Intellivision Amico - Tommy Tallarico introduction + Q&A

On 9/23/2020 at 9:56 AM, Nolagamer said:

Dont need zombies ate my neighbors when demons ate my neighbors  is a thing thats about to be kick started many of the people working on intellivision  amico toe jam and earl ate making it. And gameplay is a mux of zombies ate my beighbors and toe jam

The team has been doing a lot of Toe Jam & Earl updates and exclusives for Amico!  Can't wait for folks to play the new and exclusive version!

On 9/23/2020 at 12:18 PM, IntelliMission said:

I think Microsoft needs a new direction when naming the next console after Series S/X, so I have raised a new topic in Atari Age:

 

[Brainstorming] How would you name the next Xbox after Series S/X?

 

These are my ideas:

 

X

X5

Microsoft Next

Microzilla FireBox

Microsoft Xbox Series X 2 Turbo ''

Max Box 20

Cloud Box

Box Cloud

Microsoft Rain

Microsoft Rainbow

Microsoft Rainbox

Series Z

Box to Box

Microsoft Revolution X Featuring Aerosmith

I'd just own the mistake over the years and call the next one...

XBOX 5

Then the problem is fixed forever.

On 9/23/2020 at 4:50 PM, bigdaddygamestudio said:

scary part someone is getting paid to come up with " lets add some more X's to the name, yeah that should do it"

 

Xbox xseries xtra xxxey 5...    I should be a consultant, this stuffs easy.    

 

another quick story, back in college when i was broke as hell, and shortly thereafter when I was..wait for it... broke as hell.. I used to do these focus group stuff.  Easy 25 to 50 bucks to eat some KFC new flavor chicken, or give feedback on products and things.  Well its boring as hell and me being an ass, I would always just screw with them.  Like a question after you ate would be ...KFC new extra seasoning chicken is need of....  and they had some multi choice answers or you could choose E) write in, and I would write crap like  " Its need fudge"..  so yeah I could see myself in an Xbox naming focus group being an ass saying something like it needs more X's..

Hahaha!

p.s.  Remind me not to get you for any of our focus testing!  

What did you think of Amico?  

"Needs more fudge!"

Of course being the gaming guy I am... I'd take that to mean this:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fudge_(role-playing_game_system)

🍨

On 9/24/2020 at 4:12 AM, Saldo said:

I really don’t get this mentality of thinking.  Yes, to me graphics are important but so is game play, they go hand in hand.  Depending on the game those graphics don’t have to be 4K high fidelity.

You don't understand it... because you're NOT a dumb narcissist that believes that the world MUST follow what your opinion is.

On 9/24/2020 at 4:36 AM, Saldo said:

Another thought about graphics and game play.  One of the games I loved to play on the 2600 was Stellar Track (a Sears game, not sure if there was an Atari version of it).  This game basically had no graphics!  It was a grid with numbers representing a galaxy map.  Trying to determine the number of moves to be able to clear the map of enemy ships and reach resupply space stations kept you going.  Simple graphics, but great game play requiring strategy.

A side note, I liked this game because in high school we had these terminals which connected to our local BOCES (a vocational school for students that wanted to go into a trade). When I say terminals I’m talking about a printer terminals with keyboards on them, not CRT terminals.  You would type in commands and the responses would be printed out.  These were mainly used by the Guidance Counselor for career planning, but we got to use them too.  There was a game called Star Trek that someone accessed on there that was basically Stellar Track on paper.  Wow did we kill a lot of trees playing that game!

You're dating yourself now!

Hahhaa!

In my high school I remember we had one computer in the school library that we could use.  I was a sophomore so it would have been 1983.  Not many people would use it as we didn't have any classes for it (I went to a strict catholic high school so we didn't even have classes like "Shop", etc.).  But me and my hacker friends would learn Basic which helped me convince my parents to get me an Apple IIc.  Once I got my 300 baud modem... it was all over!  We had a group of 15 year old hackers, downloading all sorts of stuff, cracking games and of course... making and programming our own.  Good times!!

On 9/24/2020 at 7:52 AM, GrudgeQ said:

@Saldo killed it in these last posts. I would only add that the need for "advanced graphics" doesn't even apply to games in general. Sure Exploding Kittens is popular, but what is more popular is just playing cards. Catan is awesome but checkers is still hanging in there after centuries. I would even argue that 'gamers' who are obsessed with pixels and gigaflops aren't even gamers. They are tech enthusiast who also enjoy gaming. People who play games for fun, and don't care what form they find it in - those are true gamers. Advanced graphics can add to the fun but they certainly don't make the game fun by itself.

 

 

 

 

 

That "Checkers" game looks like some kind of stupid flash game.  No one is gonna ever play that!

On 9/24/2020 at 9:25 AM, Saldo said:

Absolutely agree with this.  My wife and I are currently camping in Cape May, NJ.  Our camper doesn’t have a TV, not because it is an old camper ( it’s only 7 years old), but because when we camp we unplug so we opted not to get one installed.  Now we do have our phones and iPad for internet access (we are not THAT uncivilized!) which I mainly use for reading my online mags (PC Gamer anyone?) and such.  The one thing we do have in the camper are board games, checkers, and cards.  Last night we had some good rounds of Triple Yahtzee!  

Curious to know...

What other games do you have in your camper?

On 9/24/2020 at 9:36 AM, Urlu Berlu said:

I fell on this meme about DLC this morning and I thought you guys would dig it (sorry if you've seen this already)

 

Hahahaha!  Hadn't seen that one yet!

That being said... looks like Amico already has some ketchup and mustard going on!

On 9/24/2020 at 10:56 AM, Relicgamer said:

I 100% agree. Tommy said enthusiast when discussing a person that plays everything. But that to me is only half of it. A true gamer finds enjoyment in all forms of gaming. If you have to the most cutting edge graphics then your not exactly a gamer. Just a tech junkie that enjoys certain games. IMHO.  

Exactly!!

On 9/24/2020 at 12:48 PM, GrudgeQ said:

Hey Amazon just announced it new game streaming service Luna. I guess I will have to launch Grudge Stream next week (I mean isn't everyone going to have a steaming service now?). Fortunately for Intellivision it is the same ol' crap - dual analog stick, a few AAA, mostly a little older big games, something for retro heads and casual gamers so we can say it is for 'everyone' - and by everyone we mean the XBox crowd. $6 a month intro price, 2 devices at once, 1080p (4K coming 'soon'), optional Ubisoft plan coming soon (I am assuming on an upsell).

 

Nice controller that 3 billion mobile users refuse to play on.

On 9/24/2020 at 5:54 PM, GrumpyOl'Guy said:

Hello everyone!

 

Been a while since I've posted. Occasionally been popping in, but missed quite a bit of conversation. Hope everybody's doing well out there.

I'm afraid I don't have anything of any import to say (a streak I've been maintaining for my entire existence on this forum), but... I've got this strange desire to ask...

 

Tommy, any news on baseball? I know my past questions have dealt with game features and the sort, but today, I'm thinking more about the fine-tuned game play.

What makes a baseball game good to you? For me, it's got to be the hitting. I've found myself simply not enjoying baseball games in the past simply because the hitting was off. The 'World Series' titles for the Genesis were an example of that. My brother and I quickly found out that home runs on that game were just about automatic with a checked power swing, and games just got into a tedious, solo home run slog. After a while, we just started playing the Home Run Derby (classic rules, always liked the 3 outs/inning rule), since that's what our games turned into anyways.

 

Also, on an unrelated note: recently played some Missile Command. REALLY looking forward to what the touch screen can do in terms of aiming. D-pad was... lacking in precision for me.

Did someone say Baseball? 
 

10/10 sure is an important date to me. 

Wouldn't That Be Something?™

To answer your question.  We are very much taking the same mechanics of World Championship Baseball from the original Intellivision.  The pitching and hitting was EVERYTHING.  It was where the most challenge and fun was had. 

I know it's not realistic for a pitcher to be able to start a ball slow... and then SPEED IT UP halfway to the plate... but so what!  It's what made that game so incredibly fun and challenging.  You had no idea what your buddy was going to pitch at you next.  Which (if you think about it) is exactly what makes real baseball as well. 

I can't wait for you to check out Missile Command with the touch controls!  It's so perfect!!  We actually like it better than the original trackball.  We had an investor over a few days ago to check out the games and we ended up playing 25 levels of Missile Command (there was 3 of us playing).  So easy and fun to get into.. especially when playing co-op with others!

On 9/25/2020 at 6:08 AM, Intellivision Master said:

 

Hahahha!   Love him!

On 9/25/2020 at 12:50 PM, Zee said:

I'm still waiting for the day Francois drops an Intellivision Amico video from inside a Quebec strip club.  "Excuse me miss, while I talk to these fine people about the Amico".  Aerosmith's Angel playing in the background, you know it's coming. 

I'm guessing you haven't seen this one yet?

He's "Been there. Done that!"

On 9/26/2020 at 4:28 PM, Urlu Berlu said:

 

That is so awesome! You should have your mom and Tommy together on one of your next shows.

 

Ask and ye shall receive!

GoGramGo!!

On 9/28/2020 at 4:38 PM, GrudgeQ said:

I like your quote & I was surprised the Romper site is a much bigger deal than I expected (of course I don't really fit that 'young mom' demographic to have heard of it)

 

They are huge.... and growing.

55 minutes ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

Hi Folks!,

 

Lots of catching up to do as the past few weeks have been focused on putting out a lot of cool stuff for the upcoming 10/10 date! 

Definitely going to be some cool surprises!

I saw that someone posted the Romper.com article.  They are HUGE for family/moms/kids, etc.  MILLIONS of folks paying close attention and really invested into the content on that site. 

 

When we launch in April... you'll be seeing things like this times 1000... all over the world. 

Now imagine things like a partnership, advertising, special offers/deals, influencers, etc. with a website like that.... or a HUNDRED websites like that!  Even though we are 7 months from launch... we are starting to get non-gamers and families knowing about us.  Dad 2.0 starts today... like Mom 2.0, we have a booth (virtual) are doing talks & roundtables, focus group testing, meeting with big influencers and sponsors in that space, etc.

Here are 2 separate articles that just came out on Moms.com

 

It doesn't get any better than this!

https://www.moms.com/amico-gaming-console-details/

 

https://www.moms.com/amico-video-game-console-family/

 

Looking forward to sharing a LOT more articles like this in the future.

I'm hoping some folks here will start to understand our strategy at this point.  TIMING for this kind of stuff is very important and sometimes crucial.  We didn't want to start down this path in the summer (when we were going to with a 10/10 launch)... because at that time (as you're all aware) we were still uncertain if we were going to be able to launch in October.  As you all know (and which I always said since February) that we wouldn't be able to really make that decision until the middle or end of summer.  Now that we're back on track, we have even more time to ensure our target audience is aware of us and get them excited about the possibilities.  

 

Isn't it great and interesting that GoGramGo (live podcast from last night with @gogamego's mom) doesn't mind the $249 price point because all of the games are $9.99 or less? 

 

Read the moms.com articles as well.  2 controllers, ability to hook up to 8, no violence/bad language/sexual content, all games $9.99 or less, comes with at least 6 free games, no internet required, easy set-up, super easy to understand controls, no microtransactions, no online play.  THOSE are the things that real people are talking about.  THOSE are the things that NO OTHER video game console is currently doing.  Did any of those articles talk about "graphics"?  Did any of them say "these look like flash games from newgrounds".  Did any of them say... "Who is this for?".  Did any of them say... "Why buy this when you can get a Nintendo Switch instead?".   Was there any talk of "But for $50 more I'll be able to get a Series S."

Of course the answer is no.

 

And for those non-believers... maybe it's time to start waking up and realizing that maybe the world doesn't revolve around you or your tastes or your opinions. 

We still MUST deliver a great product and fun games.  That doesn't change and will never change.  That is all 100% on us.  If it's not fun to play... then we fail and we can only blame ourselves.  And I can tell you that the data we have (and every person who have ever played it) absolutely loves it.  So things are looking very good in that category. 

Time will tell... but I'm loving our chances.

 

🏆🥰🚀

 

 

 

I am absolutely loving seeing these articles from non gaming sites about Amico it’s this focus on family gaming with an old school easy to understand difficult to master type of approach that has had me excited for the return of Intellivision since October 2018.  I know when I get my system and hook it up there is a very real chance I’ll cry the first time I play it remembering the hours I spent playing Intellivision with my dad.  I’ll also probably think back to the year I got everyone in the family Intellivision flashbacks and we sat there and played games together for the first time in years I’m very much looking forward to making more memories like that.  Thank you Intellivision for making memories like that possible again for someone like me who got left behind by over complicated games that for me at least required a walkthrough to beat games 

On 9/28/2020 at 5:07 PM, Jake67 said:

Yeah, I had never heard of Romper. (Well, I remember Romper Room but I saw no Romper Stompers on the site.) Not only do they have all those likes/follows you highlighted, turns out they're part of a bigger company of sites: https://bustle.company

 

Of course, I don’t know any of them, but Tommy could probably tell us how significant coverage is by this group. I gather the PR team was pretty happy with this.

Yep!  Just some of the folks we met and engaged with during Mom 2.0.

On 9/29/2020 at 8:25 AM, vongruetz said:

 

Is this new? Why have I not seen this before, but it's pretty amazing what the OG Intellivision could do.

Very cool!

That music sounds familiar!  Reminds me of THIS (from my PBS Special in 2010):
 

But to really feel the vibe... check out some of our performances in Brazil!  They go absolutely NUTS down there.  LOVE THEM!!!!!!!

1 hour ago, Tommy Tallarico said:

I can tell you that this is EXACTLY what the big mobile game companies do.  They literally have weekly design meetings about it.  How can we get people to spend MORE money?

The 6th game won't be announced til closer to launch.  It's such a fun and unique concept/idea that we don't want any copycats out there before we launch. 

 

 

You could always hold back releasing the name of the sixth game and just tell us what the name of the seventh game is. We'd be ok with that. 👍🏻

On 9/29/2020 at 5:36 PM, Starpaddler said:

Finally got the time I’ve been shooting for. Anyone able to get it done in 350?

 

Back to for-score play. Cant wait to be able to play this in its entirety. 

I hope everyone is practicing up!  Something "special" may be announced in regards to the Moon Patrol demo on the Amico Club app.

I wonder what all those numbers and letters are at the bottom of the screen?  

Hmmmm......

😋

❔

On 9/29/2020 at 11:46 PM, Swami said:

More like restricted the orientation. I imagine some games will be more horizontal friendly and others vertical friendly. Some are also likely to be interchangeable based on if you want a OG Intellivision experience or NES/SNES pad experience.

Correct!

On 9/30/2020 at 1:32 AM, nysavant said:

Was very pleasantly surprised to see the Amico up for pre-order on the UK Amazon and Argos sites this morning.  Don't know how long they have been there, but placed an Amazon order straight away

 

I was briefly tempted by the Xbox Series S, but the Amico has at least a dozen games coming out for it that I'm looking forward to compared to maybe only a couple (Fifa, Forza) on the Xbox.   I guess as a 1980's gamer I'm more into fun games that don't require too much learning or tutorials and the Amico looks like it will hit that sweetspot.  

Thank you for the support!!

And yes... we will definitely be hitting that sweetspot for you!!

On 9/30/2020 at 8:17 AM, Intellivision Master said:

 

Wouldn't That Be Something?™

11 hours ago, Nolagamer said:

Has anyone went to check on @OEB_Pete after @Tommy Tallarico talked about the 6th pack in then said maybe a 7th or 8th ...then that health crisis moment of joyfulness  maybe 9 games. He stopped before he could potentially say 10.   Hope you are ok pete

I've heard he's currently recovering in intensive care.  I do need to be more careful next time.

20 minutes ago, Alpha82 said:

I am absolutely loving seeing these articles from non gaming sites about Amico it’s this focus on family gaming with an old school easy to understand difficult to master type of approach that has had me excited for the return of Intellivision since October 2018.  I know when I get my system and hook it up there is a very real chance I’ll cry the first time I play it remembering the hours I spent playing Intellivision with my dad.  I’ll also probably think back to the year I got everyone in the family Intellivision flashbacks and we sat there and played games together for the first time in years I’m very much looking forward to making more memories like that.  Thank you Intellivision for making memories like that possible again for someone like me who got left behind by over complicated games that for me at least required a walkthrough to beat games 

Thank you for sharing your story and thoughts!!  It really means a lot!   Love hearing them and frequently share them with the entire team.