<s>
The	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
Lynx	I-General_Concept
is	O
a	O
hybrid	O
8/16	O
-bit	O
fourth	B-Application
generation	I-Application
handheld	B-Application
game	I-Application
console	I-Application
released	O
by	O
Atari	O
Corporation	O
in	O
September	O
1989	O
in	O
North	O
America	O
and	O
1990	O
in	O
Europe	O
and	O
Japan	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
handheld	B-Application
game	I-Application
console	I-Application
with	O
a	O
color	O
liquid-crystal	B-Device
display	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Powered	O
by	O
a	O
16MHz	O
65C02	O
8-bit	O
CPU	O
and	O
a	O
custom	O
16-bit	B-Device
blitter	B-General_Concept
,	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
was	O
more	O
advanced	O
than	O
Nintendo	O
's	O
monochrome	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
,	O
released	O
two	O
months	O
earlier	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
also	O
competed	O
with	O
Sega	O
's	O
Game	O
Gear	O
and	O
NEC	O
's	O
TurboExpress	B-Application
,	O
released	O
the	O
following	O
year	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
system	O
was	O
developed	O
at	O
Epyx	O
by	O
two	O
former	O
designers	O
of	O
the	O
Amiga	B-Device
personal	O
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1991	O
,	O
Atari	O
replaced	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
with	O
a	O
smaller	O
model	O
internally	O
referred	O
to	O
as	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
II	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Atari	O
published	O
a	O
total	O
of	O
73	B-Application
games	I-Application
before	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
was	O
discontinued	O
in	O
1995	O
in	O
preparation	O
for	O
the	O
launch	O
of	O
the	O
Jaguar	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
system	O
was	O
originally	O
developed	O
by	O
Epyx	O
as	O
the	O
Handy	O
Game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1986	O
,	O
two	O
former	O
Amiga	B-Device
designers	O
,	O
R	O
.	O
J	O
.	O
Mical	O
and	O
Dave	O
Needle	O
,	O
had	O
been	O
asked	O
by	O
a	O
former	O
manager	O
at	O
Amiga	B-Device
,	O
David	O
Morse	O
,	O
to	O
design	O
a	O
portable	O
gaming	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Both	O
Atari	O
and	O
others	O
had	O
to	O
purchase	O
Amigas	B-Device
from	O
Atari	O
arch-rival	O
Commodore	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
develop	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Handy	O
was	O
designed	O
to	O
run	O
games	O
from	O
the	O
cartridge	B-Protocol
format	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
game	O
data	O
must	O
be	O
copied	O
from	O
ROM	O
to	O
RAM	B-Architecture
before	O
it	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thus	O
,	O
less	O
RAM	B-Architecture
is	O
then	O
available	O
and	O
each	O
game	O
's	O
initial	O
loading	O
is	O
slow	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
trace	O
remnants	O
of	O
a	O
cassette	B-Device
tape	I-Device
interface	O
physically	O
capable	O
of	O
being	O
programmed	O
to	O
read	O
a	O
tape	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Lynx	B-General_Concept
developers	O
have	O
noted	O
that	O
"	O
there	O
is	O
still	O
reference	O
of	O
the	O
tape	O
and	O
some	O
hardware	B-Architecture
addresses	O
"	O
and	O
an	O
updated	O
vintage	O
Epyx	O
manual	O
describes	O
the	O
bare	O
existence	O
of	O
what	O
could	O
be	O
utilized	O
for	O
tape	O
support	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Engelbrite	O
developed	O
the	O
first	O
recordable	O
eight-player	O
co-op	O
game	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
only	O
eight-player	O
game	O
for	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
,	O
Todd	B-Application
's	I-Application
Adventures	I-Application
in	I-Application
Slime	I-Application
World	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
Summer	O
1989	O
CES	O
,	O
Atari	O
's	O
press	O
demonstration	O
included	O
the	O
"	O
Portable	O
Color	O
Entertainment	O
System	O
"	O
,	O
which	O
was	O
changed	O
to	O
"	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
"	O
when	O
distributed	O
to	O
resellers	O
,	O
initially	O
retailing	O
in	O
the	O
US	O
at	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
comparison	O
,	O
16	O
million	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
units	O
were	O
sold	O
by	O
1995	O
because	O
of	O
its	O
ruggedness	O
,	O
half	O
price	O
,	O
much	O
longer	O
battery	O
life	O
,	O
bundling	O
with	O
the	O
smash	O
hit	O
Tetris	B-Application
,	O
and	O
superior	O
game	O
library	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
with	O
the	O
console	O
units	O
,	O
the	O
game	B-Protocol
cartridge	I-Protocol
design	O
evolved	O
over	O
the	O
first	O
year	O
of	O
the	O
console	O
's	O
release	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
generation	O
of	O
cartridges	B-Protocol
are	O
flat	O
,	O
and	O
designed	O
to	O
be	O
stackable	O
for	O
ease	O
of	O
storage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
original	O
flat	O
style	O
cartridges	B-Protocol
can	O
be	O
stacked	O
on	O
top	O
of	O
the	O
newer	O
cartridges	B-Protocol
,	O
but	O
the	O
newer	O
cartridges	B-Protocol
can	O
not	O
be	O
easily	O
stacked	O
on	O
each	O
other	O
,	O
nor	O
were	O
they	O
stored	O
easily	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thus	O
a	O
third	O
style	O
,	O
the	O
"	O
curved	O
lip	O
"	O
style	O
was	O
produced	O
,	O
and	O
all	O
official	O
and	O
third-party	O
cartridges	B-Protocol
during	O
the	O
console	O
's	O
lifespan	O
were	O
released	O
(	O
or	O
re-released	O
)	O
using	O
this	O
style	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
May	O
1991	O
,	O
Sega	O
launched	O
its	O
Game	O
Gear	O
portable	O
gaming	O
handheld	B-Application
with	O
a	O
color	O
screen	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
comparison	O
to	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
it	O
had	O
shorter	O
battery	O
life	O
(	O
3	O
–	O
4	O
hours	O
as	O
opposed	O
to	O
4-5	O
for	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
)	O
,	O
but	O
it	O
is	O
slightly	O
smaller	O
,	O
has	O
significantly	O
more	O
games	O
,	O
and	O
cost	O
$30	O
less	O
than	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
at	O
launch	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Retailers	O
such	O
as	O
Game	O
and	O
Toys	O
"	O
R	O
"	O
Us	O
continued	O
to	O
sell	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
well	O
into	O
the	O
mid-1990s	O
on	O
the	O
back	O
of	O
the	O
Atari	B-Device
Jaguar	I-Device
launch	O
,	O
helped	O
by	O
magazines	O
such	O
as	O
Ultimate	O
Future	O
Games	O
which	O
continued	O
to	O
cover	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
alongside	O
the	O
new	O
generation	O
of	O
32-bit	O
and	O
64-bit	O
consoles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
July	O
1991	O
,	O
Atari	O
introduced	O
a	O
new	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
,	O
internally	O
called	O
the	O
"	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
II	O
"	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
new	O
marketing	O
campaign	O
,	O
new	O
packaging	O
,	O
slightly	O
improved	O
hardware	B-Architecture
,	O
better	O
battery	O
life	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
sleeker	O
look	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
monaural	O
headphone	B-Device
jack	O
of	O
the	O
original	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
was	O
replaced	O
with	O
one	O
wired	O
for	O
stereo	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
II	O
was	O
available	O
without	O
any	O
accessories	O
,	O
dropping	O
the	O
price	O
to	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1993	O
,	O
Atari	O
started	O
shifting	O
its	O
focus	O
away	O
from	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
in	O
order	O
to	O
prepare	O
for	O
the	O
launch	O
of	O
the	O
Jaguar	B-Device
;	O
a	O
few	O
games	O
were	O
released	O
during	O
that	O
time	O
,	O
including	O
Battlezone	O
2000	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Support	O
for	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
was	O
formally	O
discontinued	O
in	O
1995	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
respective	O
launches	O
of	O
the	O
Sega	B-Device
Saturn	I-Device
and	O
Sony	B-Device
PlayStation	I-Device
caused	O
the	O
commercial	O
failure	O
of	O
the	O
Jaguar	B-Device
,	O
Atari	O
ceased	O
all	O
game	O
development	O
and	O
hardware	B-Architecture
manufacturing	O
by	O
early	O
1996	O
and	O
would	O
later	O
merge	O
with	O
JTS	O
,	O
Inc	O
.	O
on	O
July	O
30	O
of	O
that	O
year	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
Lynx	I-General_Concept
has	O
a	O
backlit	O
color	B-Device
LCD	I-Device
display	O
,	O
switchable	O
right	O
-	O
and	O
left-handed	O
(	O
upside	O
down	O
)	O
configuration	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
network	O
with	O
other	O
units	O
via	O
Comlynx	O
cable	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Each	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
needs	O
a	O
copy	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
and	O
one	O
cable	O
can	O
connect	O
two	O
machines	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
was	O
cited	O
as	O
the	O
"	O
first	O
gaming	O
console	O
with	O
hardware	B-Architecture
support	O
for	O
zooming	O
and	O
distortion	O
of	O
sprites	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
a	O
4096	O
color	O
palette	O
and	O
integrated	O
math	O
and	O
graphics	O
co-processors	O
(	O
including	O
a	O
sprite	O
engine	O
unit	O
)	O
,	O
its	O
color	O
graphics	O
display	O
was	O
said	O
to	O
be	O
the	O
key	O
defining	O
feature	O
in	O
the	O
system	O
's	O
competition	O
against	O
Nintendo	O
's	O
monochromatic	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
fast	O
pseudo-3D	O
graphics	O
features	O
were	O
made	O
possible	O
on	O
a	O
minimal	O
hardware	B-Architecture
system	O
by	O
co-designer	O
Dave	O
Needle	O
having	O
"	O
invented	O
the	O
technique	O
for	O
planar	O
expansion/shrinking	O
capability	O
"	O
and	O
using	O
stretched	O
,	O
textured	O
,	O
triangles	O
instead	O
of	O
full	O
polygons	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Lynx	B-General_Concept
was	O
reviewed	O
in	O
1990	O
in	O
Dragon	O
,	O
which	O
gave	O
it	O
5	O
out	O
of	O
5	O
stars	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
review	O
states	O
that	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
"	O
throws	O
the	O
Game	B-Device
Boy	I-Device
into	O
the	O
prehistoric	O
age	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
praises	O
the	O
built-in	O
object	O
scaling	O
capabilities	O
,	O
the	O
multiplayer	O
feature	O
of	O
the	O
ComLynx	O
cable	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
strong	O
set	O
of	O
launch	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Telegames	O
released	O
several	O
games	O
in	O
the	O
late	O
1990s	O
,	O
including	O
a	O
port	O
of	O
Raiden	B-Application
and	O
a	O
platformer	O
called	O
Fat	O
Bobby	O
in	O
1997	O
,	O
and	O
an	O
action	O
sports	O
game	O
called	O
Hyperdrome	O
in	O
1999	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
March	O
13	O
,	O
1998	O
,	O
nearly	O
three	O
years	O
after	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
's	O
discontinuation	O
,	O
JTS	O
Corporation	O
sold	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
Atari	O
assets	O
to	O
Hasbro	O
Interactive	O
for	O
$5	O
million	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
May	O
14	O
,	O
1999	O
,	O
Hasbro	O
,	O
which	O
held	O
on	O
to	O
those	O
properties	O
until	O
selling	O
Hasbro	O
Interactive	O
to	O
Infogrames	O
in	O
2001	O
,	O
released	O
into	O
the	O
public	O
domain	O
all	O
rights	O
to	O
the	O
Jaguar	B-Device
,	O
opening	B-Application
up	I-Application
the	I-Application
platform	I-Application
for	O
anyone	O
to	O
publish	O
software	O
on	O
without	O
Hasbro	O
's	O
interference	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Internet	O
theories	O
say	O
that	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
's	O
rights	O
may	O
have	O
been	O
released	O
to	O
the	O
public	O
at	O
the	O
same	O
time	O
as	O
the	O
Jaguar	B-Device
,	O
but	O
this	O
is	O
clearly	O
disputed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Nevertheless	O
,	O
since	O
discontinuation	O
,	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
,	O
like	O
the	O
Jaguar	B-Device
,	O
has	O
continued	O
to	O
receive	O
support	O
from	O
a	O
grassroots	O
community	O
which	O
would	O
go	O
on	O
to	O
produce	O
many	O
successful	O
homebrew	B-Application
games	I-Application
such	O
as	O
T-Tris	O
(	O
the	O
first	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
game	O
with	O
a	O
save-game	O
feature	O
)	O
,	O
Alpine	O
Games	O
,	O
and	O
Zaku	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2008	O
,	O
Atari	O
was	O
honored	O
at	O
the	O
59th	O
Annual	O
Technology	O
&	O
Engineering	O
Emmy	O
Awards	O
for	O
pioneering	O
the	O
development	O
of	O
handheld	B-Application
games	I-Application
with	O
the	O
Lynx	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
