Atari and Intellivision, symbols of a legendary rivalry in the history of video games, unexpectedly came together after 45 years.
Atari took a historic step by acquiring the Intellivision brand and some game rights from Intellivision Entertainment LLC. Here are all the details…
Atari’s first Intellivision project will be a special t-shirt line
Atari‘s Studio President Mike Mika called the merger “the end of the longest console war in history.” However, Atari’s plans for the Intellivision brand are unclear. As a first step, a series of t-shirts have been designed for sale on Atari.com.
Intellivision, released in 1979, was a competitor to the Atari 2600, which had gained immense popularity then. Mattel Electronics challenged Atari by emphasizing Intellivision’s superior graphics and sound capabilities in commercials featuring author George Plimpton. By 1990, despite selling nearly 5 million Intellivision consoles, both brands lost their lead in the video game console market. However, they continued to license games to companies like Nintendo and Sony using their intellectual property.
A notable detail in Atari’s acquisition is that Intellivision Entertainment LLC’s Amico brand game console was not included in the deal. Announced in 2018 and scheduled for release in 2020, Amico has suffered various delays and still hasn’t hit shelves since 2024. Atari has no intention of acquiring Amico.
According to Atari, Intellivision Entertainment LLC will continue to work on the Amico game console with a name change. As part of the deal, Atari will also be licensed to distribute new Intellivision games for the Amico console.
Late last year, Intellivision was reportedly experiencing financial difficulties in producing Amico units and seeking financing. This raises the possibility that the sale of the Intellivision brand to Atari may have been intended to help finance Amico.
It appears that Atari will release new games based on the newly acquired Intellivision brand, and the Amico console will survive for now.
Featured image credit: Atari
