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Atari 50 (November for VCS/PC/SW/PS/XB, Digital Eclipse) | It belongs in a museum

CamHostage

Member


https://www.atari.com/games/50th-celebration/

Atari and Digital Eclipse have produced a big celebratory game/compilation/museum/archive of 50 years of Atari. There will be an outer-shell Interactive Timeline museum to check out the history and legacy of the company, then 90 emulated games to play from a variety of Atari platforms (everything from Arcades to 2600 to the final Lynx/Jaguar hardware,) plus six brand new games with a retro'modern style based on Atari classics.

Atari is celebrating its 50th anniversary, and with it, the spark that launched the modern video game industry. It has been five decades since a small team in Silicon Valley first combined their creativity, curiosity and passion into making video games and hardware. The result of their efforts was Atari, one of the most recognizable and enduring entertainment and pop culture brands in the world.
Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration takes players on an interactive journey through 50 years of video games via interviews with designers, developers and industry leaders, documentary footage, product design documents, high-resolution original artwork, and a specially-curated list of more than 90 playable games.

  • At the heart of Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration are the Interactive Timelines, which combine historical trivia, digital artifacts, all-new video interviews, and playable games into one singular experience. When you encounter a game in the Timeline, you can immediately play it without losing your place.
  • The massive list of games spans six original Atari console and home computer platforms and generations of arcade titles, the most ever included in a collection by the team at Digital Eclipse. For the first time ever, games from the cult favorite Atari Jaguar and Atari Lynx platforms will be playable on modern consoles.
  • Behind every game are the stories of Atari, what was happening at the company, what went into the creation of the games and the hardware on which they ran, all told by the people who were there. It is a rare opportunity to get a rich behind-the-scenes look at the history of video games.
  • In addition to presenting these Atari classics exactly as they were, the talented team at Digital Eclipse has also created the Reimagined series—six new games that revisit, mash-up and reimagine Atari Classics. Each of these new games is included in Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration.

The six newly-made games are:

  • Swordquest: AirWorld – Yes, you read that right: After nearly 40 years of waiting, the team at Digital Eclipse has created the fourth and final entry in the legendary Swordquest series, inspired by the design concepts of original Swordquest creator Tod Frye. Who will be the first to solve its mysteries – and finally complete the quest?
  • Haunted Houses – The original “survival horror” game for the Atari 2600 gets a modern 3D voxel-based sequel, featuring more houses, more spooky situations, and more urns.
  • VCTR-SCTR – This mashup celebration of the vector era of gaming combines the gameplay from Asteroids, Tempest, and other vector-based arcade classics into a single, continuous challenge.
  • Neo Breakout – An amazing and addictive two-player competition that combines the best features of Breakout and Pong, with a modern graphic style.
  • Quadratank – The first new entry in the classic Tank series since 1978 combines features from the original games with four-player fun in team or free-for-all modes.
  • Yars’ Revenge Reimagined – Howard Scott Warshaw’s masterpiece for the Atari 2600 gets a whole new look – and you can swap between original and modern graphics at any time! Designed by Digital Eclipse studio head Mike Mika, who created the Game Boy Color version of Yars’ Revenge in 1999.
 
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Fredrik

Member
I love this! I’ll buy this because I never got to experience any of it. Started with C64 when Atari consoles was already old, then developed a fanboy behaviour with Commodore and avoided Atari ST computers, never touched Jaguar either. I’ve literally never touched anything Atari. It’s about time that changes!

Don’t you need a joystick and rotary sticks for some games though?
 

Gamerguy84

Member
If your a PSPLUS extra member just get on and search atari and you'll find 3 atari 2600 flashback packs. Each has about 20 classic games. I sat down the other day and played for hours.

Somehow has incorporated multiplayer where you can host some games.
 

CamHostage

Member
Is there a list of games?

Not that I have found, and kind of be careful picking games shown on the video as being "in there", as some of those game boxes seem to be for the museum rather than for gameplay. (For instance, they show Atari 800 games, but there's no mention of Atari 800 hardware being emulated.) But 90 games is a lot, even if they pull a ton out of the 2600 library, so hopefully it's a rangey selection.
 
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MrA

Banned
Oh god please include Missile Command 3D so I can stop feeling like shit for selling my Jaguar
The vr mode is still in the code, psvr support would be amazing

Actually jag games at all is amazing , hopefully we'll see most of the good ones Iron soldier 1 2, tempest 2k, missile command 3d, uuuhhh avp and Rayman are out... uhhh
Ah Kasumi ninja Angus's kilt lifting fire ball must be preserved for the ages
 

ManaByte

Member
The vr mode is still in the code, psvr support would be amazing

Actually jag games at all is amazing , hopefully we'll see most of the good ones Iron soldier 1 2, tempest 2k, missile command 3d, uuuhhh avp and Rayman are out... uhhh
Ah Kasumi ninja Angus's kilt lifting fire ball must be preserved for the ages

Highlander for the Jag Toilet.
 

CamHostage

Member
For even further mana for Atari uber-dorks, the company runs a boutique label called Atari XP, and they're selling new versions of Atari cartridges. These are those rich-boy limited edition collector toys that probably no human you'll ever know will have one, but they have done some cool stuff like finalizing the canceled Yars' Return and Saboteur (by Howard Scott Warshaw) or putting LEDs on top of new carts so they light up with a mini marque when plugged into an actual Atari 2600.

Too rich for my blood (carts cost $100), the Atari 50 Aniversary Celebration game looks to be more than enough Atari for me, but since we don't have a lot of Atari Chat here on GAF, I figured this would fit here too:

https://atarixp.com/

Adventure_AllShot_Angled_1280x.png
 

SirTerry-T

Member
For even further mana for Atari uber-dorks, the company runs a boutique label called Atari XP, and they're selling new versions of Atari cartridges. These are those rich-boy limited edition collector toys that probably no human you'll ever know will have one, but they have done some cool stuff like finalizing the canceled Yars' Return and Saboteur (by Howard Scott Warshaw) or putting LEDs on top of new carts so they light up with a mini marque when plugged into an actual Atari 2600.

Too rich for my blood (carts cost $100), the Atari 50 Aniversary Celebration game looks to be more than enough Atari for me, but since we don't have a lot of Atari Chat here on GAF, I figured this would fit here too:

https://atarixp.com/

Adventure_AllShot_Angled_1280x.png
Nothing has come close to matching the old Atari packaging as far as artwork goes. Each one was a work of art, those old Activision boxes too.
 
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Daniel Thomas MacInnes

GAF's Resident Saturn Omnibus
This is fantastic news. About time the current Atari owners discovered the company's history beyond the 2600. The ST, Lynx and Jaguar? Fantastic! I'm hoping the 8-bit computers will also be represented--wouldn't it just be fantastic if they could work out an arrangement with EA and Dan/Dani Bunten's family to bring back MULE? Okay, that's just a fever dream, but it still deserves to happen.
 

bitbydeath

Member
If they include the Power Pack games then I’ll get this day one.
images


Also I want Rolling Ronny, Magic Pockets and Titus the Fox.
 

Evil Calvin

Afraid of Boobs
Not that I have found, and kind of be careful picking games shown on the video as being "in there", as some of those game boxes seem to be for the museum rather than for gameplay. (For instance, they show Atari 800 games, but there's no mention of Atari 800 hardware being emulated.) But 90 games is a lot, even if they pull a ton out of the 2600 library, so hopefully it's a rangey selection.
Hopefully they don't have a ton of 2600 games as most are crap and have been seem a million times before in other collections.
 

Evil Calvin

Afraid of Boobs
Not that I have found, and kind of be careful picking games shown on the video as being "in there", as some of those game boxes seem to be for the museum rather than for gameplay. (For instance, they show Atari 800 games, but there's no mention of Atari 800 hardware being emulated.) But 90 games is a lot, even if they pull a ton out of the 2600 library, so hopefully it's a rangey selection.
Also, that would kind of be a bait-and-switch by showing game boxes but not having that games. I could see an issue there if they did that.
 

Rayderism

Member
I already have those three volumes of Atari Flashback games on PS4. Unless this new collection adds something significantly more modern than a bunch of old first-party 2600/5200/7800 games, I don't know if I'll bother. I mean, especially on those old systems, most of the better games were made by 3rd party companies like Activision and Imagic, not Atari themselves, and I doubt we'll see any 3rd party stuff in the collection, you know?

While there are a few playable first-party gems here and there, most just haven't aged well at all. Going through those flashback volumes, I found myself going, "Egads! I actually used to play this crap for hours? GAH!" If it wasn't for the very few gems and some decent arcade games they included, I would never load them up. IMO, less than 10% of the games in those 3 Flashback volumes are still worth playing.

With this new Atari 50 Museum, I hope more of the games are arcade games or are from systems newer than 26/52/7800 stuff. It did look like at least some of them got a sort of flash game upgrade to the graphics, but I don't think that will be enough.....think Amico.....

I just want this new collection to be more than a regurgitation of what we got in those Flashback volumes.

Nostalgia is a hell of a thing, yes it is, but I find it only extends back so far before you're just kidding yourself and you'll only end up spending money on something that won't hold your interest for more than a few minutes.
 
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ReBurn

Gold Member
I already have those three volumes of Atari Flashback games on PS4. Unless this new collection adds something significantly more modern than a bunch of old first-party 2600/5200/7800 games, I don't know if I'll bother. I mean, especially on those old systems, most of the better games were made by 3rd party companies like Activision and Imagic, not Atari themselves, and I doubt we'll see any 3rd party stuff in the collection, you know?

While there are a few playable first-party gems here and there, most just haven't aged well at all. Going through those flashback volumes, I found myself going, "Egads! I actually used to play this crap for hours? GAH!" If it wasn't for the very few gems and some decent arcade games they included, I would never load them up. IMO, less than 10% of the games in those 3 Flashback volumes are still worth playing.

With this new Atari 50 Museum, I hope more of the games are arcade games or are from systems newer than 26/52/7800 stuff. It did look like at least some of them got a sort of flash game upgrade to the graphics, but I don't think that will be enough.....think Amico.....

I just want this new collection to be more than a regurgitation of what we got in those Flashback volumes.

Nostalgia is a hell of a thing, yes it is, but I find it only extends back so far before you're just kidding yourself and you'll only end up spending money on something that won't hold your interest for more than a few minutes.
I found a copy of this in an a mom and pop game shop not long ago


I've played so much of it on my PS3. The Activision 2600 games were awesome. I'd love some Imagic games, too.
 

Agent X

Member
Oh god please include Missile Command 3D so I can stop feeling like shit for selling my Jaguar

They showed the box art in the trailer, so it looks like this will be in there!

As M MrA pointed out above, the actual released game includes a VR mode for the canceled Jaguar VR headset. It's playable by the three people on planet Earth that own a working prototype headset.

It would be a real treat if this could be playable on modern VR systems. However, my expectations are extremely low, since Atari seems to have an aversion to VR. After all, Atari snuffed out the fully functioning VR mode in Tempest 4000 against Jeff Minter's wishes.

What are the odds that AvP will be on this?

Close to zero, considering all of the licensing they'd have to do.

If Atari couldn't even license back Battlezone from Rebellion (who, ironically enough, is the original developer of Alien vs. Predator on Jaguar), then there's virtually no hope for this game.

I hope it has Tempest 2000

It sure looks like it, considering that there's a short bit of Tempest 2000 footage in the trailer!

I'm curious to find out what Lynx games will be included. The only Lynx game that I spotted in the trailer was a brief clip of Super Asteroids/Missile Command.

My guess is that you might see some of the same games that appeared on the two Lynx collections on the Evercade. As far as I know, of the Lynx games on Evercade, the only ones that Atari owns outright are Scrapyard Dog, Basketbrawl, Checkered Flag, and the aforementioned Super Asteroids/Missile Command. Songbird Productions bought rights to several other games that Atari previously published, such as Awesome Golf, Crystal Mines II, Dracula: The Undead, Jimmy Connors' Tennis, Malibu Bikini Volleyball, Power Factor, and Super Skweek, all of which were on Atari Lynx Collection 1 on Evercade. The second collection contained a lot of Epyx-developed games like California Games (the original pack-in game for the Lynx), Blue Lightning, Chip's Challenge, Electrocop, Gates of Zendocon, Todd's Adventures in Slime World, and Zarlor Mercenary.
 

ReBurn

Gold Member
They showed the box art in the trailer, so it looks like this will be in there!

As M MrA pointed out above, the actual released game includes a VR mode for the canceled Jaguar VR headset. It's playable by the three people on planet Earth that own a working prototype headset.

It would be a real treat if this could be playable on modern VR systems. However, my expectations are extremely low, since Atari seems to have an aversion to VR. After all, Atari snuffed out the fully functioning VR mode in Tempest 4000 against Jeff Minter's wishes.



Close to zero, considering all of the licensing they'd have to do.

If Atari couldn't even license back Battlezone from Rebellion (who, ironically enough, is the original developer of Alien vs. Predator on Jaguar), then there's virtually no hope for this game.



It sure looks like it, considering that there's a short bit of Tempest 2000 footage in the trailer!

I'm curious to find out what Lynx games will be included. The only Lynx game that I spotted in the trailer was a brief clip of Super Asteroids/Missile Command.

My guess is that you might see some of the same games that appeared on the two Lynx collections on the Evercade. As far as I know, of the Lynx games on Evercade, the only ones that Atari owns outright are Scrapyard Dog, Basketbrawl, Checkered Flag, and the aforementioned Super Asteroids/Missile Command. Songbird Productions bought rights to several other games that Atari previously published, such as Awesome Golf, Crystal Mines II, Dracula: The Undead, Jimmy Connors' Tennis, Malibu Bikini Volleyball, Power Factor, and Super Skweek, all of which were on Atari Lynx Collection 1 on Evercade. The second collection contained a lot of Epyx-developed games like California Games (the original pack-in game for the Lynx), Blue Lightning, Chip's Challenge, Electrocop, Gates of Zendocon, Todd's Adventures in Slime World, and Zarlor Mercenary.
It would be great if there was a version of Klax, even if it's the Lynx version. Blue Lightning and California Games would be nice inclusions if they can pull it off.
 

Agent X

Member
It would be great if there was a version of Klax, even if it's the Lynx version. Blue Lightning and California Games would be nice inclusions if they can pull it off.

I'd love to have the Lynx version of Klax in this package! Maybe even some of the other versions, such as the 2600 version, which has the distinction of being the last game Atari produced for the 2600 during its commercial life. (Atari very recently released some other new games for the 2600.)

Here's an interesting Twitter thread:



There's a lot of interesting comments in this thread, including the confirmation that they were unable to negotiate rights to Battlezone.
 

MrA

Banned
I'd love to have the Lynx version of Klax in this package! Maybe even some of the other versions, such as the 2600 version, which has the distinction of being the last game Atari produced for the 2600 during its commercial life. (Atari very recently released some other new games for the 2600.)

Here's an interesting Twitter thread:



There's a lot of interesting comments in this thread, including the confirmation that they were unable to negotiate rights to Battlezone.

ALright Missile command and tempest 2k, oh no fight for life and cybere morph,
 
I'd love to have the Lynx version of Klax in this package! Maybe even some of the other versions, such as the 2600 version, which has the distinction of being the last game Atari produced for the 2600 during its commercial life. (Atari very recently released some other new games for the 2600.)

Here's an interesting Twitter thread:



There's a lot of interesting comments in this thread, including the confirmation that they were unable to negotiate rights to Battlezone.

Is this true? Tempest 2k is awesome.
 

chixdiggit

Member
49 games identified from trailer:

Atari 2600:

3-D Tic-Tac-Toe
Adventure
Breakout
Canyon Bomber
Combat
Dark Chambers
Demons to Diamonds
Dodge 'Em
Haunted House
Missile Command
Outlaw
RealSports Baseball
RealSports Volleyball
Surround
SwordQuest: EarthWorld
SwordQuest: FireWorld
SwordQuest: WaterWorld
Warlords
Yars' Revenge

Atari 5200:
Missile Command
Star Raiders
Super Breakout

Atari 7800:
Asteroids
Basketbrawl
Centipede
Scrapyard Dog

Atari Jaguar:
Atari Kart
Cybermorph
Fight for Life
Missile Command 3D
Tempest 2000
Trevor McFur in the Crescent Galaxy

Lynx:
Super Asteroids & Missile Command

Arcade:
Asteroids
Centipede
Food Fight
Major Havoc
Millipede
Pong
Tempest

Atari 800:

Food Fight
Miner 2049er
Yoomp!

New:
Haunted Houses
Neo Breakout
Quadratank
SwordQuest: AirWorld
VCTR-SCTR
Yars’ Revenge Reimagined
 
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