The Atari VCS

The Atari VCS - The Controversial One

The Beginning

Sorry not the original VCS, later to be known as the 2600, but the newer self titled Atari VCS, a machine which has proved controversial even before launch!

Rumours began in 2017 when Atari declared a new console was being conceived codenamed Ataribox, the first significant release from the Fuji logo'd company since perhaps the Atari Jaguar, not to be disrespectful to the Flashback series.

Early 2018 Atari launched the now officially named Atari VCS as an Indiegogo campaign to acquire funds for their new console, raising over £2,000,000, not far short of $3,000,000, and by far exceeding its $100,000 goal.

However no sooner had the machine been funded, critics and influencers were exclaiming the Atari VCS will never see the light of day, it will evidently be a scam! Somewhat understandable given funds were raised on a crowdfunding website, a site where I personally have had a situation. Nevertheless with this in mind, it was not a sentiment I shared on a number of counts.

Firstly Infogrames, the now Atari have been in business since circa 1983, and it would be fair to believe they were now not going to throw their business away by not releasing the Atari VCS.

Secondly, like it or not, these are the 'new' Atari, and with that of course comes the name, the brand and the history, it's what they acquired, and again it would seem fair to believe Atari were not going to throw away their most valuable asset, their name.

With over £2,000,000 raised, it would be a monumental and controversial fail, which may very well have had repercussions for Indiegogo and its crowdfunding model in general. It wouldn't have been the biggest crowd funding fail financially, but given the name of Atari, it would have certainly been high profile.

Granted, this was only speculation, my speculation, however just as rational as somebody with a camera in their bedroom casting what are merely their own opinions.

Paradoxes and Parallels

Many of us look back at Atari through rose tinted spectacles as they give us a window through which to peer back to our childhoods. We look back at the Bushnell, Warner / Kassar and Tramiel eras with fondness. The new era of Atari seems a step too far for many, claiming it is only Atari by name, they no longer innovate. Although perfectly valid opinions, for me many of these arguments I find paradoxical.

Yes the Atari of old were innovators, they innovated many things from arguably creating the games console industry, the idea of the sound chip with Pong, the first company to offer custom chips in a home computer, the first company to launch a colour handheld console and so on...

However the Atari of old we remember fondly still bombed, because many of these beautiful innovations were ultimately financial failures. So the argument, although is a matter of fact, still led Atari to fail. Innovation for all of its genius and beauty, needs to go hand in hand with financial success, however that is realised.

People argue that the Atari we knew has gone, not one single employee remains, and yes that is very true. However does Ford still employ any employee from the Model T era, no! All companies evolve, it is again matter of fact, yet of course I understand the sentiment of what is meant and opinions about absolute lineage.

Ironically there are many parallels with the Atari which once was, and the Atari of now. For example many don't like how Infogrames acquired Atari, but slicing, dicing and intricacies aside, is it really so far removed from how Jack Tramiel purchased the computer and console divisions of Atari!?

Many do not like how Atari raised funds for its new Atari VCS, but again was it such of a departure from how Bushnell raised funds for the original Atari VCS from Warner, just a different era embracing new platforms to reach the same end, raising funds!?

I've read comments ridiculing AtariOS because it can be run on a potato, but wait one moment it's a Linux based OS, and people often applaud Linux for being both versatile and scalable, that's the point!

Agree or not, many things can be argued until we are blue in the face, it really serves little purpose. However I tend to feel the Atari of now are immediately dismissed, as people would prefer to revel in the past, that is of course just a personal choice. For me however, as much as I do revel in my Ataris of yesteryear, I am very much a believer in change, it is inevitable and it's healthy to embrace it, the fundamentals of progression versus stagnation!

Nevertheless Atari continues tradition with delays to releasing to market, seeming controversy behind the scenes, all parallels with the Atari we remember.

The Good

Despite peoples reservations, despite the delays, Atari were true to their word, and now the Atari VCS is here. The build quality of the unit feels solid, no less than you would expect from Microsoft or Sony, and the overall design has been executed very well. Of course it takes its inspiration from the original VCS 2600, currently with the Collectors Edition which harks back to the Atari 2600 Woody, and the Onyx Edition, harking back to the Atari 2600 Darth Vader. In fact with that red rear panel on the Onyx Edition, it is very Sith-esque.

Many companies when choosing a retro design concept often get it wrong, but Atari have got this very right, akin to how Fiat with their new 500 have perfected their design from their iconic Fiat 500 from the 1950s. You may not like it, but the silhouette, the lines perfectly compliment a design for a new era, yet remaining true to the past, perceived or not. This concept has been carried through to the packaging with some nice touches, as well as to the wireless Classic Joystick, again it has been executed very well, although it feels like it needs to be treated with care! The wireless Modern Controller is reminiscent of an Xbox One controller, albeit slightly less weighty, but solid.

Powering up the system, and after a reboot or three, a bios update and a creation of an account, the installation is complete. I must admit the OS is both slick and snappy. You are greeted with a Home screen which displays a combination of your most used games and apps. Chrome is the default browser out of the box, and you can of course sync to your existing Google account, porting all of your favourite bookmarks over. Download the Atari VCS Companion app for your Android or IOS phone, and you can navigate around the browser very easily.

The Atari VCS Vault is a nice touch, presenting you with a nostalgic intro upon launch. Although it is Atari Vault slightly repackaged for the VCS. Here is of course where you will find some of the classic arcade and 2600 titles from yesteryear, as I type in mid January 2021, there are currently 18 arcade give away titles, and 82 Atari 2600 free titles. Pressing X allows you to toggle between Arcade Mode, Box Art Mode for the 2600 titles, or a simple List View. I don't know whether this is just nostalgia, but it all feels very pleasing, but it is its uncomplicated layout which makes it stand out.

Navigate to the Store and you have a pretty standard array of free entertainment apps, from Plex to Netflix to Disney+, I am sure these will be added to. There are also a few online gaming services from AirConsole and Antstream, which some will complain about, but welcomed options nonetheless. Presently there are 13 modern game titles available, 2 of which are free, Missile Command Recharged and Unsung Warriors - Prologue, the latter of which is a simple, but nicely executed and addictive platformer. So that's 102 freebies currently with the VCS, as my father would have said, better than a poke in the eye!

Then we get into PC Mode, which I have not had a chance to explore. It will allow me to run Windows, I have an old copy of XP and Vista, but these days I run Macs, so I don't have a current Windows set up. To set this up you will need a Windows machine to obtain an ISO image, or already have an existing ISO image. Failing that, Linux is of course an option. This is the beauty of this machine, and what of course makes this a hybrid, or rather a mini PC marketed as a console, as it gives you options out of the box from a simple easy to use OS. It will allow me to run either Windows or Linux alongside my existing Mac set up, and run some emulated games. Sure, I can run Windows or Linux on my Macs, but my MacBook Pro is reserved for working on the move, as well as music production. My iMac is my office machine, and is reserved for work and dabbling with DTP. The Atari VCS, because it is built to be flexible offers me just that, flexibility, it's not locked down, not only that it is the purpose of this machine.

You could perhaps opt for something else to do a similar thing, an NVDIA Shield, but that offers less from a technical perspective and is weighted towards the Android TV market, although with streaming games it is surprisingly pretty good. Alternatively, a nondescript Chinese or DIY box, which may be more powerful for gaming but which doesn't offer any appeal for me personally, and which will likely be forgotten in a few years time. The Atari VCS' closest competitor is perhaps the Nintendo Switch, it is appealing and it can be fudged to run Windows. The Switch costs around £280 in the UK, and the Atari VCS cost me about the same with both controller and joystick, inclusive of greedy UK taxes. It seems apparent this is where Atari is positioning itself, it's not an Xbox or PlayStation killer, nor was it ever going to be. The specification of both the Switch and the VCS bears this out, in some areas the Switch gains the upper hand, in others the VCS.

Is it a confused machine? No I don't think so! Perhaps for someone who is old enough to have grown up with Atari from the Pong or 2600 era, possibly someone who likes hobbyist technology, by that I mean somebody who likes to fiddle, or possibly someone who is not the most hardcore of gamers. Moreover, maybe someone who is looking for an addition to their existing set ups. Yep, I tick all of those boxes!

For Atari it's a start, a machine to gain some small market share upon which to build upon, at least hopefully.

The Bad

If I was to nit-pick, there are perhaps a couple of things I would alter with regards to the VCS. Firstly the external power supply, where there is nothing wrong with the unit itself, Atari went with a unit with a C5 Cloverleaf connector, which is fine, however C7 Double Barrel connectors are arguably more common, but realistically that's only my personal preference. Secondly, I perhaps need to re-emphasise that Classic Joystick is light, it will need to be treated with care. Apart from those small gripes, I think the design, the simplicity of the OS, and yes, like it or not the Atari brand, make this a desirable machine. However given the price of the established Switch, and now that we are aware the Xbox Series S and its price, Atari may have to adjust the pricing of the VCS, it's awfully close to both of those machines.

The Ugly

The ugly is the controversy, which has reminded me of my adolescent years, bickering about the pros and cons between Commodore and Atari. It has been idiotic to say the least, however I would argue that this machine has exacerbated social media and all that is wrong with its role in society today. People forget it is OK to have an opinion, it is OK to be different, however with the advent of social media, nowadays an opinion has to be socially accepted, supported by the masses to be viable. I don't subscribe to that! After all, if we all acted and thought alike, it would make for a very grey and boring world. Tech critics and influencers should remember their role is to offer an opinion on the products themselves, nothing more, nothing less! Due to this controversy the Atari VCS already has its place in history, for better or worse, successful or not! The VCS is perhaps not for everyone, but it is for someone, and that is actually OK!