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Space Battle: The Mattel Intellivision and the First Console War

2024

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Synopsis

From the tense foreboding of Night Stalker to the competitive thrill of NFL Football, Mattel’s Intellivision rocketed into homes across the U.S. in the early 1980s and transformed video gaming. It packed superb arcade action and thrilling family entertainment into one 16-bit system with the industry’s first voice synthesis and controls unlike any other console. Combined with truly terrific games, the Intellivision seriously challenged Atari at the top of the video game market.

In Space Battle: The Mattel Intellivision and the First Console War, video game historian Jamie Lendino charts Mattel’s fascinating but ill-fated foray into Intelligent Television. He examines the system’s surprise history; reviews more than 60 of its most dynamic and groundbreaking games; and explores how its legacy continues today in new titles, updated hardware, and a thriving enthusiast community collecting and modding the system in ways Mattel never could have imagined.

The more you learn about the Intellivision, the more you’ll agree with George Plimpton that the Intellivision was the closest thing to the real thing.

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