Mattel’s Intellivision is my favorite home video game system of all time. I was 9 when it was released in 1979 and have never wanted anything so badly in my life…It was so superior to the Atari 2600 which was released several years earlier and quickly developed a rep as the best home console of its time.
By today’s standards of course, both Intellivision and Atari are vastly inferior to modern video game systems if you take graphics, sounds, games and other benefits into account. 40 years of technological improvements can’t be beat!
Intellivision has sound effects including beeps, fans cheering, explosions, music and other noises produced by a General Instruments sound chip. The separate Intellivoice module was introduced in 1982 which enhanced the sound with human voices and speech as part of certain games which was unique at the time.
Intellivision was a pioneering home video game system
When Mattel introduced Intellivision in 1979, its main competitor was the Atari VCS (Video Computer System) as it was known upon its release. Later it was rebranded as the Atari 2600.
Intellivision had a unique disc directional controller rather than a joystick along with a numeric keypad and side buttons which gave it many options for gameplay that Atari didn’t.
While there were other home video game systems on the market at the time including the Fairchild Channel F, Magnavox Odyssey and Odyssey II and Bally Astrocade among others, they were small potatoes compared to both Atari and Intellivision in terms of ultimate sales success.
In 1982 Coleco introduced their ColecoVision console and some people felt that it was the best of the lot given that is was newer than the others and featured better graphics and sounds.
But it never outsold Intellivision and didn’t last as long.
Plus there isn’t currently a ColecoVision reboot unlike Intellivision’s new Amico. More on that below…
Intellivision told you how much better they were than Atari
Part of the appeal of Intellivision was that relative to its closest competitor Atari, it was better. Intellivision sound was better. Intellivision graphics were better. Intellivision games were better.
Intellivision focused on going head to head with one competitor (Atari) and ignored the rest. Not only did they feel they were competing directly with Atari, they told us the consumer they were better than them in every way.
On a series of tv commercials and print ads, they literally put Intellivision on the left side of the screen and Atari’s competing game on the right and compared graphics and sound effects.
Here’s another ad that shows several Intellivision games including bowling on their own with the sound effects noticeable.
Intellivoice module added human voices
Back in the early 1980s, video game systems generally used basic sound effects given the inherent limitations of ROM (Read Only Memory) and overall technology available at the time.
When Intellivision introduced their plug-in Intellivoice Voice Synthesis Module add-on module in 1982, it enhanced the voice and sounds capabilities of the five games that were specifically designed to be used with it, namely:
- B-17 Bomber (included in the Intellivoice purchase)
- Space Spartans
- Bomb Squad
- Tron: Solar Sailer
- Intellivision World Series Baseball
With the exception of baseball, they were action and shooter games that relied on sound effects and explosions to enhance the gameplay.
The Intellivoice module retailed for around $100 but often sold for less as expected sales didn’t materialize. That was around 1/3 the price of an Intellivision console so it wasn’t cheap.
The baseball gamed added both “World Series” branding – previous sports games were generally generically branded as “Baseball,” “Football” and “Soccer” – as well as enhanced sound effects over earlier sports cartridges.
Here’s a short video of the Tron Solar Sailer game used in conjunction with the Intellivoice.
Intellivoice still failed and lasted only 1 year
In August 1983 – a little over one year after introduction – the Intellivoice project was canceled as the effects of the great video game crash of 1983 materialized.
Why did it fail?
With hindsight, it wasn’t a great product. If you watch the Tron Solar Sailer video above, you can hear the robotic voice sound that it adds. By modern standards it’s a joke but for 1982 it was passable.
Still, for $100 it was an expensive option and the baseball game didn’t even need the Intellivoice to operate so you could simply use your regular Intellivision console without it, save the $100 and stick to regular sound.
It was probably an idea that was a bit early for its time and at the cost, it simply wasn’t worth it given ROM and other technology limitations of the day.
Summary
For nostalgia, you’d have a hard time beating Mattel’s Intellivision!
Even though the graphics and sounds as well as overall gameplay are primitive by today’s standards, playing it helps you reminisce about the way video game systems used to be in a simpler time.
If this piques your interest, you might be interested to know that both Atari and Intellivision have released brand new modern video game systems! Check out my updates on the Intellivision Amico system to learn more.