Atari bankruptcy unsurprising amid decades of trouble  Atari
Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Jan. 20. It was soon
followed by its French parent company, Atari S.A., formerly
known as Infogrames.  Naturally, this event prompted journalists
to write headlines that prominently featured the phrase, “Game
Over.” Atari, known for classic games like “Pong” and
“Asteroids,” has had a roller-coaster existence for decades. Its
fall — though it is expected to recover after filing for
bankruptcy — should not come as a surprise. The modern Atari is
a remnant of an older era that struggled to find its place as
the video game landscape changed.  The last 20 years have been
rough for Atari, which has not had any huge successes since its
Atari 2600 console in the late 1970s. In 1976, at the beginning
of Atari’s golden age, the company was bought by Warner
Communications for about $30 million (not adjusted for
inflation); in 1998, Hasbro bought Atari for only $5 million. In
those intervening 22 years, Atari saw a lot o