![]() It primarily affected the United States market and is known as Atari Shock in Japan. The Video Game Crash of 1983 was a large-scale recession that occurred in the 1980s video game industry. The Video Game Crash of 1983-Atari Shock What Is Atari Shock? This argument would be where Bushnell and Atari finally parted ways, just after the dissolution of Kee Games in 1978.īy 1983, the Video Game Crash of 1983 would take Atari underwater with it, and Atari would shift to building home computers as a stopgap method to keep itself above water. Bushnell wanted to continue production for the Atari 2600, culminating in a massive argument between Bushnell and Manny Gerard, a member of the Office of the President at Warner Communications. ![]() In particular, Warner wanted to discontinue the renamed Atari 2600 and focus on the more recent, fancier Atari 5200. However, Warner and Bushnell were often at odds in producing new IPs and systems. Bushnell sold the company to Warner Communications in 1979, intending to use the funds to produce his next game. At this point, Atari had become a household name.īushnell knew he had another hit up his sleeve and began looking to outside investors to fund the expensive project he had in mind. It came with the system, joystick, paddles, and a copy of Atari’s Combat game. The introductory MSRP for the system was $199, equivalent to almost USD 1000 today. This system was capable of reading cartridges, allowing it to play Atari’s four games at home, connected to a TV. Thus, the Atari Entertain System was born. The next great frontier for Atari was bringing games into the house on a home console. This home video game console by Atari INC has become the status symbol of retro video gaming. Home Consoles: a New Market The historical Atari 2600 Video Computer System runs at 1.19 MHz with 128 bytes of ROM. Keenan focused on making games more unique and pushed for a move away from exclusivity deals which could water down the market with platform-exclusive clones of the same games. Prior to Kee Games’ introduction to the market, both Kee and Atari could pitch and market nearly identical games to investors, and both may achieve exclusivity deals. Kee Games focused on nipping the problem of exclusivity deals in gaming in the bud. Kee Games would be a short-lived but influential passion project that would result in Keenan’s promotion to president of Atari. ![]() In 1973, a direct competitor, Kee Games, was founded by Joe Keenan, Nolan Bushnell’s next-door neighbor. So much so that the milk carton used to collect the coins for each play began to overflow, causing the machine to malfunction, an issue quickly caught by patrons who just wanted to play another game. The first Pong arcade machine was installed at Andy Capp’s tavern. Unfortunately, the coin catcher they used in this prototype was a milk carton, proving insufficient for the device’s popularity. The system used a coin loader repurposed from a laundromat-style laundry machine. The company was started with $250 in investments, which amounts to about $1500 today-nowhere near as much as what is typically needed to start a business now, but a lot for the time.Ītari’s first project was a prototype arcade machine that allowed players to play games of Pong. The company name comes from the Japanese word “atari” which means “hit,” “strike,” or “to be correct,” and is the Japanese name for the game Go.Ītari’s History Humble Beginnings: The Beginning of Western Video Game DevelopmentĪtari began in 1972 when Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney founded the company.The first Pong prototype was so successful that the cabinet began to malfunction from the coin collector overflowing.The first Pong prototype arcade cabinet used a coin slot from a laundromat machine.Within years, Atari would be worth over 2 billion dollars.Atari was founded in 1972 with an investment of $250. ![]() Many people consider the founders of Atari to be the fathers of video games.Quick Facts Year Founded 1973 Founders Nolan Bushnell, Ted Dabney Industry Video Games Headquarter N/A Key People Joe Keenan Notable Products Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Atari Arcade Cabinets Website 6 Facts About Atari ![]() But it can also be attributed to the global video game industry crash that occurred during Atari’s lifespan. Most game industry people feel Atari’s failure can be attributed to their excessive and unregulated support for third-party developers, leading to an oversupply of terrible Atari games. Few people know why the Atari platform dissolved, but some theories exist. So those gamers were sad to see the platform wither into obscurity. The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS,) was a staple of many gamers’ childhoods. Atari is a popular platform amongst retro gamers who enjoy the simpler things in life. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |