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Atari Invites Developers to Re-imagine PONG on iPhone & iPad for Game’s 40th Anniversary

The Grand-Daddy of arcade gaming PONG turns 40 this year and in celebration developers are being invited to resurrect the classic pixel-based paddle and dot game for a relaunch on Apple’s iPhone and iPad later in the year.

The announcement was made by Atari, the company who originally developed and published the 2D black and white PONG all the way back in 1972 when it first appeared as an arcade game in a stocky wooden cabinet before heading onto dedicated “Home PONG” systems and then the earliest multi-game Atari platforms.

Finalist’s games will go live on the App Store via Atari, with a winning entrant grabbing a development deal with the gaming co. along with all the support needed. Atari speaks of the competition and the big money prize on offer for the creators of PONG for a new generation: “In celebration of Atari’s and Pong’s 40th anniversary, the company today announced the official start of its Pong Indie Developer Challenge, calling on entrants to reimagine the classic game for a chance to win up to $100,000 and see their vision go from concept to market.”

PONG was the first true gaming addiction and has seen many forms in its 40 year tenure. A revival of the once popular title could give those Angry Birds a run for their money – and the sounds of squawking birds could soon be silenced by the plink-plink of PONG when the game once again pops up on mobile devices!

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