Atari, moving forward

There has been quite a bit of interesting commentary recently from industry experts concerning Atari, its future direction and its problems. Atari, in its current incarnation, has gone through so many changes and employees that you might find it hard to remember them all. "Revolving door", the "Grand Central station" of employment - both are phrases used recently by industry experts. Nicholas Lovell has written an interesting piece on Activision (see gamasutra), which bears some similarities with the situation Atari currently finds itself in. Atari seems to be moving away from AAA titles to smaller projects including social and mobile gaming releases where development costs are lower and where the risk is reduced. Now Nicholas warns that...

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Posted in: atari

The Atari Portfolio

The Atari Portfolio was a British designed 16-bit handheld PC, that was announced in 1989 and which had begun to ship by January 1990. The Portfolio was a success for Atari, and came with built-in applications and an amazing (for 1989) battery life. The Portfolio uses battery powered memory cards for storage - these were the forerunners to the PCMCIA standard and the machine was well supported by Atari with a range of add-on peripherals to link your Portfolio to a PC and expand its usefulness. Today, in the smartphone era, the Portfolio still has its uses and we took a detailed look at the handheld beast in Issue 10 of Atari User Magazi...

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Posted in: atari,portfolio

Hang on there Steve Jobs

It has been saddening to see pictures released of Steve Jobs following his resignation as CEO of Apple.  Jobs was one of Atari's first employees back in the early seventies and the rest, as they say, is history. Apple fan or not, you can't deny what Jobs has done for Apple, computing, and technology. Jobs always wanted to blaze the trail, not follow in someone elses' wake. Here at Atari User we all wish him we...

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Posted in: apple,steve jobs

Inside Atari UK

In Issue 11 of Atari User Magazine we take a look at Atari UK, the role they played in rolling out Atari dealer and service networks across Europe and the games they released for the Atari 8-bit. We'll be looking at the titles Atari UK produced for the Atari ST in a later issue. Some great titles were released by Atari, albeit a little too late to really help the 8-bit format, and if you want the low down then Issue 11 will be right up your street. We'll also be bringing you some background history on other 8-bit games, that didn't make it to release. You'll be surprised at what was planned and what could have been for the Atari XL/...

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Posted in: 8-bit,features,magazine

Has Atari said "sorry" to Starsoft Berlin?

It would appear that Atari have apologised to 8-bit enthusiast site Starsoft Berlin but no direct word from the site itself as yet. It also looks like Atari sent the apology directly to an angry fan who'd emailed to complain and not the site operator himself - which might explain why PPS haven't yet confirmed if they have indeed had an apology. As of yet there has been no official word from Atari regarding atari2600.org although Atari User has asked Atari for a statement. Atari have become increasingly active in the C&D department, with the Droid800 emulator one of the latest casualties - the app is no longer available to download. Emulation is a bit of a grey area to say the least and Atari do have a right to protect their copyright and/or active patents if they are being breached....

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Posted in: atari,atari2600.org,news

Boulder Dash for the Atari 2600 - how the retro community can work

Andrew Davie (the guy Atari are currently wanting to nab atari2600.org from) has been working for several years with fellow Atari Enthusiast Thomas Jentzsch on an Atari 2600 port of First Star Software's popular eighties classic - Boulder Dash. The game was originally programmed by Peter Liepa and Chris Gray back in 1984 and released first for the Atari 8-bit. One of the most classic and original games of its generation, Boulder Dash went on to be released across various platforms including the NES and Commodore Amiga. So far a working 2-cave demo has been released and it looks fantastic. Now what makes this unique is that Davie has been working closely with First Star Software who he describes as being very supportive and generous in allowing...

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Posted in: 2600,atari,boulder dash,first star software,news

atari2600.org atari enthusiast posts brief statement

Some believed the story wasn't true, but now the atari2600.org website has been updated with a brief statement from the domain holder and long time Atari enthusiast Andrew Davie. Following a 'request' from Atari Legal's lawyer to hand them this domain, and to show my good faith and intentions with regard to their trademark and claims thereof... I have removed all content of this site. I'm a bit of a retro-gaming nut. Over the 11 years I've 'owned' this domain, the site was used as a personal/hobbyist site for my interest in '2600 homebrew programming. It's variously been used to promote my '2600 game Qb (2001-2003), my extensive tutorials on '2600 programming, as a domain for the '2600 programmers' [stella] mailing list (2004-2010) and more recently linking to some of my videos and...

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Posted in: atari,atari2600.org,droid800,news

Going Football Crazy on the Atari ST

Last issue we looked at some of the best and worst football (soccer) games released for the Atari 8-bit. In issue 12 we'll be doing the same but this time focusing on the Atari ST, a platform for which there are more football games than you can shake a stick at. In the meantime we'll be playing Sensible Soccer and seeing how many goals we can get past San Mari...

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Posted in: features,magazine,st

Atari Museum - the greatness that was

If you've ever wondered how great Atari was or what they accomplished, then you could do no better than visit the Atari Museum , an online site dedicated to preserving Atari history and the Atari legacy. Operated by Curt Vendel, dedicated Atari enthusiast and historian, the Atari Museum has a wealth of information and images from Atari's glory days. Within a few minutes you can't fail to realize how innovative and years ahead of the competition Atari were. Curt, and the rest of his team, have spent years working to preserve rare Atari hardware. From dumpster diving to painstaking research and tracking down former Atari employees, the Atari Museum is a website that any Atari enthusiast should be adding to their bookmarks. Vendel is currently finalizing work on the XM Expansion Module for...

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Posted in: 7800,atari

Editorial

Let's set a couple of things straight: There are some that would like to suggest that there is some sort of an anti-Atari agenda, and a minority that believe that we should say nothing when Atari go after sites such as atari2600.org. Hello?, Atari User is a magazine run by Atari enthusiasts for enthusiasts. We love Atari and we are the first to acknowledge that seeing the Atari brand alive today is much better than the brand just fading into history. Keeping the Atari brand alive and relevant for a whole new generation is a positive thing. Saying nothing, well that is the easy option and does it achieve anything? The answer is probably no it doesn't. Atari are perfectly entitled to protect their intellectual properties, entitled to make a profit and protect their interests. Atari should...

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Posted in: atari,editorial

Atari continues efforts to alienate and persecute retro fanbase

Further to earlier reports of Atari targeting parts of the retro Atari community, Atari have now turned their attention to atari2600.org, a website that has been registered by Andrew Davie, since 2000. The site has been used by Davie over the years to showcase his non-commercial programming efforts for the ancient Atari 2600 console. The receipt of a letter from Atari's SVP & General Counsel, Kristen Keller, came as a surprise for the Atari enthusiast, who told Atari User he is "disappointed" at Atari's approach and is considering his position. Atari are demanding Davie begin arrangements to handover atari2600.org to them as the domain name contains the Atari brand ("Atari"), in its entirety, in the domain name. Atari have also recently gone after Starsoft Berlin, a hobbyist site dedicated...

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Posted in: 2600,atari,news

The Atari 1200XL

The Atari 1200XL first appeared at the Winter CES in January 1983. Representing a major leap forward from Atari's original 400 and 800 computer lines, the 1200XL was 64K and featured the new stylish XL series design that would be carried across Atari's XL range of computers and peripherals. The 1200XL came with a revised OS (operating system) and several enhancements, however its closed box design (as opposed to the Atari 800) proved unpopular with existing Atari 8-bit owners however the machine did sell quite well considering the very short period it was on sale for. With Atari hemorrhaging money, then CEO James Morgan was on a mission to drive down costs. After being on sale for just a few months, the 1200XL was quietly dropped in favour...

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Posted in: 8-bit,atari,features,magazine

Atari offloads Cryptic Studios

Atari has completed its sale of Cryptic Studios to Chinese MMO developer Perfect World Entertainment, bringing in a reported €35 million. Atari had effectively put the California studio on hold after announcing it was looking to dispose of it last March. Since then, Cryptic (developers of  Champions Online and Star-Trek Online) has been in a state of limbo with Atari continuing to provide minimal support to keep its popular online game environments online. Atari will use the proceeds of the sale to write down debt and help fund its move further into mobile and social gaming markets and increase its drive to ramp up licensing revenue and protection of its historical brands and trademarks. Players of the two affected online games will...

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Posted in: atari,news

Space War!

In issue 11 of Atari User we look at Space War!,  one of the earliest known digital computer games and how it influenced many games that followed including Computer Space and the various versions of the game that were released for the different Atari platforms including the Atari 2600 and the Atari Jaguar....

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Posted in: features,magazine

Chris Hutt's Space Harrier Interview

Check out Chris Hutt's exclusive interview with Atari User in Issue 11. Chris sheds light on the Space Harrier project and the difficulties he faced in bringing the game to the Atari 8-bit. If you missed out on our review of Space Harrier then check out issue 10 for a look at what we believe to be one of the greatest Atari XL/XE games of all time....

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Posted in: 8-bit,features,magazine,space harrier

The Atari Flashback 3 cometh!

 The Atari Flashback 3 is coming and the reason for it vanishing from online retailers' virtual shelves has become clear. Forget buying it for £19.95, the console has a UK RRP of £59.95 and an official release date scheduled for September 30th. The RRP is in line with the expected US retail price. Retailers have already begun to list the Flashback 3 , with most saying it is currently out of stock. Zavvi continue to list the product but the price has now shot up to £34.95 and Argos expect to sell the console for around £40. The Flashback 3 is coming with 60 games built-in, but without SD card support and will cost you a bit more this time around. At least this time it won't be vaporware....

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Posted in: atari,atari flashback 3,news

Atari User Issue 11 Out Now!

The latest issue of Atari User is here! In Issue 11 we have an exclusive interview with Chris Hutt, a.k.a Sheddy who brought Space Harrier to the Atari 8-bit, plus we take a look inside Atari UK and the games they made. We take a look at the Atari emulators available for the Wii & PC, plus our popular Game Over series looks at more unreleased gems for the Atari 2600, 5200 and 7800. Kieren looks at Space War! and the games publishers that supported every Atari format plus we look at the best and worst football games for the Atari 8-bit. Steve reviews Ace Of Aces for the XL/XE and the 7800, plus our new series on BASIC programming for the Atari begins. Lots of reviews this issue for the 2600, Lynx, Atari Jaguar, ST...

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Posted in: magazine,news

1UP shows no love for Atari consoles

1UP.COM's recent "Top Ten Worst Consoles" puts three Atari offerings in its list of the worst ten consoles of all time. The Atari Jaguar, Atari Lynx and Atari 5200 are all singled out for some hate alongside some more, very obscure, models. The article makes for some confusing reading. The Lynx heads the list but the article's author states the Lynx "was arguably superior to its competitors" and ends with "There really wasn't much wrong with the Lynx, but it ended up as a footnote anyway.". Interesting stuff, eh?...

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Posted in: jaguar. atari,lynx

Atari Turn On 8-Bit Community

You've been happily programming and producing demos for your beloved Atari 8-bit computer for years and then, out of the blue, comes a nasty email from the legal department of Atari Inc, alleging copyright infringement and saying you should not be mentioning terms such as "Atari 130XE". This has just happened to Starsoft Berlin , a fan site dedicated to hosting classic Starsoft disk magazines from the nineties and putting together a "New Year's" demo for the 8-bit. Today's Atari Inc has nothing to do with either the Atari Corp or Atari Inc of old. It has its roots in a French software label that was well known for bringing out some quite dodgy titles for the Atari ST and Commodore Amiga. Is this a case of a naive legal representative at Atari Inc in New York, or is it a sign of what is...

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Posted in: atari,news

UK Riots

Just a quick message to all our UK readers to stay safe, keep on top of local news broadcasts and avoid city centres in the evenings. Hopefully things will start to quiet down soon but in the meantime don't take any chances as copycat violence can flare up anywhe...

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