Plugged In: Simplicity of retro games make plug-and-play systems popular

Kirk Baird

Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2004 | 9:34 a.m.

They're small. They're inexpensive, usually around $20. And they're popular. Very popular.

Featuring such classic video games as Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, Asteroids, Warlords, Missile Command, Pong, Pitfall!, Breakout and Adventure, sales of retro-themed plug-and-play games are soaring into the millions.

Introduced 2 1/2 years ago, plug-and-play TV games controllers with built-in games that easily connect to a TV or VCR via a standard audio and video cable have emerged as one of the hot Christmas items in toy stores, electronic stores and retail chains across the nation.

Toy Wishes magazine and Toys R Us named a plug-and-play TV game, Ms. Pac-Man, as a top Holiday pick. while "CNN Money" noted: "Interactive TV Games, the simple box and joystick variety that you simply have to plug into a television, are the hottest trend in toys this year."

While the low price of the plug-and-play units and nostalgia for the classic video games factor into the popularity of the toys, the biggest reason for the plug and play's success is relatively simple.

"Definitely ease of use," said Anson Sowby, director of marketing for Jakks Pacific, leading maker of the plug-and-play units. "Anyone can plug a controller into their TV and play."

It's no surprise other companies developed plug-and-play offerings of their own. Atari, which has licensed retro titles to Jakks Pacific for several plug-and-play games, recently released its own plug-and-play device, the Atari Flashback, which retails for about $40.

Designed to resemble a smaller version of the 20-year-old Atari 7800, the Flashback comes with 20 built-in games from the 7800 and 2600 library, including Centipede, Millipede, Battlezone, Charley Chuck's Food Fight and Yars' Revenge.

"We worked directly with Curt Vendel, Atari Historical Society Founder and dedicated Atari historian, to develop the 7800 reproduction," said Win Stocks, Atari's executive vice president of sales and marketing, via e-mail. "Curt worked with a team of programmers, audio engineers, electronics engineers and QA testers from our in-house team and the Atari community to faithfully re-create each game to their original 2600 and 7800 experience."

Ultimately, all the games included in the Atari Flashback, as well as the other Atari-themed plug and plays, follow the company's original idea from decades ago: "Make the games easy to learn, but hard to master," Stocks said. "They are simple but fun, challenging and addictive."

While these games might be simple to play, porting them to the plug-and-play units often requires writing the games from scratch based on the original coding.

"We work with a lot of software programmers," Sowby said. "It is quite an elaborate process."

But the attention to detail in duplicating the original look and feel of the games is important.

"The thirtysomethings of today, who grew up on Atari, remember it and recognize it," Stocks said. "(The Flashback is) for nostalgia buffs looking to connect with the past roots of the video-game industry and for younger kids who are bored with overly complicated games that take hours to learn."

The plug-and-play phenomenon, however, goes beyond reproducing the classics.

Jakks Pacific has created games based on "Spider-Man," Disney's "Aladdin" and "SpongeBob SquarePants." And next year the Malibu, Calif.,-based toy company will release plug-and-play games based on TV game shows "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy!"; superhero "Batman," as well as more Marvel comics superheroes and "Star Wars," which Sowby predicts "will be a huge one for us."

There are also plug-and-play games based on poker, video pinball, Madden '95 and NHL '95.

"Right now, there are more retro controllers out there than modern properties," Sowby said. "But Disney will sell just as well as the retro controllers, showing us that the technology is for all ages and that TV games is much more than a retro nostalgia factor.

"It really is just about simplicity a really fun, simple way of gaming."