alternatehistory.com
Gaming in 1986 - An Overview, Part II
"You know what? Let's just do this ourselves."
- Bruce Lowry, President of Sega of America
Atari ProSystem
Atari's third cartridge-based home arcade made it to shelves in May 1986. Given the relatively high costs of the Nintendo AVS and the Intellivision III, Atari tried to accommodate consumers by making it comparatively more affordable.
Performance-wise, it was a small step above the SuperSystem. The home arcade launched with a lineup of arcade game ports, but, thanks to games like Super Mario Bros., gamers were more interested in original home arcade titles. As a result, the ProSystem started off lagging behind the competition.
"The ColecoVision 2, originally announced for a winter 1986 release, has suddenly been delayed to summer 1987 instead. Arnold Greenberg, CEO of Coleco, has stated that this delay is so that Coleco can "catch up with the competition." At this point, this move is a bit of a risk, as more and more home arcade enthusiasts are flocking to said competition, so the ColecoVision 2 would have to be a smash hit if Coleco wants it to be a success."
- Business article in The Hartford Courant
Sega Master System
Sega would finally throw their hat in the ring. After a few years of failed partnerships, Sega had no choice but to release the Master System on their own in September, with an introductory price of $200. One of the launch games, Alex Kidd in Miracle World, was heavily marketed as Sega's response to Super Mario Bros., and would end up being their best-selling game by the end of the year as a result.
- Bruce Lowry, President of Sega of America
Atari ProSystem
Atari's third cartridge-based home arcade made it to shelves in May 1986. Given the relatively high costs of the Nintendo AVS and the Intellivision III, Atari tried to accommodate consumers by making it comparatively more affordable.
Performance-wise, it was a small step above the SuperSystem. The home arcade launched with a lineup of arcade game ports, but, thanks to games like Super Mario Bros., gamers were more interested in original home arcade titles. As a result, the ProSystem started off lagging behind the competition.
"The ColecoVision 2, originally announced for a winter 1986 release, has suddenly been delayed to summer 1987 instead. Arnold Greenberg, CEO of Coleco, has stated that this delay is so that Coleco can "catch up with the competition." At this point, this move is a bit of a risk, as more and more home arcade enthusiasts are flocking to said competition, so the ColecoVision 2 would have to be a smash hit if Coleco wants it to be a success."
- Business article in The Hartford Courant
Sega Master System
Sega would finally throw their hat in the ring. After a few years of failed partnerships, Sega had no choice but to release the Master System on their own in September, with an introductory price of $200. One of the launch games, Alex Kidd in Miracle World, was heavily marketed as Sega's response to Super Mario Bros., and would end up being their best-selling game by the end of the year as a result.
- StomperYoshi
- Word Count: 270