It's hard to believe it's been 40 years since Atari's PONG first bounced into our lives, but the company is celebrating in grand style with a "reimagined take" on the timeless classic, now available on the App Store.

Atari has announced the release of Pong World for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, a free universal app that turns the legendary PONG on its head for a whole new generation.

Pong World is the culmination of Atari's Pong Indie Developer Challenge, a contest that pitted developers against each other to come up with the best modern version of the pop culture classic, with the winner taking home $50,000 and having the fruit of their labors published by Atari.

The first place winner was zGames, and Pong World marks the first-ever official new PONG game aimed at smartphones and tablet devices.

“We were impressed with the creativity and original vision of indie developers in the PONG contest, and the grand prize winner receives full honors as the marquee release for the title’s 40 year anniversary,” said Giancarlo Mori, EVP Product Development, Atari. “Pong World is an excellent tribute to one of our company’s legacy titles, giving players a fresh new look and the classic gameplay they know and love.”

Pong World is a free universal app available now from the App Store compatible with all devices running iOS 4.3 or later, and fully optimized for the iPhone 5.

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