Intellivision
 |
|
 |
|
| Manufacturer | Mattel Electronics |
|---|---|
| Type | Home video game console |
| Generation | Second generation |
| Retail availability | 1979 (US test market) 1980 (North America) 1982 (Europe, Japan) |
| Discontinued | January 1984 |
| Units sold | 3 million |
| CPU | GI CP1610 |
| Removable storage | ROM cartridge |
| Online services | PlayCable |
| Best-selling game | Major League Baseball (1 million) |
| Successor | HyperScan |
The Intellivision is a home video game console released by Mattel Electronics in 1979. Development of the console began in 1978, less than a year after the introduction of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. The name intellivision is a portmanteau of "intelligent television". Over 3 million Intellivision units were sold and a total of 125 games were released for the console.
In 2009, video game website IGN named the Intellivision the No. 14 greatest video game console of all time. It remained Mattel's only video game console until the release of the HyperScan in 2006.
The Intellivision was developed by Mattel Electronics, a subsidiary of Mattel formed expressly for the development of electronic games. The console was test marketed in Fresno, California, in 1979 with a total of four games available, and was released nationwide in 1980 with a price tag of US$299 and a pack-in game: Las Vegas Poker & Blackjack. The core of console (CPU and video chip set) was developed by General Instrument as can be seen from the "Gimini" book from 1978 (the "Gimini full range 8900 programmable set"). Though not the first system to challenge Atari, it was the first to pose a serious threat to Atari's dominance. A series of advertisements featuring George Plimpton were produced that demonstrated the superiority of the Intellivision's graphics and sound to those of the Atari 2600, using side-by-side game comparisons.
One of the slogans of the television advertisements stated that Intellivision was "the closest thing to the real thing"; one example in an advertisement compared golf games. The other console's games had a blip sound and cruder graphics, while the Intellivision featured a realistic swing sound and striking of the ball, and graphics that suggested a more 3D look. There was also an advertisement comparing the Atari 2600 to it, featuring the slogan "I didn't know".
Like Atari, Mattel marketed their console to a number of retailers as a rebadged unit. These models include the Radio Shack TandyVision, the GTE-Sylvania Intellivision, and the Sears Super Video Arcade. The Sears model was a specific coup for Mattel, as Sears was already selling a rebadged Atari 2600 unit, and in doing so made a big contribution to Atari's success.
...
Wikipedia