As time goes on the Atari console comeback is inching closer and closer to a reality with the impending release of the Atari VCS. It seems like just yesterday Atari announced their triumphant return and the world collectively responded, “really?” However, as more and more details churn out from the developer of the console, it seems they’re making a sincere effort to make a run at the console market. The latest of this news is the announcement of a partnership with retro game streaming service Antstream Arcade to provide an exclusive library of games to the Atari VCS.
Antstream is bringing an aptly titled “Atari Edition” to their subscription service which will offer the largest collection of Atari titles ever available on one device, including some that have never been available for streaming before. Antstream has announced that these will be both enhanced and untouched “pure” editions of the classic titles. The enhanced editions will contain additional features such as multiplayer options and in-app challenges with Antstream.
At launch there will be 50 games available right out of the box, with a 30 day free trial of Antstream’s service. More games are planned to be added in over time and options to continue the Antstream service on your Atari VCS for either $9.99 a month or $95.88 a year, which would total to $7.99 a month. As of right now, Atari and Antstream have confirmed Adventure, Night Driver, Pong, Tempest 2000, and Yars Revenge, as well as the previously released Atari collections that have appeared on Playstation 4, Xbox One, and Steam.
The addition of all of these classic Atari games onto the VCS is obviously a good sign for the aspiring console, but one can’t help but feel they’re still fighting an uphill battle. There is a market for nostalgia and retro gaming, but that market is fairly niche and may not be receptive to the subscription based modeling of the service. The VCS has also announced some other interesting aspects such as being able to load up your own OS onto the device; a feature that Sony faced a lawsuit for after removing from their Playstation 3 console. Everything we’ve seen about the VCS screams that it’s not for audiences that aren’t nostalgic for the Atari 2600 or into the modding scene. However, Atari is still promising that the VCS is going to offer “All-new games” in addition to the classics; let’s just hope they pack some juicy reveals into the coming months to make this console more marketable.
You can read more about the Atari VCS and its list of features at their official website.
