Gadgetory

for months we've been hearing about a new game console from a company synonymous with retro gaming until now we've known it as the Atari box but now it has a new name this is the Atari VCS that stands for video computer system a name that calls back to the original name for the Atari 2600 the name isn't the only thing this console borrows from the original either it also features the same matte black and wood veneer design mandate as the original gaming machine as well as a controller that feels just like the stiff 2600 joystick you remember though it has been updated with some fancy LED lights it'll also have a modern dual stick gamepad to Atari wasn't ready to show us what will actually be playing with these controllers but promised that the new VCS will have plenty to play including brand new games and indie games as well as a hundred or more classic Atari games like asteroids centipede breakout adventure and pong and even new reimagine versions of those Atari classics like the already announced tempest 4000 but the Atari VCS is still as the name implies also a computer system outside of that console interface it still runs Linux and the company says it's planning to give users access to a kind of sandbox mode that lets them access the Linux desktop that means in theory you'll be able to install anything you want on it including the Linux version of steam and it's library of linux compatible PC games how those games might run though is still kind of up in the air Atari says the BCS will have an all-in-one desktop processor from AMD and it previously was looking at a CPU based on Bristol rich but it hasn't locked down the machines final specifications yet that could still change either way Atari says it's still targeted at 250 to $300 price range but hopes it'll still be able to keep the console affordable as for when you'll actually be able to buy it they aren't ready to say for sure if it will ship this year or next year instead Atari says it's too important to just get the console right it'll ship when it's ready you