Atari Is No More... - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TJL · 02-12-2003, 11:12 PM

Sad news today for any of you who are old enough to remember their old Atari Video Game System. Read on...

Video game pioneer Atari sinks

By NANCY DILLON
DAILY NEWS BUSINESS WRITER

It's game over for Atari.
The last studio linked to the iconic video game company is winding down its operations this month. More than a hundred employees are losing their jobs.

Some of these staffers date back to Atari's heyday in the 1970s. One employee worked on Atari's second game, Tank.

Parent company Midway Games, which bought Atari's arcade division in 1996, said the downsizing is necessary to cut costs.

Founded by engineer Nolan Bushnell, Atari shot to fame in the early '70s with a coin-operated cabinet featuring a video tennis game called Pong.

The company later made the leap to a household name with its Model 2600 game system and beloved titles such as Asteroids and Centipede.

The bulky, black and brown 2600 was the first multi-game system to attach to a user's TV and bring the arcade experience into everyday living rooms.

Vintage 2600 machines, complete with fist-grip joysticks sporting red thumb buttons, sell on eBay for upwards of $100, compared with their $79 retail price two decades ago.

"It makes me sad," Bushnell told the Daily News. "You get a strong parental feeling toward things you create. And it's distressing when they fall to earth under somebody else."

Bushnell sold Atari to Warner (now AOL Time Warner) in 1976. The company later splintered, with the arcade business going to Midway and many consumer titles eventually landing at French gaming giant Infogrames.

Infogrames has re-released some nostalgia titles in formats to match contemporary consoles. But now, there'll be no new games from Atari's creators.

Adele · 02-12-2003, 11:21 PM

Atari was THE best. Man, I loved atari..the games were so rad too. NO game system tops Atari. I remember this real awesome boxing game, where the 2 players (red team and blue team) just stood looking at each other, and just punched and kicked. haha

Flash72 · 02-13-2003, 02:08 AM

Sad indeed, but in my view, Atari met its demise in the mid 80's.
And I agree, Atari was "the" best, archaic graphics and all.

Janice · 02-13-2003, 02:55 AM

Next thing, you'll be saying there's no more Pac Man or Donkey Kong.

MandieR1980 · 02-13-2003, 04:13 AM

I didn't even know Atari still existed LOL

Penny Lane · 02-13-2003, 10:55 AM

I still have our Atari 7800 . I hook it up now and then. It's cool!

Mr. Shy Guy · 02-13-2003, 04:24 PM

Awwwwww... I actully have an old Atari at my beach house in Connecticut. Still runs pretty well too. My fav. game for that was River Raid and Basic Math.

TJL · 02-13-2003, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Penny Lane
I still have our Atari 7800 . I hook it up now and then. It's cool!

The 7800?

You must have been one of those rich kids...

Mijada · 02-13-2003, 07:23 PM

We also had an Atari. We had something like 26 cartridges. I remember trying to play Pitfall but never could get the hang of that game.

Brian Damage · 02-13-2003, 07:31 PM

I still have my Atari 2600 in my basement. My favorite games were made by Activision like Pitfall and Stampede.

DetectiveGriffin · 02-13-2003, 07:33 PM

Good thing I still have my ATARI t-shirt <G>
Gave my system away years ago, my favorite system ever, but I don't regret it.

We will always have our memories.
May sweet burgertime one day be revamped for the gba

Penny Lane · 02-13-2003, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by TJL

The 7800?

You must have been one of those rich kids...

No ,actually we bought it for our son for Christmas! I haven't been a kid for a LONG LONG time!

Penny Lane · 02-13-2003, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Brian Damage
I still have my Atari 2600 in my basement. My favorite games were made by Activision like Pitfall and Stampede.

My favorite Atari games are/were Joust, Centipede, and Galaga.

I still have over 60 games! Classics!

Ags2000 · 02-13-2003, 09:25 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by TJL

The 7800?

You must have been one of those rich kids...

LOL

I have a 2600, still works great too

D

ClassicTV4Ever · 02-13-2003, 10:25 PM

I had an Atari 2600 at one point and we let my brother's brother borrow it when his broke, but then when we wanted it back we came to find out he sold it because he thought we GAVE it to him. All our games were with it too. Luckily my mom's friend sold me hers. It's a little banged up but it still works great. I just wish I had all the games we used to have. The one this came with came with hardly any games we used to have, not even Frogger

02-12-2003, 11:12 PM	#1
TJL Suburbanite Extrordinaire Forum Star Join Date: Dec 29, 2001 Location: New Jersey - the cradle of civilization Posts: 16,588	Atari Is No More... Sad news today for any of you who are old enough to remember their old Atari Video Game System. Read on... Video game pioneer Atari sinks By NANCY DILLON DAILY NEWS BUSINESS WRITER It's game over for Atari. The last studio linked to the iconic video game company is winding down its operations this month. More than a hundred employees are losing their jobs. Some of these staffers date back to Atari's heyday in the 1970s. One employee worked on Atari's second game, Tank. Parent company Midway Games, which bought Atari's arcade division in 1996, said the downsizing is necessary to cut costs. Founded by engineer Nolan Bushnell, Atari shot to fame in the early '70s with a coin-operated cabinet featuring a video tennis game called Pong. The company later made the leap to a household name with its Model 2600 game system and beloved titles such as Asteroids and Centipede. The bulky, black and brown 2600 was the first multi-game system to attach to a user's TV and bring the arcade experience into everyday living rooms. Vintage 2600 machines, complete with fist-grip joysticks sporting red thumb buttons, sell on eBay for upwards of $100, compared with their $79 retail price two decades ago. "It makes me sad," Bushnell told the Daily News. "You get a strong parental feeling toward things you create. And it's distressing when they fall to earth under somebody else." Bushnell sold Atari to Warner (now AOL Time Warner) in 1976. The company later splintered, with the arcade business going to Midway and many consumer titles eventually landing at French gaming giant Infogrames. Infogrames has re-released some nostalgia titles in formats to match contemporary consoles. But now, there'll be no new games from Atari's creators.
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02-13-2003, 02:08 AM	#3
Flash72 Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Dec 17, 2000 Location: Alabama Posts: 310	Sad indeed, but in my view, Atari met its demise in the mid 80's. And I agree, Atari was "the" best, archaic graphics and all.
	__________________ It is better to fail while attempting, then to fail to attempt... Flash72 http://www.tvlinksonline.com/boards/...&postid=799864

02-13-2003, 04:13 AM	#5
MandieR1980 Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 03, 2001 Location: East Taunton, Massachusetts Posts: 2,635	oh my I didn't even know Atari still existed LOL
	__________________ Mandie myspace.com/mlr930

02-13-2003, 10:55 AM	#6
Penny Lane Butter Pie Forum Icon Join Date: Jul 03, 2001 Location: Beneath the blue suburban skies Posts: 51,236	I still have our Atari 7800 . I hook it up now and then. It's cool!
	__________________ Vulgarity is no substitute for wit- Lady Violet Crawley

02-13-2003, 04:24 PM	#7
Mr. Shy Guy Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Oct 30, 2001 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 7,871	Awwwwww... I actully have an old Atari at my beach house in Connecticut. Still runs pretty well too. My fav. game for that was River Raid and Basic Math.
	__________________ Det. Butler: Are you on any type of medication Mr. Bean? Mr. Bean: Not that I'm aware of... Det. Butler: Well...you could certainly use some...

02-12-2003, 11:21 PM	#2
Adele Member Forum Regular Join Date: May 02, 2001 Posts: 634	Atari was THE best. Man, I loved atari..the games were so rad too. NO game system tops Atari. I remember this real awesome boxing game, where the 2 players (red team and blue team) just stood looking at each other, and just punched and kicked. haha

02-13-2003, 02:55 AM	#4
Janice Retired Admin - Hollywood Swingin' Forum Legend Join Date: Aug 03, 2001 Location: Beantown Posts: 36,388	Next thing, you'll be saying there's no more Pac Man or Donkey Kong.

02-13-2003, 07:23 PM	#9
Mijada Spencers mom Forum 4000 Club Member Join Date: Dec 02, 2001 Location: eastern US Posts: 4,093	We also had an Atari. We had something like 26 cartridges. I remember trying to play Pitfall but never could get the hang of that game.

02-13-2003, 07:31 PM	#10
Brian Damage I'm Rich Bitch Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 03, 2002 Location: What Ain't No Country I Ever Heard Of...They Speak English in What? Posts: 63,107	I still have my Atari 2600 in my basement. My favorite games were made by Activision like Pitfall and Stampede.

02-13-2003, 07:33 PM	#11
DetectiveGriffin Sankontessou! Senior Member Join Date: Aug 08, 2001 Location: North Central Indiana Posts: 1,288	Good thing I still have my ATARI t-shirt <G> Gave my system away years ago, my favorite system ever, but I don't regret it. We will always have our memories. May sweet burgertime one day be revamped for the gba

02-13-2003, 10:25 PM	#15
ClassicTV4Ever Coming November 27th! Senior Member Join Date: May 02, 2002 Location: TV Land! Posts: 1,421	I had an Atari 2600 at one point and we let my brother's brother borrow it when his broke, but then when we wanted it back we came to find out he sold it because he thought we GAVE it to him. All our games were with it too. Luckily my mom's friend sold me hers. It's a little banged up but it still works great. I just wish I had all the games we used to have. The one this came with came with hardly any games we used to have, not even Frogger