Together Again

Intellivision enters red ocean of video game console market but innovates with blue ocean strategies of inclusivity, clarity, and affordability.

by Benjamin Lewin January 10, 2020

“Discover Intellivision. It can change your family’s life.” They said that in 1979. They’re saying that again forty years later, but does it hold the same weight? Flash forward to 2019, Intellivision is planning on releasing a new home video game console called the Amico, slated for release on October 10, 2020.

(The original 1979 Intellivision by Mattel Electronics.)

(The new Amico by Intellivision Entertainment set to release 10/10/2020)

The original Intellivision console offered cartridges not limited to just games but also learning programs for kids to adults (basic arithmetic to full blown French), home budgeting software, workout routines, and federal tax calculation software. At that time, it was revolutionary to have all that in one package, but in an era where each aforementioned unique selling point has been expanded and explored fully as entire industries in and of themselves (e.g. Microsoft Office, Rosetta Stone, TurboTax, app stores, AAA title games, etc.), what could Intellivision offer today that anyone is lacking? Are there even any needs? Intellivision CEO, Tommy Tallarico, believes so.

“Games these days have become so complicated...everything about [the games] just screams ‘hardcore gamer’,” Tallarico states emphatically. He talks about how video games have not only become so complicated that they estrange many demographics of players, especially older gamers, but how their designs encourage (if not require) physical isolation from other people. “When [the internet] hit the gaming industry, multiplayer went away…multiplayer now meant a kid in a dark room with his headphones on.”



(Intellivision CEO, Tommy Tallarico)

The company’s slogan, “Together Again,” indicates their mission to address the apparent lack of fellowship involved with modern games. This could appear to skeptics as a gimmick, but the story goes deeper than that. Many companies operate from a standpoint of “what” to produce or even a “how” to produce something that is unique from their competitors. Tallarico starts with something more fundamental: he drives forth from a deep and rich “why”.

Before that is addressed, it is appropriate to ask a separate “why” question. Why is he taking the massive risk of entering the crimson waters of the home console market? The tides have never been as volatile as they are now, and there are red wakes to prove it. There stand the industry titans Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft, with Google now entering the feeding frenzy with their streaming service, Stadia. The market is additionally proliferated by a plethora of inexpensive set-top boxes leveraging flooded app stores full of console quality games for free or an average ninety-nine cent cost.

“I want to play games with my dad again,” says Tallarico, now a grown man. The well protected spirit of the former boy he once was many moons ago still rings true and yearns for the very human and fundamental need we all as humans share: the need to play with those we love.

As simple as it is, this could be enough to survive (possibly even thrive) in the water. Nintendo’s 100 million units sold of the Wii console is a testament to the demand that is still out there to game together in the same physical space and in a simple and fun way. Determined to prevail, Intellivision declares to make good on its promises by offering an accessible home video game system that is S.A.F.E. - Simple, Affordable, Family, Entertainment.

(A showcase of the Amico’s dynamic LED light system. The model featured is the “Glacier White” version, differing from the limited edition, “Vintage Woodgrain” model shown earlier)

Every game on the Amico will be rated either E or E10+ (E stands for “Everyone”: games that are suitable for children and people of all ages, and “10+” means players that are ten and older). The games will be designed exclusively for the console and specifically to be clean, fun to play, easy to understand, and conducive for local multiplayer. The Amico supports up to eight simultaneous players on the same system, which is unlike any other console ever with few exceptions. It comes with two controllers and even offers a free app that can be used on any smartphone, which connects to the system and behaves as any regular controller would without the need to buy additional controllers.

Among the glitz and glamour of modern, hardcore games, touting grotesque themes of sex and violence, Intellivision’s new console discards all this in exchange for meaning. Whereas some modern games are practically simulations of full alternate realities and require about as much on-boarding as a new employment in a foreign country (language barrier included!), Intellivision keeps the experience to being literally just a game and not one that acts as a substitution for reality. Finally, Intellivision avoids falling into the same pit as so many apps do. The mind-numbing time wasters that prevail in our pockets, accessible at any time, that prey on primal instincts of instant gratification to whittle away our hard-earned income with pervasive microtransactions and ads, Intellivision keeps the experience honest and inexpensive. Each game on the Amico will cost between $3 and $10 and won’t be designed to require an excess of time, attention, or money but will simply aim to facilitate community and lasting memories that are enjoyed in a shared, physical space.

Intellivision is fighting hard against a society wired for the sensational and expedient. Tallarico is in pursuit of what is meaningful. It is a deep need: true connection to other humans united in innocent play. The system genuinely lives up to its name, Amico — the Italian word for “friend”.

Discover more information about Intellivision and the Amico on their website: https://www.intellivisionamico.com/

Learn more from their December 2019 press release: https://www.intellivisionamico.com/press-releases/press-release-december-3rd-2019

You can watch videos about the Amico on their YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1ycBH0-kgp8kDqU_yfAHKw