Intellivision Amico - Tommy Tallarico introduction + Q&A

42 minutes ago, LePionnier said:

Online Gaming !!  ??   LOL  😂🤣

List of video game industry people.

I think that's likely.  Many pioneers in Online Gaming have discussed that the driving force behind their creations was getting people playing together... Online was just a new way to do it at the time. 

3 hours ago, Intellivision Master said:

 

I commented on Pete’s video regarding my concern with how the controls will work with asteroids since all of the translations I have played for Asteroids have had very poor controls since the arcade machine had a very specific configuration and layout that’s hard to work with on any other controller it seems. I don’t recall ever seeing a version that is even close to arcade perfect in terns of either graphics and sounds or controls  but I could be wrong. The crisp graphics and sounds were so cool !! I’m hoping for a close to arcade perfect port of the original (I think this is the only game so far where they showed footage of the original and reimagined version) along with the reimagined version. !!!! Asteroids Deluxe was very cool too 😎

5 minutes ago, BiffMan said:

Many pioneers in Online Gaming have discussed that the driving force behind their creations was getting people playing together... Online was just a new way to do it at the time. 

J Allard brought Microsoft into the internet age, therefore he brought everyone into the internet age. He also started Xbox etc etc.. He would be a crazy good pick up.

14 minutes ago, bigdaddygamestudio said:

so its J Allard?

He did have an Intellivision, but I'm pretty sure he's married (if you're following the fiancee angle).  I do think it's one of the Xbox guys though. Just a hunch.  

What I'm hung up on is the phrasing about how he created one of the biggest video game products in the world.  "Products" is an odd word there.

1 minute ago, vongruetz said:

Products" is an odd word there.

Allard basically help start Microsofts entire entry into video games (  Xbox 1.0, Xbox Live, Xbox 360, Xbox peripherals, XNA, Xbox Music)    We will ignore the Zune stuff

3 minutes ago, vongruetz said:

He did have an Intellivision, but I'm pretty sure he's married (if you're following the fiancee angle).  I do think it's one of the Xbox guys though. Just a hunch.  

 

What I'm hung up on is the phrasing about how he created one of the biggest video game products in the world.  "Products" is an odd word there.

Yea I feel odd as I guess me Ed Fries and then googled him and found out he’s married(I think) feel like I’m stalking these folks 🤣

Rob Pardo could be a possibility... Can't find reference of his being married, he's the right age, hasn't done much recently... And certainly having the World of Warcraft guy involved in Amico would be a tremendous vote of confidence.

8 minutes ago, vongruetz said:

He did have an Intellivision, but I'm pretty sure he's married (if you're following the fiancee angle).  I do think it's one of the Xbox guys though. Just a hunch.  

 

What I'm hung up on is the phrasing about how he created one of the biggest video game products in the world.  "Products" is an odd word there.

That word got me thinking too. Why the word “products” ? Something tricky is going on 🤔

Just now, BiffMan said:

Rob Pardo could be a possibility... Can't find reference of his being married, he's the right age, hasn't done much recently... And certainly having the World of Warcraft guy involved in Amico would be a tremendous vote of confidence.

not sure how online gaming fits with couch gaming.  Things like Warcraft is exactly the opposite of what Amico is trying to do

22 hours ago, Intellivision Master said:

 

What about an Easter Egg alternate play mode in B-17 Bomber, where instead of seeking out baddie military sites, you are the hornet and seek out your mortal insect enemies? Might be a little too violent/graphic for the requisite system ratings. 

8 minutes ago, bigdaddygamestudio said:

J Allard brought Microsoft into the internet age, therefore he brought everyone into the internet age. He also started Xbox etc etc.. He would be a crazy good pick up.

The time line fits really well, he left Microsoft almost exactly 10 years ago and hasn't been doing any video game stuff since. 

I change my guess to J Allard as well. 🙂

1 minute ago, bigdaddygamestudio said:

not sure how online gaming fits with couch gaming.  Things like Warcraft is exactly the opposite of what Amico is trying to do

It was trying to do the same thing in spirit, get people playing together. Entirely possible someone like that would be involved in couch co-op now. 

That said, I think the J Allard guess is on the money. What better way to 'mic drop' on the hardcore elitist than have one of the biggest Xbox guys on the Amico team. 

6 minutes ago, BiffMan said:

The time line fits really well, he left Microsoft almost exactly 10 years ago and hasn't been doing any video game stuff since. 

 

I change my guess to J Allard as well. 🙂

This is a fantastic guess. The most likely possibility so far !! It gets my vote 😀

J Allard for the win.

"These games are easy to get into and a total blast, which makes them perfect for the gamer who doesn't have a lot of time and just needs a quick fix," said J Allard, chief XNA architect for Microsoft's (MSFT: Research, Estimates) Xbox team.

https://money.cnn.com/2004/05/13/commentary/game_over/e3_column_gaming/index.htm

Certainly a guy with a soft spot for classic gaming... 

Also he's 'top of the list' (alphabetically) of that Wiki list or company officers, per Tommy's other hint about his placement in the list being amusing. 

Tommy,

What about, try to find Waldo as a game for Amico?  Also, is it possible that a Toy Story game could be on Amico?

The trolls always put down the Amico controllers as Zunes or Ipods. I think J Allard is a good guess given the position hinted at is less about game development. 

2 minutes ago, BiffMan said:

"These games are easy to get into and a total blast, which makes them perfect for the gamer who doesn't have a lot of time and just needs a quick fix," said J Allard, chief XNA architect for Microsoft's (MSFT: Research, Estimates) Xbox team.

https://money.cnn.com/2004/05/13/commentary/game_over/e3_column_gaming/index.htm

 

Certainly a guy with a soft spot for classic gaming... 

 

Also he's 'top of the list' (alphabetically) of that Wiki list or company officers, per Tommy's other hint about his placement in the list being amusing. 

 

Tommy goes silent 😂😂😂

13 minutes ago, Cranker said:

This is a fantastic guess. The most likely possibility so far !! It gets my vote 😀

Credit to @bigdaddygamestudio on the guess, it just clicks and feels so right on a number of levels.

And. Is. Hilariously. Awesome. 

(mic drop) 

😁

12 minutes ago, BiffMan said:

"These games are easy to get into and a total blast, which makes them perfect for the gamer who doesn't have a lot of time and just needs a quick fix," said J Allard, chief XNA architect for Microsoft's (MSFT: Research, Estimates) Xbox team.

https://money.cnn.com/2004/05/13/commentary/game_over/e3_column_gaming/index.htm

 

Certainly a guy with a soft spot for classic gaming... 

 

Also he's 'top of the list' (alphabetically) of that Wiki list or company officers, per Tommy's other hint about his placement in the list being amusing. 

 

You Googled "J Allard Intellivision" didn't you?  Lol. I did the same and found the same article.  The only thing that keeps me from saying it's J is that I keep seeing things about his wife, and Tommy hinted this guy isn't currently married.  Unless he did mean "finance" and he was talking with his accountant.

22 minutes ago, vongruetz said:

You Googled "J Allard Intellivision" didn't you?  Lol. I did the same and found the same article.  The only thing that keeps me from saying it's J is that I keep seeing things about his wife, and Tommy hinted this guy isn't currently married.  Unless he did mean "finance" and he was talking with his accountant.

Google is fun!  Here's more! 🙂

""I wasn’t burned out, just not the right person to get excited about Kinect, Windows gaming and VR,” he said." 

https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/319256/ExMicrosoft_exec_J_Allard_speaks_to_the_game_industrys_inherent_burnout_problem.php

Sounds like a guy who might feel gaming was drifiting away from what made it fun for him.... If only there were some new product that would invigorate him and bring him back to his formative years gaming roots... 

Of course, Tommy is enjoying the hell out of this and probably laughing his ass off wondering why we stopped considering John Carmack so quickly... Lol

https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/07/us/washington-state-gypsy-moths-proclamation-trnd/index.html

Tommy,

We need a new game about moths.  Let's call it Moth Blaster.  Lol.

I really need that full level of Moon Patrol demo to keep me going, or maybe an Astrosmash demo ?  😊😊😊

3 minutes ago, Cranker said:

I really need that full level of Moon Patrol demo to keep me going, or maybe an Astrosmash demo ?  😊😊😊

How about that new Breakout as a demo?  

51 minutes ago, Cranker said:

57 minutes ago, vongruetz said:

He did have an Intellivision, but I'm pretty sure he's married (if you're following the fiancee angle).  I do think it's one of the Xbox guys though. Just a hunch.  

 

What I'm hung up on is the phrasing about how he created one of the biggest video game products in the world.  "Products" is an odd word there.

That word got me thinking too. Why the word “products” ? Something tricky is going on

From Wiki ...

Allard shipped over 30 products during his tenure at Microsoft and was a founding member of many Microsoft businesses, including Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Windows NT and the TCP/IP product families.