Intellivision Amico - Tommy Tallarico introduction + Q&A

...and if you lived in the NY/NJ/CT Tri-state area...

TV Pixxx on Channel 11, always came on between Tom & Jerry and Battle of the Planets! 

She says Intellivision, but that's Baseball on a Channel F system.

On 8/29/2020 at 7:40 PM, CurlyQ said:

IMO simplicity is the way to go just like the other t-shirts in the Amico Store. If you start cramming it full of stuff it's gonna lose it's appeal.

 

Here's a couple to get the ball rolling...

 

 

That is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

On 8/30/2020 at 7:05 AM, Talerian said:

Then I am curious to see how it comes out in the end...

 

I think it's great that you share a lot of behind the scenes information and offer the people here the possibility to directly discuss everything with you. A lot of bigger companies sadly seem not to care much about their costumers' feedback and wishes. I hope your company becomes an "established force" in the business in the upcoming years but still keeps its indie-mindset.

 

Maybe for 10-10-20 you can produce a small fictional clip of a future CEO Tommy Tallerico in the year 2030 who looks back and gives a summary about how IE developed in the following years after Amico released.😉

Thanks!  I appreciate the kind words, acknowledgement and support!

On 8/30/2020 at 8:49 AM, The_Analog_Kid said:

Most triumphant, CurlyQ!  (Ya, just watched "Bill & Ted Face The Music")

Was that any good?  I was a little disappointed with the trailer.  Cool to see them back together but the trailer didn't sell me on it.

Thoughts??

On 8/30/2020 at 11:34 AM, Blarneo said:

Hi Everybody. "Where in the world is Blarniego?"

 

So I had a nasty bout with a bacterial infection that antibiotics swept away & now I'm just waiting for the swelling went down, but I want to give a warning to all you kids out there on safety tips for avoiding bacteria. 

 

Don't lick doorknobs!

 

Are you sure "doorknobs" isn't code for something else??  

🥰

On 8/30/2020 at 12:31 PM, GrudgeQ said:

It was supposed to be a secret but when Tommy starts up the Video Games Live concerts again in January, it will be with an all accordion orchestra

 

Early Recording Session for the New Album:

 

Fun Fact:  I had my dad write a song and play it on accordion for Earthworm Jim!

On 8/30/2020 at 2:26 PM, Starpaddler said:

So after a few different attempts to have my less-casual gaming then myself wife try the Moon Patrol Demo, I finally caught her at the right moment on Friday and she tried it; and - SHE GENUINELY LOVES IT.  She’s now downloaded the app to her phone and iPad and after about her 15th run through has beaten the level.  I’m looking forward to the good times that I am sure are coming with us enjoying Amico together (its already starting and Amico is not even out yet).  

 

She previously has “endured” me listening to some of Tommy’s interviews and IE’s videos without head phones and seemed to understand and appreciate the mission of IE; but after Moon Patrol, think she better gets it all and is even more on-board. 

 

Thanks Tommy and IE again for working to bringing a game console to market “for the rest of us”.

 

One note, for a family friendly console game, it did on a few occasions illicit quite the potty mouth from my wife.  Maybe some of the Amico games better come with a warning regarding participant language. 

Wow!  That's super cool to hear!  Thanks for sharing.  A game like Moon Patrol is more targeted to retro and hardcore gamers, so the fact that she enjoyed it as well is a great sign.  You guys will love battling each other in Versus mode or... wait til you hear the potty mouth she'll give you in CO-OP mode where one of you can control the movement of the vehicle and the other controls the weapons (or any combination).

On 8/31/2020 at 6:21 PM, GrudgeQ said:

Somehow it has flown mostly under the radar that Intellivision has picked up two new sports licenses (announced in the GoGameGo video below). Both described as well known around the world, one serious and one casual (fun).

My two wild guesses are National Hockey League and maybe the National Horseshoe Pitchers Association (I had guessed maybe Disc (Frisbee) Golf but it is too new to fit the description below).

 

Google captions with some minor editing and punctuation:

 

 

 

More info and cool licenses will be announced over the next few months!

On 9/1/2020 at 4:32 AM, atarifan88 said:

Disc golf is something I have been playing on a regular basis now for the last 5 years.  I was very skeptical when I first tried it because I was horrible about throwing a regular frisbee growing up.  Now I can honestly say throwing a disc in disc golf is not the same as throwing a regular frisbee.  There are way more mechanics involved kind of like regular golf.  If you get the right disc (yes there are all different kinds based on the distance you are from the basket/hole), and work on your throwing/release/angle of the disc, you may find yourself enjoying the game.  Since Tommy first mentioned motion controls for the Amico, I have been saying that disc golf would make an excellent addition to the game lineup!  I hope he and the Amico team are seriously considering this as I think it might turn a lot of people onto the sport as well as give us die hard players something to do when the weather is not so good.  Maybe something like this will turn up in 2021/22? 

Have definitely been looking into this.  A great and unique style game that I think would work great for Amico.

On 9/1/2020 at 6:24 PM, Starpaddler said:

Finding with Moon Patrol that higher scores come when you are on your last life of the first set (no cash in of points) because you accumulate more points on the replayed levels.  For Amico’s version, hoping they either negate points accumulated on sections you have died, or give a bonus larger for every remaining life, then the number points you can collect in any given section.

Yes.  You'll have a larger bonus for remaining lives.

On 9/1/2020 at 7:43 PM, woobman said:

@Tommy Tallarico It would be fun to see a live cam of an Amico playing music. Use the LEDs on the controllers/console to bump with the light. Think of it like a Virtual Light Machine from some of the older consoles. This would give us a cool visual.  Plus if you keep it on. It's a form of burn in testing. If you use your music, you can't copyright strike it. Every so often you could toss some fun Easter Eggs into the picture. Boxes. Physical media. If you show a TV screen, you can load up game play videos and previews. Maybe live play. I'm sure other, more creative people can think of more.

 

Who else would like to see something like this?

Wouldn't That Be Something?™

The music man may have a few tricks up his sleeve.

 

On 9/2/2020 at 10:56 AM, Relicgamer said:

The only issue I had with this whole thing is ps5  ot being in there. That makes zero sense.  Considering how Sony dominated Microsoft this current generation.  I mean not even in the running seems odd 

Each company needed to submit to be in each award category and for whatever strange reason, Sony didn't submit for that category.

Was very cool to see XBOX Prez Phil Spencer commenting back on Twitter.

On 9/2/2020 at 3:07 PM, GrudgeQ said:

Snestastic Chatting with Tommy Tallarico (Intellivision Amico/Vectrex/Social Media & Positivity)

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-p7p3jasbY

I really liked doing that interview.  Pete is a great guy and I loved that a lot of his questions and discussion we had was so unique and different than most interviews.

On 9/2/2020 at 4:40 PM, Jake67 said:

Really appreciated the part where Tommy talked about the experience when you first turn the Amico on... you can actually play a game right off the bat (like the pack-ins or, I’m assuming, a physical version of a game if you have it) and then do a more thorough setup (like WiFi connection) later. 

 

Having bought consoles for my kids in the past, having to do setup of accounts, patches, and what-not on Christmas Day is the equivalent of when some of us were kids and we couldn’t play with a new electronic toy because someone forgot batteries and we’re tearing the house apart trying to find fresh ones or figuring out which device we can steal batteries from. Kind of throws a wet blanket on the excitement.

TOTALLY AGREE!!

We're really trying to streamline as much of the early experience as possible.

On 9/2/2020 at 11:04 PM, CurlyQ said:

 

Shout-out to @AtariSociety for the inspiration.

HAHAHAHA!!!   This is so great!

Rainbow is gonna love this!

On 9/3/2020 at 6:51 AM, Intellivision Master said:

Tommy,

 

The interview you did with Snestastic was great.  I always enjoy watching your interviews.  😃

Thanks!  That was a fun one!

On 9/3/2020 at 10:04 AM, AtariSociety said:

Thanks!

And it is educational too!  Teaches kids about the different clouds. 

TJ

Just gotta be careful around all those "medicine" clouds that Rainbow always has following him around.

On 9/3/2020 at 10:12 AM, woobman said:

I have a new appreciation of this.  I liked it before. Watching it full 1080p... All that on screen without slowdown. Not bad for a mobile game.. LOL Seriously.. And this is a Pack in? I do have one question for everyone. Does the music change as things get more hectic? And is this the final music?

Yes!  Music will change for every level and boss.

On 9/3/2020 at 10:27 AM, IMBerzerk said:

Being on a team of a WWI sim developer, it's definitely not an easy road to face.  We've been at our game Wings Over Flanders Fields for 10+ years and faced our own challenges.  One if them being hammered by a Russian software company that tried to take our ideas and designs our from under us in thier game Rise of Flight.  What saved us is our dedication and campaign engine.  Our graphics are dated compared to sims like DCS and Flight Simulator, but our game is massive and if you're into WWI aviation history it's loaded to the hilt!  It's even fun to just fly the old biplanes without the combat aspect.  

 

Indie development has a lot of challenges and the hope is always that you're picked up by a big name like Ubisoft, or Blizzard...but even if you don't, a lot of great games have been made by the pure enthusiasm of these small teams like ours.  We are a team of seven spread all over the world from USA to South Africa, Finland, UK, Canada and Australia.   

 

Might as well plug the game here...

 

http://www.overflandersfields.com/index.html

 

Here's some of my artwork in the game and how in depth we go to get it right.  

 

 

All of this takes a lot of time and work...so sometimes you can't be in it for a fast buck if you're making a career out of it.  Most devs like me do this as a side job.  To bet on it as a primary is very difficult.  Long nights and busy days off to get all this done ... But it's worth it when you see your artwork on the shelf of a magazine rack... Lol.  That's me in all my bald glory holding PC Pilot in a store at LHR!  Hahaha.  

 

 

Very cool!!

Thanks for sharing.

You'll be seeing a few of those types of planes in Biplanes!

I covered stuff from WWI & WW2.  Single and double wings... which doesn't make sense with the name... but they are unlockables and you do start with actual biplanes.

Same team that is doing Moon Patrol is working on Biplanes (Wasted Studios).

On 9/4/2020 at 11:37 AM, Starpaddler said:

OEB Pete, Evil Pete and Hangry Pete, quite the bunch.

 

Good episode. 

My $.02 on the question of why the hate - Beyond the need of some that just tend to be on the negative side of things (for personal gain aside), I honestly feel that Amico has gotten the amount of undeserved negative attention it has because the elitists feel threatened by their perception of change to the industry that Amico could bring, and  the more apparent the opportunity for success, the more negativity they will feel - up until their voices get buried in the success of Amico.
 

I personally believe they are suffering burn out on the narrow scope of their current consoles (FP-3D perspective, graphics above fun factor, personally disconnected online play & similarities with the big title game releases because the big studios want to only focus on the recipe that what was successful for the last version, and not take risks to do new types of games, much like I hear from the older group of gammers.  
 

I believe this thinking is slowly trickling down the age continuum, and that they have just not yet figured out they are getting board with the format.  This (if I am correct) obviously would not extend to them all, but think the numbers that are subconsciously starting to feel this way may be growing. The elitist gamers that also have a channel may be picking up on this (or maybe I give them too much credit), and this further makes them angry, again because it threatens what they perceive to be the correct gaming style for them and the industry. 
 

or -

 

Maybe they just originally thought this was going to fail because of past failures of other systems, and they are too narcissistic to believe they could be wrong, regardless of how much evidence is placed in front of them; some going as far as even to refuse to see Amico first hand; and many of them spewing out un-factual, logical-less, hate driven tantrums. 

Those that refuse to expand their way of thinking based on evidence garnered through the journey of their life are then committed to a direction they’ve set before puberty, and we sit back and wonder why they have not yet grow up. 

I think it's more of the 2nd one.  It's easy to see when you read into their fake misinformed hate filled rhetoric that the more we succeed the more angry they get and the more comments they'll post or dumb videos they make.  Every supposed "lie" they claim I tell blows up in their faces which drives them even more crazy and obsessive.  It's a sickness with them at this point.

There's one pathetic dope that now insists that I lied about working on Metroid Prime (because my name was mistakenly left out of the credits) and he even went as far as e-mailing one of the sound designers on the project (or so he says).  These same folks e-mail our developers as well as our employees.  Some try to pose as "journalists" or "concerned fans". 

These folks are clearly unhinged.

btw, very easy to Google "Tallarico Metroid Prime" and read about the credit situation that they hope they'll dupe people on now.  Every week they'll make up some kind of new lie in hopes that their whiny screams will be heard by anyone outside their own echo chamber of negativity.  If anyone is interested in knowing about Metroid, here's the very first link that comes up from the official Metroid fan page: https://metroid.fandom.com/wiki/Tommy_Tallarico

These ding dongs actually think that someone who has been in the industry as long as I have (32+ years) and with the hundreds of credits and awards to my name would need to lie about the projects I worked on? 

Again... it's painfully clear that some of these folks aren't really dealing with a full deck.

But really... those obsessed hater stalker trolls are a very small group.  Less than 10 people who pat each other on the back thinking they are something they are not.

Bottom line, these are immature morally bankrupt scam artists unhappy in their own lives trying in desperation (and with much failure) to destroy a video game console they've never played and that isn't made for them.

I drive them nuts because I stand up to their bullying and throw facts in their faces that make them look foolish. 

And lets be brutally honest... for the handful of obsessed stalkers with their multiple confirmed fake accounts...  they don't rank high on the maturity scale and clearly aren't brightest bulbs on the tree.

At what point do you start to feel sorry for these folks? 

The good news... we must be doing something super interesting to get these folks attention so much.  They wake up every day thinking about us and creating content based around us. 

Also important to note that there are lots of folks out there who do have general concerns as well and shouldn't be labeled as "haters".  What I find is that most people who don't think they will like it actually didn't have all the information about it and/or it isn't something that was targeted to them in the first place.  Which is totally fine as well.  Just remember... only 2% of the people who play video games are playing on a Nintendo Switch.  4% of people who play video games are playing on a PS4.  Sounds like there could be room for something else that is different and unique and offers something that the others don't.

 

On 9/4/2020 at 12:53 PM, Starpaddler said:

I hope you are right, because 20% of a library is better for them than no library at all.  What they (if you are correct) are not considering is that Amico would have a heck of a time succeeding against the current systems if they were solely focused on the same demographic, and they would be limiting their success by ignoring the larger demographic that exists with mobile.  
 

Do you think Microsoft and Sony would not go after that much larger demographic if they weren't concerned about alienating their current customer base?    

 

For myself, yes I’m an Intellivision Fan, yes I am ecstatic to see the brand resurrected, but when trying to predict (for my self) the extent of success Amico may achieve, in my mind i try take the Intellivision name out of the equation and try and simply consider it an entry from some random no-name company that I don't have a nostalgic connection with.  When you take the information that has been presented over the last few years at face value (i’ve seen enough evidence to comfortably do that), I feel Amico is positioned for unprecedented success.  For example, what other console released with a 30 game library on launch?  What other system considers curation a top priority, let alone are even thinking about it?  These two concepts alone are a huge value to the consumer.

 

Do I feel there is any chance for Amico to fail - yes

Do I believe Amico will fail - likely not

Do I believe Amico will be Successful - all but certain

Do I believe Amico will be hugely successful - likely

Do I know for certain on any of this - certainly not (but I have my expectations)

And on that, Do I believe Amico will out-sell the wii - as i said above, I believe they are set for unprecedented success (and the wii set the precedent)

 

 

Love this post!

On 9/4/2020 at 1:16 PM, Intellivision Master said:

The PS2 US launch had 28 games.  But again, having a 30 game library on launch is really something.  According to this website, the Wii U had 34 launch titles. 

 

https://gamicus.gamepedia.com/List_of_video_game_console_launch_games

34 eh?  Is that the record?

If so... I'll do 35 at launch then.

On 9/4/2020 at 1:34 PM, theswede said:

That’s pretty much me, two years ago, I had never heard the name Intellivision, I have never played any of the original Intellivision/Atari games (except breakout, which I think I played on an Amiga when I was 6-7 years old), so my interest for this is purely based on the “pitch” about being able to play games with my non gaming wife and kids, as I have lost the interest for playing large single player games. So the success or failure of the Amico for me will ultimately depend on if my family will like it as much as I think/hope they will. As for the competitors, and comparisons with Sony, MS or Nintendo, I think the haters haven’t grasped the notion that Intellivision has one huge advantage compared to them, they don’t have to sell 50 million units to stay “alive”, but they also have the potential to do so, since their “core audience” is ten times bigger than the other three together.

BINGO!

Nailed it!

On 9/4/2020 at 1:44 PM, Starpaddler said:

Yes (thanks), but those examples are from current existing gaming companies.  Did those companies launch with 30 game on their first console?  IE had a very limited revenue stream when they started, and thats assuming they had licenses still pulling in money at all.  This means they are otherwise heavily funded by investment.  People and corporations with money to invest didn't get that money by making a habit of investing in things (or teams) that fail.  That alone is an important piece of evidence that should be able to be gleaned by someone impartial trying to get to the truth of thing, but unfortunately there are some with other motivations in play.  

Yeppers!

On 9/4/2020 at 1:55 PM, Bill Loguidice said:

They really don't have the potential to be in the top 15 best selling consoles of all-time with 50 million units sold because casuals don't buy this type of product in those kinds of numbers, but I absolutely agree with the other part that they have a good, sustainable niche and a good plan to survive on realistic sales numbers for a product of this type. They absolutely have the potential to survive and maybe even thrive under those more realistic parameters.

I would respectfully disagree.

Nintendo Wii was as casual as they come and it sold 102 million units less than 15 years ago (and for the same $249 price tag).  It was the #3 selling home console of all time (at the time of it's release, now has been pushed down to #5).  Also important to note that the average spend by the 3 billion people on mobile is roughly $92 per person per year.  Average!

I'm not declaring that we're going to sell more than 50 million units, but to say the potential is not there or that casuals don't buy this type of product would be incorrect IMO. 

I'd also respectfully argue that there has never been a console like this ever created with our parameters so it would be unfair to even judge it against the industry norms over the past 30 years.  People love comparing us and our games to "mobile".  Okay.  There are 3 billion people around the world that play hyper casual and casual video games on mobile devices.  Nintendo is huge with 55 million Switch's sold.  But that also means that only 2% of the people who play video games in the world are playing on a Nintendo Switch.  And folks say we are more like mobile than the big 3 (I actually don't think that, but that's what some say). 

Anyway, just a different perspective.  Not trying to be confrontational, just wanted to give you my personal thoughts and bring up the Wii numbers.