Last month, Atari announced their new, but old gaming system called the “Ataribox.” The “brand new Atari product” was briefly seen in a 20-second YouTube teaser video, but today we finally get some photos of the Ataribox.
The Ataribox is offered in two different colors – red and old school wood grain like the 2600. However, Atari really hasn’t given too many other details on their retro gaming system. Atari sent an email to prospective customers where they said, “our objective is to create something new, that stays true to our heritage, while appealing to both old and new fans of Atari.” The new Ataribox includes SD card support, an HDMI port, Ethernet, and four USB ports.
The Ataribox will play video game classics as well as “current content.” The gaming hardware company did not reveal the release date, what titles will be available, specs, or pricing. “We know you are hungry for more details; on specs, games, pricing, timing,” Atari said in a statement. “We’re not teasing you intentionally; we want to get this right, so we’ve opted to share things step by step as we bring this to life, and to listen closely to the Atari community feedback as we do so.”
It sounds as though Atari is trying to cash in on the retro gaming craze that the mini NES Classic Edition was able to tap into. There is a report that Atari will go the route of crowdfunding for the Ataribox project. “To limit risk taking, this product will initially be launched within the framework of a crowdfunding campaign.” Will Atari’s throwback gaming console be able to claim a stake in 1980’s video game nostalgia or will it die on Kickstarter?
[TheVerge]