Atari, yes Atari, confirms it's making a new game console

It's a crowded market out there, but that's never stopped surprises from happening.
 By 
Peter Allen Clark
 on 
Original image replaced with Mashable logo
Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Your retro gaming icon wants back into the console business.

Twenty four years after the company put out its last home console, Atari announced Friday that it will release a new console for an already crowded mass market.

In an exclusive interview with GameBeats, Atari CEO Fred Chesnais confirmed that the New York company had big plans in the works.

“We’re back in the hardware business,” he said.

The move was teased last week, when Atari launched a site for something called the Atari Box. The site featured a video of a wood-paneled something that could only be the Atari Box.

CARD ID: 225748

At this point, little else is known. Chesnais only seems to have told GameBeats that the Atari Box (Or maybe it's Ataribox?) uses PC technology (which, what console doesn't?). He also said they are still finalizing the design and will show it off some time in the future. There is no word on what kind of games would be provided for it or how development would work.

Atari led the market in home console adoption in the late 1970s and largely contributed to the video game industry's collapse with its oversaturation of poor quality titles. The company launched its last console, the sad-fated Jaguar, in 1993. The Jaguar was discontinued in 1995, selling only about 125,000 units -- compare that with one of its competitors, the Super Nintendo, which sold almost 50 million.

After Atari filed for bankruptcy protection in 2013, Chesnais bought the company and made it profitable by focusing on mobile games. He told GameBeats that he sees the Ataribox as another step in the company's revival.

Good luck, buddy.

Topics Gaming

Mashable Image
Peter Allen Clark

I have done neat stuff all over these United States from sailing lessons on the Puget Sound to motorcycle maintenance on the backroads of upstate New York. My professional experience extends from newspaper reporting in the mountains of Eastern Oregon to fixing espresso machines throughout Kentucky. I also have kept a cat alive for 10 years.

Mashable Potato

Recommended For You



It's official: The Switch is Nintendo's highest-selling console ever
Nintendo Switch OLED out of its dock with the screen turned on


More in Entertainment
Anthropic makes the case for anthropomorphizing AI in ‘unsettling’ research paper
Science fiction robot head and abstract lights background


The DJI Mini 5 Pro drone is down to its best-ever price at Amazon — save $500 this weekend
DJI Mini 5 Pro Fly More Combo

California just launched the country's largest public broadband network
Newsom stands behind a teen on a computer. A group of people cheer and clap behind them.

The Shark FlexStyle is our favorite Dyson Airwrap dupe, and it's $160 off at Amazon right now
The Shark FlexStyle Air Styling & Drying System against a colorful background.

Trending on Mashable
NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for April 3, 2026
Connections game on a smartphone

Wordle today: Answer, hints for April 3, 2026
Wordle game on a smartphone


The quirky stuff NASA packed in the Orion spaceship for Artemis II
Rise floating in microgravity with the Artemis II crew

Google launches Gemma 4, a new open-source model: How to try it
Google Gemma
The biggest stories of the day delivered to your inbox.
These newsletters may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. By clicking Subscribe, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Thanks for signing up. See you at your inbox!