Intellivision: Gone However Not Forgotten

Sooner or later in 1979, throughout Christmas break, I sneaked into my mother and father’ bed room whereas they had been away, hoping to catch a glimpse of what “Santa” is likely to be bringing. I used to be sure that this was the 12 months I might obtain the Atari 2600 I had been begging for each Christmas and birthday over the previous two years. I slid open the closet door ever so quietly, paranoid that they could hear me, regardless that they had been miles away on the time.

Among the many numerous procuring luggage holding what was clearly Christmas loot ready to be wrapped, I noticed a big field marked “Intellivision.”

It was not like something I had ever seen earlier than. Clearly, it was a gaming system – I might inform from the handfuls of screenshots adorning the field. Nonetheless, it wasn’t the Atari 2600. “Nice,” I assumed sarcastically. “Mother and Dad opted for a budget knock-off…”

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I had no real interest in taking part in it – I wished an Atari or nothing. Nonetheless, a number of days later, whereas my mother and father had been out once more, curiosity acquired the higher of me. I went again to the closet, fastidiously famous the field’s orientation, after which took it out for a more in-depth inspection. Not one of the screenshots resembled video games I acknowledged, however the graphics appeared a lot better than these of the Atari’s.

I meticulously peeled again the seal, making certain I might reseal it, and systematically unboxed it to make sure every thing may very well be returned to its unique state. I used to be decided to do this system out.

To my shock, I beloved it, regardless that I solely acquired to play the Blackjack recreation that got here with it. Throughout a second secretive session, I had the possibility to check out the formally licensed “Superior Dungeons and Dragons” recreation. The disk pad controller required some adjustment, however the gameplay utterly gained me over.

To at the present time, I nonetheless argue with my cousins that my Intellivision was higher than their Atari. Nonetheless, whereas Atari went on to make different extra highly effective methods, Intellivision quietly disappeared. What ever happened to the model that hooked me on console gaming greater than 40 years in the past?

The mission: To beat Atari

The mission was clear: to outshine Atari. It was the peak of the second era of console gaming, when Mattel launched its Intellivision “Grasp Element” in 1979 for $275, a steep value on the time (equal to $1,246 in 2024 when adjusted for inflation).

Atari had already revived an business flooded with first-gen Pong knockoffs by releasing the Atari 2600 in 1977. The 2-year headstart gave Atari a definite benefit because it snatched up a big slice of the market. Licensing offers for video video games that had been hits within the arcades, together with Namco’s Pac-Man, House Invaders, and Konami’s Frogger, would cement the console’s maintain within the business.

That is to not say that the Intellivision lacked nice unique and licensed video games. Mattel licensed Pac-Man and it was far superior on its platform, which we’ll get to in a second. However the console additionally featured some extremely addictive video games that saved me taking part in effectively previous my bedtime.

One among my favorites was Superior Dungeons & Dragons. As an enormous fan of tabletop D&D, the Intellivision online game shortly topped my listing. Mattel licensed it from TSR, however the recreation was basically an unique idea. In reality, it was the primary ever D&D online game. I appreciated it for its resemblance to the tabletop model, providing a sooner tempo with out the necessity for cube rolling.

Astrosmash was one other standout unique IP. It mixed parts of House Invaders and Asteroids. Regardless of the chunky graphics, they had been nonetheless superior to something out there on Atari. The sport tempo began off slowly, permitting gamers to get the cling of it, however the problem ramped up considerably after about 20 ranges. It was the primary recreation I ever mastered and will play indefinitely.

Just a few years later, Mattel launched the Intellivoice “voice synthesis module” together with a collection of appropriate video games. The most effective of the bunch was B-17 Bomber. It was a simple recreation targeted on dropping bombs from the bomb bay. Nonetheless, the spotlight of the sport was the voice, which may finest be described as a robotic with a Tennessee accent. To at the present time, I can not assist however chuckle after I consider that voice.

Mattel Electronics started growing a gaming system known as Intellivision in 1977, the identical 12 months that the Atari 2600 launched. It will take two years earlier than Mattel was able to launch the system and solely 5 extra earlier than abandoning the model. Nonetheless, it made such an impression that the long-lasting console was by no means forgotten and is, in truth, making a comeback.

Atari 2600 Pac-Man

Certainly, Mattel supposed to offer Atari a run for its cash, and the delayed launch allowed it to outshine the 2600 with extra refined graphics and higher audio.

An instance of Intellivision’s superior efficiency is seen when evaluating its Pac-Man port with the Atari 2600’s (above and beneath). As you’ll be able to see, Mattel managed a reasonably devoted copy of Namco’s arcade hit. Atari? Not a lot…

Intellivision Pac-Man

What set Intellivision aside from Atari was its processor. The Atari 2600 used an 8-bit MOS Expertise 6507 running at 1.19 MHz, whereas Mattel equipped the Intellivision with a 16-bit 2 MHz CP1600, developed in partnership between Normal Devices and Honeywell in 1975.

What’s stunning is that 16-bit machines would not grow to be widespread till two extra console generations had handed. Moreover, the Intellivision featured a three-channel sound chip, permitting for superior music and sound results. Mattel highlighted these benefits by means of a collection of print and TV ads that includes George Plimpton, which supplied side-by-side comparisons of the 2 consoles (see beneath).

The superior efficiency of the Intellivision led to its heat reception, with Mattel promoting out its total first-year manufacturing run of 175,000 items. The next 12 months, gross sales reached 200,000 items. In 1981, Mattel elevated manufacturing and bought over a million consoles. By 1983, gross sales had exceeded 3 million items – a exceptional achievement for a gaming system that was priced higher than an automatic dishwasher on the time.

The one factor working towards the Intellivision, apart from its price, had been the controllers. Most gamers had been conversant in the usage of joysticks and one or two buttons, mirroring the arcade expertise. Atari caught with custom when designing the CX-40, a simple single-button joystick. In distinction, Mattel adopted a radically totally different method, producing a controller that extra carefully resembled a tv distant than a conventional recreation controller.

The Intellivision featured two wired controllers that docked on the console’s high. Every controller boasted a 16-directional disc on the base, a 12-button keypad on the entrance, and two facet inputs.

Whereas the design allowed builders so as to add extra interfacing choices to their video games, it additionally required plastic overlays that slid in over the keypad to show what every button did. These would typically get bent and grow to be annoying to insert. The disk was additionally onerous on the thumb because the pores and skin would inevitably rub uncooked on the raised plastic encircling the pad.

The keyboard part and different unhealthy concepts

What’s in a reputation? Mattel’s gaming system was generally known as merely “the Intellivision.” Nonetheless, as the corporate licensed the console out, it fell below different monikers.

As an illustration, Sears known as it “Tremendous Video Arcade,” and Radio Shack branded it “Tandyvision One.” Nonetheless, Mattel’s unique designation of “Intellivision Grasp Element” had a big that means as a result of it was supposed to be the core of a complete different system meant to convey house computer systems to the buyer.

Paradoxically, this imaginative and prescient turned out to be a part of Mattel’s failure within the gaming sector.

The corporate supposed to launch a keyboard part shortly after the Grasp Element launch. Mattel announced the 2 merchandise throughout CES 1979 in Las Vegas. The “Keyboard Element,” because it was formally known as, was large. Mattel designed it in order that the Grasp Element would connect inside it. It was so large that its inside codename was the “Blue Whale.”

Mattel wished to launch the Keyboard Element in the summertime of 1980 for a similar value because the Grasp Element ($275). Nonetheless, it was plagued with delays. By December 1979, the corporate had decided that the manufacturing prices had been too excessive and tasked engineers with utterly redesigning the internals.

By late 1980, Mattel lastly had an virtually accomplished product to release right into a check market in Fresno, California. “Nearly accomplished” as a result of it launched with solely the BASIC Programming cartridge relatively than the software program promised within the tv adverts it had already run (beneath). It is unclear how effectively it carried out in that check market, nevertheless it seemingly did not do effectively as a result of it could be one other 12 months of labor earlier than the keyboard would see one other trial launch.

Within the fall of 1981, Mattel conducted a restricted launch of the Keyboard Element in Seattle and New Orleans at a whopping $600 – greater than twice its initially marketed value. Nonetheless, the worth level was not wholly unreasonable, contemplating the gadget was not only a peripheral.

The Keyboard Element had an 8-bit 6502 processor, which gave customers a dual-processor pc when mixed with the Grasp Element. The 2 processors might act independently, creating one thing like a composite graphical output. That’s to say, the 6502 might output a “high-resolution” 40×24 textual content overlay on high of the CP1610’s graphics.

The Keyboard Element additionally had 16KB of shared RAM, which doesn’t seem to be a lot by right now’s requirements, however contemplating a mean Intellivision cartridge was 4K, it was appreciable. The gadget additionally had a four-track built-in cassette tape drive with high-speed indexing, two growth ports for peripherals, a RAM growth port (as much as 64KB), and a microphone jack.

It was a superb house computing resolution on the time, and regardless of its obscene value level and the dearth of software program, it might have accomplished effectively. In reality, many households purchased the Grasp Element intending to select up the keyboard on launch. When Mattel didn’t ship the gadget when marketed, prospects complained. The FTC turned concerned and opened an investigation into Mattel for false promoting and fraud.

In mid-1982, the FTC ruled that Mattel was to pay a tremendous each month till the Keyboard Element was totally launched. Mattel then canceled the gadget. As a part of the FTC settlement, Mattel purchased again all items it had bought to check markets.

Those that selected to maintain the Keyboard Element needed to signal a waiver acknowledging they understood no different software program can be launched for it. They had been additionally given vouchers price $1,000 in Mattel Electronics merchandise. Nonetheless, the FTC nonetheless wished to see a launched gadget earlier than easing up on the fines. Thankfully, Mattel had an ace within the gap.

The struggles of the Keyboard Element created a rift in Mattel’s higher administration. When the division didn’t launch something by 1981, they started to fret that the gadget would by no means be marketable. In order that they arrange a separate secret division tasked with creating a less expensive and extra worthwhile machine. It was an introductory pc programming system for teenagers known as the “Fundamental Improvement System.” Designers saved the work secret as a result of administration feared that Keyboard Element head David Chandler would attempt to snuff the work.

Codenamed LUCKI (Low Consumer-Price Keyboard Interface), the gadget removed the dearer components utilized in its rival system. It lowered the RAM from 16KB to 2KB and ditched the secondary processor and the high-resolution textual content. It additionally went with a a lot easier cassette and printer interface. It plugged into the facet of the Grasp Element like a cartridge with a pass-through port on the alternative facet for recreation carts (or peripherals just like the Intellivoice pictured above).

The end result was considerably like a really unsophisticated Keyboard Element, with a built-in BASIC programming language that was very restricted in what it might do. Nonetheless, it was sufficient to get the FTC off Mattel’s again, in order that they modified the title to the Leisure Laptop System (ECS). It started advertising efforts through the 1982 vacation season and confirmed off the system at CES 1983. Earlier than the tip of that spring, the ECS launched below a brand new title, the Intellivision Laptop Module, and the FTC stopped the month-to-month fines.

Sadly, administration had grow to be disenchanted with providing {hardware} add-ons and determined to focus solely on software program. So earlier than the ECS might actually have a probability, Mattel pulled its advertising funds and stopped all additional improvement of upgrades already in progress. In the long run, the system solely had about six software program titles launched, with a number of others that had been accomplished however by no means launched.

Earlier than giving up, Mattel had had many different irons within the hearth the place {hardware} was involved. For instance, it efficiently launched a follow-up to the Grasp Element known as “Intellivision II.”

It was the identical as the unique, aside from its lowered measurement and decrease manufacturing price. It additionally launched the Intellivoice module, which added voice synthesis to some video games, nevertheless it by no means caught traction. It broke floor on a first-of-a-kind on-line recreation supply service operated by means of cable TV service suppliers, nevertheless it flopped because of excessive backend prices and {hardware} limitations.

The Intellivision III and IV had been in numerous planning and improvement levels, however neither noticed the sunshine of day.

The online game crash of 1983 in the end led to the shutdown of the Intellivision division. In 1984, Mattel bought the rights and property to a gaggle of former Mattel executives and traders. This group shaped the INTV Company, which continued to assist and develop the Intellivision model till 1990. That 12 months, the INTV Company declared chapter, and the Intellivision model was formally discontinued.

Retro revival: Intellivision Lives (on) and the Amico challenge

Regardless of chucking up the sponge in 1990, that was not the final we might hear from the Intellivision model. In 1997, former Intellivision programmers Keith Robinson and Stephen Roney bought all rights, together with video games, and shaped Intellivision Productions.

The corporate ported the video games to MSDOS and launched Intellivision for PC Quantity 1. It was a free obtain that included three video games and an emulator. They adopted up with volumes 2 and three and expanded the emulation to Home windows and Macintosh. The next 12 months the corporate launched Intellivision Lives!, adopted by Intellivision Rocks in 2001. These compilations included over 100 emulated video games on CD for DOS, Home windows, and Mac.

Consoles additionally noticed numerous Intellivision compilations. In a licensing cope with Intellivision Productions, Activision launched Intellivision Classics for the PlayStation in 1999. Likewise, Crave Leisure ported Intellivision Lives! to the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube.

Different publishers introduced variations of Intellivision Lives! to the Nintendo DS and the Xbox 360.

The surge in retro gaming additionally noticed a miniature console hit the market in 2014. Referred to as the Intellivision Flashback, the system had 60 on-board video games and two full-size controllers that had been actual replicas of the unique Intellivision.

In 2018, veteran online game music composer Tommy Tallarico introduced he had acquired the Intellivision model and shaped Intellivision Leisure. Later that 12 months, he unveiled the Intellivision Amico, a next-gen model of the beloved console. Make no mistake. The Amico was not meant to compete with the likes of the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Collection.

For a time, issues seemed to be going very effectively. The Amico was proven to be a retro system based mostly on funds Android-level {hardware} (8-core Snapdragon SoC, 2GB RAM, 32GB storage with microSD growth, 1080p HDMI output), greater than able to operating retro video games and considerably extra superior than the unique Grasp Element. A slick reimagined design in a smaller type issue with arguably pointless however cool LED lighting regarded good. The controllers harken again to the originals, however the disc pad is extra superior, and designers changed the bodily quantity pad with an LED display screen.

The video games introduced for the Amico, whereas retro in type, had been fashionable in substance. Classics comparable to Astrosmash, Superior Dungeons and Dragons (renamed Cloudy Mountain), Biplanes, and even Missile Command had been to be revived with beautiful new coats of paint and up to date gameplay mechanics.

The challenge raised over $11 million. Initially, the retro video games had been anticipated to price round $8, and the console was to retail for $180 with a launch date in October 2020. However that did not occur. Nor did subsequent rescheduled launch dates. By 2021, updates indicated that the console would pre-order for $250 – $300, and video games would price $20, diverging from the preliminary promise of exclusivity and affordability.

Finally, the Intellivision Amico challenge encountered insurmountable challenges. In November 2023, Intellivision acknowledged inadequate funds to finance the console’s manufacturing. As an alternative, they launched a cellular app known as Amico Home, enabling gameplay of few Amico titles on Android gadgets, with an iOS launch deliberate. Nonetheless, the applying acquired criticism for its lack of content material high quality and the requirement for 2 gadgets for gameplay – one to behave because the show and one other because the controller.

Regardless of preliminary enthusiasm from over 9,000 individuals who positioned refundable $100 deposits, reviving a basic model in right now’s gaming panorama proved to be an amazing problem. If something, the Amico challenge’s journey is a testomony to the enduring love for retro gaming and the neighborhood’s want to see beloved classics reborn.