Phosphor Dot Fossils: Why I Pre-Ordered the Amico

Friends, yesterday Earl Green was busy producing a new episode of his Phosphor Dot Fossils series, one focusing on the upcoming Intellivision Amico home console. As I shared back in January when the Night Stalker trailer was released and I believe made pretty clear, I personally am extremely excited about the Intellivision Amico. On the Diary 1UP podcast I talked a bit about how much Night Stalker was loved in my household – the hours and hours my Grandmother and myself played it is a cherished memory – that video for this new version did not disappoint. But it would appear that the online community of video game enthusiasts aren’t all onboard with this new home console. Enough so that just recently Brett Weiss addressed what he saw as the top 3 concerns that some folks had with the system – which is why we are also sharing Earl Green’s “Why I Pre-Ordered the Amico”. Earl is not just a friend and fellow writer for this site but he is, like Brett Weiss, a video game historian and I think his new video gets right to the heart of what makes the Intellivision Amico such a intriguing home console.

As Earl mentioned in the video itself, a lot of the draw for the Intellivision Amico is the library of games it will be offering. That coupled with the fact that some of those programmers who were there during the Golden Age of Video Games are involved with the design of some of the titles – a pretty strong hook in my opinion. While at first glance it might appear the attraction to the Intellivision Amico is based solely on nostalgia, which is an aspect to be sure, but as Earl pointed out -the games are taking a page from the arcade classics, easy to play perhaps but tough to master. Of the games that have been announced for the upcoming Intellivision Amico those I am most excited for besides Night Stalker are Moon Patrol, Missile Command, Demon Attack, Dragon Fire, Utopia, and of course Astrosmash. That last one I believe has been revealed as the pack-in game for the Intellivision Amico!

For even more pop culture related goodness by Earl – make sure to check out his own website, the Logbook.Com – absolutely one of the best and longest running sites for all your retro needs.