796 replies to this topic

[NolanB]

Sorry the Curt rant really pissed me off. Sometimes you have to yell or your head explodes. The inaccuracies and bile was a total shock.

[BDW]

Cebus Capucinis, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:50 PM, said:

NolanB, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:50 PM, said:

Atari is such a different company now than when it was just a silly portion of Infogramms. Look at Jef Lapins success. He is a very smart guy and is in my opinion making all the right moves to create a videogame company of the future. Remember, It is not what we have done historically that counts but what we do in the future. The problem that anyone that does something we are subject to the criticism of those who have never done anything. I love my involvement with Atari, Chuck E. Cheese and most of my 20 founded companies of which all except 4 were sold at a profit. Happy to take criticism from anyone that has a better track record. Other wise shut the fuck up.

So did you really make a porn movie? Inquiring minds want to know.

I'd watch it

EDIT: Woah, creeper much?

Edited by brandondwright, Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:53 PM.

[jaybird3rd]

NolanB, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:43 PM, said:

I THINK THAT IT WOULD BE A FUN TIME TO HAVE A ONE ON ONE CHAT WITH CURT. HIS RANT WAS NOT ONLY SILLY BUT SO HIGHLY INACCURATE THAT IF HE ASSERTS HE IS A REPORTER HE SHOULD BE FIRED. THERE ARE MAN SOURCES THAT WILL BACK UP MY POSITIONS LETS GET STARTED WITH TRUTH.

"I think that it would be a fun time"? "There are man sources"? This reads like Engrish. Somehow I doubt this is the real Nolan Bushnell.

But if it is, hey ... all my base are belong to you!

[Corby]

Lynxpro, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 9:08 PM, said:

Tickled_Pink, on Tue Apr 20, 2010 3:18 PM, said:

I think that some people have lost their sense of perspective slightly and have gone all weak at the knees at the thought of their Messiah returning. Yes, we've had a great deal of fun over the years thanks to the company that Nolan co-founded. But that doesn't make him a saint. From what I've read here, Bushnell is a decidedly dodgy character with questionable business practices.
If people are so willing to ignore those faults then perhaps they might also forgive the Tramiels. After all they did rescue Atari from Warner when it was making heavy losses and managed to keep it going for another 10 years or so.
Anyone? No? Didn't think so.

Even if everything said about Nolan is true, I'll take him over Jack Tramiel *any* day.

The whole MOS acquisition by Commodore seems slimy to me from the accusations that have been made by some and there wouldn't have ever been any Commodore computers had Chuck Peddle not convinced Jack that calculators were a dead-end.

cimerians, on Tue Apr 20, 2010 4:11 PM, said:

Ok after reading the negative comments I have one thing to say.
Get the fuck over it.
If he was a thieving prick who copied stuff and......made it better......so what.
(or made others make it better like most owners do)
See Bill Gates.

There is a difference. Atari's Pong was a massive improvement over Baer's lame game. MS-DOS was not an improvement over CP/M. Microsoft BASIC was not better than DEC's. And Windows has never been better than Mac OS or in the earlier times TOS, Amiga OS, or OS/2. Microsoft just sucks and has retarded the computer industry from its inception.

The one good thing Microsoft did was MSDN, and that idea came directly from Atari's APX.

I agree, you would never see Nolan push a Atari 7800 off a table!!

[Cebus Capucinis]

I am of the same opinion. Sadly I think this is a Bushnell-clone we are dealing with. Apparently it is a disease that has now spread to Corby. He fixed it, LOL.

If NolanB is the authentic version, we certainly aren't giving him a good representation of AtariAge as a whole, though, humorously enough. Ah, well. I helped with that.

[BDW]

NolanB, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:50 PM, said:

Atari is such a different company now than when it was just a silly portion of Infogramms. Look at Jef Lapins success. He is a very smart guy and is in my opinion making all the right moves to create a videogame company of the future. Remember, It is not what we have done historically that counts but what we do in the future. The problem that anyone that does something we are subject to the criticism of those who have never done anything. I love my involvement with Atari, Chuck E. Cheese and most of my 20 founded companies of which all except 4 were sold at a profit. Happy to take criticism from anyone that has a better track record. Other wise shut the fuck up.

You shouldn't love your involvement with Chuck E. Cheese. Not only is the place crawling with pedos, but the service is crap. Worst of all, the price is incredibly high and the pizza tastes like shit.

[jaybird3rd]

NolanB, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 11:02 PM, said:

wgungfu, on Mon Apr 19, 2010 1:40 PM, said:

http://www.gamasutra...Gamasutra News)

My first thoughts were "I mean it's a late April fools joke, right? Or a PR stunt? They're
not actually going to take direction from that guy?!?!?!"

Yay, two more empty posts from "Nolan"!

It's bad enough that he put his name on Computer Space and Pong without contributing anything of his own ... now he's doing the same thing with our posts!

[NolanB]

don't be an idiot. Chuck E. Cheese was not made for you it was made for kids. As your kids what they think about your favorite restaurant and they will say is sucks.

[Cebus Capucinis]

For the record, NolanB, you can post quotes and responses in the same post, instead of multiple posts connected. Just type underneath the BBcode when you are done with quoting and add your own text beneath it. This way your responses don't get mixed up with our flooding.

EDIT: brandonwright is a kid, actually. Well, sort of a kid -- a teenager.

[Lynxpro]

Curt Vendel, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:31 PM, said:

I would agree - work environment wise, it would be much more fun and interesting under Nolan, then under the strictness and fear of the Tramiels.
The question though at the end of the day would be - who would produce more profittable and innovative products of the two?
I think its possible to say both - profits under the Tramiels, faster turnaround, but I think products would be more innovative under Bushnell...
Again its tough to tell, the Tramiels caught on to being more creative at the end of Atari's days and Bushnell I think lost a lot of his innovative spark by witness of the "Wallruss Debacle" and the "blip" but not a sustained "wow" of the uWink concept...
Pong and especially home pong were improvements over the Odyssey for certain, Home Pong in particular coming out of the gate with incredible color display, excellent audio and on-screen scoring.
OS/2 was ALWAYS and still is - superior to Windows. MS Killed off a far better OS and we all got stuck with Windows :-/

Curt, I can agree with just about all of that. BTW, I liked your parts in the BBS Documentary from a few years back quite a bit. Of course, you did have home field advantage since you were one of the people representing the Atari computer user experience...

I'm not sure I can agree with the part about the Tramiel "fast turn around" part. The ST was finished pretty fast if counting only from the point TTL bought up the Atari Consumer assets but if counting Shivji's (sic) prior work at Commodore, not so much...

NolanB, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:50 PM, said:

Atari is such a different company now than when it was just a silly portion of Infogramms. Look at Jef Lapins success. He is a very smart guy and is in my opinion making all the right moves to create a videogame company of the future. Remember, It is not what we have done historically that counts but what we do in the future. The problem that anyone that does something we are subject to the criticism of those who have never done anything. I love my involvement with Atari, Chuck E. Cheese and most of my 20 founded companies of which all except 4 were sold at a profit. Happy to take criticism from anyone that has a better track record. Other wise shut the fuck up.

Mr. Bushnell, if that's really you, thanks for posting.

I am curious about what you were going to post in response to my comments earlier. I'll explain mine. A few months back on a different thread on this board, I predicted that Time Warner would ultimately purchase "Atari"/Infogrames based upon the fact that they can't seem to keep their hands off "Atari" [based upon how often what was once the Atari Games Corporation had bounced back and forth between them and other companies, and all that IP is now back with them following their acquisition of the remnants of Midway in December 2009]. If Time Warner were to acquire "Atari"/Infogrames, then they could rename their "Warner Bros. Interactive" division with the more cherished corporate name.

And if that's really you, I would like to ask a question about the film in development. While DiCaprio is a major star and box office draw, don't you think the actor Ed Quinn [formerly of SyFy's Eureka] would be a better match to portray you on-screen? Perhaps DiCaprio would be better as Al Alcorn....

[NolanB]

Sorry new to the site and getting used to the system. Had a great rebut to Curt's highly inaccurate and silly flame. It went poof. Will get it down. I am an old guy and need to learn these things.

[Lynxpro]

jaybird3rd, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:55 PM, said:

"I think that it would be a fun time"? "There are man sources"? This reads like Engrish. Somehow I doubt this is the real Nolan Bushnell.
But if it is, hey ... all my base are belong to you!

Typing a quick response from an iPhone can do that...

[Cebus Capucinis]

NolanB, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 11:08 PM, said:

Sorry new to the site and getting used to the system. Had a great rebut to Curt's highly inaccurate and silly flame. It went poof. Will get it down. I am an old guy and need to learn these things.

No worries, just wanted to provide some friendly help so that we don't swamp it and it gets all disconnected.

[cvga]

I wish we could keep the posts somewhat classy in the event that this really is Mr. Bushnell. Given that I've lost a substantial amount of money in uWink stock and continue to keep in contact with a few of the long-time investors, Nolan could prove himself (at least to me) simply by posting the nickname of the largest individual stockholder not affiliated with the company.

[Cebus Capucinis]

This is my favorite question to ask everyone, and NolanB will be no exception. Curt & Marty, if you want to answer this one as well, feel free! (I know it's off-topic but nonetheless, I enjoy asking people this question.)

You learn of a plot to destroy Muppet Studios; you are fortunate enough, however, to learn of it in time to save one and only one Muppet. Which Muppet do you save and why do you save that Muppet?

If that's not a fun question I don't know what is. Besides, if you really are Mr. Bushnell, you've been asked every single question about Atari anyone could think up, so a Muppet question is a good left-field question.

[Random Terrain]

Cebus Capucinis, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 11:19 PM, said:

Which Muppet do you save and why do you save that Muppet?

You should give him a harder question. Everybody knows you save the Muppet with the deepest throat.

[NolanB]

It is really me. If you doubt it try me at either nolanb2@yahoo.com or nolanb@uwink.com. Of course i am on facebook and will friend you.

The bottom line is that Atari is a great brand and has done some remarkable things some of which were mine and many of which were done by other Atarians. No one would dispute the contribution of Al Alcorn, Steve Bristow, Steve Mayer, Larry Emmons, and a hundred more that were truly brilliant. I think it is important to look always to the future. There are so many tools that a game designer has that were only dreams when I was running Atari. Innovation is about taking the technology that is accessible now and doing something that has never been done. I have about 20 ideas that have a chance of success. Only about half will work. I just wish I knew which half.

Remember that innovation is about accepting risk. New things are inherently riskier that evolution of a proven product. I embrace risk because it is the only way to innovate. Yes I was too soon for the Robot Business but I know some things about that that no one knows. Stay tuned on that.

What I would like to set strait is some very silly and not complementary things from Curt that were totally wrong.. I am puzzled because I thought that Curt was a smart and cool guy. What happened?

I would relish a one on one with Curt. I do not believe his assertions will stand up to scrutiny.

[cvga]

NolanB, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 11:27 PM, said:

Remember that innovation is about accepting risk. New things are inherently riskier that evolution of a proven product. I embrace risk because it is the only way to innovate.

Agreed. I only invest what I can afford to lose when there is a lot of risk involved. Therefore, although I'm disappointed that uWink wasn't a success, I'm not mad about it. The lack of communication was/continues to be extremely frustrating. Are you even involved with it any longer? Why doesn't Alicia ever release updates?

[Cebus Capucinis]

Barring the Muppet question (which I do hope you will answer, it's just meant to be a fun little quirky question and everyone answers differently), what is your opinion of the homebrew community at large, if you are familiar enough with it to say? Do you see it as a revitalization of creativity and a representation of what development is really about, or do you see it as simply living in nostalgia and being unrealistic to the changing times? Perhaps as encroaching upon Atari's brand in the industry?

[NolanB]

The nickname of the largest individual is "Netman" One of the biggest problems of business is getting friends and family to invest into a company that does not stand up to its promise. uWink had two chances to become huge. One was based on the coin op world and we had a 6 million dollar backlog and machines on the water and demand on the street when 9-11 happened, Backlog to Zero, the the machines on the water land with no buyers. We were out earning the others but the business stopped. We restructured the company when we should have BKed it and did the restaurant thing. Just got it working and the Lehman crash happened. All restaurants dropped in earnings by about 30% except the fast food. Again restructure and we now have a stand alone software company that is starting to do quite well. Shit happens and if you stay in there you can take any adversity and fix it. What may don't understand that new companies are highly flexible and potentially hugely profitable but they are also fragile. I like the potential upside but also understand the downside.

[Cebus Capucinis]

Cvga? Survey says? I'll trust your word on it.

[NolanB]

Actually me. No Engrish though I sometimes think faster than i type.

[akator]

Just when I was completely bored with this thread, things suddenly become more interesting

[cvga]

NolanB, on Sun Apr 25, 2010 11:37 PM, said:

The nickname of the largest individual is "Netman" One of the biggest problems of business is getting friends and family to invest into a company that does not stand up to its promise. uWink had two chances to become huge. One was based on the coin op world and we had a 6 million dollar backlog and machines on the water and demand on the street when 9-11 happened, Backlog to Zero, the the machines on the water land with no buyers. We were out earning the others but the business stopped. We restructured the company when we should have BKed it and did the restaurant thing. Just got it working and the Lehman crash happened. All restaurants dropped in earnings by about 30% except the fast food. Again restructure and we now have a stand alone software company that is starting to do quite well. Shit happens and if you stay in there you can take any adversity and fix it. What may don't understand that new companies are highly flexible and potentially hugely profitable but they are also fragile. I like the potential upside but also understand the downside.

Thanks for the reply. When you say stand alone software company, are you referring to "Tap Code"?

Also, do you think there's any chance for the restaurant to survive? Since 2 of the 3 have already closed and none of the franchising agreements materialized, I'm unfortunately not expecting much at this point.

[NolanB]

The movie business is weird. I have been lobbying for Natlie Portman to play my wife (it is a fantasy thing) but it is so complicated that I don't understand all the issues. Warner actually wanted to Green light the pix but felt that it would be difficult for them. I doubt that any movie studio will buy a game company for some time. They have always messed them up. Perhaps later there will become fashionable play again but not now.