While everyone eagerly awaits more news and the eventual reveal of the Nintendo Switch 2, Atari swoops in with a curveball of its own. Collaborating with peripheral creator Arcade Retro, Atari unveils the latest newcomer to the handheld gaming market. The company showcased a teaser trailer on X, which reveals a device with a curious mix of old-school and modern design choices.
It features a modern control scheme including shoulder buttons just like today’s handhelds, such as Switch, Steam Deck, or even retro consoles like Retroid Pocket. However, it also comes with a numeric keypad — a throwback to Atari’s older systems. Both analogs are placed on the left side of the grip as well.
On the one hand, the Atari handheld numeric keypad likely exists to be compatible with old Atari 5200 games. Classic titles like Star Raiders and Countermeasure relied on keypads for key gameplay functions, making this inclusion a potential nod to die-hard retro fans.
But on the other hand, today’s games have no use for such buttons, unless the pad doubles as a touchpad with haptic feedback. The awkward analog placements would make playing most games tricky too. Otherwise, it’s a cute function for niche emulation but pretty useless for modern releases. It might indicate the Atari handheld is used for retro games and won’t be able to play anything past the sixth-generation games.
Previously, the company already tried getting back into the gaming market with the Atari VCS and Atari 2600 Plus mini console. It also branches off to other industries with Atari X Token crypto and the Atari Hotels venture to lukewarm reactions from enthusiasts. In May last year, Atari also bought its lifelong rival Intellivision, ending a two-decade-long now-forgotten console war.
Still, in a market saturated with retro gaming handhelds, Atari’s offering feels less like another nostalgia cash grab. Devices like the Retroid Pocket and Anbernic RG35XX already let players relive gaming’s past eras with affordable prices. With so many better retro options today, Atari’s handheld feels like a fleeting novelty, likely appealing only to nostalgic boomers who don’t know any better.
