they said" or the value of their word isn't exactly taken with much weight anymore. It obviously isn't stirring up the dollarie-doos in anyone's pocketbook these days. At the rate they've told porkies, they could say the sky is blue and I'd (and I suspect most who know the story) doubt it slightly at this point.

[mr_me]

The Evercade is a handheld, and while they're just republishing existing games, handhelds might be underserved in the market.  Evercade cartridges do cater to collecting.  People can debate this, but with Amico they are trying to hit an audience that's avoided console gaming with something different.

 

They did have release dates but they've also been talking about issues meeting those release dates since early in the pandemic in spring 2020.  So anyone listening to them wouldn't have been surprised by delays.  And it's not that they shouldn't take responsibility for that.  As far as evidence of games, you can ask the people that have played them.

 

 

Edited July 9, 2022 by mr_me

[number6]

@thread

 

You can really trace everything back to the order things were done. 

There is nothing wrong with having a pitchman. In fact Tommy would have been excellent at it.

But the reality of it (citing Billy Mays here) is you complete product first, then pitch it.

I think you can make the argument that Intellivision doing things in the exact -opposite- order of what works ties to every topic you bring up.

 

And yes, I realize my comment won't be popular on either side of the debate.

 

#6

[mr_me]

I think they recognise now that sharing the concept and work in progress with the public was a mistake.

Edited July 9, 2022 by mr_me

[Cebus Capucinis]

9 minutes ago, number6 said:

There is nothing wrong with having a pitchman. In fact Tommy would have been excellent at it.

I think this is where most will agree to disagree. I'd even say he played that role, and his behavior and attitudes only exacerbated the problem significantly, because he was not only the source of most of the porkies, but his antics only put the magnifying glass on the (valid) criticisms and, frankly, at least in my eyes, made me want the product even less, out of realization that some of my dollars would indirectly support, justify, and reinforce his behavior. I suspect many would say the same.

[number6]

16 minutes ago, Cebus Capucinis said:

I think this is where most will agree to disagree. I'd even say he played that role, and his behavior and attitudes only exacerbated the problem significantly, because he was not only the source of most of the porkies, but his antics only put the magnifying glass on the (valid) criticisms and, frankly, at least in my eyes, made me want the product even less, out of realization that some of my dollars would indirectly support, justify, and reinforce his behavior. I suspect many would say the same.

My fault for being too brief. A pitchman sells the product.

Prior to having the product they needed to have a real PR director to handle what you are referring to.

 

#6

[Cebus Capucinis]

3 minutes ago, number6 said:

My fault for being too brief. A pitchman sells the product.

Prior to having the product they needed to have a real PR director to handle what you are referring to.

 

#6

Ah, yeah - that definitely would have helped (and during the ongoing fiasco(s), I believe several mentioned that as a solution). I'd say you weren't too brief, more that I jumped to a conclusion.

 

Having a solid, thought out PR campaign with definite milestones, clear guidelines, and strategy would have done wonders. I do, however, think that even with that, TT likely would have gone "off script" in ways that would have led to the same, albeit potentially smaller-scale, fiascos. But that's possibly my personal opinion leaking into a narrative.

[number6]

8 minutes ago, Cebus Capucinis said:

Ah, yeah - that definitely would have helped (and during the ongoing fiasco(s), I believe several mentioned that as a solution). I'd say you weren't too brief, more that I jumped to a conclusion.

 

Having a solid, thought out PR campaign with definite milestones, clear guidelines, and strategy would have done wonders. I do, however, think that even with that, TT likely would have gone "off script" in ways that would have led to the same, albeit potentially smaller-scale, fiascos. But that's possibly my personal opinion leaking into a narrative.

Suddenly this question popped in my mind.

Although they made it abundantly clear this was a startup, do you think people somewhat ignored the connotations of that due to higher expectations simply from the Intellivision name/brand?

 

#6

[Jeffrey Bouchard]

Does tommy still work for IE? It’s strange that there hasn’t been a word from him at all. Waiting for my FE console patiently. 

[Rev]

38 minutes ago, Jeffrey Bouchard said:

Does tommy still work for IE? It’s strange that there hasn’t been a word from him at all. Waiting for my FE console patiently. 

 

[digdugnate]

4 hours ago, mr_me said:

I think they recognise now that sharing the concept and work in progress with the public was a mistake.

fat lot of good it does them now, though. too little, too late.

[roots.genoa]

4 hours ago, number6 said:

Although they made it abundantly clear this was a startup, do you think people somewhat ignored the connotations of that due to higher expectations simply from the Intellivision name/brand?

I don't think the expectations only came from the Intellivision name. As usual, Tommy Tallarico's messages were mixed.

 

On one hand, he was reminding us constantly they were a startup that didn't compete with the big 3 and shouldn't be compared to it.

 

On the other hand, he kept mentioning the 500 years of experience, the big names from Nintendo that we've never heard of again, 4 headquarters around the world (even though the German office was probably just rented to Regus), 70+ employees... Clearly the project should have started with a small team creating a prototype in a garage before cosplaying into a big publishing company.

[number6]

7 minutes ago, roots.genoa said:

I don't think the expectations only came from the Intellivision name. As usual, Tommy Tallarico's messages were mixed.

 

On one hand, he was reminding us constantly they were a startup that didn't compete with the big 3 and shouldn't be compared to it.

 

On the other hand, he kept mentioning the 500 years of experience, the big names from Nintendo that we've never heard of again, 4 headquarters around the world (even though the German office was probably just rented to Regus), 70+ employees... Clearly the project should have started with a small team creating a prototype in a garage before cosplaying into a big publishing company.

Thank you for the response. Point taken.

This situation is somewhat like watching a movie I've already seen, given the similarities I've witnessed at other tech venues.

 

#6

[MrBeefy]

7 hours ago, digdugnate said:

fat lot of good it does them now, though. too little, too late.

Actually saying sharing a work in progress is actually incorrect. They claimed it was done and on the launchpad since 2020. Those of us who pointed out how crowdfunding campaigns like Fundable said the console wasn't ready were basically called liars.

 

Like how they claimed those job openings were for accessories. Yet they never had a finished OS or backend.

 

This is another case of the horrible PR pitchman convincing you they were open. They weren't and mud was more clear than what they said. Even in Tommy partnering with Neil Patel he was saying to those investors that they were ready to launch and could expect their first returns later in 2020!

 

6 hours ago, roots.genoa said:

I don't think the expectations only came from the Intellivision name. As usual, Tommy Tallarico's messages were mixed.

 

On one hand, he was reminding us constantly they were a startup that didn't compete with the big 3 and shouldn't be compared to it.

 

On the other hand, he kept mentioning the 500 years of experience, the big names from Nintendo that we've never heard of again, 4 headquarters around the world (even though the German office was probably just rented to Regus), 70+ employees... Clearly the project should have started with a small team creating a prototype in a garage before cosplaying into a big publishing company.

This is a great example as to message being muddy. If you criticized about progressed; you were yelled at because they are a startup and things moved slow.

 

If you questioned whether it was a good product and similar things; you were yelled at because they have the best people who did this or that with all those years of experience.

 

Truth is they couldn't pick a lane. They were an Oxymoron. We are the most industry experienced noobs.

[MrBeefy]

Also the one game to show how the controller is the "best thing ever", Bomb Squad, isn't under development. 

 

 

Lag and stuttering. For a game that is practically only static images. Like I guessed they cut a part short for E3 because it quickly messed up. Code good, controller and machine bad. It was one of the few games that actually showed the controller. A majority of E3 was cell phones.

 

It even seems like he wasn't why it was used at all because it wasn't working right. I think it was used because a majority of it was "busted" and was needed to fill up any time they possibly could. 

 

One of the YouTubers said that not every console at any of those gatherings would be used for some games and not others (you can play Moon Patrol on this one but not Pool, or this one is good for Finnegan Fox but not Moon Patrol). While their firmware would fix one thing/game it probably broke another. 

 

There's a reason we never saw Cornhole being played in any meaningful way. Also explains why Tommy talked so much about his career at E3 and the 600 years of experience, since there was very little or nothing of actual substance to show.

[Cebus Capucinis]

You want a working console that can play EVERY game? Well then....

 

It's Not For You!™️

[MrBeefy]

3 minutes ago, Cebus Capucinis said:

You want a working console that can play EVERY game? Well then....

 

It's Not For You!™️

Did you know that Amico is the Italian word for friend? Did you know that the phrase, "It's not for you!" translates into, "I think you aren't allowed to have opinions."

 

Remember how the lag in Farkle was excused for dice "magically" traveling through space before they made it to the screen?

 

They were showing off Moon Patrol hard-core and it still had Star Fox's text in it. It will be a fun time when NDAs expire if there are people who want to talk.

 

[SegaSnatcher]

I wonder if third party devs can even give updates on the status of the games they were developing for Amico. 

[+GoldLeader]

I just remember how annoying it was that if it was about money Tommy would say, "No Problem,  We have investors"...Any concerns were met with "We have X00 years Experience!"  and anything about its market prospects was instantly met with "We have Market Research!"   You got any market research?  Huh?  Whaaz that?  eh???

 

Tell ya right now I think he can take that money, that experience, and especially that goddanged ^{(family friendly)} market research and shove it right up his 

Edited July 10, 2022 by GoldLeader
cornhole?

[Matt_B]

At the end of the day there's no substitute for having an actual finished product, at least within a couple of years of saying that you've got one.

[roots.genoa]

Well, at least they have now [4 years x number of remaining employees] more years of experience than before! ?

[MattPilz]

I'm mostly tuned out of the Amico saga at this point but do have the 8-pack physical set and had a Founder's Edition down-payment... I've now waited 18 days for any sort of acknowledge to my request for refund of the $100 FE deposit. I opened a dispute with PayPal a few days ago after politely waiting for any sign from Intellivision for a couple weeks. Even the business entity Intellivision uses for their PayPal account (Intellivision Entertainment LLC) is no longer a registered business. They also never renewed their European Shopify store, which I believe Hans was in charge of before parting ways.

 

Phil explained more than a month ago that the quiet period was over but offered no confidence that they found any future investor. He stated an unspecified number of units were under production and said those would be completed within a few weeks but so far has shared no updates. The same update eventually shared on Republic to the millions of dollars of investors had comments locked so nobody could even engage in conversation.

 

None of this is a sign of confidence in their product nor transparency.

Edited July 10, 2022 by MattPilz