Intellivision Amico - Tommy Tallarico introduction + Q&A

16 hours ago, Intellivision Master said:

 

That was really cool!  Need to share this on our social media.

12 hours ago, jerseystyle said:

Hey, Tommy, now that the Atari VCS "Launch" has come and gone and (as far as I can tell) is DOA with very little hype, even on this forum, I have a few questions:

 

1) Is there any takeaways from the VCS launch that are useful to you and your team, in terms of tweaks to your plans?

No, not really.  We are so different than them and have such a different model and goals that nothing on our side needed to be adjusted or changed in any way.

12 hours ago, jerseystyle said:

 

2) Was there anything about their product, now that it's out, that surprised you?  Any good ideas there, or lessons regarding hardware?

No, not really.  I've mentioned previously that they should have gone full STEAM BOX FOR YOUR TV route.  Make a deal with Gabe/Steam that gives anyone who purchases a Steam game on Atari gets 10% - 20% off or something.  Steam is great... we find a lot of developers there... but it isn't living room friendly.  Yes... there are ways to do it... but not really seen as commercial for average Joe shopper right out of the box.  And yes... a Steam box existed from Steam and quickly went away.  But that doesn't mean it was a bad idea for a living room platform... it just means it wasn't executed the proper way.  The Atari name carries a lot more weight overall than Steam... especially for casuals, non PC players or just the average person.  They have no idea what Steam is.  Only gamers do.  So I would have doubled and tripled down on THOUSANDS OF GREAT GAMES AT AFFORDABLE PRICES IN YOUR LIVING ROOM!  And would have cut a direct deal with Steam... give them MORE of a percentage than their used to while giving the consumer (even the seasoned Steam user) to purchase a console and get a deal on games.  They would also need to eventually figure out a way to get it to $299 with at least one controller.  Currently an uphill battle there I believe. 

I like the shape/style of the AtariVCS and I also think the traditional joystick is pretty cool.  I don't have one, so I can't really judge anything about it.  I've watched a handful of unboxing videos and it seems like there isn't a lot of new or exclusive content out of the box.  I wish them well as I know how difficult it is to get something out there.  Lucky for them they had a full year head start on us and their engineering and boards were completed before COVID hit hard (although clearly they still have supply chain issues which is understandable).  Again... I hope they succeed and I hope we sell more units so we can finally say that after 40 years... Intellivision beat Atari for a change.


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12 hours ago, skylinesandsunsets said:

Hey Tommy, did you get an earful from the Reddit/ Gamestop hoopla that's going viral on the web?

I guess it's safe to say that Gamestop will be around long enough to sell galaxy purple consoles!  

I know right?!?!!? 

It's so fascinating on a ton of different levels.  And yes... if anything... this helps us even more as Amico will be available at retail in GameStop locations.  I gotta say, it's going to be an emotional day for me and the team to walk into a GameStop and see Amico on the shelves.  So much hard work and consistent overwhelming challenges to get there.  It will be an amazing day!  Will definitely need to video record that.

1 hour ago, Intellivision Master said:

 

Hahaha!  I see they used that screenshot/thumbnail they asked for.  

So great to see young gamers really love what they hear when they find out about what Amico is offering. 

More proof that blows holes into the false narrative that "Amico is only for 40 - 50 year old lonely white guys"... which oddly enough is only said by 40 - 50 year old lonely white guys.

47 minutes ago, Steven Pendleton said:

Tommy, a random thought for you: one of my friends came over the other day to play some Neo Geo games and Xeno Crisis (play this game if you haven't, by the way, because it's one of the absolute best Genesis/Mega Drive games ever made and has glorious music and excellent voice sample quality) and we talked about the Amico for a little bit. He's from Europe, which reminded me of something... Probotector. I mentioned Metal Slug before and I think you said that it (or something like it) had been mentioned before. Not sure why I didn't remember Probotector until just the other day, but it's there as an option if you guys and Konami want to try it. I imagine all of the Europeans would never expect to see Probotector again and neither would anyone else.

 

Europeans, what would you think about Probotector coming back on the Amico? Yes, censored Contra, but I think it would be interesting to see not-Contra-but-still-100%-Contra come back.

 

By the way, I don't know if I mentioned it before, but I found Dynablaster on the PAL NES not long ago in Super Potato. It was inside a case on 4F with a Jaguar, a JagToilet, a Sega Nomad, and a Sega CDX that they wanted about $1000 for. The game itself was covered by a bunch of Jag games so I couldn't see the price, just the side of the box, but it's there in the case with those expensive rare things, so I imagine it's expensive as hell, but it does in fact exist.

Oh wow.  I'm not familar with Probotector.  I'll need to check it out and get our Europe prez Hans to look into it.

Dynablaster on the PAL (European) NES!  Nice find!  

Yeah, a lot of folks don't realize that Bomberman was called Dynablasters in Europe.  The main reason being that right before the game was to be released in Europe, there was an unfortunate terror attack bombing and all the headlines of the newspapers were talking about the Bomberman.  Hudson made the right choice to rename it for Europe and the name stuck.

Can't wait for folks to play our Dynablasters game.  Very fun... especially the co-op mode!  We'll be showing a gameplay video soon!

44 minutes ago, timbofry1 said:

Has anyone here played Sneaky Sasquatch on Apple Arcade?  It was voted best Apple Arcade game of 2020.

 

https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2020/12/vancouvers-sneaky-sasquatch-named-one-of-apples-best-apps-of-2020

 

I read about this game and checked it out this week and the game is a blast. You play as Sasquatch, sneaking around campsites stealing camper's food and so on, but it gets so much deeper than that, as you can go fishing for food, or sell food to a bear for coins and buy things, there are tons of side missions, just simple and so much fun.  Very cute and clever game.

 

I have a Mac and play with an XB1 controller, haven't played on an iPad or phone but I feel like this is great on a big screen Mac with a controller.  Just goes to show you how fun a simple game with cartoon graphics can be.  The controls are very simple, but the concept and execution of the game are top notch.  Nothing too complex or stressful, just fun. I love just exploring and finding new things in this Sasquatch world...you can actually buy a human suit so you fool campers into thinking you are human, you can ski, play golf, buy a golf cart or a car and drive around, participate in races...just tons of fun...

 

Tommy, I think this would be a great game for the Amico if you want to check it out.  Not sure what the arrangement is with developers and Apple Arcade, but this is right up the Amico's alley, if you ask me.

Hmm... I don't know... it looks like a FLASH game to me.  It can't be any good.

Hahahahha!!

KIDDING!!!

Wow... yeah... it looks awesome!!  I don't have an Apple device (I'm a strict PC & Android lover) so unfortunately for me... I can't even play it. 

But it looks super interesting and fun so I'll borrow someone's iphone when I get a chance and check it out!

I believe most games on Apple Arcade are exclusives... at least for awhile.  But we will definitely look into it.  Thanks for the tip!

38 minutes ago, Intellivision Master said:

I played a game on Apple Arcade called Winding Worlds.  It's a puzzle style game and you also help people as well.  The game has 7 worlds.  You access each world through a door/portal.  A fun little game, it's short but sweet.  It also, had a twist ending that I didn't see coming.  Perhaps a game like this could be on Amico.  But change the characters, story, etc.

Cool.  I'll check that one out as well.

Thanks!

29 minutes ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Again... I hope they succeed and I hope we sell more units so we can finally say that after 40 years... Intellivision beat Atari for a change.

Wouldn't that be something?

15 minutes ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Oh wow.  I'm not familar with Probotector.  I'll need to check it out and get our Europe prez Hans to look into it.

Dynablaster on the PAL (European) NES!  Nice find!  

Yeah, a lot of folks don't realize that Bomberman was called Dynablasters in Europe.  The main reason being that right before the game was to be released in Europe, there was an unfortunate terror attack bombing and all the headlines of the newspapers were talking about the Bomberman.  Hudson made the right choice to rename it for Europe and the name stuck.

Can't wait for folks to play our Dynablasters game.  Very fun... especially the co-op mode!  We'll be showing a gameplay video soon!

 

 

Yeah, when Konami decided to localize Contra in Europe, they turned it into Probotector to get past the strict anti-violence requirements at the time... or something like that. It's still the same Contra but with robots instead of people. I don't know how well bringing back Probotector would be received, mainly because I'm pretty sure everyone in Europe considers it to be just an inferior censored version of Contra and the rest of the world probably doesn't know it exists, but it's an interesting thought.

Speaking of Bomberman... I need to try Saturn Bomberman. It has 10-player (!!!!) multiplayer and I've heard it's the best Bomberman game by far. Getting 10 people, 10 Saturn controllers, and 2 multitaps to set it up is quite difficult and expensive, but damn does it look fun!

If I go back to Akiba, I'll see about finding the price on that Dynablaster if they still have it. I imagine they might, what with NES carts not fitting in the Famicom, so I doubt that many Japanese people would buy it unless they have a converter, especially if the game is expensive. It's also the same store that has Tiger handheld games going for close to $100, likely because they are probably considered to be rare imports here, so...

18 minutes ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Hmm... I don't know... it looks like a FLASH game to me.  It can't be any good.

Hahahahha!!

KIDDING!!!

Wow... yeah... it looks awesome!!  I don't have an Apple device (I'm a strict PC & Android lover) so unfortunately for me... I can't even play it. 

 

But it looks super interesting and fun so I'll borrow someone's iphone when I get a chance and check it out!

I believe most games on Apple Arcade are exclusives... at least for awhile.  But we will definitely look into it.  Thanks for the tip!

 

 

This YouTube channel Pungence had a series on Sneaky Sasquatch, if anyone wants to check it out.  I hadn't seen his channel before but he is into exploring family friendly games, so that sounds familiar...

1 hour ago, Intellivision Master said:

I played a game on Apple Arcade called Winding Worlds.  It's a puzzle style game and you also help people as well.  The game has 7 worlds.  You access each world through a door/portal.  A fun little game, it's short but sweet.  It also, had a twist ending that I didn't see coming.  Perhaps a game like this could be on Amico.  But change the characters, story, etc.

That sounds cool ! Also Sneaky Sasquatch sound interesting. I tried Apple Arcade when it launched and didn’t get into it. Any other suggestions for cool games / family games on Apple Arcade ? And it the remote a good enough controller ? Are those 2,games Apple exclusives ?

Hey Tommy.

Got 100% down on an Amico at GameStop.

Between the release date being pushed back and GameStop's rollercoaster ride of a stock price, what happens if GameStop goes out if business before Amico comes out?  Am I out $250 plus tax?

Interesting Twitter thread, where Cathy Vice ("Indie Gamer Chick") discusses how the Wii (and subsequently, Nintendo Switch) had this "cool factor" that the Wii U just couldn't replicate:

What are your thoughts, Tommy? I'm curious as to whether such a "cool factor" has influenced Amico's development.

2 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

No, not really.  I've mentioned previously that they should have gone full STEAM BOX FOR YOUR TV route.  Make a deal with Gabe/Steam that gives anyone who purchases a Steam game on Atari gets 10% - 20% off or something. 

That would be less of a discount than you usually get on Steam!

Funny you've mentioned this. I'm currently setting up Steam link and a family account for my mother so she can play my games on her iPad. While I would classify most of my games as for the "hardcore gamer," I think there may be a few she would like. Coincidentally, they're mostly all 2D, like Amico (but none of that 3D free-roaming stuff).

Though I'm not sure if she would have been interested if it wasn't for the pandemic and being stuck in her apartment.

Quote

They would also need to eventually figure out a way to get it to $299 with at least one controller.  Currently an uphill battle there I believe. 

I'm pretty sure my brother or I has an old Xbox or Playstation controller she can use.

40 minutes ago, tripletopper said:

Hey Tommy.

 

Got 100% down on an Amico at GameStop.

 

Between the release date being pushed back and GameStop's rollercoaster ride of a stock price, what happens if GameStop goes out if business before Amico comes out?  Am I out $250 plus tax?

that is a question you need to ask GameStop - not Tommy

2 hours ago, tripletopper said:

Hey Tommy.

 

Got 100% down on an Amico at GameStop.

 

Between the release date being pushed back and GameStop's rollercoaster ride of a stock price, what happens if GameStop goes out if business before Amico comes out?  Am I out $250 plus tax?

Gamestop's stock price has nothing to do with the company's fundamentals (quite frankly that is a battle of stock manipulation between short sellers and a gang of small investors). They have $499 million dollars in cash, $142 million in receivables and their assets are greater than their liabilities, they aren't going anywhere anytime soon.

1 hour ago, GrudgeQ said:

Gamestop's stock price has nothing to do with the company's fundamentals (quite frankly that is a battle of stock manipulation between short sellers and a gang of small investors). They have $499 million dollars in cash, $142 million in receivables and their assets are greater than their liabilities, they aren't going anywhere anytime soon.

Oh good.  I was fearful for the job of my friend and his wife, both one level above store manager (smallest subdivision above store level) at GameStop last time I checked.

Plus they took advantage of small stock prices to invest to have a bigger say in the company.

Speaking of GameStop be sure to head over to Facebook's Intellivision Amico Society Group Page.

A growing community of 'like-minded' Intellivision Amico enthusiasts, headed up by our good friend @AtariSociety (It's a Private Group so you'll need permission to join).

16 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Hahaha!  I see they used that screenshot/thumbnail they asked for.  

 

The 'Talla-Reeso' name debacle at the very beginning was comedic gold!

1 hour ago, CurlyQ said:

Speaking of GameStop be sure to head over to Facebook's Intellivision Amico Society Group Page.

 

A growing community of 'like-minded' Intellivision Amico enthusiasts, headed up by our good friend @AtariSociety (It's a Private Group so you'll need permission to join).

 

Thanks @CurlyQ for referring folks.

In fact, you must of been feeling the vibe as I am uploading a new Amico Society Welcome video to my channel now to spread the word plus let folks know what the group is about.

Hope folks are finding the group fun!

TJ

this video has me hoping we get these ww2 planes in Bi-Planes. I think Tommy hinted at a while ago there is a chance.  I had models of both these growing up. 

11 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

 

 

 

 

No, not really.  I've mentioned previously that they should have gone full STEAM BOX FOR YOUR TV route.  Make a deal with Gabe/Steam that gives anyone who purchases a Steam game on Atari gets 10% - 20% off or something.  Steam is great... we find a lot of developers there... but it isn't living room friendly.  Yes... there are ways to do it... but not really seen as commercial for average Joe shopper right out of the box.  And yes... a Steam box existed from Steam and quickly went away.  But that doesn't mean it was a bad idea for a living room platform... it just means it wasn't executed the proper way.  The Atari name carries a lot more weight overall than Steam... especially for casuals, non PC players or just the average person.  They have no idea what Steam is.  Only gamers do.  So I would have doubled and tripled down on THOUSANDS OF GREAT GAMES AT AFFORDABLE PRICES IN YOUR LIVING ROOM!  And would have cut a direct deal with Steam... give them MORE of a percentage than their used to while giving the consumer (even the seasoned Steam user) to purchase a console and get a deal on games.  They would also need to eventually figure out a way to get it to $299 with at least one controller.  Currently an uphill battle there I believe. 



🥰

I never thought about it like that but VCS as a STEAM box would've made a ton of sense.   Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

Tommy,

After the Amico releases and people buy it, will there be a way to reach tech support if something goes wrong?  Hopefully a phone number or live chat are available.  I know Nintendo has a number for customers who have questions or tech issues.  I'm sure you have something in place to help with this once the console is on the market.