Atari Adds Even More Nostalgia To Their Greatest Hits App, But Is It A Good Move?
August 3, 2012
One of the pioneers of video games, Atari has made unforgettable titles in the 1980s and early '90s. So, when the company launched their Greatest Hits app there was an epic feeling in the air. Unfortunately, Atari's chosen pricing scheme hasn't sat well with fans, and the company continues its attempts to compromise.
Atari's Greatest Hits is a free download with access to 100 of the company's most popular arcade and Atari 2600 games. Missile Command is playable at no cost, although, the other games will cost you. At first, Atari priced the games in packs for $0.99 each as well as an option to unlock everything for $9.99.
In June, Atari tried to get fans hooked by offering "a free tour of all that Atari’s Greatest Hits has to offer." Specifically, Greatest Hits owners who downloaded in-app games within a certain time period would gain full access for free, but the download wouldn't count as a purchase and, therefore, cannot be restored later.
Fast forward to today and the release of Greatest Hits v1.6. In addition to the previous package and full purchase options, Atari has added a token system. A single token allows one play, much like a quarter did back in the day. Atari is including 10 tokens to get you started and each bundle of 15 more will cost $0.99.
If we take a closer look and make a quick comparison, getting 15 token for $0.99 is certainly cheaper than 15 quarters. However, the iOS app experience isn't nearly the same as playing the games in a physical arcade or via a physical game console.
So, is the idea of a token system an improvement?
Either way, you can still get a copy of Greatest Hits for no cost and have some free plays, if you haven't already. Atari's Greatest Hits is a universal app compatible with iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch running iOS 4.3 or later.
