Hot off the trail of their shareware hit, Dark Travis, JMatthew Games is nearing completion on its new adventure game, Uncle Atari (title obviously pending). A psychological horror adventure, UA will tread unsettling ground: it's a videogame about videogame addiction. Jason Wolfcook, the game's Project Leader, hopes that former industry giant Atari will see the game's title as an indication of loving nostalgia rather than as a contest to their position in the marketplace. It's a plea that JMG has made, and lost, before when LucasArts stalled forever the release of Dumb Dead Jedi, a game which Mr. Wolfcook has since given up on.

In a preemptive defensive strategy , JMG issued a press-release regarding the concept that gives Uncle Atari its name, hoping that a clear definition of meaning might render a potential legal battle unnecessary. An excerpt is reprinted for our readers below.

"UNCLE ATARI (noun; term of affectionate derision)- A relative of one (the relationship of which is relative) who is uncommonly seductive in his (or her, though Aunt Atari sounds kind of gross) ability to make his presence known and half-reluctantly desired. The Uncle is fat, slobbery, embarrassing to your friends, bragging, skin covered in some kind of hideous sheen of exertion, opinionated in a bad way (either through racism (most common), political, anti-intellectual, offerings of smoke-break-at-the-factory-with-the-rest-of-the-guys wisdom), and touchy-feely, centering mainly on one's ribs or the scuffing of head-- YET he possesses an awesome toy or device that is undeniably cool and worth suffering for (an Atari 2600, for example, to conjure that nostalgic need and time when the Uncle was most affecting and you were the most sensitive and torn); moreover, his actual possession of the object, which become inextricably linked to him (Cronenberg would do you well here), and his obvious good nature about it, makes you overlook (though not forget, even for the moment) his bad qualities and truly make you LOVE him, his being, his existence, his accursed ability for gift."

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