Reinventing The Classics
How Atari is breathing new life into pedigree franchises
Atari on turning Pong into… an RPG?
Atari has been in and out of the news for the last couple of years and has been linked to everything from new consoles to hotels. The company is still releasing games, and like 2018’s Tempest 4000, the newly released Pong Quest and Missile Command: Recharged are modernised updates of true classics. We spoke to Atari’s VP of marketing, Tony Chien, and senior producers Simon Deal and Jason Polansky to find out more.
How do you select which games to modernise?
Tony Chien: The process of selecting which IP to reimagine depends on » various factors, including the concept, audience, platform and developer, among other things. It’s always exciting to hear from our fans about which game they would like to see modernised on new platforms, and we certainly consider this in our selection processes.
Why turn Pong into an RPG?
Simon Deal: Within the production team, we were ideating on some ideas for how we could bring something fresh to the table. At the same time, we are always looking to build relationships with great developers. We had seen some of the recent titles from Chequered Ink and we » » thought they would be a good fit for this project, although at that time we had not aligned on which game we were going to make. We had some discussions with them and one of the ideas they proposed was Pong as an RPG. We then proceeded to develop the initial concept in conjunction with Chequered Ink, and that subsequently built into a proposal that was put forward for official greenlight.
We are always looking at new games based on Atari IPS that we can bring to the market. Stay tuned! Tony Chien
With Pong Quest, how important was it trying to find a balance between the original game and something a modern audience might enjoy?
SD: That was one of the main challenges of the project; to retain the core gameplay of the IP but to ensure that it was brought up to date for today’s audiences. One of the main challenges of the project is that Pong is… Pong, and so we had to think of interesting ways that could elevate the gameplay. We think we have managed to do this through the different numbers of balls that feature in the battle gameplay. With over 50 different balls, it really does add a great modifier to the Pong experience.
We found the battle gameplay really shines in multiplayer and this has been seen many times during our own internal playtests.
Did you want Missile Command: Recharged to have a distinct look? Jason Polansky: One of the goals in our internal pitch for the title was to ‘make each classic game feel like you remember’, so, yes, it was very much intentional! Adam Nickerson, of Nickervisions Studios, was approached early on in the process as his titles evoke a modern retro look and feel. It started with the gameplay, designed to leverage the classic without overcomplicating things. The next step was ensuring the visuals were as straightforward as the gameplay, with simple geometry and not getting bogged down in minute details that you’d find in more modern games. Dressing things up with some particle effects were the finishing touch to give a classic look a delicate modern touch that finds a retro feel that doesn’t distract modern eyes.
Do games like Pong Quest and Missile Command: Recharged have any ties to the original staff? How do you ensure they remain authentic to the Atari brand?
TC: Both Pong Quest and Missile Command: Recharged were developed by new teams that grew up playing the original games. Pong and Missile Command are such iconic classics that when we decided to reimagine the games we knew there would be some elements that paid homage to the original, while also offering new game mechanics and twists that made it feel like a new experience on modern platforms.
We know the Atari of today is a vastly different company from the Atari of the Seventies, but are you attempting to recreate that same pioneering spirit?
TC: That pioneering Atari spirit from the Seventies still lives on and serves as inspiration for new games and other projects we develop. Atari is a multimedia brand encompassing games and so much more. Our business sectors include games, licensing, Atari VCS, casino, and cryptocurrency.
Retro gamers were quite taken with Tempest 4000. Can you see yourself teaming up with Jeff Minter again?
SD: We were very pleased to see the reception that Tempest 4000 received. We have a great relationship with Jeff and Ivan at Llamasoft and we’d love to find another project to work on together.
At Atari, we feel very privileged to be custodians of Atari’s collection of IPS and we are very careful with how we handle these beloved IPS
Simon Deal
Why choose an in-app purchase model for Missile Command: Recharged instead of the more traditional pricing structure of Pong Quest?
JP: Missile Command: Recharged was designed to serve all possible audiences on mobile platforms. The title is designed as a premium experience with a monetisation structure that accommodates a dominantly free-to-play world on mobile devices. For those wanting that premium experience, a one-time purchase of $2.99 will allow unlimited, unobstructed, online or offline play as if it were a premium title.
Where do you see the Atari gaming brand five years from now?
TC: Our goal is to continue delivering games that our players find engaging, fun and entertaining. That is what Atari has always strived for, and we intend to keep that going for current and future generations.