| Hazard Run | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Publisher(s) | Artworx |
| Programmer(s) | Dennis R. Zander [1] |
| Platform(s) | Atari 8-bit |
| Release |
|
| Genre(s) | Racing |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Hazard Run is a 1982 racing video game developed by Dennis R. Zander and published by Artworx for Atari 8-bit computers. [2] In 1984, Artworx considered re-publishing the game as a tie-in to the television series The Dukes of Hazzard .
Hazard Run is played from an overhead perspective, with vertically scrolling gameplay. [3] [4] [5] The player, driving the Gee Lee, [2] must escape a crooked sheriff while avoiding hazards such as ducks, fences, rocks, rivers, and trees. The player is given five cars, which act as lives. The player loses a car if an obstacle is hit. The car can be driven on two tires to maneuver through tight areas. There are five courses, known as runs, with each one longer than the previous. [3] [4] The player is required to save up extra gasoline in later levels by driving over gas cans.
The perspective switches to a side view when the Gee Lee approaches a jump over a river. Upon clearing the final river, the pursuing police vehicle lands in the water. Bars from the song "Dixie" play after each river jump, regardless of the outcome. [3] [4]
Derrick Bang, writing for Softline magazine, wrote that the game's "major problem" was its joystick control scheme. Bang also criticized the "Dixie" music played in each of the game's river sections: "it would be nicer (and preferable psychologically) to hear something different as a reward for making the jump." Bang concluded that the game "is just a bit too primitive for today's market and will be of interest mostly to neophytes and young children." [3]
Ted Salamone of Electronic Games called the game "well conceived" but "poorly executed." Salamone criticized the game's "sloppy play action" and wrote that the graphics "finish in first and last place. Some (the overhead view of a car and trees) are done well, while others (the auto's side view when jumping water) look like a sixth grader's first art project." [4] In 1991, New Atari User gave the game a "mediocre" score of two stars out of four, calling it "Pretty shallow" while also noting its rarity. [5]
In 1984, Artworx considered licensing the title of the television series The Dukes of Hazzard in order to re-publish Hazard Run as a tie-in. Artworx later rejected the idea considering the aftermath of the 1983 video game crash, which involved many licensed games receiving a negative reputation for their simple concepts and gameplay. The cost to purchase the license was also deemed too high, considering the small size of the software market at the time. The Dukes of Hazzard was the only title Artworx ever seriously considered licensing. [6]
The Dukes of Hazzard is an American action comedy TV series created by Gy Waldron, that was aired on CBS from January 26, 1979, to February 8, 1985, with a total of seven seasons consisting of 147 episodes. It was consistently among the top-rated television series in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Star Raiders is a space combat simulator video game created by Doug Neubauer and published in 1980 by Atari, Inc. Originally released for the Atari 400/800 computers, Star Raiders was later ported to the Atari 2600, Atari 5200, and Atari ST. The player assumes the role of a starship fighter pilot, who must protect starbases from invading forces called Zylons. Piloting and combat are shown in the 3D cockpit view, while a 2D galactic map shows the state of the Zylon invasion. Neubauer made the game in his spare time at Atari, inspired by contemporary media such as Battlestar Galactica and Star Wars, as well as the 1971 mainframe game Star Trek.
Frogger is a 1981 arcade action game developed by Konami and published by Sega. In North America, it was distributed by Sega/Gremlin. The object of the game is to direct five frogs to their homes by dodging traffic on a busy road, then crossing a river by jumping on floating logs and alligators.
Pitfall! is a video game developed by David Crane for the Atari 2600 and released in 1982 by Activision. The player controls Pitfall Harry, who has a time limit of 20 minutes to seek treasure in a jungle. The game world is populated by enemies and hazards that variously cause the player to lose lives or points.
B.C.'s Quest for Tires is a horizontally scrolling video game designed by Rick Banks and Michael Bate and published by Sierra On-Line in 1983. Versions were released for the Commodore 64, IBM PC, Atari 8-bit computers, ColecoVision, ZX Spectrum, MSX, and Apple II. Based on the comic strip B.C. by Johnny Hart, BC's Quest for Tires is similar to Irem's Moon Patrol from the previous year. A wheel-riding caveman is always moving forward through horizontally scrolling levels, and the player jumps or ducks as obstacles approach. The game's title is a play on the contemporaneous film Quest for Fire.
Artworx was a Naples, Florida software company that produced and supported a line of computer games from 1981 to 2015. It is named after the founder's given name. At first the company published a variety of games, including titles in adventure and arcade-action genres, but were later best known for a strip poker series.
Shamus is a shooter with light action-adventure game elements written by Cathryn Mataga and published by Synapse Software. The original Atari 8-bit computer version was released on disk and tape in 1982. According to Synapse co-founder Ihor Wolosenko, Shamus made the company famous by giving it a reputation for quality. "Funeral March of a Marionette", the theme song from Alfred Hitchcock Presents, plays on the title screen.
Hard Hat Mack is a platform game developed by Michael Abbot and Matthew Alexander for the Apple II which was published by Electronic Arts in 1983. Ports for the Atari 8-bit computers and Commodore 64 were released simultaneously. It is part of the first batch of five games from Electronic Arts, and the company called it out as "truly EA's first game." Versions for the Amstrad CPC and IBM PC compatibles followed in 1984.
Caverns of Mars is a vertically scrolling shooter for Atari 8-bit computers. It was written by Greg Christensen, with some features later added by Richard Watts, and published by the Atari Program Exchange (APX) in 1981. Caverns of Mars became the best selling APX software of all-time and was moved into Atari, Inc.'s official product line, first on diskette, then on cartridge.
Pac-Man is a 1982 maze video game developed and published by Atari, Inc. under official license by Namco, and an adaptation of the 1980 arcade game Pac-Man. The player controls the title character, who attempts to consume all of the wafers in a maze while avoiding four ghosts that pursue him. Eating flashing wafers at the corners of the screen causes the ghosts to temporarily turn blue and flee, allowing Pac-Man to eat them for bonus points. Once eaten, a ghost is reduced to a pair of eyes, which return to the center of the maze to be restored.
Gateway to Apshai is an action-adventure game for the Commodore 64, ColecoVision and Atari 8-bit computers. It was developed by The Connelley Group and published by Epyx in 1983 as a prequel to Temple of Apshai. It is a more action-oriented version of Temple of Apshai, with smoother and faster graphics, streamlined controls, fewer role-playing video game elements, and fewer room descriptions.
Dandy is a dungeon crawl maze video game for Atari 8-bit computers published by the Atari Program Exchange in 1983. It is one of the first video games with four-player, simultaneous cooperative play. Players equipped with bows and unlimited arrows fight through a maze containing monsters, monster spawners, keys, locked doors, food, and bombs in search of the exit leading to the next level. If a player dies, they can be revived by finding and shooting a heart. The game includes an editor for making new dungeons.
The Dukes of Hazzard is a 1984 racing video game developed and published by Coleco for their ColecoVision game console and Coleco Adam computer. Elite Systems released a different game with the same title for the ZX Spectrum computer on February 23, 1985. Both versions are based on the television series of the same name.
Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves is dungeon crawl role-playing video game written by Stuart Smith for the Atari 8-bit computers and published by Quality Software 1981. An Apple II version was released in 1982, followed by ports for the FM-7 and the PC-8800 series in 1985. It is the second of four role playing games written by Smith, following Fracas, and preceding The Return of Heracles and Adventure Construction Set.
The Dukes of Hazzard: Racing for Home is a racing video game published by SouthPeak Interactive that was released for the PlayStation in 1999. The game was later released for Game Boy Color and Microsoft Windows in 2000. It is based on the television show, The Dukes of Hazzard. Waylon Jennings, James Best, Ben Jones, Sonny Shroyer, and Tom Wopat reprised their characters by providing their voices to the PC and PlayStation versions of the game. A sequel titled The Dukes of Hazzard II: Daisy Dukes It Out was released in 2000.
Salmon Run is a 1982 video game for Atari 8-bit computers created by Bill Williams and distributed via the Atari Program Exchange. Salmon Run was the first game in Williams's career, followed by a string of successes noted for their oddball concepts. The player takes the role of Sam the Salmon, swimming upriver to mate. Along the way he encounters waterfalls, a bear, fishermen, and seagulls.
Preppie! is an action video game for Atari 8-bit computers published by Adventure International in 1982. It was programmed by Russ Wetmore of Star Systems Software, whose name is prominently displayed on the box cover. Leaning on the preppy trend of the early 1980s, the game follows prep schooler Wadsworth Overcash as he navigates the hazards of a country club to retrieve golf balls. Preppie! borrows heavily from Konami's Frogger, with lanes of traffic in the bottom half of the screen and a river crossing the top portion. Alligators are an element from both Frogger and preppy fashion; an open-mouthed gator is the icon of shirt brand Izod. Reviewers recognized the game as derivative, but called the music and visuals some of the best for Atari 8-bit computers.
Shamus: Case II is a 1983 video game for Atari 8-bit computers written by Cathryn Mataga and published by Synapse Software. Mataga also wrote the original Shamus and the scrolling shooter Zeppelin. A port to the Commodore 64 by Joe Vierra was released in 1984. Although ostensibly a sequel to Shamus, the gameplay is very different, combining aspects of platform games, maze games, and even Breakout. Case II was as well received as the original.
Centerfold Squares, retitled Centrefold Squares in Europe, is an erotic puzzle game originally developed and self-published by Artworx and released in 1988 for the Amiga, Atari ST and DOS. The game is a variation of Reversi where rectangular sections of an image of a nude model are revealed as the player earns points. Centrefold Squares was published by CDS Software in Europe, and published by Proein S.A under the original American title in Spain.
Track Attack is a train-themed action game written by Chris Jochumson for the Apple II. It was published in 1982 by Broderbund, as was a port for Atari 8-bit computers by Bill Hooper. Track Attack contains both overhead maze levels and side-scrolling platform game levels. In the latter, the player controls a character who runs along the top of a train, performing acrobatic leaps between the cars. Jochumson co-authored The Arcade Machine which was released the same year.