back to article Atari accuses El Reg of professional trolling and making stuff up. Welp, here's the interview tape for you to decide...

Legendary games company Atari has accused a Register reporter of making stuff up and acting unprofessionally following an interview earlier this year in San Francisco at the launch of its new games console, the Atari VCS. In that article, we were critical of the fact that the machine did not work, and that its chief operating …

  1. Anonymous Coward
    Coffee/keyboard

    Hahashahahahahahaahah!

    Nothing like standing on the sidelines and watching a well deserved kicking being administered.

    1. Voland's right hand Silver badge
      Pint

      Re: Hahashahahahahahaahah!

      And this is exactly what I would call professional trolling.

      Professionally executed and the subject has tried to start a flame war which ended up with them being flamed into a crisp.

      El reg crew deserves a round of pints :)

    2. Halfmad

      Re: Hahashahahahahahaahah!

      So incredibly satisfying. Such a nice article, at least from my perspective.

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      ATARI is like NOKIA, some chinese guy bought the company name

      ATARI is like NOKIA, some bad guy bought the company name and recycles chinese stuff and put a brand label on it.

      Rather naive people these days fall for such scams. --> Don't buy "ATARI" games and hardware and "NOKIA" phones in 2018. The original company died many years ago, the original products long gone. In case of ATARI (/Infograms), you can get the old games for cheap on eBay and use an emulator.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari,_SA#Transition_from_Infogrames_Entertainment ; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia ; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Mobile ; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMD_Global (chinese "NOKIA" phones of the year 2018)

      1. caffeine addict

        Re: ATARI is like NOKIA, some chinese guy bought the company name

        That's a tad unfair to Nokia. Basically all phones come out of China nowadays. Sure, it's not a 3210 indistructaphone, but the "N" series phones don't pretend to be. They're half decent specced phones in a milled aluminium shell that's more deserving of the Nokia name than any of the MS devices were. The name has been licensed by a company trying to make good from it.

        Atari is a different matter. The name gets slapped on pretty much anything regardless of quality by whoever owns it this week. Similar can be said of the Commodore devices that appear every now and then.

      2. Pseudonymous Howard

        Re: ATARI is like NOKIA, some chinese guy bought the company name

        Even though the 2018 Nokia phones come from China (just like any other vendor's phones, including Apple), HMD Global is a Finnish company. You can read this in the first sentence of the Wikipedia article you linked. A little bit further down you can even read that this company consists of many former Nokia employees.

      3. JeffyPoooh
        Pint

        Re: ATARI is like NOKIA, ...

        In my local Mall*Wart, I happened to notice something odd. The teetering stack of "RCA" branded LCD TVs in their boxes had a printed disclaimer (right on the packaging).

        "RCA - This product is manufactured and sold by (LICENSEE COMPANY NAME). ..." etc.

        I guess there's a new manufacturer of LCD TVs called LICENSEE COMPANY NAME.

        I've seen similar branding antics with "POLAROID".

        1. Martin-73 Silver badge

          Re: ATARI is like NOKIA, ...

          Polaroid seems to be a name nowadays slapped on cellphone chargers/cables that are horrible quality and massively overpriced. Not even instant photos out of them

    4. Tristan Young

      Re: Hahashahahahahahaahah!

      Atari needs a good kicking. As a former retail salesperson of Atari computers (520ST, 1040ST, Mega, TT, Falcon, Lynx handheld console), yeah, a good kicking, A) to see if they are still alive, and B) to encourage them to progress. Don't show up to a meeting in order to provide lots of, "Um, I don't know" and "I can't tell you" statements. No one cares about I don't know and I can't tell you. Successful hype isn't built on uncertainty.

      1. JohnFen

        Re: Hahashahahahahahaahah!

        "As a former retail salesperson of Atari computers (520ST, 1040ST, Mega, TT, Falcon, Lynx handheld console)"

        That was a different Atari and the one that exists now. Atari, the old computer and games manufacturer, doesn't exist.

        1. FrankAlphaXII

          Re: Hahashahahahahahaahah!

          There was an Atari in between them too (the one that published Cryptic Studios' games before Perfect World Entertainment bought their IP) that was owned by a French games company that wasn't Ubisoft.

          This Atari is a long way from either "classic" Atari or French Atari.

      2. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

        Re: Hahashahahahahahaahah!

        "Don't show up to a meeting in order to provide lots of, "Um, I don't know" and "I can't tell you" statements. No one cares about I don't know and I can't tell you. Successful hype isn't built on uncertainty."

        I couldn't agree more, Artz is an arse! None-answers, sentences trailing off to nothing, having said nothing and so on. If anyone did a full semantic analysis of the interview and took out all the "noise" I strongly suspect Artz's "contribution" to the full 30 minutes would consist of about 30 seconds of repeated "I don't know"

        My wife watches a lot of craft instructables on Youtube and the US based ones sound the same as this interview. It's as if they are terrified of silence, even when they have nothing to say. Is this normal in the US or am I just seeing the worst of it?

        My hat is off to the Reg reporter for his extreme patience, surely one of his most agonising interviews. Might as well have interviewed the tea boy!

    5. Only me!
      FAIL

      Re: Hahashahahahahahaahah!

      I see one PR person from Atari is reading the comments LOL

      (one down vote for you fab comment as I type this)

  2. Blockchain commentard

    An American version of the Spectrum reboot?

    1. Tim Jenkins

      "An American version of the Spectrum reboot?"

      Except with (as of today) the equivalent of £2,228,572 to burn through before evaporating.

      RCL only had £512,790...

  3. Winkypop Silver badge
    Devil

    Eviscerated!

    El Reg 1

    Atari 0

    (world cup and all)

    1. Hans 1
      Coat

      Re: Eviscerated!

      @Winkypop

      Where did you learn how to count ?

      El Reg 9:0 Atari

      1. wolfetone Silver badge

        Re: Eviscerated!

        It went to VAR in the end, and the TV decided to award just the one goal.

        1. lglethal Silver badge
          Go

          Re: Eviscerated!

          It sounds more like an Atari own goal to me. Results still the same, but they only have themselves to blame...

          1. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge

            Re: Eviscerated!

            Remember professional trolls count "one, two, many, lots!"

            Looks like Atari has LOTS of egg on its face

            1. Chunky Munky
              Pint

              Re: Eviscerated!

              +1 and a pint for the Pratchett reference

            2. DavCrav

              Re: Eviscerated!

              professional trolls count "one, two, many, lots!"

              I think it's one, two, many, many-one, many-two, many-many, many-many-one, many-many-two, LOTS, but I could be mistaken.

              1. pdebarra

                Re: Eviscerated!

                One, two, three, many.

                Many one, many two, many three, many many.

                Many many one, many many two, many many three, many many many.

                Many many many one, many many many two, many many many three, lots.

                1. Swarthy
                  Trollface

                  Re: One, two, three, many

                  Just your bog-standard base-four counting system.

                  I think it was originally developed by professional crocodile wrestlers.

                2. James 36

                  Re: Eviscerated!

                  was that written on the inside of a freezer ?

      2. Captain Scarlet Silver badge

        Re: Eviscerated!

        Damnit we need additional conversions on https://www.theregister.co.uk/Design/page/reg-standards-converter.html to cover scoring just like this.

        1. Chris 244

          One Two Many

          It's an actual counting system, and before chuckling at "primitives" notice how in English:

          One -- First

          Two -- Second

          Three - Third

          Four -- Fourth

          And French:

          Un -- Premier

          Deux -- Seconde

          Trois -- Troisieme

          Quatre -- Quatrieme

          1. MiguelC Silver badge

            Re: One Two Many

            Deux - seconde or deuxième (prefered usage when enumerating)

            And even "un" has a "unième" form (like in vingt-et-unième - https://fr.wiktionary.org/wiki/uni%C3%A8me)

            1. heyrick Silver badge

              Re: One Two Many

              "seconde or deuxième (prefered usage when enumerating)"

              Not quite. The rule is: You use "deuxième" when referring to the second of <many>. You use "second(e)" when referring to the second of two.

              As we are talking about a language, there are of course exceptions: classe de seconde, seconde nature, and of course the Seconde Guerre Mondial will probably remain that even if there's a third attempt. I say probably because this time we have nukes and countries run by lunatics, but asides from that...

              1. Contrex

                Re: One Two Many

                "The rule is: You use "deuxième" when referring to the second of <many>. You use "second(e)" when referring to the second of two."

                Not quite a 'rule', according to the Académie française. One can, par souci de précision et d’élégance, reserve second for utterances where one only considers two elements, and only use deuxième when the enumeration goes past two. Cette distinction n’est pas obligatoire. You would always use second in certain expressions: seconde main, seconde nature, etc., and in job titles such as le second du navire.

  4. RyokuMas
    Coat

    Oh how the might have fallen...

    Back in the early 90s, the Atari STE was a giant among machines - probably the best all-round home computer platform across all arenas on the market at the time, (despite what owners of the Commodore Amiga Games Machine may say*).

    Sad that the once-great name has been dragged down this far.

    *Forget professional trolling, Atari and Amiga owners have been trolling each other since before "trolling" was a thing...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

      My Amiga 1200 with it's B-52 inscribed motherboard challenges you to a fight. My weapon of choice if Protracker just to show Amiga's are better at music.

      1. Kane
        Trollface

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        "My weapon of choice if Protracker just to show Amiga's are better at music."

        How many on-board MIDI ports does your Amiga have?

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

          @Kane

          I knew someone would thwart my plans.

        2. phuzz Silver badge
          Gimp

          Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

          "How many on-board MIDI ports does your Amiga have?"

          How many Atari owners used theirs?

          Besides, it was only about £20-30 for a MIDI adaptor for the Amiga, which is inexpensive compared to the cost of the rest of kit you'll be wanting to hook up to it.

          (This is why I don't get too partisan about Mac vs Windows vs Linux, none of them compare to the Amiga in my eyes)

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

            >How many Atari owners used theirs?

            Mike Oldfield, Jean Michel Jarre, Robert Miles, Fatboy Slim, Tangerine Dream spring to mind - but you'd struggle to find a professional studio without STs in the 80s/90s

        3. decoherence
          Mushroom

          Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

          Super Librarian! Notator! Passport! MT-32! I'm crying here, and it's not because I'm feeling nostalgic!

          Those were the days, good riddance!

        4. pnony
          Trollface

          Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

          My CDTV—which is basically an Amiga 500 with a CD-ROM drive hacked onto it—has MIDI in and out ports. They've never been used, because the onboard sound was good enough for the time. Unlike the ST and its off-the-shelf bleeper chip which was embarassing by 8 bit standards, never mind their flagship machine.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Pint

      Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

      *Forget professional trolling, Atari and Amiga owners have been trolling each other since before "trolling" was a thing...

      Hell, yes! What was the twinky OS you had called? GEM? My sister ran that on here C= 128.

      Very good times. Have one on me -->

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        >What was the twinky OS you had called? GEM? My sister ran that on here C= 128.

        GEM was the GUI, most swapped out for KAOS - the OS they shipped with was TOS though we also had MiNT and MagiC which rocked. The Amiga had much better games I'm told.

      2. ThomH

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen... @ Jack of Shadows

        I don't think she did. GEM was available only for x86 and 68000 machines. Are you sure you're not thinking of the completely unrelated GEOS? Both start in 'GE' and inherit a lot from the original MacOS but are otherwise unrelated.

      3. KBeee

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        Imagine if GEM had had 1/100th the money spent developing it as Windows got, what an OS it could have been.

      4. KBeee

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        GEM - was that "Graphical Enviroment Manager" or am I misremembering? Imagine if it'd had 1/100th the money spent developing it as Windows got.

      5. Alistair
        Windows

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        Urr, I ran GEM on DRDOS.......

    3. A Non e-mouse Silver badge

      Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

      Forget professional trolling, Atari and Amiga owners have been trolling each other since before "trolling" was a thing.

      Bit late to the party you lot were. Us Speccy/Amstrad/Comodore 64 kids were well versed in trolling - I can assure you! (Those rich BBC kids never got involved)

      1. Martin an gof Silver badge

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        Those rich BBC kids never got involved

        No, we didn't need to. We knew our machine was superior and we knew that you knew that as well.

        Games library? Pah.

        ;-)

        M.

        1. Chris King

          Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

          No, we didn't need to. We knew our machine was superior and we knew that you knew that as well.

          Games library? Pah.

          So why were so many of the BBC Master Race addicted to Chuckie Egg and Frak! ?

          1. Martin an gof Silver badge

            Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

            So why were so many of the BBC Master Race addicted to Chuckie Egg and Frak! ?

            Quality over quantity. Chuckie Egg, Frak!, Aviator, Revs and - who can forget - Elite. The Spectrum and the C64 may have ten times more games released for them than the BBC, but that didn't matter if you had the likes of the above.

            Of course, price was another issue. I seem to remember anything in BBC format (software or hardware) costing about 50% more than the equivalent Spectrum or C64. Quality costs.

            Speaking as someone who bought a rubber Spectrum 48k using most of my savings, and those of my sister, back in 1983 (I think - it was just after the price came down from £180 to £130) but carried on saving and sold it a couple of years later to help fund a BBC Micro B together with Christmas donations.

            M.

          2. Haku

            Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

            Exile was awesome on the BBC Micro, and then again on the Amiga.

        2. David Given
          Flame

          Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

          The BBC had Elite and Chuckie Egg. Any additional games were obviously superfluous.

      2. Sgt_Oddball
        Windows

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        C64? Lucky bugger....all I had was a VIC-20..

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

          Could have been worse - you might have had a Plus 4.

          1. Zoopy

            Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

            Luxury! We had a Timex Sinclair 1000 and we were glad for it!

            We'd wake up the night before we went to bed, start the tape drive playing into the computer's input port, while da' beat us with BASIC manuals.

            1. GIRZiM

              Re: Luxury!

              A Timex Sinclair 1000!

              The best we could afford was a 1K ZX81 and no cassette recorder; we had to type in all the code from the magazine every time we wanted to run a program, squash all the bugs and add all the missing code the magazine managed not to print.

              But if you tell that to the young people today, they won't believe you!

      3. Anonymous Coward
        Trollface

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        It was pointless us Beeb owners trolling the Spectrum people. They would type a witty response on their prophylactic keys, but forget it every time the RAM pack plugged into the back fell out.

      4. TonyJ

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        "...Bit late to the party you lot were. Us Speccy/Amstrad/Comodore 64 kids were well versed in trolling - I can assure you! (Those rich BBC kids never got involved)..."

        My very first computer was a Christmas present from my mum and dad - it was an Atari (800XL? had a tape recorder as well as a cartridge slot). Alas, there were issues with the tape recorder so he took it back and swapped it for an Acorn Electron. My dad chose it because it was "BBC Compatible" and therefore educational.

        Oh I envied those kids with a Speccy, Commodore or BBC.

        I did manage to save up my pocket money though and buy a BBC B+ a few years later.

        Wasn't ever very good at programming the thing but I knew what every component on the motherboard did.

        You're right though...in the who-has-which-home-computer wars, I was never dragged in once the other kids knew what I had. :)

    4. jake Silver badge

      Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

      Trolling was a thing in the very late 1970s in the BBS world ... Several years before the C64, much less the Amiga.

    5. Dan 55 Silver badge

      Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

      The Falcon finally got there and could be considered better than the Amiga 1200 (although the Amiga's OS was still 1000 times better than GEM/TOS/Whatever that thing was), but only because Commodore then had the worst CEO in history of everything who sat on follow-up to the Amiga 1200 for years like it was the Iron Throne or something, until he ran the business into the ground.

      However software was scarce for the Falcon, it lasted a year, and Atari imploded too.

    6. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      There had been 3 ATARI companies!

      1) ATARI (the original company) died in the early 1990s.

      2) Then another completely different company Infograms (France) named itself ATARI in early 2000s and died in the early 2010s.

      3) Then another different (chinese) company named itself ATARI in the late 2010s. And releases cheap re-hashes of old ATARI games from the 1980s.

    7. ForthIsNotDead

      Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

      That's very true. Jack Tramiel, as controversial as he was, definitely rescued the company and brought some of the innovation and potential back. However, even under the Tramiels, a lot of the mojo and pure fun-factor that made Atari what it fundamentally was gone.

      After the Tramiels, Atari was nothing but a name. A husk. Nothing of the "true" Atari, originally under Bushnell, and latterly the Tramiels, remains. It's a corpse.

      The name Atari has changed hands a bunch of times since then, it's nothing more than a brand now, a recognisable name to be used as a marketing vehicle, with no one even remotely associated with the Atari of old being involved, none of that Mojo. Just bullshit, hype, vapour, and lies. Consequently, I feel no guilt whatsoever in declaring: "Fuck "Atari" and the fake hype-machine that they rolled in on.".

      The whole company can do one as far as I'm concerned. Even if they do release a working machine, I'm not interested.

    8. adam payne

      Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

      Oh the Atari ST Vs Amiga flame wars how I remember them fondly.

      We all know which one was better, it's the one you have the fondest memories of.

      Anyway back on topic, looks like Atari got schooled.

      1. Hairy Spod

        Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

        So its definately the Amiga that's better then.

        I'm glad that's settled

    9. Alan Bourke

      Re: Oh how the might have fallen...

      "Atari STE was a giant among machines - probably the best all-round home computer platform across all arenas on the market at the time"

      Aha. Ahem. Yeah.

  5. wolfetone Silver badge
    Pint

    Distribute this pint to those involved, bravo!

    1. Prst. V.Jeltz Silver badge
      Pint

      dont be stingy :p

      have another!

  6. Hans 1
    Facepalm

    Poor Mike

    Mike does not appear to be a seasoned vaporware or snake oil purveyor, just a marketing guy turned exec ? He has absolutely no clue about what he is selling, no clue about what he is talking about and of course, bringing a piece of plastic to a press conf is, well, not helping him.

    What did he expect ?

    How hard can it be to put a pi with retropie in the plastic, have an intern design a new ui (so journos don't notice it is in fact retropie) - job done.

    1. deadlockvictim

      Re: Poor Mike

      Hans 1» Mike does not appear to be a seasoned vaporware or snake oil purveyor, just a marketing guy turned exec

      Is there a difference? I thought that's what marketing does: purvey snake-oil.

      1. Hans 1
        Coat

        Re: Poor Mike

        Is there a difference?

        Yes, marketing guyz dream up press releases and do PR, they basically come up with nice stories for sales guyz to tell. They are safe in the office, hardly ever see questions that need immediate responses, they need time to think of a way to squeeze as many buzzwords into a sentence as possible.

        Sales guyz are usually the snake oil purveyors, with whom you can expect a minimum of product knowledge, they know what to say and know how to make something up when they are caught off guard.

        Noting that with that piece of plastic, I could get it up and running a customized retropie in less than 40 minutes ... most time spent fitting extension cables for network, usb, hdmi, and power as well as fitting the pie firmly in the casing so it looks "professional".

        Do also note that VCSAtari are on twatter but have not worked out how to tweet, yet ;-).

        Icon: For poor Mike, with love and compassion!

        1. Pascal Monett Silver badge
          Thumb Down

          Re: with love and compassion

          Nope.

          I have no compassion for a marketing guy who invites a technical journal to an interview without bringing any functional items, instead bringing mock-ups, not being able to answer technical questions and then pretending to be hurt when the ensuing article is not written like a Vogue-magazine fanpiece.

          Flaming idiot. And now he's Streisanded himself.

          No sympathy.

          1. Aladdin Sane

            Re: with love and compassion

            Does make you think they're unfamiliar with El Reg's output.

          2. Hans 1
            Coffee/keyboard

            Re: with love and compassion

            I have no compassion

            Check that icon, I think your sarcasm parser segfaulted ...

        2. Rob D.
          Facepalm

          Re: Poor Mike

          Yes, the sympathy gene was resonating a teensy bit with Mike there - not too much though. Listening to the audio you can hear the resignation in his voice and I could just picture the pre-meeting with Mike's management:

          Mike: I've nothing to show. It's just bits of plastic and cables.

          Management: Go on, Mike, we have every faith that you can spin this and make it look like gold.

          Mike: But really I'm just the project lead. You've given me a fancy title and responsibility for the budget but I have no power and nothing to offer. We really should call it off.

          Management: Look, Mike, it's like this. Either you go and sell this turd as if it's solid gold so we can get some more funding to polish the turd properly, or we fire you, you lose your health benefits and that nice house you live in.

          Mike. Fine. Can I swing by the marketing office and take some Atari baseball caps with me - at least they work?

          1. defiler

            Re: Poor Mike

            ...we have every faith that you can...

            Got it in one. It's surprising how many people have every faith in my ability to achieve the ludicrous. I do feel for Mike.

    2. Dan 55 Silver badge

      Re: Poor Mike

      If you want to fake Tempest 4000, you need squeeze a NUC into that pretty box.

      1. Steve the Cynic

        Re: Poor Mike

        Pfft. You can't do Tempest right on a raster display anyway.

        Both I and the late Mrs Cynic liked the original vector-CRT arcade Tempest machines a lot, although I think she might have been better at it than me.

  7. redpawn

    You Just Need to Have Faith

    It is only our faith in money that makes money work and so it is with Atari. Have you ever considered that the machine you are using now only works because you have faith in it? ... me neither.

    1. Pen-y-gors

      Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

      Oh no, no. Faith is so essential and powerful. The sun only rises every morning because I believe it will. My laptop only boots because I have faith that it will. Those BSODs are a sign of a lack of faith - I am a worthless sinner. The daily sacrifice of a virgin also helps (getting harder to find these days)

      And for a wonderful example of the power of Faith, <insert Brexit reference here>

      1. jonathan keith

        Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

        Nonsense: everybody knows that it's the magic smoke that makes electronics work.

        1. jelabarre59

          Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

          Nonsense: everybody knows that it's the magic smoke that makes electronics work.

          It certainly is for Lucas Electrics. Hence the need for this.

          1. jake Silver badge
            Pint

            Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

            Invoking the name of the Prince of Darkness sends chills up the spine, even here in California ... Still, on the bright side, if it weren't for Lucas refrigerators you lot would never have discovered the proper temperature to keep beer! :-)

            1. Aladdin Sane
              Coat

              Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

              Are you implying that the weak piss water they sell on the wrong side of the pond is beer?

              Mine's the one with the bottle of Doom Bar in the pocket.

              1. jake Silver badge

                Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

                You mean Carling or Fosters or Harp? No, absolutely not!

              2. Alistair
                Windows

                Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

                careful there Aladdin, some of us have hands on the good stuff. Mind you, we're north of the 49th.

          2. RuffianXion

            Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

            Jesus Christ, that webpage made my eyes bleed.

      2. IsJustabloke
        Trollface

        Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

        "The daily sacrifice of a virgin also helps (getting harder to find these days)"

        Is wales running out of sheep then?

        1. DiViDeD

          Re: You Just Need to Have Faith

          "Is wales running out of sheep then?"

          No, it's just running out of the sort of pure, unsullied sheep you can take home to meet your mother.

          Or sacrifice to the technology gods.

    2. FrankAlphaXII

      Re: You Just Need to Have Faith No More

      See title.

      FTFY.

      And honestly, the lyrics to "Falling to Pieces" seem to suit the situation here pretty well.

  8. Lee D Silver badge

    Rule #1:

    Always keep a record.

    Your boss wants you to do something stupid? Keep a record. Get their name on it. Make a fuss if they won't do it. Keep records even if they won't sign off. Who said what, when, how, and where? Get to the point where they just scribble a sign-off or fire off the email which says "Yes, dammit, I said do it!".

    You're getting complaints? Keep a record. Record what the complaint was. What the stats and systems said about the claims in that complaint. Keep the email logs. Keep recordings. Keep all available context.

    You're making a complaint? Keep a record. Record everything. Their response. Check if they have fixed it regularly.

    Certainly if you are reporting publicly and therefore likely to run into situations like this.

    1. paulf
      Thumb Up

      Isn't CYA* a good life lesson at all times anyway? Quietly apply it to your every day life; you never know when you may need it, but when you do you'll be glad you have it. Many a time it has got me out of a sticky situation and adversaries really hate it when you hit back with facts and evidence!

      *Cover Your Arse for the uninitiated

    2. Primus Secundus Tertius

      Record keeping gone mad! There is an ancient ditty:

      ---

      No-one on this Earth was meant

      To remember or invent

      What they did wth every cent.

      ---

      1. Lee D Silver badge

        In the modern age, it's really easy.

        Make sure all your stuff is electronic.

        Then just keep all your emails.

        I signed my last lease agreement, my mortgage, my divorce, etc. all electronically. Employment contracts - If they aren't already electronic, I scan them in and email to myself.

        My email account goes back to about 2000. I have the email accounts before that in a file somewhere (it's only about 1Gb). In work, I have policies that basically all result in "if you want this, file a ticket, fill out a form, put it in an email" and then helpdesk tracking of everything and EVERY EMAIL ever sent or received from my account since I started there.

        It's really not that hard, in the modern era.

      2. ArrZarr Silver badge

        Ancient? That ditty sounds American so I can only presume that this was coined in the Left-Pondian prehistory. 1920s maybe?

        1. DropBear

          There seem to be more caveats to this than trees in the forest, honestly. Yes, record keeping can be invaluable protection in certain situations, but... not if you ever wavered or caved to the pressure from above to do something you shouldn't have agreed to do. Not if you were ever in the situation of not being able to afford to test how far you can stretch your rope before it snaps. Not if you ever made a mistake in the "how to get other people do what I want" game which is definitely manglement's home turf, and very likely not yours. Not if "they" were savvy enough to invent a plausible excuse to keep communication out of the sphere that would allow you any meaningful record keeping beyond "I assert that this is what he told me but I have zero proof".

          And while you're at it, you better have the unerring judgement of a God each and every single time even under the fuzzy conditions of real life, because if you vigorously object to something that turns out to not be a problem they'll burn you to ashes, and if you fail to object to something that does end up being a problem you'll burn again. Record keeping: good advice? Sure, but also incredibly overrated...

          1. hplasm
            Devil

            However...

            " Record keeping: good advice? Sure, but also incredibly overrated..."

            BOSSOID: "...why didn't YOU DO THIS????!!!!"

            YOU: "Er, when did you ask me to? Do you have the email...?"

            CYA: Unlocked.

    3. Tim99 Silver badge
      Devil

      Manglement

      Rule #1: I went on a public service senior managers course about 30 years ago. One of the lecturers told us a valuable saw: The main purpose of most documents generated in an organization is to act as a weapon - The weapon can be defensive or offensive, and often can be both...

      1. Prst. V.Jeltz Silver badge
        Alien

        Re: records

        Its this sort of obsessive record keeping that prompted my grandparents to leave vogspere and emigrate en masse to the Brantisvogon star cluster, where they formed most of the Galactic bureaucracy.

  9. Wellyboot Silver badge
    Facepalm

    Management style

    Excellent – a quality rebuttal.

    Their statement say a lot about the mindset of upper management running Atari if they think modern journalists don't keep everything that might one day be required to defend a defamation case and that casual libel is ok.

    As this blog has been made available in the UK you can probably take Atari to the cleaners in court here (settle for a grovelling live apology at the next big CES).

    Finally the trump like 'sad' at the end, please no!

  10. Bavaria Blu
    Happy

    Atari - what is that?

    I think most people think Atari is the character in Isle of Dogs. I wouldn't let it get to you. Relax!

    1. ArrZarr Silver badge
      Coat

      Re: Atari - what is that?

      No, silly - Atari is the situation when your group has only one liberty remaining.

    2. Flocke Kroes Silver badge

      Re: Atari - what is that?

      Getting hit on the head by a falling star? Oops, no that is Ataru.

      お住所とお電話番号を教えて下さい.

      1. DropBear
        Joke

        Re: Atari - what is that?

        Wait, it isn't the name of that TV series with Judy the chimp...?!?

        1. jelabarre59

          Re: Atari - what is that?

          Wait, it isn't the name of that TV series with Judy the chimp...?!?

          Close... It's a John Wayne movie.

      2. Chris Leeson

        Cherry-picking the references, eh?

        Have an upvote for mentioning Urusei Yatsura - the second manga I read and the first anime I watched.

  11. Noonoot

    Does the COO know what Atari is selling?

    As per title.

    Dear Companies who think they are amazing,

    When you have someone presenting a product or representing your company, make sure they actually know what the product is, does, state it's in, when it's going to be released. Don't put someone who uhms and ahs throughout the whole interview.

    This was like watching the recent Mexico Germany world-cup match. El Reg is wearing the sombrero and is prepared for everything, and Mikey thinks he's smart, but sadly he isn't.

    1. WolfFan Silver badge

      Re: Does the COO know what Atari is selling?

      oh, it's more like that than you might think. Recall that Die Welt said that Germany was gonna build a wall prior to the match... http://www.sportingnews.com/soccer/news/world-cup-2018-germany-mexico-wall-newspaper-welt/t3r5e4clpfcvz57siy62x59x

      Yes, folks, Germany, home of the Berlin Wall, was gonna build a wall to stop Mexico... who went over, under, and mostly through the wall. Well, the Mango Maniac is, after all, Cherman. Can we send him back, please?

  12. Tigra 07
    Thumb Up

    This made for brilliant reading. I can't wait to listen to the interview later!

  13. heyrick Silver badge
    Happy

    So I take it...

    ...that this is another hype-happy outfit with a five letter name beginning with A that's never going to invite you to another publicity bash ever?

    Well, "Acorn" is no longer (at least, not the one I remember). Who's left?

    1. Sgt_Oddball
      Headmaster

      Re: So I take it...

      Acorn still exist, in fact they're responsible for most processors on the planet. Though they do go by a different name now. Namely Acorn RISC machine before being renamed Advanced DISC machine.

      1. heyrick Silver badge

        Re: So I take it...

        ARM split off from Acorn circa 1990. Acorn itself carried on afterwards.

  14. XioNYC

    VCS: Videogame Console Shenanigans

    It is glaringly evident that Arzt doesn't know Jack. Tramiel would have risen from his grave and to rip Mike a new POKEY over the original article; who knows what he would have done over this latest ANTIC.

    Atari, for better or worse, suffered from Vaporware Connotation Syndrome: they'd name a product, show off a prototype, get delayed, and then cancel the whole project - but at least they had a working prototype, detailed design notes, and/or engineers explaining their intentions in concrete terms! This new Atari is not what it used to be just as "VCS" has gained a new meaning: "Videogame Console Shenanigans".

    Atari owes two apologies: one for having wasted Kieren McCarthy's time at GDC and another for forcing Kieren McCarthy's to waste even more time re-burying Atari in its own BS.

  15. Vanir
    Holmes

    This feels familiar

    It feels like a Star Citizen story.

    Get dreamers, err investors, to stump up cash to produce a prototype of a product.

    HerdFunding is whats I calls it. Except the herd is going to the slaughterhouse.

    1. Jedit Silver badge

      "It feels like a Star Citizen story."

      You might say that something pongs about Atari's new console project. And I'm greatly disappointed that the Reg headline maker didn't.

  16. SVV

    More retro vapourware?

    I have a feeling that all they'll be left with is a bit of a bad Pong.

  17. Hans 1
    FAIL

    Specs look unrealistic

    Specs:

    AMD x86 CPU

    Graphics: 4K graphics card, for gaming

    OS: Linux

    Price is $250

    They also want modern games on it. Now, how can you use an AMD APU in that price range ? Are they gonna use off the shelf Ryzen 3 and GPU ? Have they seen GPU prices ?

    They appear to be working on a new version of Tempus, the word processor, why ???

    1. sqlrob

      Re: Specs look unrealistic

      <blockquote>Now, how can you use an AMD APU in that price range </blockquote>

      PS4 - $299

      XBox One- $199

      Both AMD. Now, they're bigger companies, so expecting $250 from Atari is probably a pipe dream. I'm suspicious about it, but it doesn't seem entirely out of the realm of possibility.

      1. Hans 1
        Holmes

        Re: Specs look unrealistic

        PS4 - $299

        XBox One- $199

        NOT LAUNCH PRICES and here we are talking VOLUMES Atari cannot dream of attaining, and suppliers will NEVER buy into that if Atari were to try.

        Please, please, please, when you don't know anything about hardware sales please refrain.

        For a $250 product, Atari have like $80 for components, tops, really, tops!

        No sales channel. No trust from suppliers or vendors.

        All Atari have is a brand name that should have raked in billions over the years but was mismanaged.

        Anything born after 1990 never knew Atari.

        Break up those $2 000 000 between board members and close offices already.

    2. FrankAlphaXII

      Re: Specs look unrealistic

      They could be using a Ryzen 5 2400G APU or a Ryzen 3 2200G which is even cheaper.

      The retail price for the 2400G is 169 dollars, which buying in volume would make much cheaper, I'm sure it can do 4K since the graphics chipset is an AMD Vega. It would still technically be an AMD x86 CPU and a 4K graphics card.

      1. Lodmot347

        Re: Specs look unrealistic

        I agree.

        And this fits with why Michael said they're looking at a different chip. They don't want to repeat the Ouya and make the mistake of releasing obsolete hardware.

  18. Rameses Niblick the Third Kerplunk Kerplunk Whoops Where's My Thribble?

    Wow, I've just listened to the full interview, and frankly it's painful. Barely a straight answer in the 30 minutes, hedging like a bad politician, it was truly terrible. Why on earth would Atari want to draw attention to this? I guess they hoped that either 1) El Reg just wouldn't notice the comment, or 2) Hadn't kept the interview audio. I hope someone has responded to the thread with a link to this article!

    1. Rob D.

      Personally ...

      30 minutes of pain for a massive tick in the box on the personal objectives list and associated remuneration, company results be damned?

  19. MachDiamond Silver badge

    Refundable reservation deposits

    The current tactic with new products these days is to create a buzz, cobble up a prototype, take very dramatic photos and create some virtual videos showing what the product will do when finished and then announce that you are accepting advance deposits to hold a place in line for the first production run. After all of that is done, you finish (or start) the engineering. You don't invite in members of the press for what they believe will be a test drive or to allow them a very close look at the prototype. Some of them may have a built in immunity to Hype. Getting a bunch of deposits should fund the product. If it doesn't, you either do some back filling until more dosh comes in, send everybody their money back with a lame excuse or BK the company and move to Monaco.

  20. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Questioning journalistic integrity is always going to result in pathetic name calling or complete beat down, particularly if provable facts are involved.

    Nothing will piss off a decent journalist more. It's good to see. Article is epic.

  21. Rob D.
    Joke

    Management development plan

    Michael Arzt, we think you need more training in the fine art of evasion, question ducking, bullet dodging and a general ability to lie convincingly beyond the edge of normal human endurance in the face of overwhelming evidence (plastic, audio or otherwise) when conducting interviews with the press.

    Please find attached your voucher for a full term at the Sarah Huckabee Sanders School for Media Relations. Come back a better man.

    1. ArrZarr Silver badge
      Coat

      Re: Management development plan

      Maybe the Vega+ guys could make some money back offering training.

  22. Kinetic
    Facepalm

    I can't believe the Ref didn't stop the fight!

    Seriously, that was rather one sided. It wasn't even sporting. Next time we need a handicapping system. Say the reg journo has to use words with a maximum length of for letters? That should go well....

    1. heyrick Silver badge

      Re: I can't believe the Ref didn't stop the fight!

      Use real easy text and boss guy will know what it does mean.

      [it's actually harder than it looks, to stick to four letters or less]

      1. Martin an gof Silver badge

        Re: I can't believe the Ref didn't stop the fight!

        [it's actually harder than it looks, to stick to four letters or less]

        Surely it'd be more sporting to use the rules of Just a Minute or, better still, Just a Minim!

        M.

  23. Rob D.
    Pint

    Carefully blended

    A fun read/listen. Beer recommended for the exquisite blend of nostalgia and public humiliation of a deserving kind with an aftertaste of a Dilbert cartoon I'm absolutely certain I must have seen.

    1. hplasm
      Thumb Up

      Re: Carefully blendedPint Carefully blended

      "a deserving kind with an aftertaste of a Dilbert cartoon "

      Never go the full Dogbert...

  24. This post has been deleted by its author

  25. teamonster

    What do you expect when you put a Marketing idiot in charge of a tech project?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      "What do you expect when you put a Marketing idiot in charge of a tech project?"

      Not precisely the words I used to one MD when I handed in my notice, but pretty close. Not so much the writing on the wall as the ten foot high graffiti on the bridge over a big river.

    2. Lodmot347

      To be perfectly frank, that's probably why Michael wasn't able to answer a lot of the questions very well. He's good at being a project manager and making sure everyone does their job, but he may know less about the technical tidbits than other team members. I work at a software company and see that at work sometimes. :P

  26. Aristotles slow and dimwitted horse

    The only Atari thing I see these days...

    The only Atari thing I see these days is the odd wanky hipster type wearing an Atari logo t-shirt in a vain attempt to appear retro. Ironically enough, and similar to this new console, that attempt doesn't work either.

  27. Anonymous South African Coward Bronze badge
  28. Sonny Jim

    Meanwhile...

    The modern game they've announced is Tempest 4K and the developer of said game had no idea that it was being released on the VCS:

    http://www.yakyak.org/viewtopic.php?p=1681740#p1681740

    For context, Atari and Llamasoft have had a long history together, although they did have a falling out recently due to one of their games being too similar to Tempest. My guess is that the announcement of T4K was due to someone at Atari wanting to play silly buggers with them.

    1. Lodmot347

      Re: Meanwhile...

      Of course you also fail to mention that Llamasoft have actually somewhat retracted their statement and said that they ARE actually going to release the game on the VCS:

      https://www.hardcoregamer.com/2018/06/08/tempest-4000-officially-coming-for-atari-vcs/301582/

      Keep in mind, Atari didn't say that, Llamasoft did.

      1. Sonny Jim

        Re: Meanwhile...

        I hadn't seen that update from Giles, although my point still stands (kinda) in that Atari announced it for VCS before even speaking to Llamasoft about it.

  29. cs9

    Apology accepted

    ^^ Title

  30. EveryTime

    This is why...

    This is why Apple still snubs you, decades later.

    Reporters are supposed to uncritically re-write the press release. If you can't find synonyms in the dictionary, the PR people are there to help you. Many even provide ghost writing services, although they sometimes don't adhere to the column-inches limit.

    And then, once finished with the story, forget everything about the company and product. And never, ever go back and look and compare their statements with previous stories about the company.

  31. Steve Hersey

    Stopped the process at "launch day" and STILL weren't committed to a specific chip?

    I smell BS coming from Atari in this interview. No major project that is real and being responsibly managed gets THAT close to its release date and then decides, "Well, maybe we'll just change the fundamental CPU architecture." By the time you're carrying engineering prototypes to trade shows to show them off, you damn' well better have settled on a chip architecture. Once settled, you only change that under dire circumstances. Even if the replacement is essentially identical, you don't delay the project for things that "would be nice." Delays to an almost-ready project cost a LOT of money.

    The Atari bloke's statements make it clear that the project is nowhere near the state of readiness they would like us to think it is in.

    Having listened to the rest of the excerpts, it's even a bit worse than that. They went all the way to a "product launch" when they knew they didn't have working *engineering prototype* hardware (else they'd have been willing to show at least a don't-touch-this static display of an operating prototype.

  32. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I wonder if anyone

    Has printed this out and pinned it to the Atari boardroom door

    1. Huw D

      Re: I wonder if anyone

      "Has printed this out multiple times and pinned it to the Atari board of directors, using nails and a hammer"

      That's better.

  33. MudFever

    Old tat re-boot

    Yet another failed reboot of old tat. A fool and his money are soon parted.

    What's wrong with a PC / MAC emulator or if you prefer a crappy experience you could always download the Android / iPhone equivalent.

    And if you did buy one of those how long would you use or keep it for before realising that they are not longer used for a reason and sling it in the bin?

  34. cd

    There's a distinct pong coming off this article.

  35. jockmcthingiemibobb

    Duh-Tari

    The fun is back

    Oh yes siri

    A fake piece of plastic

    From duh tari

  36. Luiz Abdala

    I miss the old days...

    ...when the hardware said (lets use IBM) "IBM" outside.

    You could be sure that every. single. chunk. inside. said IBM, or Made by IBM, or manufactured at [IBM address]. Every single part had the IBM logo, either embossed, or printed, or had at least a sticker. Every manual was carefully constructed, detailed, that even an idiot (hello, myself at age 16) could take it apart with a Phillips screwdriver. And it had pictures! Changing hard drives? Page 18! Adding RAM? Page 12! Your wife dumped you? Annex 12-b! It looked like they gave a fresh box to an intern and told him to put it together, and everything that went wrong on a statistical significance was logged and added to the manual.

    Even things like flash a BIOS using a freaking bootable DOS disk were detailed, from which file to download, to "insert disk on drive a:" to how to find the reset button on the carcass of your model. They took you by the hand, and politely opened the limo door for you while holding an umbrella. You felt a VALUED CUSTOMER, you felt CARED.

    These days, everything is licensed, it betrays the confidence you placed on this or that company, because almost ANYTHING is done through third-parties, where the Main company does NOT vouch for their warranty, or quality, or whatever.

    (Not everybody. Shout out to AMD, that replaced me a Ryzen that never booted with a new one. RMA and a fresh proc across 2 continents in 15 days.)

    We lost something valuable here.

    1. Inventor of the Marmite Laser Silver badge

      Re: I miss the old days...

      Still didn't tell you where the "any" key was

      1. jake Silver badge

        Re: I miss the old days...

        The "any key" is on the underside of your keybr0ad, as any fule kno ... No, really! Next time your computer asks you to press any key, turn your keyboard over. I guarantee that you'll find any key. (Source: Impromptu tech support for upper manglement, Bigger Blue, early 1981.)

  37. TsVk!

    I'm a little disappointed to be honest. I have high hopes for this console. Maybe the company is just totally shit at PR (techie in a single room for years on end alien syndrome) and the console will be decent when it finally makes it to the public.

    Jury is still out here.

  38. harmjschoonhoven
    Coat

    To be honest,

    it is not unusual if you point at a brandnew product on show at the IBC and ask whether you can buy it and what it will cost, panic will break out because it is only a (working) prototype. BTW the IBC and funerals are the only venues I visit with suit and (normal resp. black) tie. It helps to get answers.

    Mine is the one with the inflatable tank in the pocket.

  39. Lodmot347

    You're in the wrong, not Atari

    I'm know I'm going to be the minority here, but I actually don't see too much of a problem with the answers that Michael gave. I also find it very interesting how in the edited audio clips, you cleverly leave out certain important pieces that Michael said, possibly with the intent to make him look worse. Read on, and I'll go over exactly what I mean.

    At one point you ask him what the aspects were that needed improving, that caused the Indiegogo launch to be delayed. Michael actually tells you that they weren't happy with the design of the modern controller, and they weren't certain about various partners (which they were likely waiting to announce on the Indiegogo campaign page). Yet you left that detail out of the trimmed audio clip you provided.

    Another audio clip you have is one where Michael makes a euphemism saying "he'd have to kill you", and you trimmed the audio clip to make it sound out-of-context. Immediately after you trimmed the clip, he actually says, "You know, that old joke," which obviously implies he wasn't attempting to be as hostile as you make it seem.

    Next, Michael is probably in a position where he's signed various NDA's, so it's very possible he WASN'T ALLOWED to talk about various games and content because other developers DON'T WANT HIM TO.

    Thirdly, you keep mentioning that it's unusual for game companies to go through with console/product launches the way Atari is doing it. What you fail to realize is, Atari isn't exactly in the same *position* as other game companies and console makers. They're making strategic decisions on what they announce and when to announce it, because the team is trying to revive a brand that quite frankly is a laughing stock to a lot of gamers, and to others, it's seen as a relic of gaming history. They're trying to take their steps very carefully, and they want it to be major when they announce something new, and they want the final product to be great when it releases.

    Lastly, I just want to say that if Atari aren't ready to tell us something yet, they don't have to. When Nintendo was working on the Switch back when it was known as the NX, rumors and leaks spread around the internet about the console, but nobody was badgering Nintendo for details they didn't feel like sharing, as you are with Atari. I find that to be unfair. It's also none of your business to know precisely what was fixed or improved, or what Atari is working on internally that they're not ready to announce.... I'm surprised you didn't bug Mike to know about their other products and accessories when he mentioned them being in the works...

    1. Kevin Fairhurst

      Re: You're in the wrong, not Atari

      Different processors have different power and thermal - and therefore cooling - requirements. If you’re contemplating changing the CPU that lump of plastic you’re waving around goes in the bin and you *start again*.

      No amount of “he might be under an NDA” changes that one iota. It’s all vapourware.

      1. Lodmot347

        Re: You're in the wrong, not Atari

        Remember the Ouya? One of the big reasons people criticized that console was because the tech in it was extremely outdated. In the interview here, Michael mentions they're looking at a possible newer AMD CPU. Isn't it a *good* thing that Atari is trying not to repeat the mistake Ouya made? I would think so...

        Also, I'm not sure how being under an NDA somehow doesn't give someone the excuse to hold certain information from journalists. I mean, that's why it's called a non-disclosure agreement...

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: You're in the wrong, not Atari

      You're either a shill, or a credulous moron.

      The guy didn't answer the questions because he doesn't have the answers because they don't have a real product. Did you also pre-order a Phantom console? How many Star Citizen spaceships have you bought?

      It's amazing that even today people still fall for this crap.

      1. Lodmot347

        Re: You're in the wrong, not Atari

        So instead of showing me tangible proof that they don't have any internal builds of the system, you decide to call me names and expect that I'll just agree with you.

        1. Alistair
          Windows

          Re: You're in the wrong, not Atari

          I'll let you off on the *shill* tag, but from post history, you seem about 13 or 15 and decidedly trollish.

          I have, since I've looked over the evidence, seen nothing that proves that they *do* have internal builds of the system. So, you can live with the original shill tag.

          There is something to be said for NDA's. They make a *GREAT* excuse, "I'm sorry, that question falls inside an NDA, and I can't respond."

          Persons who are expected to be executive material typically are expected to be prepared to answer all sorts of wild off the map questions, not act like a 15 year old accused of drinking daddy's gin and watering it down.

        2. Belperite

          Re: You're in the wrong, not Atari

          And yet, here we are, well over a year later, and still nothing.

  40. Maelstorm Bronze badge
    FAIL

    Hey el Reg, you messed up some facts in your article...

    This here is wrong: "We made no mention of the fact that there is every reason to believe that Atari's entire enterprise is being funded by hype and that the only way the company can afford to create even its first console is by persuading people to hand over their cash before the company itself has a working prototype."

    This is by far not first console with the Atari name. Atari used to make consoles back in the 1980s. The one that most people remember was the Atari 2600. There were other consoles, and even some computers during that time. But then they got kicked out of the market and went to being a software only company. And before someone says something, there was a number of mergers and acquisitions as well.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atari

    As for Atari, if they go through the trouble to get an el Reg reporter in there, then perhaps they should have shown more than some plastic. Instead, they just wasted everyone's time. el Reg called them out on it, and rightly so. If they want to get a product to market quickly, maybe they should get in bed with V-Tech. At least then it can be marketed to the Fisher-Price age group which seems to be about the same age/intelligence rating of the current executive staff.

    "Atari is so full of crap that it should be labeled as a hazardous waste zone." LOL LOL LOL British humor at it's finest.

  41. Will Godfrey Silver badge
    Pint

    So Good

    I just got back from a grueling morning of wor, wo, doing stuff and saw this. I feel bright and happy again now.

    Beers all round.

  42. ZootCadillac

    I feel I have to take umbrage with the opening phrase "Legendary games company Atari" as i feel what follows is a terrible disservice to the once great name. Because this really isn't Atari is it? It's a small French games company named Infogrames Interactive ( eventually, they had a few renames as assets came their way) who had early success in that boom and went on a splurge buying up other struggling games companies including, Ocean International, Gremlin Interactive, GT Interactive and Hasbro Interactive which the latter, fortunately for them came with the Microprose assets plus the Atari brand name and it's intellectual property. Subsequently the company was renamed Atari Inc. and that's where we are today.

    A look into their history shows some colossal losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars almost on a yearly basis and the holding company and subsidiaries spent a couple of years in chapter 11 bankruptcy.

    I had the misfortune to have some dealings with them some years back. They don't take criticism at all well and they certainly do not like any scrutiny about their dealings or being reminded of the facts.

  43. yossarianuk

    Screw Atari scum.

    Amiga rulez!

  44. Brian Allan 1

    Hey, retro costs money... If you're willing to gamble!

    1. jake Silver badge

      No, Brian, it doesn't.

      All I have to do is dig through my "attic", instant retro. Being a packrat has it's advantages ... unless you need to move.

      Gambling is for rubes and suckers. The house never gambles.

  45. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Offending article removed

    Well, Atari have cunningly trimmed the FB responses and removed all the posts referring to this article; thus making them once again look like the heroes they aren't!

  46. Booh
    FAIL

    So, about an hour before reading this article, our Atari Flashback 3 let forth the magic smoke. I suspect a power supply problem as the electrolytic caps went. I would have been up for a VCS, but this guy's arrogance has spoiled my appetite somewhat!

    I guess I own the ROM still, and I remember running MAME on a 486, so I imagine I can quite legally run the 60 titles on a five or ten dollar ARM board, right?

  47. defiler

    I know it's late in the day for this comment, but it just amused me greatly that I've just had a sidebar advert on this very website inviting me to the Indiegogo page for the Atari VCS.

    Did I click? Of course I did! Did I buy? Ummm - nope.

  48. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Atari VCS Indiegogo question

    Does anyone know if an Indiegogo campaign can block comments or a backer of a campaign?

  49. Alistair
    Windows

    Kieren:

    Is it possible that the gentleman is blind, perhaps, or simply unaware of the object sitting on the table in front of him was an audio recording device? Could he perhaps have a very large blind spot? Has he resigned and run off to Bora Bora, or some other small, remote, isolated pacific island?

    ______________

    There might be those that quibble about the editing of the clips as posted vs the full length interview, but, come *on*, you don't invite a well known journal with the subhead Biting the hand that feeds IT to an interview and gladhanding exercise without being prepared with appropriate bullshit answers. And I don't know sweet FA about this new toy they're launching, but even so, I'd have appropriate toilet blocker quotes for (what are in my view) bog standard techie questions in that situation. It is abundantly clear to me that the executive was utterly unprepared to answer anything remotely like a technical question, and if it were me in the CEO seat, that poor bastard would be on the street, rather than the shit that they've posted on their side....

  50. John PM Chappell

    I almost backed it ...

    ... so glad I didn't.

    I have a Kickstarter habit, much to my wife's chagrin, and on the whole it's paid off, though many projects have run late or been a little disappointing in the final execution. This one looked promising, though I never owend the original hardware, but it was just a little too light on details, and I questioned what exactly it was bringing to the table aside from a household name. I decided to pass but I remain on their mailing list. As the saga has dragged on, I am so glad I resisted the temptation. At this point, it is literally the definition of a scam, I am afraid; it even makes Star Citizen (another tempting proposition, but Roberts' track record made me hesitate, thankfuly) look above board.

    If anything ever comes of it, I'll be moderately surprised, but I still think it will tank. Retro is all well and good, but what else does it have? No licences, too high a price ... sorry, this is DoA, if it ever even arrives.

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