Plug it in, change the world
Atari has announced two new titles getting refreshed as part of their ongoing efforts,Quantum:RechargedandHaunted House. Neither has a stated release window, but both will be dropping on all consoles, PC, and the Atari VCS.
Quantum: Rechargedis the next in Atari’sRechargedline of game revivals. These have includedYars: RechargedandGravitar: Recharged. This time, they’re focusing onQuantum, which is a bit of an obscure title, but it was included in theAtari 50collection. It’s a 1982 arcade title that uses vector graphics. You would use a trackball to try and engulf dots and other shapes. The closest I can come to a comparison isQix, but I feel like that isn’t all that sufficient.
Quantum: Rechargedupdates the arcade title to give it a little more meat on its bones. On top of the revised neon visuals, there will be challenge and arcade modes, and new power-ups to shake things up. There will also be co-op and a soundtrack byRiver City Girls’Megan McDuffie, who has done the tracks for previous games in theRechargedseries.
If you haven’t played any of the previousRechargedgames, they’re pretty agreeable little updates to classic Atari arcade titles. They retain the arcade gameplay but layer on some new visuals and features to make them more playable today.
Hanging a new chandelier
Following that isHaunted House, which is a reimagining of Atari’s 1981Haunted House. You may be thinking, “Didn’t we already get a remake ofHaunted House?” Yeah, a couple of times, and we try not to speak of them.
ThisHaunted Houseis focusing more on stealth and roguelite elements. You’ll be able to unlock more playable characters as you progress, and it promises lots of Easter Egg nods to Atari’s golden era.
All this is part of Atari’s current strategy of payinghomage to their heritage. TheRechargedseries has been well received, andHaunted Housecould use a win after2010’sHaunted House,and 2014’s absolutely dismalHaunted House: Cryptic Graves. While I’d love to see more ambitious re-imaginings of some of these games, Atari is probably making a better move by building goodwill and connections through smaller projects. And theRechargedseries is actually really good. Here’s hoping we get aBerzerk: Rechargedsometime in the future.
Quantum: RechargedandHaunted Houseare coming to PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, and Atari VCS sometime soon.
