Atari
This article is about the company originally known as Syzygy Engineering and Atari, Inc. as well as the company originally known as Infogrames. For the company formerly known as Atari Games, see NetherRealm Studios. For the company that was originally known as GT Interactive, see Atari, Inc. For the company formerly known as Atari Japan, see the company that purchased it, Namco. For the Japanese pachinko maker that was formerly known as Atari, Inc., see Natsume Atari. For the company formerly known as Legacy Engineering, see Syzygy.
| |
| Atari | |
| Type | Publicly traded company |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1971 (Syzygy Engineering) June 27, 1972 (Atari, Inc.) June 1983 (Infogrames Entertainment) July 1, 1984 (Atari Corporation) 1996 (JTS Corporation) 2009 (Atari, S.A) |
| Headquarters | Paris, France |
| Key people | |
| Industry | Video games, consumer electronics |
| Products | |
| Number of people | |
| Website | http://www.atari.com/ |
Atari, S.A. is a video game holding company located in Paris, France. Its subsidiaries include Atari, Inc. and Atari Interactive.
Atari
Syzygy Engineering was founded by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney in 1971 and was incorporated as Atari on June 27, 1972. In 1976, Warner Communications purchased Atari as they wanted to get into the interactive entertainment business.
Infogrames Entertainment
Infogrames Entertainment, SA was formed in Lyons, France in June 1983.
Atari Corporation
On July 1, 1984, because of the video game crash of 1983, Warner sold the home division of the company to Tramel Technology, while Warner kept the arcade division. The arcade division became Atari Games and the home division became Atari Corporation.
JTS Corporation
In July 1996, Atari Corporation merged with JTS Inc. to form JTS Corp.
Infogrames Interactive
In March 1998, JTS sold the Atari name and assets to Hasbro Interactive. On December 6, 2000, Infogrames purchased Hasbro Interactive and acquired the Atari rights.
Atari, S.A.
In May 2009, Namco Bandai Holdings bought Atari Europe and Infogrames announced it was getting out of the distribution business in Europe. That same month, they changed their name to Atari, S.A., bringing an end to the Infogrames brand name.
Atari filed for bankruptcy protection in January 2013, remaining in business but selling some assets at auction, such as Humongous Entertainment.
Home computers and video game consoles by Atari
| Name | Released | Added to Museum | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pong | 1975 | Not yet | The console only played Pong. |
| Stunt Cycle | 1976 | Not yet | The console only played Stunt Cycle. |
| Video Pinball | 1977 | Not yet | The first Atari Video Pinball model and the Telegames Pinball Breakaway had: The second, beige, Atari Video Pinball model and the Epoch TV-Block had: |
| Atari 2600 Video Computer System | 1977 | January 1, 2020 | |
| Atari 8-bit computers | 1979-1984 | Not yet | The 8-bit line included the Atari 400, 800, XL, XE, and XEGS. |
| Atari 5200 SuperSystem | 1982 | Not yet |
Home computers and video game consoles by Atari Corporation
| Name | Released | Added to Museum | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atari 7800 ProSystem | 1986 | Not yet | |
| Atari ST | 1986-1993 | Not yet | The Atari ST line included the Atari 520ST, 520STFM, 1040STF, Mega ST, Mega ST 1, Mega ST 2, 520STE, 1040STE, TT030, Mega STE, and Falcon030. It also included portable computers including the STacy, ST BOOK |
| Atari Transputer Workstation | 1989 | Not yet | The Atari Transputer Workstation (ATW-800) was a computer designed for technical or scientific applications. |
| Atari Portfolio | 1989 | Not yet | The Atari Portfolio (Atari PC Folio) was an IBM-PC compatible palmtop computer. |
| Atari XEGS | 1987 | Not yet | The Atari XEGS was a redesign of the XE 8-bit computer as a video game console. |
| Atari Lynx | 1989 | Not yet | A handheld video game system originally designed by Epyx as the Handy Game. |
| Atari Jaguar | 1993 | Not yet | |
| Atari Jaguar CD | 1995 | Not yet | CD-ROM add-on for the Atari Jaguar. |
Home computers and video game consoles by Atari, S.A.
| Name | Released | Added to Museum | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atari Flashback | 2004-present | Flashback 2+: May 10, 2019 | The Atari Flashback 1, 2, and 2+ were designed by Legacy Engineering. All other Atari Flashback consoles were designed by AtGames. |
| Atari VCS | 2020 | Not yet | The Atari VCS was designed by Atari Interactive. |
