Do you like how Infogrames has handled Atari?

[Gregory DG]

Just wondering what everyone thinks... I just updated the poll over at TAT.

 

What say you?

 

Has Infogrames done right by Atari? Hmmm...

[chrisbid]

Atari does have better name recognition than Infogrames (which is one of the worst names ever). As a developer/publisher in general, they are in the middle of the pack. They aren't a 5-star third party like Capcom, Konami, EA, or Sega, but they aren't a license whore like Activision or THQ. And thankfully they are no Acclaim or 3DO. So I guess I can't complain much, although other than Atari compilations, I don't see myself buying much under the modern Atari Label.

[mos6507]

I don't see them doing the remake thing the way Hasbro Interactive did.

 

I thought Hasbro was onto something by doing the remakes as far as re-establishing the brand. In principle, it made sense, especially after their success with Frogger which predated the Atari buyout.

 

I just think they faltered sometimes in deciding which properties to upgrade and how to do them.

 

Their worst decision was Galaga. Here you have a company that already owns the rights to the Atari pantheon and they cut a big licensing deal with Namco and do a crappy job of updating Galaga, turning it into a bad railed 3D shooter like something on 3d0.

 

I also think this was only a short-term plan. They needed to come out with new games that had a simpler play mechanic the way the classics do, but were otherwise 100% original.

 

Even so, they missed out on some choice properties to mine. Things like Adventure or Star Raiders or Yars' Revenge.

 

 

By changing the name of Infogrames to Atari, Infogrames can't really establish a consistently different identity from any other mainstream publisher.

 

I don't think having the Fuji on a box helps matters at all if the games you release are pretty much the same sort of stuff everyone else is coming out with (Neverwinter Nights excluded, of course).

 

I will give credit to them (or at least to Digital Eclipse for their persistence) for having the guts to develop a 2600 emulator package (which I'm assuming is poised for release based on what I've heard). Hasbro released the arcade emus but was clearly not interested in doing the 2600 thing despite Activision Classics sales figures.

[Scooterb23]

After having a chance to play with some of the upcoming released by Atari at Gencon...I think they need to take some more chances. The games they are making are good, but not great.

 

I like the look of the new Risk game they are making...and the new Magic: The Gathering seems to be interesting, but other than that...nothing seemed to be that special.

[Mindfield]

Okay. It's nice to still see the Atari name branding stuff, even if I despise the subtle but irritating Fuji redesign. At the very least it is a modern reminder of a company with deep roots and a rich history.

 

Having said that I really don't think Infogrames is doing much with Atari. They're releasing games with the Atari name, that's all very fine and well, but it's nothing like the old Atari. Not that I'm expecting a resurgence of the Atari of yore, but the one thing that had always followed Atari around pre-Hasbro was the innovation and vision that made Atari so great. Forward thinking, designs that were ahead of their time, games that were great and made you come back time and again to play them even years after. Once Hasbro took over it was crappy rehashes of old licenses that made you rediscover your appreciation of the originals they came from. Then Infogrames came in and, sure, they're releasing newer, more original, and better titles, but as it stands that's about all the Atari name stands for; they amount to little more than Sega these days.

 

They haven't done wrong by Atari, to be sure, but have they done right? I still think that remains to be seen.

[liquid_sky]

still releasing mediocre games, but under a more well known name

[MegaManFan]

I still think the Godzilla Melee game was the shiznit. With enough games like that, the modern Atari brand name would be first class. They aren't bottom of the game developer barrel, but they could definitely do better. At least kids seem to recognize and appreciate the brand though, which gives me the oddest feeling when I hear a kid tell his parent "Look mom they've got ATARI GAMES" as he's looking through modern titles at ShopKo.

[JB]

My opinion of the new Atari...

+: Licensed Ikaruga for US release. The world needs more scrolling shooters.

-: Made a Dragonball Z game.

 

 

But will anyone REALLY be happy untill Atari releases a new system?

[shep]

I am mad at thier dropping of GCN support....but other than that I think they are doing fairly well with the Atari name....

[RCmodeler]

They're releasing games with the Atari name, that's all very fine and well, but it's nothing like the old Atari.  

 

 

 

Thank God! Do you really want the old Atari with crapola like Pac-Man, Defender, and Home Run?

 

I think Infogrames is actually doing better than the original Atari did.