Further Details About The 'AtariBox' Revealed

ataribox-6.jpg

Here comes additional details concerning Atari's big, ambitious comeback in the video game console market!

In an exclusive interview last week with GamesBeat, Ataribox creator and general manager Feargal Mac announced that Atari will begin a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo this fall and launch the Ataribox in the spring of 2018. The console will run Linux on an AMD custom processor with Radeon graphics, with a user interface customized for TVs and will cost between $250-$300.

The Ataribox will launch with a large back catalog of the publisher’s classic games. The idea being to be able to "create a box that makes people feel nostalgic about the past, but it’s also capable of running the independent games they want to play today, like Minecraft or Terraria". In addition to indie games, the console will run those that a mid-range PC can handle, but won't run AAA games that require higher-end specs. Mac added that it will also perform PC-worthy stuffs like streaming, running apps, browsing the web, and playing music.

“I was blown away when a 12-year-old knew every single game Atari had published. That’s brand magic. We’re coming in like a startup with a legacy,” Mac said in the interview. “We’ve attracted a lot of interest, and AMD showed a lot of interest in supporting us and working with us. With Indiegogo, we also have a strong partnership.”

“People are used to the flexibility of a PC, but most connected TV devices have closed systems and content stores,” he said. “We wanted to create a killer TV product where people can game, stream and browse with as much freedom as possible, including accessing pre-owned games from other content providers.”



“People are used to the flexibility of a PC, but most connected TV devices have closed systems and content stores,” Mac said. “Ataribox is an open system, and while our user interface will be easy to use, people will also be free to access and customize the underlying OS. We’ve chosen to launch Ataribox with Indiegogo given their focus on delivering technology products, and their strong international presence in over 200 countries, allowing us to reach and involve as many Atari fans around the world as possible.”

“It’s a very flexible product, and you won’t need to spend more money if you don’t want to,” he further added. “In some ways, you are buying some freedom.”

So what do you think of the Ataribox in the light of the new details? Are you considering backing it on Indiegogo? Or is it awfully reminiscent of the OUYA to you?

For more updates, you can signup on ataribox.com.

:arrow: SOURCE
 

LightyKD

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We need to know how powerful the GPU is. This doesn't have to be a lost cost. If it's powerful enough to play AAA games in 720p then that's a good thing. Atari can market this similar to the Switch. It can be that low end game system that plays most of the latest games but at a sacrifice. GPU and RAM. That's the focus before this thing comes out. Afterwards we can figure out getting Windows on this thing.
 

Jayro

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We need to know how powerful the GPU is. This doesn't have to be a lost cost. If it's powerful enough to play AAA games in 720p then that's a good thing. Atari can market this similar to the Switch. It can be that low end game system that plays most of the latest games but at a sacrifice. GPU and RAM. That's the focus before this thing comes out. Afterwards we can figure out getting Windows on this thing.
Provably a proprietary chip made just for them, since they are working close with AMD.
 

Amaljaa

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We need to know how powerful the GPU is. This doesn't have to be a lost cost. If it's powerful enough to play AAA games in 720p then that's a good thing. Atari can market this similar to the Switch. It can be that low end game system that plays most of the latest games but at a sacrifice. GPU and RAM. That's the focus before this thing comes out. Afterwards we can figure out getting Windows on this thing.
I'm not overly concerned about getting Windows onto it. It's gonna be an x86-64 AMD with an APU which means it should work perfectly fine. They've already discussed being able to use it as a regular (linux) machine so honestly if you're able to run anything as root then you can easily get Windows onto it.
 
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Taleweaver

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I knew in advance someone would crop up with an article with that sort of reasoning. Alas, I wasn't talking about piracy, but about sales predictions. From a gamer's perspective, we believe these articles. We may have some pirated games, but at the same time we spend well above average on video games than the average customer. But things look pretty different when you have a bunch of programmers to pay, and pretty much have to gamble that this game concept (which exists but on paper) will sell. I'm fairly sure that marketing departments will have blamed piracy for games not meeting their sales figures, and it's likely that there are a bunch of people who got laid off with messages like "if everyone who pirated our game had bought it, we would still be able to keep you on the payroll, but alas...". And likewise, I bet that the guys from denuvo also have speaking figures of sales charts comparing games with and without denuvo, consistently showing the ones with as having higher sales. That doesn't mean that any of these arguments are true, but it is classic human behavior: putting the blame externally. Blaming pirates is easy, as we don't have anyone in these companies denying those claims. End result: I'm still convinced AAA-companies will prefer closed systems over open ones.
 

Amaljaa

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I knew in advance someone would crop up with an article with that sort of reasoning. Alas, I wasn't talking about piracy, but about sales predictions. From a gamer's perspective, we believe these articles. We may have some pirated games, but at the same time we spend well above average on video games than the average customer. But things look pretty different when you have a bunch of programmers to pay, and pretty much have to gamble that this game concept (which exists but on paper) will sell. I'm fairly sure that marketing departments will have blamed piracy for games not meeting their sales figures, and it's likely that there are a bunch of people who got laid off with messages like "if everyone who pirated our game had bought it, we would still be able to keep you on the payroll, but alas...". And likewise, I bet that the guys from denuvo also have speaking figures of sales charts comparing games with and without denuvo, consistently showing the ones with as having higher sales. That doesn't mean that any of these arguments are true, but it is classic human behavior: putting the blame externally. Blaming pirates is easy, as we don't have anyone in these companies denying those claims. End result: I'm still convinced AAA-companies will prefer closed systems over open ones.
tl;dr you're just gonna dismiss a massive study made by the EU with cold hard statistics, information gathered from professionals and a sample size larger than just you, a single person; all because the study doesn't align with your beliefs.
 
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Taleweaver

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tl;dr you're just gonna dismiss a massive study made by the EU with cold hard statistics, information gathered from professionals and a sample size larger than just you, a single person; all because the study doesn't align with your beliefs.
*Sigh*

Would you please read what I'm saying before making the totally wrong assumption? I personally completely agree with you. However, I am, as you say, one single person. I am not a collective hivemind of AAA-developers. They think different than I do, and I can understand why they do so.
 
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Atari managed to be stupid enough to delete the only thing "justifying" the buy of a standard MS/Sony console over a PC, i. e. the closed ecosystem, the exclusives and the features.
 

RedBlueGreen

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What I mean is it's just a linux machine, nothing unique
This is like the Pi if it were actually good. Yes, I know the Pi is cheap (even the Pi 3 is only $40~ USD), but when you factor in the accessories like casing, display adapters, wireless adapters, the AC adapter, micro SD for storage it really starts to add up (even the premade kits are around $70 USD) to the point where buying a cheap old PC on eBay, at thrift stores, or local classifieds and upgrading it is probably a much better idea. With an Ataribox, or an upgraded used PC (often office PCs are the cheapest to find on eBay and some people find them for $20> from auctions, and put in low profile GPUs which can be found for $30~ if you want 1GB of DDR5 VRAM) will be able to emulate up to PS2, Wii, and PSP at full speed, and play a lot of games at at least 30 FPS.

I'm speaking strictly from a gaming and emulation standpoint. I know the Pi can be made portable and be used as a handheld, but at that point why not just use your phone and a compact controller?
 
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Futurdreamz

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tbh it just looks like a low spec device that you can plug into your tv that won't run anything other than some old emulators
Seems like it. Oyua, Steamboxes, and even the Wii U launched on the mentality of "if you build it they will come" and it seams the Ataribox is running on the same flawed mentality

The NES and SNES Classic don't have very many games, but they are cheap (if you can find one) and have a coherent purpose
The Xbox One and PS4 are expensive, but they have many high quality games and a somewhat coherent purpose
PC's are very DIY and can be expensive, but they have a LOT of games.

Where is the Ataribox supposed to sit in there? All people wanted was an Atari Flashback that wasn't shit or bloated with stupid filler games at a disposable price, and this is not that. People casually interested in the old games will be turned off by the high price and complexity, and people who want to play all the indie games and such will get the console that indies are actually developing for - most likely the Switch.
 
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