Newsbytes: Atari Movies; Alien Pinball; Music Video; NTG#83

After a series of cold days, today gives me my first taste of Summer as it hits over 80 and the A/C at the arcade dies. Good times.

Atari Once Again Looking To Bring Their IPs To The Silver Screen- Fans should say No Thanks: Centipede and Missile Command might come to theaters if the current Atari has their way. Despite being a fan of the old Atari, I loathe the current iteration of the company who, when they aren’t suing websites over poor game scores, blocking indie games from release just because they could or going after legendary game makers to pass the time, they are filing trademark disputes over games that have nothing to do with their IP. Given that they’ve made an art over biting the hands that feed them, I’m guessing that the enthusiasm I am seeing among arcade or Atari fans over the news is down to them not being aware of Atari’s behavior or, not caring. I won’t be watching these movies if they do get made and at this point can only look forward to the day when the brand is being handled by someone who is not only competent with the old IP but has the vision to make the brand respectable again (that being said, I won’t hold my breath given how many companies with recognizable IP catalogs fail to innovate with them).

Alien Pinball Presentation As Shown At Freeplay Florida 2015: If you have been looking forward to the upcoming Alien Pinball machine by Heighway Pinball, then this should be of interest. The video was posted by Youtube user 904Pinballzine a few days ago and is from a short presentation that was done last year at the Freeplay Florida event in Orlando. This shows an early whitewood and discusses some of the planned features (earlier than what I saw in the trailer at Amusement Expo 2016 that has still not been released yet).

UPDATE: Skycurser Attract Sequence Tease: The team behind the indie arcade shoot ’em up Skycurser just posted this to Twitter, showing the attract mode sequence that that game will have, explaining the story. I love that your craft has been waiting inside of a barn; this stays true to the old school feel of the game:

Teaser of a new #SKYCURSER attract mode sequence. Digging how this is coming together! #pixelart #gif #arcade #shmup pic.twitter.com/mr8mLS3oA9

— SKYCURSER dev team (@skycurser) May 15, 2016

Gunslinger Stratos 3 Grabs Some Fresh Air In Shinjuku Japan: Here’s a nice way to promote your brand new arcade game – set it up outside in busy public places:

新宿ステーションスクエアで行われている『ガンスリンガーストラトス 3』のイベント。うまい棒はまだ配布しています。 pic.twitter.com/Cht5Uu9C83

— アリエス＠アリエスの小部屋管理人 (@ariesukobeya) May 14, 2016

Now that’s a good use of a crane machine: nuff’ said, really:

What’s the @ChicagoBears mascot to do during the offseason?

Scare the crap out of little kids. 😂https://t.co/97qzMHjtxn

— AtTheBuzzer (@TheBuzzerOnFOX) May 13, 2016

Arcades In A New Justin Timberlake Music Video: Arcades continue showing their cultural importance, amidst a plethora of celebrities and pop music:

Flyer of the Week – Scramble: Scramble was an early example of a side-scrolling shooter that would enjoy the height of popularity during the 80s. It was originally developed by Konami and licensed to Stern for production and sales in the West and Stern put together this flyer that has a 1950s sci-fi movie vibe to it with the goofy sparkle costumes for the shark fin/unicorn alien guy.  The full flyer in all its glory can be found here at Flyer Fever.

Name That Game #83 – Last week was a breeze for you guys, one of the titles I picked as I ended up getting a marquee for it which now hangs on the wall at my arcade (Exerion). Here are the answers in case you missed them:

#1 – Sega Ski Super G by Sega

#2 – Exerion by Jaleco

#3 – Victory by Exidy

For this week: