Atari Program Exchange
Encyclopedia
Atari Program Exchange was a division of Atari, Inc.
that distributed software for the Atari 8-bit family
of home computers through a quarterly mail-order catalog. APX, the brain-child of Dale Yocam, started in February 1981 and guided by Fred Thorlin. APX published quarterly catalogs until 1984, when Atari CEO James J. Morgan
closed down the mail-order division.
console. By the end of the first year on the market, however, many of these details had "leaked out" and increasingly sophisticated applications were becoming available. However, there were a limited number of distribution channels at the time.
Dale Yocam approached Atari with the idea of setting up their own 3rd party publishing arm. With Atari's distribution capabilities the products would be seen by many more prospective customers, and at the same time, Atari would make money with every sale, money that would otherwise be lost. As Chris Crawford
later put it:
of home computers. APX allowed all programmers, not just professionals, to submit their programs for commercial distribution. If selected, that program was added to the catalog along with the credit to that programmer (unlike Atari's own mainstream software). Many APX programs were games, but also included a wide variety of applications, utilities, programmers' tools, and educational software.
APX typically featured programs too specialized to be distributed in Atari's main line of software distribution (such as utilities), but there were several hits including Chris Crawford
's Eastern Front (1941)
, Caverns of Mars
, and Dandy
. Both Eastern Front and Caverns of Mars were later released on cartridge as official Atari products, while Dandy became Dark Chambers as well as serving as the inspiration for the hit arcade game
, Gauntlet
.
, garnered the author, Fernando Herrera, a $25,000 reward from Atari. He used the money to start First Star Software
, which would later develop the successful Boulder Dash
and Spy vs. Spy
franchises.
After the demise of APX, Antic magazine
published some APX titles as APX Classics from Antic and continued soliciting new software as Antic Software
. Antic Software was bound into issues of Antic.
Atari
Atari is a corporate and brand name owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by Atari Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of the French publisher Atari, SA . The original Atari, Inc. was founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. It was a pioneer in...
that distributed software for the Atari 8-bit family
Atari 8-bit family
The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992. All are based on the MOS Technology 6502 CPU and were the first home computers designed with custom coprocessor chips...
of home computers through a quarterly mail-order catalog. APX, the brain-child of Dale Yocam, started in February 1981 and guided by Fred Thorlin. APX published quarterly catalogs until 1984, when Atari CEO James J. Morgan
James J. Morgan
James J. Morgan is a former American executive who served as CEO of Atari from 1983 to 1984 and CEO of Philip Morris USA from 1994 to 1997.James Morgan first joined Philip Morris in 1963...
closed down the mail-order division.
Details
When Atari first launched the 8-bit systems in late 1979, they kept most of the hardware details secret. They intended to be the primary supplier of software for the platform, as had been the case with the Atari 2600Atari 2600
The Atari 2600 is a video game console released in October 1977 by Atari, Inc. It is credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor-based hardware and cartridges containing game code, instead of having non-microprocessor dedicated hardware with all games built in...
console. By the end of the first year on the market, however, many of these details had "leaked out" and increasingly sophisticated applications were becoming available. However, there were a limited number of distribution channels at the time.
Dale Yocam approached Atari with the idea of setting up their own 3rd party publishing arm. With Atari's distribution capabilities the products would be seen by many more prospective customers, and at the same time, Atari would make money with every sale, money that would otherwise be lost. As Chris Crawford
Chris Crawford (game designer)
Christopher Crawford is a computer game designer and writer noted for creating a number of important games in the 1980s, founding The Journal of Computer Game Design, and organizing the Computer Game Developers' Conference.- Biography :...
later put it:
The guy who cooked up the idea, Dale Yocam, was trying to explain to the management that there are a lot people out there that like to write programs and if we can publish these programs for them, it's a win-win. The management was not very interested in it. He put together a business plan for it and said 'Look, we only need a little bit of money and this thing can be self sufficient and it might make some money.' They very grudgingly agreed to let him do it. And so he did it and very quickly made it into a monster success. It was a major profit center for Atari. They rewarded Dale for his initiative by bringing in another guy to be Dale's boss... so Dale, in disgust, quit about a year later."
Mail-order Model
APX was a mail-order catalog of user-written software for the Atari 8-bit familyAtari 8-bit family
The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992. All are based on the MOS Technology 6502 CPU and were the first home computers designed with custom coprocessor chips...
of home computers. APX allowed all programmers, not just professionals, to submit their programs for commercial distribution. If selected, that program was added to the catalog along with the credit to that programmer (unlike Atari's own mainstream software). Many APX programs were games, but also included a wide variety of applications, utilities, programmers' tools, and educational software.
APX typically featured programs too specialized to be distributed in Atari's main line of software distribution (such as utilities), but there were several hits including Chris Crawford
Chris Crawford (game designer)
Christopher Crawford is a computer game designer and writer noted for creating a number of important games in the 1980s, founding The Journal of Computer Game Design, and organizing the Computer Game Developers' Conference.- Biography :...
's Eastern Front (1941)
Eastern Front (computer game)
Eastern Front is a computer game for the Atari 8-bit series created by Chris Crawford in 1981. Recreating the German invasion of Russia during World War II, Eastern Front covers the historical area of operations during the 1941–1942 period...
, Caverns of Mars
Caverns of Mars (computer game)
Caverns of Mars is a computer game for the Atari 8-bit computers, programmed by Greg Christensen and published by Atari Program Exchange in 1981. Christensen, a high-school student at the time, won a $3,000 prize from Atari, and his first royalty check was $18,000...
, and Dandy
Dandy (computer game)
Dandy is a dungeon crawl computer game for the Atari 8-bit computers. Dandy was one of the first games to offer four-player cooperative play and a built-in editor...
. Both Eastern Front and Caverns of Mars were later released on cartridge as official Atari products, while Dandy became Dark Chambers as well as serving as the inspiration for the hit arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
, Gauntlet
Gauntlet (arcade game)
Gauntlet is a fantasy-themed hack and slash 1985 arcade game by Atari Games. It is noted as the first class-based multiplayer game. Released during the emergence of popularity of other role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons, the game was a sensation, being one of the first true dungeon crawl...
.
Atari Star Awards
In 1981, Atari Software Acquisition Program (ASAP) ran an award program, the Atari Star, for the best quarterly submissions, the grand prize being the Super Star trophy and $25,000. The first Super Star winner, My First AlphabetMy First Alphabet (software)
My First Alphabet was a computer game for the Atari 800 series. It was programmed by Fernando Herrera and published by the Atari Program Exchange in 1981....
, garnered the author, Fernando Herrera, a $25,000 reward from Atari. He used the money to start First Star Software
First Star Software
First Star Software, Inc. is a computer game development, publishing and licensing company, founded by Richard Spitalny and Fernando Herrera in 1982. It is best known for its classic Boulder Dash franchise and Spy vs. Spy titles, originally written for 8-bit home computers like the Apple II, Atari...
, which would later develop the successful Boulder Dash
Boulder Dash
Boulder Dash, originally released in 1984 for Atari 8-bit computers, is a series of computer games released for the Apple II, MSX, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and ColecoVision home computers, and later ported to the NES, BBC Micro and Acorn Electron, PC, Amstrad CPC, Amiga and many other platforms...
and Spy vs. Spy
Spy vs. Spy (computer game)
Spy vs. Spy was a game first published by First Star Software in 1984 for the Atari 8-bit family, Commodore 64 and Apple II computers. It was an innovative two-player, split-screen game, based on MAD Magazine's long running cartoon strip, Spy vs...
franchises.
Reorganization
According to Atari CEO Morgan, APX was losing money in its mail-order business so that part was shut down."Moreover, Atari had to come to grips with the fact that Atari is not in the mail-order business. However, APX will continue to review products sent to Atari by outside programmers," he says. "If the programs are topnotch, they will be added to the main Atari catalogue. Otherwise, they will not be sold by Atari in any fashion."
After the demise of APX, Antic magazine
ANTIC (magazine)
Antic was the name of a home computer magazine devoted to the Atari 8-bit computer line . Its ISSN is 0113-1141. It took its name from the ANTIC chip, which produced the Atari line's graphics. The first issue was published in April 1982. While it began as a bimonthly magazine, within a year it had...
published some APX titles as APX Classics from Antic and continued soliciting new software as Antic Software
ANTIC Software
Antic Software was the name of the software company founded by Gary Yost of Antic, a magazine for the Atari 8-bit computers. The catalog of software was bound into issues of Antic, and products were sold via mail order....
. Antic Software was bound into issues of Antic.
External links
- APX info at Atari Archives including scans of catalogs and list of programs.
- APX: The Atari Program Exchange
- The Atari Star – Creative Computing Jan 1982