The History of Atari in Japan: Why America Struck Out in the Land of the Rising Sun

[@GTV-Japan]

This video was originally released in May 2018. If you saw the old version, you will notice this is not a simple re-upload. I decided to go back and clean the video up, re-record it and update a few pieces of information because I enjoyed the topic so much! Now the video is closer to the vision I originally had. If it's your first time watching or second or third, thank you and enjoy!

[@udance4ever]

aha - I thought I'd watched this before - def worth the rewatch! 👾

[@GTV-Japan]

I’m glad you came back

[@legendsflashback]

Thank you

[@Real1Gaming]

Another day, another video game history lesson from one of the most undersubbed channels on this site

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks for your support! Subscribers aren’t everything, but diehard viewers like you are!!🕹

[@khaimk4r4su]

GTV touches more topics and in greater volume tham some Historian scholar around here

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks for coming by on the 2800’s birthday! The big 3-9!

[@garylshawiii483]

Yeah this is easily one the best channels

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks!

[@Larry]

Out of curiosity, did Activision have much foothold in Japan with their games at the time? Most of the software I see like Pitfall and HERO Etc. were licensed to people like Sega. But did they publish anything themselves?

[@GTV-Japan]

No. Not as far as I know. There have been Japanese boxes of spectra video Atari games with Japanese stickers on them but it’s unclear how they got there or if they were ever on sale. To answer the question fully I saw in a store a few year ago, some shooting game by the modern Activison, I forget the name but on the display it listed the history of the company but only that the JP office opened in the 2000s which is “official” by their standards 🕹

[@MikeChimeri]

Having seen the original version of this video, I'm glad to hear Tramiel (tra-MEL) pronounced correctly. The downside is the CM with Space Invaders in it ("Supēsu Inbēdā") is gone.

[@GTV-Japan]

Oops! I wonder how that happened? There were 2 cms that were almost the same and another that was the same but 15 secs. and really low quality plus pole position so I just made that choice not to repeat it. Now it’s a standard rule to just have one cm per break and keep it from dragging out. 🕹

[@MikeChimeri]

@@GTV-Japan That's fine. It's etched in my memory.

[@MikeChimeri]

I think I found the CM: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZnPgIR9mbmGa7s

[@Justin-Hill-1987]

Despite being a Japanese-sounding name brand ("Atari" being derivative of the Japanese word "ataru" meaning something along the lines of "hitting a target on a go board") with a stylized Mt. Fuji logo, Atari was about as American as baseball, hot dogs, apple pies, McDonald's and a Chevrolet...

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah. Makes ya think🕹

[@Justin-Hill-1987]

@Jacob B I didn't know that. Thanks!

[@GTV-Japan]

Don’t forget Atari-Mae Taisou by Cow Cow!

[@raedvalenzuela5085]

I think it’s confirmed that the Atari logo is actually two pong shapes merging with the middle line to symbolize “group play” or “family fun”

[@GTV-Japan]

That has been confirmed however multiple sources and interviews have called the Atari Fuji. So both are right. Probably the pong face was first

[@ScottWozniak]

As a 52 year old dude that grew up with Atari, I really enjoyed this video! ❤️🕹

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks for being one of the first here Scott! This video sparked another idea I’ll implement later this year with lots more 70s/80s woodgrain vibes. I hope you’ll like that one too. 🕹

[@poncut5074]

How much of a chance do you think Atari had of lasting after the crash if it weren’t split up by Warner?

[@poncut5074]

(I mean, maybe they would of had more of a chance because Atari Games was the once producing the software for other consoles that Atari desperately needed.)

[@GTV-Japan]

A long time. They were still the biggest upstart in history and had many product lines. They had the 7800 and in the late 80s all those great arcade games. They were still around 12 years after for Atari Corp and some 15 more for Games as it was

[@SDChargers93]

It’s so weird man, when I think of Atari I think of Narc, Area 51 , Toobin , Klak, Roadblasters Primal Rage , Paperboy. I’m glad you mentioned Atari Namco Story. That’s the 1st thing I was looking forward too.

[@GTV-Japan]

That’s Atari Games not Atari Corp, or Inc though. Weird to think how it’s two separate companies. Really a mistake that Jack T didn’t pick it up. Those games were great and could have made them more money. Oh well…🕹

[@SDChargers93]

@@GTV-Japan legit Eugene Jarvis and Mark Turmell have them Gold they coulda made hand over fist if they acquired games like NBA Jam or Mortal Kombat Biggest what If in history.

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah I remember nba jam and mk being on the list of future jag games. Why were they so incompetent? I’m not too into the lore but I read during the Jaguar days Sam had a heart attack and Jack took over again and he just didn’t have the gamer mindset Sam had supposedly

[@SDChargers93]

@@GTV-Japan that sounds about right and also Warmer Interactive Meddling with shit 24/7. You should look into Primal Rage 2 development history. I hate Warner with a passion because they have zero plan on doing a HD remake for Primal Rage 2 and the only way to play it is to run a very special mame set up or visit Chicago (I indeed visited Chicago and played PR 2 it was pretty dope lol)

[@snesfan8935]

Me too 😅

[@ドリフト180X]

The lynx in terms of hardware was really impressive. Too bad it didn’t get a stronger lineup of games.

[@GTV-Japan]

I know! How did it sell 500k with so few games?! It’s a shame it was mostly Atari’s games only because with more software comes more sales. The Lynx is kind of revered here and always gets a mention alongside the game boy in magazines, books and mooks despite being foreign. Thanks for watching!🕹

[@fattiger6957]

It probably didn't help that it was big enough to land helicopters on. I also assume it had the same battery life issues as the game gear

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah about 4-6 hours. Honestly not such a problem if you commute an hour a day and use rechargeables. But yeah the size can’t be ignored 🕹

[@petewillson205]

@@fattiger6957 definitely marketing, power of Mario and tetris. LYNX, blew away, Gameboy in every way, side by side comparing a fuzzy black and green game boy to a lynx was no comparison. On top of it all even with a small game library lynx, most were descent games, 16 bit, scalling color

[@GTV-Japan]

Really the only area it was lacking in was rpgs

[@carlrygwelski586]

Holy shit the Namco Museum music popping in at 1:39 was such a nice touch. Those games were such a big part of my growing up.

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks for noticing! Unfortunately there isn’t much actual game music from that time but this fit nicely

[@carlrygwelski586]

@@GTV-Japan Definitely. If I went to a real life game museum I would want to hear that lol. I collected the 5 volumes throughout my years asking for christmas presents and birthday gifts, and last year I was able to find and complete the box set of six released in Japan.

[@GTV-Japan]

It’s one of my favorites and reason number 1 to buy a PlayStation! As an aside Namco Musuem Vol. 1 was the first game released in a standard case, ending the era of long boxes forever!!!

[@carlrygwelski586]

@@GTV-Japan wow that's an interesting fact! I grew up right after the days of long boxes so I never had any. I remember feeling spoiled that I had the near perfect arcade ports at home, and then feeling cheated when I went to the arcade and found out you could pay for continues if you ran out of lives which was not present in most of the museum games haha.

[@GTV-Japan]

I hated the long boxes. Sega did them too. But I had a turbo grafx and it was awesome to have games and cds share the same space and line up on the rack together. Same for ps2 and dvds!

[@_bhp]

very interesting topic! thank you for covering.

[@GTV-Japan]

You’re welcome! Thanks for watching 🕹

[@wyatthall2142]

Love to see a new vid on a Friday woo woo. Love your content sir.

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks! I appreciate it! Right now I’m working on new stuff but there will be one more upload in February and March, I promise that!🕹

[@wyatthall2142]

I shall eagerly await the next my good man. Take it easy

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks have a great weekend 🍺

[@ArchGeek]

This is gonna be good! EDIT: Another amazing video!

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks friend! One of my favs to work on 🕹

[@vitacilina555]

Another banger of a video! Keep it up, your content is great!

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks! I appreciate you coming by right at the start 🕹

[@taylora8845]

Awesome video! The Lynx bits were so interesting! 😎 It always bugged me how young the kids often were in the ads in the early days, which painted bad stereotypes that video games were mere"kid stuff." It took many years to undo that lol.

[@GTV-Japan]

But I loved games as a kid! Actually my mother forbade me to go to arcades because she said it’s not for kids. Oh well Thanks for watching!

[@taylora8845]

I TOTALLY agree, please don't get me wrong! I loved games as a kid starting with Atari. You are right, arcades did attract older players for sure. I just wish in some of those earlier ads, they at least INCLUDED players over EIGHT more often lol, (or at least have the PARENTS joining in more, instead of merely just cheering their kids on lol.) I actually think Atari WAS more inclusive to adult gamers more than Nintendo at the start tbh. @@GTV-Japan​

[@taylora8845]

And maybe it's one of those things where the adults are ALREADY customers, so they have to market to kids to get us hooked early as lifelong customers lol. @@GTV-Japan

[@GTV-Japan]

@taylora8845 at least as I recall games at the start were for adults. But anyway they are for everyone now so that’s good

[@taylora8845]

So very true! I was actually a bit young when Atari 2600 hit, but we still loved it proving graphics certainly don't make a game! It's great Atari is active again supporting 2600, (like the new "enhanced" Berzerk and brand new "Mr. Run and Jump, the first NEW game in decades! It would be cool if they would reissue a improved 5200 controller and new Lynx games too!) Long story short, as someone who loves Japanese media, (anime/manga etc,) this video was awesome! I learned so much that I didn't know before and sent it to my twin bro who dug it too! Thanks for making it! 😎@@GTV-Japan

[@Captureman]

Thank you so much for your work GTV!!

[@GTV-Japan]

You’re welcome! Thanks for supporting the channel! 🕹

[@GameEscape]

Fascinating retrospective, as always! Looking forward to another year of your videos.

[@GTV-Japan]

Hey there old friend! Glad you liked it! I’m hard at work on a whole new set, don’t worry!

[@Bole_ZG]

Lynx sold that much units, that is impressive.

[@GTV-Japan]

Yup! Every magazine that goes back to tell some history mentions that every time. In 2 years that’s 4000 a week if my math is right. Not so bad! 🕹

[@Bole_ZG]

@@GTV-Japan I think Xbox one sold around 100k if I'm not mistaken. I'm curious did they sell more Xbox consoles (Xbox,360,one,SX) in last 20 years than Atari in those 3 attempts. If Xbox have handheld device they would have bigger figures for sure.

[@GTV-Japan]

The 360 sold over 1.5 mil if I remember right. It was about 10k a week at its peak. The original Xbox sold 500k.the game shop near me has had the same 5 xbox1 games on sale since 2014 I’ve never seen a series X in my area.

[@Bole_ZG]

@@GTV-Japan ok that's way better than I expected. 2mil for Xbox &360 isn't that bad at all. P.S. I wish Sony headquarters stayed in Japan. They also closed Sony Japan studio and lost great talents like Keiichiro Toyama (Silent Hill,Siren, Gravity Rush) and many more.

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah. I don’t want to think about it. The glory days of ps 1 2 and 3 were great for a reason

[@mootbooxle]

Your content just gets better and better!

[@GTV-Japan]

Hey moot! Long time no see! Thanks for staying around 🍺

[@akalyx]

i learned a few things and loved how colorful this episode is

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks kyuhhl! 🕹

[@willmistretta]

It was a great day a couple years back when I was able to get Nolan Bushnell to autograph my VCS' woodgrain front panel.

[@GTV-Japan]

No way! That’s awesome!

[@willmistretta]

@@GTV-Japan Oh, yeah. He had some...interesting stories to tell about working with a pre-Apple Steve Jobs. ;)

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah I can only imagine. Shame it’s not mentioned in Pirates of Silicon Valley, a great movie otherwise

[@baconlabs]

_Ouch,_ I can't imagine what it feels like to have your brand name directly associated with an economic crash like that

[@GTV-Japan]

That’s a real “doozy” of a comment 😂 thanks for watching 🕹

[@astrades2601]

I see many interesting topics on your channel, like this many tries of Atari to conquer video game market in Japan. Probably i will stay here for some time to watch other videos :D

[@GTV-Japan]

Great to hear! 🍺

[@crazizzle85]

If Atari had been willing to release their 7800 when it was made, it might have been different. But they thought they could sell obsolete hardware forever.

[@GTV-Japan]

The poor 7800 got tangled up in the sale. It couldn’t be released until the developers were paid and Atari Corp. thought Warner should do that and vice versa. The 2600 still sold the whole time. But yeah it was old tech. Thanks for watching 🕹

[@Nestalgba92023]

Even though Atari 7800 wasn't developed (by CGE) in spring of 1983.

[@skins4thewin]

Even the 7800 looked primitive compared to the lowly Famicom, even if it was technically superior in some ways. It was all too little too late for Atari. They needed something far beefier & more impressive than the underwhelming 5200 & 7800 to even make a dent in Nintendo's dominant market share. One has to wonder why they even bothered if those were the best graphics the systems could muster.

[@marcellachine5718]

​@@skins4thewinyou ask because you didn't live during that time.

[@dejiko]

Your channel never ceases to impress me. Love everything jp related, thanks.

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks Pax! I might continue the topic with a few American stories this year, but of course the core will be about Japan. Thanks for watching on day one! 🕹

[@snesfan8935]

In terms of design i pretty much like 2800. Four joysticks ports on the front, easy to use buttons instead of switches and hybrid joysticks. Just wow!

[@GTV-Japan]

It was a very bold design. At least they reused it a few times so it wasn’t a total loss. Thanks for watching as always 🕹

[@juststatedtheobvious9633]

Warner Atari management: "Hm....we could either start giving credit to our programmers and allow our engineers to remain competitive with the market - no cheaping out on the joysticks this time, we don't want a repeat of the 5200 disaster - or........let's just shovel out old 2600 games - effort is overrated. There's no way we can fail in Japan. We have expensive licenses." LJN, Bandai, and US Gold: "Wow, that is such a good idea."

[@GTV-Japan]

You do live up to your username I’ll say that! 🕹

[@sinistermoon]

LOL that damn Atari Flashback music! That will get stuck in your head!

[@GTV-Japan]

Ha. Nothing else fit quite so well

[@themarcosoma]

Oh man, after a month of a lot of school paper work its summer holidays! Some weeks off from teaching, that means my Sunday GTV, chicken wings and beer marathon! Glad to see that there are more vides uploaded. Not enjoying the 38ºC+ summer days (Its devils crotch hot) but at least some days to relax. Thanks for the videos!!!

[@GTV-Japan]

It’s 38 here too. Enjoy that cold cerveza 🍺

[@themarcosoma]

@@GTV-Japan Didn't knew Japan got so hot!

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah. It’s always like that from may-September

[@elfiebranford9330]

I'll be honest, on the service, I initially assumed it was a case of nothing more than "Japanese consumers preferring Japanese products", especially given the performance of domestic consoles over the years, and as a case in point, the rather lackluster performance of Xbox consoles leaving much to be desired. However, having never even know about Atari's ownership history, I can see how that definitely came into effect. I say this a lot, but this channel always has the best history lessons that scratch the nichest of itches!! On a side note, having read the pinned comment, I really appreciate this video being a revision of a past one. Helps to make already plentiful videos feel even more rewarding to watch!! And let me just say, I always enjoy a GTV upload~!! ^w^

[@GTV-Japan]

Hey Elfie! Good to see you again! I will say Japanese do often buy their own things but if it’s for functionality they usually stay domestic but if it’s something for style they will buy foreign. There are a lot of nan Japanese businesses that are successful but they always feel exotic. I guess it doesn’t carry over to games. Funny enough that most games from that era didn’t even take place on earth🕹

[@elfiebranford9330]

@@GTV-Japan Aha, that's interesting to know!! Thank you~!!

[@GTV-Japan]

No problem but it’s just my personal opinion not hard evidence.

[@alexejvornoskov6580]

Xbox sales have nothing to do with japanese not buying foreign hardware, but with lack of appealing games for japanese market. That the same reason why for me Xbox always was a console that i would buy an decade later, for few exclusive titles like Fable etc. Rest was simply not interesting for my taste, and i am an european(where PS dominated for same reason). The few japanese games made for Xbox did sell were good and had cult following and even animes made about them. But this games were rare and big mass of games was simply not for japanese taste.

[@retrobution1262]

Another fascinating insight into gaming history. I just started going through all the pitfall games so this was timely. It's interesting to see the early days of Japanese game development but even more so seeing the west trying to crack that overseas market. Alfred Milgrom tried when he reverse engineered the Famicom, too. I noticed your channels finally starting to grow to the heights this series deserves, around 10,000 in the last year or so - well done man you deserve it!

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks! Every time I put out a Mario video I get 5000 subscribers. You think I’d take the hint and run with that but instead I’m making videos about guys who wrote guide books 40 years ago and retired bike champions who had their own game once 😂 but to me it’s the story that counts!

[@retrobution1262]

@@GTV-Japan haha I couldn't agree more my friend! Keep up the excellent work! I'm really into the story of quintet at the moment. Read some things last night that blew my mind. I'd love to see you cover it someday, it's a real corker that one

[@GTV-Japan]

I thought about it for this year but in the end it didn’t make the cut. I found much more weirder stuff instead

[@retrobution1262]

@@GTV-Japan haha fair enough. Cant wait to see it all!

[@GTV-Japan]

I might someday but if it’s just reading the facts and figures I just don’t see the point. You know what I mean

[@Holammer]

The sheer chutzpah of trying to peddle ancient hardware with the Atari 2800 shows how American companies like Atari and Commodore failed to innovate. My personal pet peeve is how Commodore had a thing going with the C64, but when it was time to release a new system with the +4 it was objectively worse in terms of capabilities important for gaming. No hardware sprites and worse sound.

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah we can wonder about it but they had no other options. Some say 5200 but it would be wayyy too expensive. Funny though how lots of companies do cling to whatever currently works without thinking ahead. 🕹

[@analogmoz]

Well, Nintendo has rarely ever used high-power or current-gen technology. Their hardware design reminds me more of a skilled tinker who can make common household devices into neat tools. Nintendo's strength seems often to be in design, not strictly performance.

[@GTV-Japan]

You could argue the NES was “old” while the SMS was newer. But back then who knew?

[@Holammer]

@@analogmoz That might be true after Wii, but there's a weird historical revisionism trend among Nintendo fans that try to frame every Nintendo machine as being the product of a such a policy. Where Nintendo like a humble Geppetto lovingly putting together every system so they may bring smiles to the children's faces. That's not true for NES, SNES, N64 & GC, they were all cutting edge systems of their time with outstanding price/performance.

[@dorklymorkly3290]

In such cases it's usually financers vs engineers. Sadly, the financers get the credit usually. Like for the Commodore computers. It's not like Jack Tramiel cobbled the hardware together himself. Yet, his butt is the most kissed.

[@CalaveraCandy]

I love these history lesson videos.

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks I’m glad you liked it!🕹

[@yuku9626]

Thank you for uploading a video about ATARI It's a little-known company in Japan, but I like ATARI very much I'm a Japan person and can't speak English, so I'm a machine translator. I think it's dirty English, but please forgive me.

[@GTV-Japan]

I understand ! Thanks for watching!!

[@jasonz7788]

Your content is awesome thanks for the great work

[@GTV-Japan]

You’re welcome! 🍺

[@madamantiou]

Thanks GTV for another great informative video!

[@GTV-Japan]

You’re welcome and thanks for watching on day one!🕹

[@boodro2122]

Thus was really fun to watch, GTV.

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks for watching on day one!

[@boodro2122]

@@GTV-Japan Yes sir! My absolute favorite gaming Channel on any platform. Thank you for your reply. Just beautifully constructed.

[@GTV-Japan]

I’m very happy to hear that. There’s a lot of channels out there so I really appreciate your kind words and will use it to motivate me as I go on to the next and the next, so I won’t drop the ball for guys like you waiting for something new

[@boodro2122]

@@GTV-Japan That's very thoughtful, but I dont think you could do anything or pick a topic that would let us down. You're truly masterful at what you do. I've read a lot of comments from other viewers and they only vindicate how I feel about your work. Keep up the great work, friend. Always a pleasure to watch your stuff!

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks. Of course I think that it’s still best to stay grounded and just focus on moving ahead for as long as I have interesting topics. Which is going to be for a good long while

[@samfrito]

Great video. Seeing those Japanese game centers and building street fronts was incredible. Atari was a late 70's icon for entertainment. It's a shame they didn't get the home console directive to improve and increase memory until others did it for them.

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah it’s a shame. And look at Atari now! Thanks for watching as always 🕹

[@ChrisGorski]

Fantastic work as always.

[@GTV-Japan]

Hey Chris! Thanks for watching as always. Good to see you again!

[@6vibe150]

Thank you for your videos GTV!

[@GTV-Japan]

You’re welcome. Thanks for supporting the channel with your viewership 🕹

[@sinistermoon]

Excellent video! Yes, I have played Atari today!

[@GTV-Japan]

Then to quote ice cube, I gotta say, today it was a good day

[@mr.horseshoe2301]

Glad I found this channel by accident. High quality content!

[@ArchGeek]

It’s the best channel on KZbin IMHO. Every upload is beyond entertaining, and utilizes genius editing and amazing production value to make a in depth and complete package on every topic.

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks and welcome aboard! 🍺

[@WebVManReturns]

I had the Sears Video Arcade II. The controllers were terrible.

[@GTV-Japan]

Oh really? Thanks for the tip!! 🕹

[@adamdenardis5438]

I also had a Sears Video Arcade. Even worse, I never saw the games in full color because my parents didn't want to hook it up to a regular tv so we had to use a smaller portable one that was only black and white. 😂 Thankfully I got a Genesis a few years later and was allowed to hook it up to the main tv, BUT i had to be put away after use into it's box every time and I only had 4 games for it. The pack in game for it was Columns. My cousin gave me his copy of Sonic 1. 😂

[@GTV-Japan]

Wow. I can’t imagine that

[@jpdunphy1]

I know it's almost 40 years ago, but, hmmm... Math Gran Prix. Yeah, that's going to move some units...

[@GTV-Japan]

It’s really a strange game. Cool box art though!

[@retrogameroom9019]

I owned it

[@GTV-Japan]

That’s cool!

[@adamdenardis5438]

Jaguar was worse! Terrible looking, sounding, and playing games! So bland and boring! It didn't stand a chance, much less the 3DO. That had nothing to do with popularity, because Atari was still fresh in people's memory and well known. It had everything to do with the crappy games, the crappy console, and the crappy controllers. They got away with it during the 2600 because most of the arcade ports were simple downgrades and they weren't complicated to begin with. But that didn't last since arcade games got more advanced, but then started ripping each other off. Didn't help that everyone was making knock off games for the same console either. NES and Sega at least offered quality games throughout the 80s and 90s.

[@adamdenardis5438]

Atari was a bad company from the start. Poorly managed.

[@KaptainKlassic]

You'd think Sega would learn with the Dreamcast from the 7800 but nope. I still love Atari though, the simplicity of 2600 and arcade games back in the day gave you so much imagination and addictive gameplay. Namco made some of the greatest games as well. Great retrospective!

[@GTV-Japan]

Of course lessons are never learned! Thanks for coming by as always 🍺

[@KaptainKlassic]

@@GTV-Japan of course! Keep up the great content.

[@GTV-Japan]

You got it!

[@Nestalgba92023]

You mean backward compatibility for the Western Dreamcast and much reliable first company's controller, right?

[@KaptainKlassic]

@@Nestalgba92023 I love the dreamcast don't get me wrong but I'm more referring to being released at a bad time.

[@artfuldodger4385]

This was dope as hell keep ‘em coming 👏⚡️🔥

[@GTV-Japan]

You got it!🕹

[@thewingedavenger1007]

This was a great documentary to begin with, and you've made it even better! The name Atari sounds cool in English, but I wonder how good it sounds to the Japanese, since Atari is actually a Japanese word. But even if the name was good, the 2800 had no chance against next-gen systems like the SG-1000, MSX1 and the early Famicom, which were all comparable to the Colecovision in the US. And the Famicom was about to take an even further step in 1985 by improving the cartridges to make big 128K games. Atari was far behind the times. They made a mistake in selling the company to Warner Bros. They should have sold it to a smarter company.

[@GTV-Japan]

The interview Nolan gave that’s on Atari anniversary for ps1 is a gold mine and explains it all. He was burned out and they offered him a fortune. But apparently Steve Jobs wanted to buy a stake and well…. Oops!

[@paxhumana2015]

@@GTV-Japan , Nolan Bushnell was the reason why Atari did not sell in Japan, along with what I said, and what you said about the competition in Japan around that time. Had Atari had better leadership, then it honestly would STILL not only be making video game consoles, but video games as well, and it would have also probably absorbed at least Nintendo, Sony, and even Sega into the fold, and then Microsoft would have to buy up Matsushita and everyone else just to compete with that video game behemoth.

[@GTV-Japan]

I often wonder what Atari would be under original ownership. NB made a lot of weird stuff in his life 🕹

[@TeeVeeGames]

The Atari Lynx was such an impressive handheld. It was a shame that Atari treated it was such indifference it seems. But great piece about Atari in Japan. And they're right, the logo and name makes for a great tee shirt.

[@GTV-Japan]

I know. It’s a real shame. I think it goes to the rack that jack was a cheap SOB. But when Sam took over you could see a change. It got decent games and promoted. They licensed Batman returns and gave it away for free! But it was too late by then. In hindsight they had to go the acclaim route and get ports of game boy games etc even though those weren’t great it moves systems for kids and made money. I think I’ll do a Lynx video on it own later with my full opinions. Thanks for coming by as always 🕹

[@FeralInferno]

I wonder how well those Luma phones worked back in the 80's.

[@GTV-Japan]

Probably not so well! I wonder when if ever such a device will catch on?? 🤔 Thanks for watching as always!🕹

[@jasonz7788]

Great work Sir thank you

[@GTV-Japan]

You’re welcome!

[@andresbravo2003]

Atari was internationally good, even other game companies can do that too to across the world.

[@GTV-Japan]

True! Especially in Europe I’ve heard they were popular. Even where they weren’t number one the company was profitable and ran a long time. Thanks for watching 🕹

[@kapparomeo]

As the 2600's version of ET is remembered in popular imagination as one of the worst games ever made which precipitated "Atari Shock" (interesting phrase!) hearing you describe it completely deadpan as a killer app that people back then believed would help sell the 2800 is fascinating!

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks. I like they way you put that “popular imagination” ET was awesome and I stand by that🕹

[@LateNightPerson]

@@GTV-Japan yes, another ET enjoyer!

[@GTV-Japan]

Oh yeah! From the viewpoint of 1982 it was a giant amazing game that was the biggest movie ever! Not the epic fail millennials seem to believe

[@collaterale1]

Atari has become so, so irrelevant that they decided to fuse NFTs and Lootboxes into one during their 40th anniversary celebration. Both of these are a match made in hell.

[@GTV-Japan]

There’s a correlation of how many degrees away from original ownership and how crazy and irrelevant a company can be. That’s why I barely mentioned the modern Atari. I couldn’t even tell you who owns it. Thanks for watching 🕹

[@jjhh4096]

Tha k you for another great video!

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks for watching on day one!

[@FerintoshFarmsPhotography]

Be neat to see a video of all the competition it had at the time, maybe like, the Consoles From Japan That Weren't Nintendo. Something like that.

[@GTV-Japan]

I thought about that but really it was just cassette vision and Sega. All the others were short lived or would not classify as a home video game after Nintendo set the standard

[@Tubewings]

What exactly was remastered in this episode?

[@GTV-Japan]

New Voice over, added info to the script, used clearer footage and different music

[@napoleoncoronadocortes5740]

Wow, great video camarada. When the tv commercial of pole position show i thought the maxell cassette. Atari wey got a japanese name and our logo its the mount fuji, what can going wrong. Saludos camarada

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah I am not sure but maybe that was a popular image in Japan too. They had that printed on cassettes so maybe 🤔 have a good weekend my friend 🕹

[@RadicalRickEntertainment]

Those Lynx games look really good especially the shooter!

[@GTV-Japan]

Yep! Mmhmmm. Seriously the Lynx was super powerful and under rated. Oh well. That was so long ago.

[@Gecko1993HogheadIncOfficial]

Anecdotally, America USED to be the center of the Gaming Universe (Sunnyvale, California to be exact), but now it was Kyoto Japan until it migrated to become Tokyo! Seasons SURE do change...

[@GTV-Japan]

I had the dream of working for STI after graduation but it closed down before I had the chance!

[@toastsawdust9814]

Its a shame that the Lynx could never find a strong postion in both the West and East, because by the hardware it had inside it was practically a state of the art machine that if marketed wisely and given more attention in the software departament it could have waged war with both the GB and GBC

[@GTV-Japan]

It really was! I always felt disappointed it wasn’t something on the tv but turbo express aside it was the best machine for the entire 90s. It had strong games but just enough and no distribution except toys r us and babbages. It needed to be in department stores that only carried Nintendo at the time but of course they never feel like sharing 😂 thanks for watching 🕹

[@petewillson205]

Yeah, it took a decade, or more to actually have a portable with better specs than it had, but Atari was never in a position to push it. They sold more In Japan than Jag sold lifetime world wide. Keeping their Stock alive meant they had to release and mkt new systems and Atari didn't have money to diversify. The hope was Jag would make them money, they could put lynx on backburner for year or so then get back to lynx, but Atari never had money for that, with lynx sales slowing and Stealth computer being dead, they just canceled everything and went head 1st into jag.

[@pokepress]

Apple in Japan would make a neat video. Even during their struggles in the 90’s, Apple did disproportionately well there with machines like the Color Classic and various PowerBooks.

[@GTV-Japan]

That would be a neat idea. I was talking to someone at the office who said something like “Apple has only been in japan recently” and I’m like what? What is recent? There were a few classic Macs for sale on CL for a while here but I didn’t want to spend the money and I have no space anyway for them. Too bad. Thanks for watching!!

[@johnketo2150]

Apple sold a fancier version of the PowerBook 2400c in Japan because the subnotebook was so popular there, and only mediocrely popular here in the US, from what I remember.

[@pferreira1983]

I had no idea the Lynx did well in Japan. What happened to Atari in Japan was really no different to what happened to it across the world which was that the company failed to move fast enough with the hardware. With the market share that Nintendo had there was no way people were going to buy a Jaguar, when brand loyalty meant they'd wait for the N64. 🤔

[@GTV-Japan]

The Lynx does have a special place here amongst the die hard gamers. It’s sad what happened to the Jag but there was too much competition not enough promotion

[@pferreira1983]

@@GTV-Japan Problem with the Jaguar is they never figured out how to develop for it properly.

[@MCastleberry1980]

I wanted a Lynx so bad as a kid, but I was never disciplined enough to save up my allowance for one lol

[@GTV-Japan]

Aw man too bad. At the end they were 99 and came with 4 games free!

[@mightyfilm]

I also get the feeling that an American company co-opting a Japanese term to sound like they're a Japanese company probably turned off a lot of the Japanese consumers. I'd assume that it came off as either laughably cute or some sort of insult towards their country's electronics.

[@GTV-Japan]

I hadn’t thought about that, though using English words is done all the time in Japan. Often if a word is written in katakana it’s read just as a sound without meaning I’ve been told. Like how アップル doesn’t conjure up the image of an apple. There was a football player once who was named Atari as funny side story. 😂 thanks for being here day one as always!🕹

[@MazinGo-1972]

The NES wasn't allowed in some households in the US because parents found out Nintendo was a Japanese company. I wonder if the Atari had similar issues in the US from the name itself.

[@GTV-Japan]

That’s true. There was a certain rejection of some American things during the occupation but by the 80s I think that it wasn’t a problem anymore

[@KasumiKenshirou]

@@GTV-Japan When I was in Japan everyone just assumed all the non-Japanese loanwords were English and that I would automatically know them. E.g., they would think that "arbeit" was an English word when it was actually from German.

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah I know! “I am baito” I mean come on 😂

[@ridiculous_gaming]

I wish they sold 2800s here in North America, for it had a sweet looking case and controller. The design and port locations were also superior.

[@GTV-Japan]

They did in a way! Sears video arcade 2 that was sold for a very short time is the same design!

[@ridiculous_gaming]

@@GTV-Japan Too bad I missed that one.

[@EoR_2B4GOT10]

Why did you rerelease this video? I remember seeing this one before.

[@GTV-Japan]

Well that was 4 years ago and I really liked the topic but felt I could do it better all over again. The first time it felt rushed and since then I’ve found higher res sources of everything so I thought it was a good time to update it

[@EoR_2B4GOT10]

@@GTV-Japan If remaking old videos is on the table I would like to suggest your story about the super pacman arcade machine. I would love to see you do that again but in your current style. I love personal gaming storys like that and I m sure I m not the only one.

[@GTV-Japan]

I have no plans for that right now. But who knows what tomorrow will bring. However there are 2 more remakes we will see this winter.

[@chinabluewho]

Atari should have released a handheld along side the lynx that could play thier regular game carts like Sega had with the Nomad.

[@dariusq8894]

Technically the game Go, which Atari derives it's name from, is Chinese in origin. The actual term "Atari" is used to similar effect as "Check" in the game Chess.

[@GTV-Japan]

Ok good point. Thanks for the info 🕹

[@Meepmeep189]

Is there any particular reason Atari stopped promotion and sales of the Lynx in Japan if it was doing well? Were the returns not good for America?

[@GTV-Japan]

There is no answer I could find as to why exactly but my guess is the early sales were big and eventually faded out.

[@AmandaWspoon]

Atari(their heyday) was before my time, but that didn't stop my family from pulling out my dads 2600 and putting it beside the S/NES. They were simple fun little games, but next to Super Mario, it didn't hold my brother's and my attention long, nor did we want the new Atari consoles more. became an exclusively Nintendo household until my brother traded a bunch of magic cards for a Playstation around 98'. It's not surprising that the cheaper domestic consoles of the time did better in Japan.

[@GTV-Japan]

I rode my Atari to the end! The heyday may have been over but they made games up until 1990 and they were in stores until 1993!

[@MAIcrosoft]

"Bandai Intellivision" god that sounds so weird hahaha 😅 Also, the woodgrain background made me feel I was watching LGR 😂

[@GTV-Japan]

Yea that is weird

[@roberto1519]

I really thought the Atari 2800 was a typo! Must be, along with the localized cartridges, interesting to collectors.

[@GTV-Japan]

Actually the carts are the same. They say 2600 on the label, despite the fancy schmancy boxes they made!

[@FloatingSunfish]

I'm amazed E.T. didn't end Atari's prospects then and there.

[@GTV-Japan]

Why? It was the biggest movie ever and a very creative game!

[@FloatingSunfish]

@@GTV-Japan The movie was indeed a big hit, but the game was so rushed (with a 5-week deadline so it could be out on Christmas) that there isn't any substance in it. Or maybe there's something to the game that I'm just not seeing. Perhaps you can make a video about the game so people like me can grow to appreciate it?

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah I’ve heard the story a hundred times but it’s not as bad as it’s made out to be. I finished the game when I was 7. It was the biggest game in terms of what to do until Zelda 1 and I thought it was very enjoyable

[@legendsflashback]

Isn't lynx 2 better spec than lynx 1?

[@GTV-Japan]

The specs are the same but I think they Lynx 2 added full stereo or something

[@legendsflashback]

@@GTV-Japan right and better light screen and headphone 🎧 Jack etc

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah I think I like it better

[@legendsflashback]

@@GTV-Japan cool 😎

[@snesfan8935]

Re-upload???

[@GTV-Japan]

Remastered!

[@snesfan8935]

@@GTV-Japan got it!

[@GTV-Japan]

While I’m writing a new batch of videos I will update and re release 3 videos to hold everyone over. Then it’s back to all new in April

[@outerspacebass]

I was hoping to learn more about the climate of the Japanese market previous to 1983. It seems like every documentary skips straight from space invaders to famicom and sg1000, msx, etc. But we don't hear much about the tv manufacturers making pong clones or the PC market of the late 70's early 80's. The atari VCS hardware was a little bit junk compared to its own other offerings and so many follow-up and contemporary consoles. The atari 800 was a solid platform and Japan had the pc88 and 98 and before that the Sharp mz80k and the Sord m200. I'm just curious what Japanese people who had those computers back then were like?

[@GTV-Japan]

I think I might go back and revisit that someday but there isn’t much documentation. The audience was older that’s for sure because of the skill needed and expense. It seems I like everywhere else it was a Wild West time where all kinds of configs existed and were quickly outdated.

[@ericp631]

Nintendo tv color game systems (started as pong clones) were quite popular. They dominated the pre Famicom/pong clone console scene. As for micros. Apple and commodore both had success in the initial stage of the late 70's, but when nec decided to hop into the game they became the 800lb gorilla in the scene over night, at least until msx(and lesser extent, sharp) offered a real challenger

[@apollosungod2819]

Also just wanted to add this... it is ironic that despite the failure of Atari in Japan, that didn't stop Nintendo (who at the time they were in talks, did not have a subsidiary branch established for marketing, distribution, Public relations and supporting the Nintendo fan club or fanbase... remember that many things in the 80s had fan clubs?) From basically offering Atari a crazy "Harmony Gold" like exclusive rights for selling the Nintendo FamiCom and games where basically Atari "could" have renamed it as the "Atari Entertainment System" (insert roflmfaoooo) or Atari Genesis or whatever weird name we were actually saved from since Atari Corp management basically laughed at them, believing videogame systems were no more and that Atari Computers were the future... But then wait... some years later SEGA Enterprises LTD JAPAN actually comes to Atari Corp too (apparently they most likely had no clue about Nintendo's offer to Atari) and holy moley and gee wizz golly geewillikers Batman! But SEGA's Japanese management basically offered the cutting edge and affordable mass production hi-tech SEGA MegaDrive hardware and games with full exclusivity (again I'll mention Harmony Gold because it's evil) because despite SEGA's Japanese management actually spending multiple millions of dollars to establish the subsidiary branch named "Sega of America in 1986" to do that job, the management there proved unreliable, most likely had no real plan, did not study the competition and its said that the first SoA president didn't even believe in home videogame systems anyway like he was trapped in 1983 mindset. You could correct me if I'm wrong but that's what goes around for the information. However BOTH Nintendo and Sega's hi-tech powerhouse machines (remember that at least from 1983 to 1986 the Nintendo FamiCom and NES was super high powerful affordable hardware) to Atari Corp... a reformatted company that has a history of controversial leadership with hugely toxic egos... and it's not like they should have taken those deals but the fact that they were practically being handed a showroom prize beind door number 1 and basically Atari didn't want nor did they see any potential... in BOTH times... Which basically left Nintendo in 1984 to take the huge risk just to see if the NES would fail or not and likewise for Sega but TWICE since Sega of America was a mess in shambles by 1988 and in no position to have been cultivating a "Sega Master System fanbase" or even start hyping the Sega MegaDrive for launch in 1988 just weeks to a month after the Japanese launch... could you imagine if that happened too? It kinda makes me wonder if NEC offered Atari the PC-Engine..., hopefully they did, hopefully Atari Corp brass laughed at them and they went to reformat NEC America to prep the TG16. Also by late 80s and early 90s before 1993 there was a developing videogame system and arcade culture where we didn't just talk about the games and hardware but argued about why Nintendo's Super FamiCom CPU had a "lower perceived" clock speed number. Also Nintendo of America's management and staff had truly developed during the 80s and early 90s to the point that while many people do that "blame Nintendo" here in the U.S.A... the fact is if we talk high school sports of back then, it's like the coach of the other team took to blame the rival team but never bothered to watch their games and study their strategies and tricks.

[@GTV-Japan]

I do remember a time when having the NES under the TV did mean you had basically the most powerful game machine around...

[@santisven]

So japanese people seem to prefer local when it comes to games. But when it comes to smartphones and PCs, most stick to Apple. Curiously, and correct me if I'm wrong, Sharp does not sell smartphones outside of Japan. It really amazes me the amount of brands or products manufactured and sold only in Japan. When it comes to household items, they're truly unique. Nice job with the video, as always. Hadn't seen the previous one.

[@GTV-Japan]

I don’t know if sharp sells outside of japan really but for tvs and ovens etc they are very popular of course. As I’ve said yes Japanese patriotically prefer domestic products. Every nation should as that how it supports itself. But when it comes to function they will choose domestic nearly every time. If it’s for style then something from overseas can make a name for itself. WV cars are common here. And food from every land is enjoyed. It must be iOS and the prestige of the brand that people prefer because all phones call each other the same way. Thanks for watching as always 🕹

[@santisven]

@@GTV-Japan thanks for the time in responding! Years ago I recall reading somewhere how popular (and good) sharp phones were in Japan, and how the brand didn't import cellphones. I can understand not taking that risk, the cellphone industry is very competitive. LG and HTC had to back down. Apple and Samsung are king. And chinese brands are the most popular worldwide in lowend devices. See you!

[@GTV-Japan]

I wonder if anything will ever topple Apple. Being s as n Apple fan for so long especially through the dark ages it’s so strange to see them as the richest company on earth.

[@ultrairrelevantnobody1862]

Awesome, now please do the UK.

[@GTV-Japan]

I wouldn’t know where to start.

[@ultrairrelevantnobody1862]

You could start with how it was more expensive than second hand cars, lol.

[@GTV-Japan]

Oh really? That seems to go against the Atari way

[@ericp631]

They were pretty strong in the u.k., it was probably their strongest market post u.s. video game crash. A lot of that due to the shift in focus on micro computers during the Atari corporation (tramiel) years falling in line with the u.k.'s focus on micro's over consoles as the preferred gaming devices(as the saying goes if you say Atari to an American they will think of the 2600 and nothing happening with them after it, if you say it to a European they will think of the ST, if you say Atari to the Japanese they will think of go(another way to say they never existed there). Though their consoles definitely weren't strangers to people.

[@GTV-Japan]

Agreed! I thought Atari computers were always least expensive. Or at least touted affordability

[@darktetsuya]

I don't know if it was ever explained but why *did* they rename the system to the 2800?! my theory is 2600 is a multiple of 13 and there's the superstition that it's unlucky. and I imagine Japan has a lot of those so I have to wonder if that was the reason? but I hadn't heard until now how their later systems fared over there, man the Jag just got dogpiled on!

[@GTV-Japan]

I have no proof but it’s true that 8 is a lucky number in japan . Many prices try to have an 8 in them for example.

[@darktetsuya]

@@GTV-Japan oh I like that theory too!

[@GTV-Japan]

It’s the best I can think of

[@David315842]

USA: Atari's presence in Japan was an epoch failure. (pronounced epic) UK: Atari's presence in Japan was an epic failure Mentioned the mispronunciation of Tremiel's name, but not the mispronunciation North Americans do everyday to the word 'epoch', there's no I in it. (pronounced e pok). Sorry I just found that funny. The video itself though was very informative. :)

[@MikeChimeri]

I'm guilty of mispronouncing "epoch" in the past, but not for years. I also stubbornly pronounced "Grusin" (as in musicians Dave and Don) like it rhymed with "cruisin'" until 2006. And even though "tate" in "tate mode" is supposed to be pronounced "tah-tay," Joe Redifer's (Game Sack) explanation that the screen is roTATEd in that mode makes "tayt" an acceptable alternate, at least for me.

[@GTV-Japan]

Am I boffing Epoch? It’s written in Japanese as エポック. So I just thought it matched epic. Oh well. Thanks for the correction. For a while I was going to mispronounce Tramiel after explaining it but thought it was too weird of a joke for anyone to get. I did ten takes to get Jaguar to not sound like jag wire though 😂 thanks for watching 🕹

[@MikeChimeri]

@@GTV-Japan I didn't hear anything wrong with the way you said "epoch."

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks. It sounds right to me. If I say long E eeepock then it doesn’t match the Japanese. So it’s their fault I guess 😂

[@David315842]

@@MikeChimeri Americans though pronounce it like it's the word 'epic' but that makes very little sense, but then so does America treating Y as a vowel. :D

[@retrogameroom9019]

Nice ken real nice :)

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks 🙏

[@MrSRArter]

12:46 Sega also would've also used their own Trojan horse if they beat Nintendo to revitalizing console gaming in North America, the Sega Master System's 3D glasses.

[@GTV-Japan]

Those were pretty cool!

[@ornerycuss5804]

Norm aint got nuttin on this!!

[@GTV-Japan]

Thanks for supporting the channel! 🍺

[@ornerycuss5804]

@@GTV-Japan I love it brother...keep it up!!

[@GTV-Japan]

You got it! I’m planning some thing huge for next April. Far away but when it’s finished you’ll need this original comment again. Word for word 😆

[@Luke_Stoltenberg]

For how many tech companies has the acquisition by a regular media corporation that doesn't understand the customer or the product sounded the death knell? Atari and Warner comes to mind, as does MySpace and Fox.

[@GTV-Japan]

Well, Atari under Warner did last about 8 years and then it was split up. Those pieces lived on a while. So maybe all things must end but it’s better than running out of money and dying before it had a chance.

[@chazmaru9583]

Great video as always but I just can’t shake off the sales number for Lynx. Doesn’t pass the smell test. Around 500.000 units would be around as much as the Neo Geo Pocket line in Japan… Where are those consoles? The Lynx is quasi non existant in used stores, it seldom appears on auction sites. I get that you did your research but this has to be some early journalistic typo that kept being reprinted in books unquestioned.

[@GTV-Japan]

It’s possible that it could be a mistake but it’s the number I often see. Yahoo auctions has a lot of Lynx on sale and I did cross check that number with the other region sales and the worldwide number and it seems to add up. The mega drive sold 3 million though I never ever see them in used stores except those with a special high end expensive case of stuff.

[@chazmaru9583]

@@GTV-Japan Thanks. True about the MD sales vs. presence in the secondhand market but at least you see plenty of software everywhere. Closest situation for me would be the PC-FX but at least that one has a more reasonable final sales number out there. I will try to dig into this Lynx number when I have the time. In any case, I guess the important information is both Atari and their distributor considered the Lynx a commercial success (as demonstrated by the release of Jaguar).

[@GTV-Japan]

As far as gamer though there were only 17 versus like 400 or something for mega drive so theres that. If it’s wrong then I’d sure like to see it corrected

[@skins4thewin]

WOW! Only 3K Jaguars in Japan?? Bet the Japanese version of that console is worth a BUNDLE now & extremely hard to get ahold of!

[@GTV-Japan]

There is a jaguar sitting in the game store across from the KFC in Akihabara for as long as I’ve been here.

[@skins4thewin]

@@GTV-Japan Ha, that's funny. They must be asking a fortune for it.

[@AthanasiosJapan]

Most of my Japanese friends don't even know about Atari. Actually I have met only 1 Japanese person who knew a few things about Atari. I also never spotted any Atari product on retro game shops. Until watching this video, my impression was that Atari never sold anything in Japan.

[@GTV-Japan]

I’ve only met a few people who knew OF Atari. The most die hard game fans. Even then it was just the general history that happened 50 years ago

[@GTV-Japan]

If you go to a bookstore and check out some of the game history books often in print there will be some mentions of Atari things sold in Japan.

[@CushionSapp]

And here I was thinking this video would be about the main human character in Isle of Dogs

[@GTV-Japan]

Doh!

[@SDChargers93]

A Hill to die on : Atari Jaguar needed to grab all the games from midway and should have made them all exclusive timed games. I’m not sure if I’m speaking pure out of nostalgia but man most the games from Atari / Namco / Midway were my childhood man. Especially Rampart and Narc. It’s a weird story hot Atari Games and Atari was totally separate but were the same especially Warner reclaimed Atari after 1993 (Atari Games that is) and then Resold to Midway in 95.

[@GTV-Japan]

Atari Games always considered itself the original Atari too! But because the history is written around Nintendo and it’s successes, Atari Corp. gets all the ink. Hey I thought arcades were dead by the mid 80s? That was Atari Games’s golden years🕹

[@Sarcophagus74]

A new slogan. 'GTV, a weebs paradise' LOL I can hear my son making that joke. Since I love video games, anime and Japanese food, he calls me a weeb. But I hope my joke made you laugh.

[@GTV-Japan]

Oh yes let’s laugh at the funny joke! Well, kids… what do you expect 😂

[@Sarcophagus74]

@@GTV-Japan I did not mean that as an insult. Sorry you did not like my joke. I love your channel.

[@Sarcophagus74]

@@GTV-Japan When I am called a weeb, I just laugh it off. I don't really think of it as a serious insult. That is why I joke about being called. that. So if I upset you, that was not my intent.

[@GTV-Japan]

No. Certainly not! Though I always prefer the term Japanophile. Just tell him I’m the gaming Lafcadio Hearn 😂

[@fumomofumosarum5893]

It's good that you do laugh it off. : ) Although, I always think it is kinda like "the N- word" against people who appreciate japanese culture lol. A slur.

[@anthonybird546]

I think the original casing of the VCS didn't appeal to Japanese aesthetics. Furthermore, the Japanese market can be very discerning - the fact that arcade ports on the 2600 were just utter crap, like Pac-Man. Consumers in Japan could see that the home system tech was decidedly inferior to arcade technology. Being more technologically literate, I could see that they demanded more powerful home consoles as well.

[@GTV-Japan]

I could see those points. It turns out that pac man was probably not released in japan despite packaging made for it, most seem to concur these days. 🕹

[@GTV-Japan]

Certainly the controller ports in the back were my main complaint about the 2600. It’s backwards!

[@Marc_Araujo]

The Atari Jaguar lol.

[@GTV-Japan]

I had one! Tempest for life!!!

[@Marc_Araujo]

@@GTV-Japan I wonder what the Japanese would've thought if they ever got the chance to see the Jaguar CD peripheral.

[@GTV-Japan]

Probably a collective “oh that’s nice” but since it’s ad add on it might’ve sold a few hundred only

[@Marc_Araujo]

@@GTV-Japan I was referring more to what their opinion would be on the "toilet" shape of the console together with the peripheral attached lol.

[@GTV-Japan]

Hmm well…. I don’t know what to say about that

[@Z64sports]

I thought Sharp was Japanese

[@GTV-Japan]

It is!

[@AChannelFrom2006]

I can understand why Atari wouldn't go good in Japan... I've never liked Atari.

[@GTV-Japan]

Never?? But they were awesome! Anyway thanks for sharing your thoughts and opinions 🕹

[@AChannelFrom2006]

@@GTV-Japan I think it's mostly because I started on a Colecovision which felt very close to arcade games at the time. BTW I do love your style of videos.

[@GTV-Japan]

Well that’s a good point! I had an Atari first so I might feel extra nostalgia others won’t

[@_sparrowhawk]

ATARI: "No one will ever stop us MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA" Assistant: "But what if someone competes against us...?" ATARI: "WHAT?!"

[@GTV-Japan]

Funny enough Nolan Bushnell tried to stop that by hiring as many engineers as possible to keep them busy and not join other companies

[@douglasbriel6103]

Japan was still pretty insular at that point, except for gaining feet in America with cars.

[@GTV-Japan]

Datsuns being the best of that era!

[@CriticalEatsJapan]

Yeah, I was going to say, even Xbox is still not so hot here

[@GTV-Japan]

The newest Xbox isn’t even sold where I live. I’ve literally never seen it!

[@only1gameguru]

The total Xbox One sales record is broken monthly by the switch... It's nuts >.>

[@GTV-Japan]

Yeah that is. The store near me still carries only the same first 5 Xbox one games from years ago and never followed up 🕹

[@Horos_de_Vega]

Interesting how a brand means different things in different countries: Atari in France is neither synonymous of Atari 2600 nor synonymous of failure. Atari in France is mostly synonymous of Atari ST. The Atari 520 STF was THE gaming machine of the late 80s; in the time window between the Amstrad CPC (mid 80s) and the 16-bit consoles (early 90s) - the 8-bit NES/MS were never big successes... struggling vs the Atari ST and the soon-to-arrive 16-bit MD & Super Nintendo.

[@GTV-Japan]

That’s Atari! All things to all people I guess! What drives me nuts though are people who think things like Atari created Pac-Man or all games before the NES had just one button 😂 thanks for sharing your memories 🕹

[@vegetafett]

Good re watch and additions. I thought i was going crazy for a second . Overall games used to be better quality when made in Japan. I think it's interesting to see how outdated Atari was in the mid 80s and then early 90s. Ive only seen a jaguar once since I was a kid in America , I always thought it was sad how far Atari has fallen.

[@GTV-Japan]

It’s still amazing to see what they could get out of that 10+ year old machine.

[@vegetafett]

@@GTV-Japan thats true it was such limited hardware.

[@GTV-Japan]

The original it prints money. Just maybe not as much 😂

[@vegetafett]

They are still trying to this day lol

[@GTV-Japan]

Gotta get paid