Following up on the massive DLC update from September, “The Wider World of Atari“, which included 19 new yet classic games, the “Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration” collection drops some gaming history with “The First Console War“.
Not only does this new update include an additional 19 games as well, but it gives a behind-the-scenes look at console gaming’s first big rivalry, between Atari’s VCS and Mattel’s Intellivision. Packed with video interviews, vintage ads, and loads of artifacts from the historic battle, this expansion gives new insight into the foundations of Atari and its fight to stay on top in an ever-competitive industry in its earliest years.
From the press release:
The First Console War DLC features additional interviews, more vintage ads, and even more never-before-seen historical artifacts, all interwoven to reveal the previously untold story of Atari and Mattel’s intense rivalry. Highlights from the timeline include unique and often overlooked innovations and hidden gems from the late 1980s, video interviews with industry professionals like Activison’s David Crane and Garry Kitchen, and much more!
The First Console War games list includes:
- Air Raiders – 2600 M Network
- Antbear – 2600 M Network (unreleased, based on Stern IP)
- Armor Ambush – 2600 M Network
- Astroblast – 2600 M Network
- Frogs & Flies – 2600 M Network
- International Soccer – 2600 M Network
- Dark Cavern – 2600 M Network
- Star Strike – 2600 M Network
- Super Challenge Baseball – 2600 M Network
- Super Challenge Football – 2600 M Network
- Swordfight – 2600 M Network (rare, unreleased)
- Sea Battle – 2600 M Network (rare, unreleased)
- Tower of Mystery (unreleased prototype, recently rescued)
- Video Pinball – 2600
- Basketball – 2600
- Hardball – Atari 8-bit (XE)
- Final Legacy (prototype) – 5200
- Xari Arena – Atari 8-bit
- Desert Falcon – 7800
The First Console War Key Features:
- 19 more Atari arcade classics, including rescued prototypes like Tower of Mystery and rare, unreleased M-Network titles like Swordfight, Antbear, and more
- Video interviews with M Network programmer Jane Terjung, Activision’s David Crane & Garry Kitchen (worked on/published for both platforms), homebrew programmer Dennis Debro, and historians Leonard Herman & Mike Mika.
- A brand new timeline explaining the challenge to Atari’s VCS by Mattel’s Intellivision–the first major rivalry in console games.
This second DLC is another major expansion to Atari 50’s catalog of content. Through 19 additional playable games and eight video segments, this new DLC tells the story of Atari’s first major rivalry in the console market. Showcased in video interviews with M Network programmer Jane Terjung, video game historians Leonard Hermand and Mike Mika, and more, The First Console War delves deep into the video game console market’s landscape of the era and ultimately explains how and why Mattel made the decision to create games for its biggest competitor.
The DLC is available now on PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Series X|S, and PlayStation 4 and 5. In early 2025, owners of the original game on the Atari VCS will receive the DLC content for free in an update to the game.