Almost 40 years after the release of the original Intellivision home video game system which helped to redefine the video game industry, Intellivision Entertainment is proud to carry on its “Legacy of Firsts” by announcing the brand new revolutionary family home video game console named Amico to be released on October 10th, 2020. Amico is the Italian word for “friend” or “buddy” and encapsulates an element of the approach and dynamics for what makes the new console so unique and an exciting addition to everyone’s family.
“We are creating a console that parents WANT to buy, not that they were asked to buy,” stated Intellivision president and 30 year industry veteran Tommy Tallarico during his keynote address over the weekend at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo. Tallarico went on to say, “Most every game being made for the home consoles these days is created with only the hardcore gamer in mind. We see a world where everyone is interested in playing at home and with friends, but this isn’t currently possible because the barrier to entry is nearly impossible for a non-gamer due to the complexity of the controllers, intricacy of gameplay, expense of the hardware and software and steep learning curve with an unbalanced fun factor for the beginner. Our goal was to create a console that both gamers and non-gamers are able to have fun with and play together. The Intellivision Amico is our answer to this gaping hole we see within the current video game industry.”
Intellivision Entertainment continues to build upon its gaming legacy with support and expertise from industry veterans and superstars, including longtime product manager/producer/marketer Jason Enos (involved in over 100 products launches, including the Metal Gear Solid, Castlevania, Contra, Dance Dance Revolution, Silent Hill, TEKKEN, Ace Combat, Dragon Ball Z, Monopoly and PAC-MAN franchises), Perrin Kaplan (Zebra Partners, former Nintendo VP of Marketing & Corporate Affairs; launched the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, Super Nintendo, Nintendo Gamecube, N64), Beth Llewlyn (Zebra Partners, former Nintendo PR; launched the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, Pokemon), Scott Tsumura (Tozai Games, formerly co-founder and President of Nintendo Software Technology Corporation, and a pioneer in the early days of arcade game production, including Moon Patrol, Kung Fu Master, 10 Yard Fight, etc.), Phil Adam (Founder of Spectrum Holobyte, President & VP of Interplay Productions, helped introduce Tetris to the world), André LaMothe (Hardware Evangelist, programmer, designer, author, over 750 products to market, artificial intelligence design for NASA) and advisor David Perry (Earthworm Jim, Disney’s Aladdin™, founder of Shiny Entertainment and co-founder of Gaikai cloud gaming utilized in the Sony PlayStation4).
Game industry analyst and Wedbush Securities Managing Director of Equity Research Michael Pachter commented, “I think it’s about time somebody focused on families with kid-friendly games. Intellivision has a long history of delivering content that everybody can enjoy, and with the revived console priced right, I expect it to be immensely successful. The company has the right leadership and is positioned in an underserved niche, I think the re-launch will be a home run.”
“Intellivision Entertainment is also proud to announce that it joins console manufacturers Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo as the fourth game console company to be an active member of the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). The ESA’s mission is dedicated to serving the business and public affairs needs of the video game industry as well as owning and operating the Electronic Entertainment Exposition (E3).”