Time to get a wee bit niche up in this battered old joint. Better call that extra niche, actually, looking at our typical material. If you’re among the (presumably) very small contingent of gamers who A: remember the Mattel Intellivision system from the 1980s, and B: are clamoring for its resurrection to such a degree that you’ve been watching one such project, the Intellivision Amico, like a hawk, then, well, we’ve got bad news.
More power to you, ya loons. Everyone else? Permit me to contextualize your uncultured rumps.
Before the utter dominance of Nintendo and SEGA in the 1990s, at which point any further competitors were effectively throwing themselves to the digital dogs, the console war was an utter free-for-all. One company vying for folks’ attention was Mattel, who you’ll probably recognize as the manufacturers of Barbie, Mega Bloks, and Marty McFly’s hoverboard in Back to the Future 2. Hey, 2015 was six years ago! What gives, you pernicious purveyors of plastic paraphernalia?
Intellivision’s early days
Regardless, Mattel put out the Intellivision in the late ’70s, and it saw minor success, moving 3 million units in its lifetime. God, it’s saying something when, adjusted for modern day consumer adoption, that probably eclipses the Nintendo Wii U. (I’ll never forget, my sweet child). Its main claims to fame were its rich visuals for the time, innovative control methods for the time, and its advanced audio capabilities for, you guessed it, the time. Oh, except in order to experience that last one, you had to buy an extra sound module for quite a few bucks that you then slapped on top of the thing. Brilliant. Granted, it gave us some absolute gems with its tinny little speaker, including the Southern-accented B-17 Bomber, but still. Tad scummy, Mattel.
Flash forward to present day, and the somehow-still-intact Intellivision Entertainment is having another crack, this time banking on folks’ apparent nostalgia for the ill-fated console. The Amico, available in a variety of suitably aged woodgrain colors, purports to return gamers to a bygone age with a focus on couch co-op and a generally more physical, tactile experience. You know, that time when you actually had to use your hands? Back off, Siri. And you, Alexa. Scheming gits.
The Amico’s rocky road to launch
The Amico was originally dated for a mid-2020 release, then shunted to Fall 2021 after a couple of prior delays. Sadly, that’s once again failed to materialize, as IGN reports. Those who pre-ordered the unfortunate little console met with an email recently from the manufacturers “announcing that the international component supply and various logistical challenges have led to [the] decision.” That decision being? It’s now due out at the end of this year. Ah, so a prime stocking filler, then; if the stocking you’re filling is Bigfoot’s.
“The team at Intellivision has been working tirelessly to bring Amico, our family-focused entertainment system, to eager households around the world,” Intellivision wrote in the disappointing communique. “We’ve grown to a strong and stable company of more than 60 passionate team members spanning three continents, representing some of the industry’s best talent. All of us are extremely excited to share Amico with you.”
It was also made abundantly, and lawsuit-dodgingly, clear that the COVID-19 pandemic played a substantial role in the repeated can-kicking of the Amico’s release date. “We originally planned to launch Amico in the Fall of 2020 but had to adapt during the midst of the global pandemic disrupting our production. Despite our best efforts, and now facing new unprecedented international component supply and logistics challenges beyond our control, we want to apologize as we are forced to push our desired launch date yet again.”
Take heart, fellow retro fans. All being well, you’ll be huddled round a tiny little screen playing classics like Burger Time and Moon Patrol in no time. Until then? Better grab the duster and wood varnish, and break out the OG Intellivisions. Hey, if you’ve got ’em, play ’em.
Are you looking forward to the Amico? Do you have fond memories of the Intellivision? Let us know!
Via, IGN.
