*sniff* do you smell that? It has a certain fishy aroma to it. The Ataribox [Official Site] IndieGoGo launch is now 'officially paused'.
It was only a few days ago, that we reported about the Ataribox pre-order campaign date and it has been delayed already. It's not surprising, since they had given out so few details about the unit that it became more than a little concerning. It's even more concerning now that it's suddenly 'paused' before it even began.
Here's what the official update sent to my inbox said:
The countdown to the Ataribox launch on IndieGoGo has been officially paused. Because of one key element on our checklist, it is taking more time to create the platform and ecosystem the Atari community deserves. Building Ataribox is incredibly important to us and we will do whatever it takes to be sure it is worth the wait.
An updated launch plan is underway and more detailed information will be available soon.
We will be keeping you, our community, informed every step of the way. Thank you again for your support of Ataribox.
It will be very surprising if it ever appears again. A shame though, it could have been an interesting unit. We will keep you informed if we hear anything else, especially if this 'updated launch plan' actually materialises.
I don't mean to be too negative, as the possibilities are exciting to a tech and Linux enthusiast like myself. The problem is how everything is still so secret. We know hardly anything about the device, apart from the few details they've let trickle out.
If it does actually come out, I will be quite pleased and I will likely grab one to play with and review. I hope it's just a case of letting the entire project bake a little longer, to get more games ready and to polish the user experience. Delays aren't always a bad thing, so we will just have to wait and see.
If any Atari reps read this, get in touch.
Article updated after publishing with more thoughts.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Mohandevir Dec 14, 2017
You have obviously much more experience about this kind of stuff than I do, but I'm curious to know why you think we will never hear about it again?
(While I'm not exited about the device. I expect it to be cheap hardware able to run, what it is made for: Very old games.)
Quoting: GuestI like how on their press page is a quote from GOL: "Hard not to get excited about the possibilities".We....got recognised? Oh my. They might regret linking to us a bit now though...
They just wanted to make it easier not to get excited.
Seriously though, this kind of "pause" is most definitely not a good sign, especially with only a hand-wavy reason given.
Quoting: Mohandevir"It will be very surprising if it ever appears again."It has happened before with plenty of other devices, not necessarily Linux-specific though. I've seen very similar things happen over and over again.
You have obviously much more experience about this kind of stuff than I do, but I'm curious to know why you think we will never hear about it again?
Quoting: LakortaThe title is slightly misleading. It's the launch countdown that was paused, not the project itself.Correct, I've adjusted the title to ensure it's clear. Wasn't my intention to mislead of course :)
PlutonMaster Dec 14, 2017
I have Raspberry Pi with Retropie including all Atari games in it.
Mohandevir Dec 14, 2017
Quoting: liamdaweQuoting: Mohandevir"It will be very surprising if it ever appears again."It has happened before with plenty of other devices, not necessarily Linux-specific though. I've seen very similar things happen over and over again.
You have obviously much more experience about this kind of stuff than I do, but I'm curious to know why you think we will never hear about it again?
I was hoping for a last minute & new brilliant idea that forced them to reconsider... You are breaking my illusions Liam! ;)
Thanks for the input.
slaapliedje Dec 14, 2017
Not sure that is actually worth anything. He also said he'd be working on the Gameband instead. Which has been delayed over and over again, something about trying to get a water resistant rating and the USB-C port not fitting the design well enough.
Mountain Man Dec 14, 2017
Quoting: MohandevirYou have obviously much more experience about this kind of stuff than I do, but I'm curious to know why you think we will never hear about it again?
Releasing hardware is just hard. Tons of things can go wrong and if they aren't releasing it and not telling what's going on - you can suspect they have some serious setbacks.
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