The future of Atari 2600+ is in classic gaming

 The future of Atari 2600+ is in classic gaming

The Atari home video gaming system, which featured faux wood paneling and a traditional joystick with a big red button, was extremely popular in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Rival systems soon overtook the pioneer of video games, but its legendary reputation and supporters persisted.

Since its new CEO Wade Rosen joined the company in 2021, Atari has been putting a lot of effort into restoring its reputation among those fans and within the larger video gaming industry.

With Rosen in charge, the company is looking more closely at its own past to map out its future, releasing remastered or reimagined versions of its classic games like "Missile Command" along with "Centipede," producing the highly praised "Atari 50" interactive documentary, and integrating its soon-to-be-released retro console, the Atari 2600+.

According to Rosen, the 2600+ has staying power since new games and material will be released along with more ways to play them and make them available to wider audiences. "Do I believe that these items will displace contemporary consoles? Without a doubt. It is unlikely that would occur, nor would they have any need to. They differ greatly from one another.

The retro console will be available in a smaller, $130 edition starting in November. The console supports new games as well as the original Atari 2600 and 7800 game cartridges, and it is supplied with 10 games on one cartridge.

Adapted Atari games like "Haunted House," which will be released in October, or brand-new, original games like "Days of Doom," which are currently available, reflect a quick, pick-up-and-play manner typical of the early days of the hobby, according to Rosen.

For instance, the upgraded "Haunted House" maintains the exploration features of its namesake, which merely featured floating eyeballs roving a gloomy, 2D maze. Players must avoid colorful ghosts and monsters in this sophisticated stealth game.

According to Rosen, who remarked that these experiences "are designed for an age of complexity," what people seek from video games has drastically altered. When things were simpler, I yearned for 200-hour games with massive quests and branching narratives, but today I think, "I can do a couple of those a year, but life doesn't allow for it very much."

Classics like "Yar's Revenge" are also updated for a contemporary audience by the company's Atari Recharged line. And with the purchase of Nightdive Studios earlier this year, Atari gained access to new brands like "Turok" and the impending "System Shock."

While tapping into nostalgia, the recent "Atari 50" release did something different by creating the interactive video game documentary subgenre. The business examined several decades of its history and asked viewers to participate in the game.

People want to understand all the elements that went into it and the history behind it, but since games are the medium, we definitely need to approach them differently, according to Rosen, who observed that as we increasingly consider games as art.

The Atari CEO expressed interest for a potential handheld system that can play its classic games on the go like a Nintendo Switch, even though it is not currently in the company's plans.

"I believe the quick answer is yes, if there is interest. The cartridges might be a little bit too large, in my opinion. That sounds like a lot of fun, he said.

The Atari 2600+ throwback console (but not a handheld device) will join the fray as Nintendo, the heir apparent to Atari's home console throne, presses forward with its Switch system and newer competitors like Microsoft's Xbox and Sony's PlayStation 5 traffic in blockbuster, Triple-A games this Christmas season. It will debut on November 17.