Retro Gaming Console Atari 2600 Is Making a Comeback

The iconic Atari 2600 game console from 1977 will be reborn later this year as Atari revealed the Atari 2600+ on Tuesday—a modern riff on the classic, wood-paneled hardware that can play classic cartridges along with new ones.

Set to release on November 17 at a price of $129.99, the Atari 2600+ has expected modern amenities like an HDMI port and widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio support, and it comes bundled with a single cartridge containing 10 classic games—including Adventure, Missile Command, and Yars’ Revenge.

Unlike many of these retro console revivals, however, it’s not preloaded with games and it also doesn’t connect to the internet to download additional games from a service. It is, effectively, a modernized take on the classic hardware, capable of playing hundreds of original Atari 2600 and 7800 games (although not every single one).

Atari is releasing the hardware in partnership with game publisher Plaion, and will release additional multi-game cartridges in the future. The hardware will come with an updated version of the classic joystick, and Atari will also sell the familiar paddle controller separately.

The Atari brand has changed hands many times since the company’s heyday in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

In recent years, the latest incarnation of Atari has pivoted its attention in various directions—including crypto tokens and NFTs, and a failed branded resort hotel chain. Atari was recently tapped by Coinbase for the launch campaign around its Base network.

Coinbase Enlists Coca-Cola, Atari Ahead of Base Mainnet Launch

In the run-up to launching mainnet for its Ethereum scaling solution, Base, next week, Coinbase has enlisted mainstream brands like Coca-Cola, Atari, OpenSea, Pixelmon, and Showtime to offer daily mints of on-chain collectibles. The mints will highlight "art, music, gaming, advocacy, and more" leading up to the August 9 launch for Base mainnet, Coinbase vice president of product Max Branzburg wrote in a blog post. The daily mints are part of what the company is calling "Onchain Summer." The comp...

Atari also made a previous hardware attempt in recent years, launching the Atari VCS in 2021. Effectively a compact PC set-top box that could download and play both PC games and classic Atari titles, the hardware received mixed reviews from critics and did not appear to make a considerable impact on the broader gaming market.