Atari Announces Acquisition of M Network Atari 2600 Titles

Written by Brandon Hofer on May 04, 2023

News: Atari’s expansion continues as they try to capitalize on some of the IP that helped them make their name in the early days.

Atari has revealed that they have acquired more than a dozen Atari 2600 games published originally under the M Network label. Atari will be seeking to expand their digital and physical distribution of these classic titles, while also creating new games based on these IPs, and exploring both brand and merchandising options. This list includes the following games:

Armor Ambush

Astroblast

Frogs and Flies

Space Attack

Star Strike

“M Network represents a unique moment in Atari’s early history, and this acquisition expands the Atari 2600 catalog in a meaningful way,” said Atari CEO Wade Rosen. “We have the potential to reintroduce these titles in a number of ways, ranging from rereleasing them in collections to creating new games based on the acquired IPs.”

Atari also acquired the corresponding rights to the M Network brand. M Network was a video game division within Mattel that produced games for the Atari 2600 video game system during the 1980s.

The M Network acquisition is the third expansion in 2023 that expands Atari’s classic games catalog. In March, Atari announced the acquisition of a dozen classic arcade games, including Berzerk and Frenzy. In April, Atari announced the acquisition of 100 PC and console titles from the 1980s and 1990s, including notable games from the Bubsy, Hardball, and Demolition Racer series.

Atari is undertaking a multi-year effort to transform the company behind one of the world's most iconic brands. An essential part of that effort involves expanding Atari’s video game business, leveraging the company’s extensive catalog of IP to release classic games and bring new, high-quality games to market. Atari's vast library of IP is the vault from which new and exciting game development ideas are pulled – reinventing old classics, reimagining storylines, and developing entirely new narratives inspired by the games that set the course for an entire industry.

What Atari property do you hope gets a revival? Which classic franchise would you like to see a new game come from? Tell us in the comment section below.