The gaming industry has ridden out a hectic Q4 for 2020. The two heavyweight console manufacturers Xbox and Playstation have presented new hardware for the first time in 7 years, and pre-order lists are filled to the brim with eager gamers hoping to get a hold of the Xbox Series X, Xbox Serie S or the Playstation 5 next month. But it has flown over many gamers’ radars that gaming pioneer Atari is joining the party too, with the release of Atari VCS this November.
Atari, who helped develop the first-ever commercially successful video game Pong in 1972, hasn’t released a gaming console in 15 years. The Atari VCS was originally presented in 2017 but has seen heavy delays because of unexpected expenses, company transformations, and of course, the Coronavirus. But for the nostalgic and alternative gamer, the Atari VCS is the nerdy and sought-after choice. The console runs Linux, making it extremely versatile, and also comes with an old-school joystick to fulfil the nostalgic feel.
The VCS will also support video and music streaming on top of the gaming and is said to come with a subscription service that will let users get a hold of games and other services digitally, since the VCS doesn’t hold ports for discs or cassettes. It will play more than 100 classic Atari games including Pong, Asteroids and Centipede.
The first batch of Atari VCS 800 Collector’s Edition has already been shipped out to early investors, and the console is set to drop globally by the end of November, with a starting price of roughly US$ 390.
