Titles that are too close to Atari's IP targeted?

An unconfirmed report from an app developer claims that Apple has removed its Battle Zone clone games Vector Tanks and Vector Tanks Extreme because of pressure from Atari, and says the company has a "special relationship" with Apple that has resulted in "hundreds of apps" that are too similar to well-known Atari titles being pulled from the App Store. The developer, Black Powder Media, claims its app was removed without any opportunity for rebuttal or review.

The company says they attempted to contact Atari for licensing its IP for its game but could not contact the game maker, itself a tacit admission that Vector Tanks and its sequel were more-or-less clones of the original 1980 game Battle Zone, which was a staple of the early video game craze of the 80s and featured wire-frame, unrendered 3D tanks roving across a black landscape. Later versions of the game gained color but the vector graphics that allowed players to see "through" their own tank an other items was its most prominent selling point. Atari released other "vector" games that were popular, including Tempest, but Battle Zone was one of the best-known and an archetype of the genre.

Some of Black Powder Media's claims remain unconfirmed or dubious. There have been no other reports from developers of their apps being pulled by Atari as of yet, nor is there any confirmation of the claim of a "special relationship" between Apple and Atari (though it should be noted that both of Apple's co-founders, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, worked for Atari in the mid-70s).

As for Atari being unreachable, the company has rarely been more active in recent years than it is now, finding new life for its old properties by reinventing them as iOS and other platform games. The company has recently released new versions of Breakout: Boost and Asteroids: Gunner for iOS, along with a collection called Atari's Greatest Hits.

Atari also provided a statement to gaming site Joystiq in response to the complaints from Black Powder Media. It said in part that "For companies like Atari, our intellectual property portfolio is our most valued asset. While we have great respect for the indie developer community and greatly appreciate the enthusiasm that they have for our renowned properties, we need to vigorously protect our intellectual property."

Black Powder Media and its lead programmer Peter Hirschberg were recently unsuccessful in a Kickstarter project to help fund development of a third title, Vector Tanks 3. The project did not raise the $20,000 required, but the company says it may still go ahead with development of the new game that still features vector-style art but will use different vehicles and air-based attacks and other features to fully distinguish it from Battle Zone. The new game will have the title "The Visceral Adventures of Vic Vector," according to a report from GamesIndustry.biz

Atari has previously taken legal action to protect trademarks, such as issuing a cease-and-desist against fan website atari2600.org for using the Atari name and logo and a knock-off console manufacturer that was making bootleg Atari Flashback consoles, but it has not been known to take action against apps until now, but does rely heavily on its back catalog and IP for revenue in its current incarnation.

by MacNN Staff