History Creator / Atari

Due to UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, Warner Communications broke the company up in 1984. The video game and computer divisions were sold to a small company called Tramiel Technologies, founded by Commodore founder Jack Tramiel (born Jacek Trzmiel), the founder and former CEO of Commodore Business Machines, who had been pushed out of his old company the previous year; he renamed his company to Atari Corporation. The arcade division was retained as a new company called Atari Games Inc. Many divisions (such as a telecom division called Ataritel) were scuttled entirely.

* ''{{VideoGame/Combat}}''
* ''VideoGame/AtariCopsNRobbers''

* ''[[VideoGame/Atari2600Indy500 Indy 500]]''

* ''VideoGame/AtariQwak1974''

* ''VideoGame/SupermanAtari2600''

In 1982, Atari created the [[UsefulNotes/Atari5200 5200]], a game console largely based on its home computer line (in fact, it was little more than an 800 with no tape or disk support and joysticks instead of a keyboard). It was a flop, largely due to its infamously bad analog controllers (they weren't self-centering and were so cheaply made that they frequently broke...after a few hours of use). Atari soon discontinued the machine. An oddity of this console was that a single cable ran from the back of the machine to a small box, to which an RF cable and power adapter connected. The console was also incredibly large (even larger than the UsefulNotes/{{Xbox}}), due to a built-in controller storage compartment.

Due to UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, Warner Communications broke the company up in 1984. The video game and computer divisions were sold to a small company called Tramel ''(sic)'' Technologies. The arcade division was retained as a new company called Atari Games Corp. Many divisions (such as a telecom division called Ataritel) were scuttled entirely.

In 1985, Jack Tramiel (born Jacek Trzmiel), the founder and former CEO of Commodore Business Machines, who had acquired the consumer division of Atari the previous year (and renamed his company to Atari Corp.), introduced his 16-bit computer design, the UsefulNotes/AtariST. While technically far inferior to the Commodore Amiga, the ST was marketed much more adeptly, and quickly cornered the 16-bit market. Later, though, it would fail when customers realized how much superior the Amiga was.

Shortly after that, in 1986, Atari produced the [[UsefulNotes/Atari7800 7800]]. While its 256-color graphics were a huge step up from anything that the company had previously produced (and its potentially infinite number of sprites even gave it an edge over the UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem and UsefulNotes/SegaMasterSystem), its 2600-sourced sound chip and minuscule library, combined with very little marketing by Atari, made it a flop. Interestingly, the 7800 was originally designed and produced in 1984, but the project was shelved under Tramiel's leadership. A new sound chip, dubbed GUMBY (a nod to the POKEY chip in the 800 and 5200 - which had nothing to do with the ''WesternAnimation/{{Gumby}}'' shorts), was planned, but Tramiel cancelled development, preferring to focus on the computer line. One wonders WhatMightHaveBeen had the 7800 been released on time and with all of its planned hardware.

Atari merged in 1996 with a hard drive company, JT Storage Inc., which became JTS Corp. and sold off the Atari rights to Hasbro in 1998. (JTS Corp. went bankrupt a year later.) In 2000, Hasbro Interactive, which included Atari and Creator/MicroProse, was sold to Infogrames Entertainment, SA. Infogrames used the Atari name to sell {{anime}}-based {{fighting game}}s, other {{licensed game}}s, and most successfully, anthologies of classic Atari console and home games (Hasbro started doing this, but the former Infogrames heavily stepped up in promoting the Atari back catalog on modern consoles and computers).

Meanwhile, Atari Games Corp. (the successor to their old arcade division) had gone through a variety of owners, first becoming a subsidiary of Namco from 1985 to 1987. (The relationship between Atari and Namco dated to 1975, when Atari sold its Japanese subsidiary to Nakamura Manufacturing Ltd.) Atari Games started producing games for the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]] and other consoles through a new subsidiary named Tengen (a term referring to the central dot on the Go board); around this time, British publisher Domark began to distribute computer versions of Atari Games titles, in a partnership that would last into the 1990s. Though Tengen was initially a Creator/{{Nintendo}} licensee, Atari Games acquired the source code to the NES's lock-out system and Tengen, having found a way to circumvent it, started releasing its games for the NES on unlicensed black cartridges. Lawsuits began immediately, Atari Games suing Nintendo for monopolizing the market for NES cartridges, Nintendo claiming patent violation. Another legal battle between Atari Games and Nintendo, concerning the rights to ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'', was more quickly decided in Nintendo's favor.

In 1990, Namco started releasing its games on its own account in America and sold its stake in Atari Games to Warner again, which had by now become Time Warner. Shortly after settling the Nintendo lawsuit in 1994, Atari Games Corp. abandoned the Tengen brand and began putting out most of its releases under the name of Time Warner Interactive. After providing developmental support for Mortal Kombat 3, Atari Games Corp. finally became a subsidary of Creator/MidwayGames in 1996 and had its games fully integrated with the Bally/Midway/Williams catalog in 1998. It was renamed to Midway Games West in 2000, shortly before Midway abandoned the UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame business, and disbanded three years later, thus killing off the final remnant of the original Atari for good. All original games in the Atari Games catalog (late 1984-1998) are retroactively considered part of the Midway Games catalog, which is currently owned by Warner Bros. Interactive.

* ''VideoGame/{{Sprint 2}}''

* ''VideoGame/{{Starship 1}}''

* ''[[VideoGame/Atari2600Superman Superman]]''

* Atari Inc. (formerly Infogrames Inc.; acquired from GT Interactive in 1999; included development studios Eden Studios, Creator/HumongousEntertainment, Oddworld Inhabitants, Creator/ParadigmEntertainment, Reflections Interactive and Creator/ShinyEntertainment)

Hoping to recapture the home computer market, which was now dominated by [=PCs=] and the Amiga, Atari released the 32-bit TT. Atari hoped that its 32-bit computer would give it much-needed market share, but it was too little too late. It was replaced in 1993 by the Falcon, which sold for a grand total of one year before being discontinued when Atari decided to focus on the ''console'' market (remember, Atari had abandoned development on the 7800 in order to focus on computers).

In 1977, Atari introduced the Video Computer System or VCS, later known as the UsefulNotes/{{Atari 2600}}. While not the first cartridge-based console (that honor goes to the Fairchild Channel F released in the previous year), it was much more successful and had several hits (most notably ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}'' and ''Chopper Command'').

Two years later in 1979, after a nasty boardroom fight shoved Bushnell out of the company, Atari introduced its [[UsefulNotes/Atari8BitComputers first home computer line]], the 800 and 400 (designed by famous engineer Jay Miner, who went on to design the Creator/{{Amiga}}). These computers received minor upgrades throughout the 1980s, and had their fair share of games, too (such as ''VideoGame/RescueOnFractalus'' and ''VideoGame/{{Archon}}''), but never reached the popularity of the UsefulNotes/AppleII or the later UsefulNotes/{{Commodore 64}}.

In 1982, Atari created the [[UsefulNotes/{{Atari 5200}} 5200]], a game console largely based on its home computer line (in fact, it was little more than an 800 with no tape or disk support and joysticks instead of a keyboard). It was a flop, largely due to its infamously bad analog controllers (they weren't self-centering and were so cheaply made that they frequently broke...after a few hours of use). Atari soon discontinued the machine. An oddity of this console was that a single cable ran from the back of the machine to a small box, to which an RF cable and power adapter connected. The console was also incredibly large (even larger than the UsefulNotes/{{Xbox}}), due to a built-in controller storage compartment.

Shortly after that, in 1986, Atari produced the [[UsefulNotes/{{Atari 7800}} 7800]]. While its 256-color graphics were a huge step up from anything that the company had previously produced (and its potentially infinite number of sprites even gave it an edge over the UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem and UsefulNotes/SegaMasterSystem), its 2600-sourced sound chip and minuscule library, combined with very little marketing by Atari, made it a flop. Interestingly, the 7800 was originally designed and produced in 1984, but the project was shelved under Tramiel's leadership. A new sound chip, dubbed GUMBY (a nod to the POKEY chip in the 800 and 5200 - which had nothing to do with the ''WesternAnimation/{{Gumby}}'' shorts), was planned, but Tramiel cancelled development, preferring to focus on the computer line. One wonders WhatMightHaveBeen had the 7800 been released on time and with all of its planned hardware.

* UsefulNotes/{{Atari 2600}}
* UsefulNotes/{{Atari 5200}}
* UsefulNotes/{{Atari 7800}}

* ''VideoGame/{{Area 51}}''

* ''VideoGame/Ballance''

* ''[[VideoGame/AwesomePossum Awesome Possum... Kicks Dr. Machino's Butt]]''

Meanwhile, Atari Games had gone through a variety of owners, first becoming a subsidiary of Namco from 1985 to 1987. (The relationship between Atari and Namco dated to 1975, when Atari sold its Japanese subsidiary to Nakamura Manufacturing Ltd.) Atari Games started producing games for the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]] and other consoles through a new subsidiary named Tengen (a term referring to the central dot on the Go board); around this time, British publisher Domark began to distribute computer versions of Atari Games titles, in a partnership that would last into the 1990s. Though Tengen was initially a Creator/{{Nintendo}} licensee, Atari Games acquired the source code to the NES's lock-out system and Tengen, having found a way to circumvent it, started releasing its games for the NES on unlicensed black cartridges. Lawsuits began immediately, Atari Games suing Nintendo for monopolizing the market for NES cartridges, Nintendo claiming patent violation. Another legal battle between Atari Games and Nintendo, concerning the rights to ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'', was more quickly decided in Nintendo's favor.

In 1990, Namco started releasing its games on its own account in America and sold its stake in Atari Games to Warner again, which had by now become Time Warner. Shortly after settling the Nintendo lawsuit in 1994, Atari Games abandoned the Tengen brand and began putting out most of its releases under the name of Time Warner Interactive. Atari Games finally became part of Creator/MidwayGames in 1996. It was renamed to Midway Games West in 2000, shortly before Midway abandoned the UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame business, and disbanded three years later. The Atari Games catalog is in turn considered a part of the Midway Games catalog, and is currently owned by Warner once more.

Shortly after that, in 1986, Atari produced the [[UsefulNotes/{{Atari 7800}} 7800]]. While its 256-color graphics were a huge step up from anything that the company had previously produced (and its potentially infinite number of sprites even gave it an edge over the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]] and UsefulNotes/SegaMasterSystem), its 2600-sourced sound chip and minuscule library, combined with very little marketing by Atari, made it a flop. Interestingly, the 7800 was originally designed and produced in 1984, but the project was shelved under Tramiel's leadership. A new sound chip, dubbed GUMBY (a nod to the POKEY chip in the 800 and 5200 - which had nothing to do with the ''WesternAnimation/{{Gumby}}'' shorts), was planned, but Tramiel cancelled development, preferring to focus on the computer line. One wonders WhatMightHaveBeen had the 7800 been released on time and with all of its planned hardware.

Meanwhile, Atari Games had gone through a variety of owners, first becoming a subsidiary of Namco from 1985 to 1987. (The relationship between Atari and Namco dated to 1975, when Atari sold its Japanese subsidiary to Nakamura Manufacturing Ltd.) Atari Games started producing games for the UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem and other consoles through a new subsidiary named Tengen (a term referring to the central dot on the Go board); around this time, British publisher Domark began to distribute computer versions of Atari Games titles, in a partnership that would last into the 1990s. Though Tengen was initially a Nintendo licensee, Atari Games acquired the source code to the NES's lock-out system and Tengen, having found a way to circumvent it, started releasing its games for the NES on unlicensed black cartridges. Lawsuits began immediately, Atari Games suing Nintendo for monopolizing the market for NES cartridges, Nintendo claiming patent violation. Another legal battle between Atari Games and Nintendo, concerning the rights to ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'', was more quickly decided in Nintendo's favor.

[[folder:Atari Game Systems:]]

[[folder:Atari Pinballs:]]

[[folder:Atari releases (pre-crash):]]

* ''[[VideoGame/IRobot I, Robot]]''

[[folder:Atari Games/Tengen/Time Warner Interactive releases (post-crash, pre-Midway):]]

[[folder:Infogrames releases (pre-merger):]]

[[folder:Atari releases (post-Infogrames):]]

Atari's first game, ''VideoGame/{{Pong}}'', debuted in 1972. It was a simple but hugely popular alternative to pinball machines, and other companies began to flood the market with imitations; Atari produced a home consumer version of ''Pong'' in 1975. In 1976, Atari was sold to Warner Communications; Bushnell used the proceeds and terms of sale to start up a family restaurant concept called Creator/ChuckECheese's Pizza Time Theatre (which was Atari's Restaurant Operating Division before being spun off as an independent company).

Due to UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, Warner Communications, Atari's parent company, broke the company up in 1984. The video game and computer divisions were sold to a small company called Tramel ''(sic)'' Technologies. The arcade division was retained as a new company called Atari Games Corp. Many divisions (such as a telecom division called Ataritel) were scuttled entirely.

* ''Franchise/AloneInTheDark''

* ''Franchise/AloneInTheDark'' (2008)

* ''Girl Talk: The Interactive Game of Truth or Dare'' (Steam Edition)

In 2017, Atari [[http://nerdist.com/atari-making-new-console-over-20-years/ announced]] that they are reentering the video game console business after 20 years, with a new system called the UsefulNotes/{{Ataribox}}.

* UsefulNotes/{{Ataribox}}

In 2017, Atari [[http://nerdist.com/atari-making-new-console-over-20-years/ announced]] that they are reentering the video game console business after 20 years, with a new system that is tentatively titled the Atari Box.

Meanwhile, Atari Games had gone through a variety of owners, first becoming a subsidiary of Namco from 1985 to 1987. (The relationship between Atari and Namco dated to 1975, when Atari sold its Japanese subsidiary to Nakamura Manufacturing Ltd.) Atari Games started producing games for the NintendoEntertainmentSystem and other consoles through a new subsidiary named Tengen (a term referring to the central dot on the Go board); around this time, British publisher Domark began to distribute computer versions of Atari Games titles, in a partnership that would last into the 1990s. Though Tengen was initially a Nintendo licensee, Atari Games acquired the source code to the NES's lock-out system and Tengen, having found a way to circumvent it, started releasing its games for the NES on unlicensed black cartridges. Lawsuits began immediately, Atari Games suing Nintendo for monopolizing the market for NES cartridges, Nintendo claiming patent violation. Another legal battle between Atari Games and Nintendo, concerning the rights to ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}'', was more quickly decided in Nintendo's favor.

* ''[=Hard Drivin'=]''

In 2017, Atari [[http://nerdist.com/atari-making-new-console-over-20-years/ announces]] that they are reentering the video game console business tentatively named the Atari Box for the first time in over 20 years.

* ''VideoGame/RollercoasterTycoon''

* Atari Europe S.A.S.U. (formerly Infogrames Europe; sold to Creator/NamcoBandai in 2009)

* Atari Australia Pty Ltd. (formerly Infogrames Australia; acquired from [=OziSoft=] in 1998; sold to Creator/NamcoBandai in 2009)