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DW FACTS by Dark Watcher
We came across a prototype mockup of the Atari Mirai at the Classic Gaming Expo. The Mirai is apparently an enigma to many since there is really no information about it. There are many who feel that this system may have been meant as a console conversion of Atari's ST line of computers. This may be since it so closely resembles the Atari XEGS, which is a console conversion of the Atari 65XE line of computers. Such a guess is understandable since both units share the same pastel like color scheme. However, Atari never produced cartridge software for their ST computers. The Atari Mirai clearly displays a cartridge port (an enormous port as you may be able to tell). Another guess was that the Mirai was another mock-up for the Atari Panther, but many disagree since the design does not appear to match (particularly for a console in the 1990s). It is believed this mock-up appeared in the late 1980s.
Possibly the most interesting guess is that Atari Mirai may have been meant as home port of SNK's MVS arcade system. There are a few facts that seem to point in that direction. For example, look at the cartridge port. This port can easily handle the MVS / Neo Geo sized cartridges. In the late 1980s, Atari and SNK were corporate neighbors both residing across the street from one another in Sunnyvale, California. Both companies were no strangers to each other. Both collaborated to port SNKs arcade hit Ikari Warriors and other undocumented collaborations were also reported. Also look at the name Atari Mirai. "Mirai" is the Japanese word for "Future". Why would Atari use a Japanese name? Atari's other consoles either used numerical names, used wife names for developing units, or felines (i.e. Panther and Jaguar). The Neo Geo was released in 1990. It may have very well been that SNK may have thought to partner up with Atari in order to insure a successful home market launch. Such a concept may seem far fetched, but hey Nintendo almost had Atari release the Famicom! All in all the Mirai remains a mystery and an interesting console enigma. Some more pictures follow: