Atari announced the acquisition of Intellivision, one of the iconic brands. With this merger, we can say that the first console war in history is officially over and the winner is clear.
The great merger of Atari and Intellivision
Atari has acquired the Intellivision brand and some of its games from Intellivision Entertainment LLC. Intellivision Entertainment will continue to develop and distribute the Amico brand game console. With this merger, Atari plans to expand digital and physical distribution of Intellivision games, create new games and explore brand and licensing opportunities.
“Combining Atari and Intellivision after 45 years ends the longest console war in history,” said Mike Mika, studio head of Digital Eclipse, the Atari-owned game studio.
The first Intellivision game console was released by Mattel Electronics in 1979 and sold an estimated 5 million units by 1990. Atari and Intellivision fought the first major console war in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Mattel even used celebrities such as George Plimpton in advertising campaigns comparing the two systems.
“This was a rare opportunity to bring together old rivals and bring together fans of Atari, Intellivision and the golden age of gaming,” said Atari CEO Wade Rosen. The acquisition includes rights to more than 200 games in the Intellivision portfolio and Intellivision trademarks. Phil Adam, CEO of Intellivision Entertainment, said they believe Atari will manage the brand responsibly.
Tommy Tallarico acquired Intellivision in 2018 and began work on the new game console Amico. Amico was originally scheduled to launch in October 2020, but was delayed due to parts supply issues due to the pandemic. By the end of 2021, the device was targeted to be released, but it was not released on that date either.
To celebrate the merger, new Intellivision t-shirts are available for sale on Atari.com, and more apparel and collectibles have been announced. The Amico game console is in development and will be available on Amico Home, Android and soon Apple iOS platforms.
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