Intellivision Amico - Tommy Tallarico introduction + Q&A

22 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

No video.... no believe

Lol

Damn... you caught me.  The entire thing is completely made up.  I love spending millions on practical jokes.

LOL.. East coast sarcasm at it's best!!  

I'm totally sold on the vintage wood grain unit.  Can't wait to have that one!  

JR

21 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Are there any more colours still to come?

YEP! 

Won't be revealed until next year though.

Please ... please... a Sears Color base.  Vanilla, gold and wood grain.

Or a Harley Davidson Orange and Black for the garage!  LOL... 

JR

I know you can’t talk about the games themselves from E3 but I was wondering what the reaction was of those retailers and journalists who got yo hear the full pitch and try out some games 

On ‎6‎/‎15‎/‎2019 at 10:35 AM, Tommy Tallarico said:

Are there any more colours still to come?

YEP! 

Won't be revealed until next year though.

Just curious. Are you going to have themed skins or game themed artwork for the consoles?

2 hours ago, Alpha82 said:

I know you can’t talk about the games themselves from E3 but I was wondering what the reaction was of those retailers and journalists who got yo hear the full pitch and try out some games 

Here's one from electric playground.

On 6/13/2019 at 5:37 AM, gwald said:

 

New logo from: https://www.reddit.com/r/Amico/comments/c007nz/amicos_new_logo/

 

The logo looks like a series of emojis. The "A" is a woman smiling, the "m" is a heart, the "i" is a kid, and the "co" can look like a pair of eyes. I interpret the logo as saying I'm a woman who loves her children and keeps an eye on them (I'm joking).

More seriously, being a grumpy old man, I find the logo too feminine for my taste. I wish a touch of masculinity could have been placed somewhere. Having said this, since my main desire is to be able to play with my niece and my old mother, I'd say the logo does its job very well. After all, they are the ones who must be convinced to play video games, not me.

5 hours ago, Papy said:

 

The logo looks like a series of emojis. The "A" is a woman smiling, the "m" is a heart, the "i" is a kid, and the "co" can look like a pair of eyes. I interpret the logo as saying I'm a woman who loves her children and keeps an eye on them (I'm joking).

 

More seriously, being a grumpy old man, I find the logo too feminine for my taste. I wish a touch of masculinity could have been placed somewhere. Having said this, since my main desire is to be able to play with my niece and my old mother, I'd say the logo does its job very well. After all, they are the ones who must be convinced to play video games, not me.

Well i think the "A" is like a Ninja warriors face....That's masculine!

17 hours ago, Alpha82 said:

I know you can’t talk about the games themselves from E3 but I was wondering what the reaction was of those retailers and journalists who got yo hear the full pitch and try out some games 

Everyone who saw and played the software absolutely flipped out (in a good way)!  They were all very surprised and weren't expecting what they saw.  There is a lot more 2.5D than people were expecting and they didn't think the software would be as far along as it was.  Very positive showing!

15 hours ago, Swami said:

Just curious. Are you going to have themed skins or game themed artwork for the consoles?

Not yet decided.  Definitely an idea we've thrown around.  It would be easy to do.

 

6 hours ago, Papy said:

Having said this, since my main desire is to be able to play with my niece and my old mother, I'd say the logo does its job very well. After all, they are the ones who must be convinced to play video games, not me.

Exactly! 

2 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Everyone who saw and played the software absolutely flipped out (in a good way)!  They were all very surprised and weren't expecting what they saw.  There is a lot more 2.5D than people were expecting and they didn't think the software would be as far along as it was.  Very positive showing!

 

So, it's in the way of the Trine games. Classical 2D gameplay with great 2.5D graphics. 

I've only just recently become aware of this system- and unlike literally every other retro throwback that's been/being attempted right now, I consider myself 'cautiously optimistic' about this one. It's not just 'here's a CG mockup of a nostalgia-designed console case and some vague allusions to possible content, now give us money'. You seem to have a clear idea of the niche you want to appeal to, and that focus is taking precedence over pushing the Intellivision name. There's still little nods to the old machines though- it's a rather amicable setup (wait a sec...) 

I won't be sold until I see some games, running on a proper physical prototype- but it sounds like you're bringing that content fairly soon, so here's hoping I like what's to come!

Will there a prototype unit and some games on display at PRGE 2019?

1 hour ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

 

Quote

A recent industry article pointed out that 83% of the video games shown at E3 were "violent" in some way.

 

Cartoon violence like any platformer has was included as "violence", which instantly makes me discount this.  Even Undertale would be included in that metric, and that has a specific pacifist option.  I think more games should give the player the option to resolve conflict peacefully, but I also don't like agenda-driven articles that conflate platformers with first-person shooters where violence is the point.

 

Quote

 Also, family friendly and non-violent games doesn't mean they are just for little kids and can only be presented in an eye-rolling pre-school fashion. Most of our games on the Intellivision Amico are presented for everyone even though NONE of our games are Mature (M) rated or even Teen (T) rated! We are building a system that parents across the world can TRUST 100% of the time. Similar to the game content my generation were playing growing up in the 70's & early 80's. Imagine that. What a concept.

 

Again, the article included family friendly "cartoon violence" in that but I understand your point that you aim for All Ages and would like to have family friendly "walking simulators" as well as things that can give you the option to talk or fight, and the usual platforming fare.  Although with the experience of you and your company, I hope you don't fall into some rose colored glasses look at the games industry of the early 80's.  There was a ton of a shovelware in that time.  (I look back amazed at watching myself at 8 or 9 years old in home movies from the late 80's and marvel at how the adults ever let us ride bikes without helmets.  Just an aside, on how society has changed since the 80's).

 

 

 

 

Quote

 

My goal is to legitimately change the world in regards to family & friends of all skill levels getting together once again to play video games. Something we haven't really seen since the Nintendo Wii over 13 years ago. I hope you will support me in this cause.

 

https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2019-06-13-only-21-percent-of-e3-games-are-non-violent

 

 That is an interesting vision for games.  A lot of that Wii "casual" audience moved on to mobile games, and I am a little skeptical that you can really hold to the games around $10 with no DLC or loot boxes without the console being mostly mobile game ports of varying quality, but I imagine the games as basically complete experiences for a budget price is a principle that you'll hold to.  I also am curious if there is a plan in case consoles do get hit with Trump's proposed 25% tariffs (I'm assuming that these consoles will at least be partially manufactured outside the US).  Certainly a more social, budget-friendly all ages console that can pull off a quality range of games would certainly make ripples and I am keeping an open mind as to whether or not you'll pull it off.  From the little E3 info there is, you seem to be on the right track at least.

in a response to those who say the Amico logo is too “kiddy” or “girly” for adults, consider this:  a mature adult should recognize a quality product and good gameplay despite it’s cute cuddly outwardly appearance.  

7 hours ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

I want to bring something up.

A recent industry article pointed out that 83% of the video games shown at E3 were "violent" in some way. This has not been the norm over the past 2 decades, but something that was definitely predominant this year. I'm not here to "scold" the game industry... but I would like to point out that while the majority of game developers, publishers and hardware manufacturers seem to be focusing on adult content for the living room this year and next... WE ARE NOT!

Wait... does this mean the unreleased Mattel Intellivision prototype ROM "Chainsaw the Babies" won't be released for the Amico?  Aw man. 

50 minutes ago, Lathe26 said:

Wait... does this mean the unreleased Mattel Intellivision prototype ROM "Chainsaw the Babies" won't be released for the Amico?  Aw man.

I can't recall if the prototype had the 'harvest the chainsaw teeth from the baby seals' mini-game that you played on the controller in it or not. Do you remember?

I'm thinking that this also means that the Amico will not get the Intellivision's GTA port

8 hours ago, HoshiChiri said:

I've only just recently become aware of this system- and unlike literally every other retro throwback that's been/being attempted right now, I consider myself 'cautiously optimistic' about this one. It's not just 'here's a CG mockup of a nostalgia-designed console case and some vague allusions to possible content, now give us money'. You seem to have a clear idea of the niche you want to appeal to, and that focus is taking precedence over pushing the Intellivision name. There's still little nods to the old machines though- it's a rather amicable setup (wait a sec...) 

 

I won't be sold until I see some games, running on a proper physical prototype- but it sounds like you're bringing that content fairly soon, so here's hoping I like what's to come!

they showed a working console at E3 last week and the reason for waiting was they wanted to game play to be shown on the system which they have said the trailer should release in July

6 hours ago, intvsteve said:

I can't recall if the prototype had the 'harvest the chainsaw teeth from the baby seals' mini-game that you played on the controller in it or not. Do you remember?

Fine! I'll get started on the box *sigh* 

On 6/16/2019 at 5:58 PM, mr_me said:

Here's one from electric playground.

 

Well, sound like the Amico has a good positive vibe to start!  I'm happy to hear comments like this and hope it keeps getting better.

As for the Logo...  personally, I like the one in this video.  Maybe it was the original.  Not keen on the 'bubble' letters... but it won't stop me from buying that retro style console!  Looking forward to it.

JR

23 hours ago, HoshiChiri said:

I've only just recently become aware of this system- and unlike literally every other retro throwback that's been/being attempted right now, I consider myself 'cautiously optimistic' about this one. It's not just 'here's a CG mockup of a nostalgia-designed console case and some vague allusions to possible content, now give us money'. You seem to have a clear idea of the niche you want to appeal to, and that focus is taking precedence over pushing the Intellivision name. There's still little nods to the old machines though- it's a rather amicable setup (wait a sec...) 

 

I won't be sold until I see some games, running on a proper physical prototype- but it sounds like you're bringing that content fairly soon, so here's hoping I like what's to come!

Absolutely!!  Unlike others... we would NEVER ask for money until you had a chance to play the system and the games.  What a concept eh?  

22 hours ago, fdr4prez said:

Will there a prototype unit and some games on display at PRGE 2019?

We're not sure.  Still deciding.  We don't think so as there are some very important deadlines for us right around that time.

22 hours ago, Abzeronow said:

 

Hi,

I agree that the article went too far in describing what constitutes "violence"... but even if the number was half... it's still too far.  I was at E3 and every game being promoted on the walls, billboards, etc. was all adult content containing violence. 

We are NOT doing mobile ports.  Every game will be unique and exclusive and specifically built for Amico.

The President Trump tariffs on China currently have no bearing on what we're doing and if anything HELP our company.  We are attempting to assemble everything in America and have big meetings with Washington in regards to keeping everything here.    Won't know the outcome until later this year... but we have a great and solid plan right now that could benefit a lot of folks in a lot of different ways.