Ready to feel really old? The video game that started it all -- Pong -- turns 40 this year, and to celebrate, Atari has kicked off the Pong Indie Developer Challenge. Submit your own original take on the classic game and you’ll not only see it published by Atari, you’ll get a cool $100,000 as well.
Atari has announced the Pong Indie Developer Challenge, a chance for today’s iOS coders to “reimagine the classic game” for a chance to win $100,000 as well as having their version published for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. The challenge is a promotional event as well, in celebration of the 40th anniversary of not only the original Pong game, but also Atari itself.
“The Pong Indie Developer Challenge is a great opportunity to celebrate the 40th anniversary of an iconic game franchise,” said Jim Wilson, CEO of Atari. “We are enthusiastic about working with the independent developer community to evolve Pong through a wide variety of creative concepts and gameplay experiences that will further engage our Atari fan base and introduce new consumers to this pioneering video game franchise.”
Hard to believe, but Atari was founded in 1972, pioneering such innovative video games as Asteroids, Breakout, Missile Command and yes, Pong. More recently, Atari has started publishing reworked versions of their classic games to the iOS platform -- and now they’re looking for their next one, maybe from you!
To join the Pong Indie Developer Challenge, simply submit your concept for a reimagined Pong by March 31, 2012, 11:59pm EST. Winning entries will not only have their game published by Atari to the App Store, but also receive a long-term publishing agreement with the company, which includes development, creative resources and full marketing support.
Indie devs will face a tough team of judges that include the likes of Atari founder Nolan Bushnell, infamous Pocket God creator Dave Castelnuovo, TUAW’s Mike Schramm, and select members of Atari’s executive team. Not a developer? Atari fans can cast votes for their favorite Pong concept and help select an Atari Community Winner as well (details will be posted on Atari’s website soon).
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