Atari has taken the wraps off its new console, the Ataribox, and it is a rather strange but interesting machine.
First revealed at E3 2017, the Ataribox is Atari's first console in more than 20 years. It will feature mutiple USB ports, an HDMI slot, an SD card slot, and a spot for a network cable. As for what it does, we'll we're not completely sure. Atari has said that it will play classic and current gaming content but, beyond that, the details are rather sparse.
One thing we can say is that it looks rather nice. According to the press release, the Ataribox will feature a design similar to the Atari 2600 and will come in two models. One of them will have a front made of black glass and the other will have wood paneling in the front. Both look pretty nice but, personally, we prefer the wood simply because it gives the machine more of a classic Atari look.
What Does The Ataribox Do?
Beyond Atari's promises that it will play classic and current games, we don't know much about the Ataribox, but there are a few things we can glean from the company's press release. For starters, there doesn't appear to be a slot for physical Atari cartridges so, like Nintendo's recent retro consoles, it will rely on emulation to provide its library of classic games.
We don't know what kind of modern games it will play because Atari has not released any of the console's specs opting instead to solicit feedback from the community to ensure the project is done right.
"We know you are hungry for more details; on specs, games, features, pricing, timing etc. We're not teasing you intentionally; we want to get this right, so we've opted to share things step by step as we bring Ataribox to life, and to listen closely to Atari community feedback as we do so."
As for the games themselves, we would be very surprised if this is a console meant to compete with the likes of the Xbox One or PlayStation 4. Such a venture would likely be much too expensive and risky for Atari's return to the console scene. It is more likely that the Ataribox will run modern Android or Indie PC games, depending on the specs.
