| Steeplechase | |
|---|---|
 Arcade flyer | |
| Developer(s) | Atari, Inc. |
| Publisher(s) | Sears (2600) |
| Designer(s) | Lyle Rains [3] |
| Programmer(s) | Jim Huether (2600) [4] |
| Platform(s) | Arcade |
| Release | Atari 2600: 1980 |
| Genre(s) | Sports |
| Mode(s) | Up to 6 players |
Steeplechase is an sports video game by released in arcades 1975 by Atari, Inc. [6] Developed by Atari subsidiary Kee Games, it simulates a steeplechase-style horse race. It was distributed in Japan by Nakamura Seisakusho (Namco) in 1976.
Up to six players can play against each other, each choosing a horse while the computer controls the seventh horse on the bottom. Each player's horse begins galloping, and the players must jump over obstacles in their lanes by pressing their colored buttons. The horse that successfully jumps all obstacles smoothly becomes the fastest horse and wins.
The game was originally called AstroTurf, and all printed circuit boards still have the name on the board. [6] The game is housed in a custom extra wide cabinet that six individually colored and lit buttons used to make a player's horse jump. The monitor is a 23" black and white CRT monitor with 6 color overlays to make each of the 6 horizontally stacked lanes match their colored button counterparts. Sounds include a bugle, galloping hoof beats, and crowd cheers.
A conversion for the Atari Video Computer System programmed by Jim Huether was released under the same name in 1980. [4] It was developed at Atari and distributed under Sears' Tele-Games label. [7] It is one of three games from Atari exclusively for the Tele-Games line. [8]
A European version was released by Löwen-Automaten. [9] A Soviet clone of this machine with exact gameplay and graphics, but different cabinet was called Skachki, which can be literally translated as "horse race".
The Atari 2600 is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocessor-based hardware and games stored on swappable ROM cartridges, a format first used with the Fairchild Channel F in 1976. Branded as the Atari Video Computer System from its release until November 1982, the VCS was bundled with two joystick controllers, a conjoined pair of paddle controllers, and a game cartridge—initially Combat and later Pac-Man.
The Starpath Supercharger is an expansion peripheral cartridge created by Starpath, for playing cassette-based proprietary games on the Atari 2600 video game console.
Battlezone is a first-person shooter tank combat game released for arcades in November 1980 by Atari, Inc. The player controls a tank which is attacked by other tanks and missiles, using a small radar scanner to locate enemies around them in the barren landscape. Its innovative use of 3D graphics made it a huge hit, with approximately 15,000 cabinets sold.
Track & Field, also known as Hyper Olympic in Japan and Europe, is a 1983 Olympic-themed sports video game developed by Konami for arcades. The Japanese release sported an official license for the 1984 Summer Olympics. In Europe, the game was initially released under the Japanese title Hyper Olympic in 1983, before re-releasing under the US title Track & Field in early 1984.
Warlords is an arcade game released by Atari, Inc. in 1980. The game resembles a combination of Breakout and Quadrapong ; up to four players play the game at the same time, and the "castles" in the four corners of the screen are brick walls that can be broken with a flaming ball.
Phoenix is a fixed shooter arcade video game released in December 1980 by Taito. It was then released in Europe, and then in the Americas by Centuri and Amstar Electronics in January 1981.
I, Robot is an arcade shooter game developed and released in 1984 by Atari, Inc. Designed by Dave Theurer, only a total of 750–1000 arcade cabinets were produced. The arcade machine comes with two games. The first is I, Robot, a multi-directional shooter that has the player assume the role of "Unhappy Interface Robot #1984", a servant bot that rebels against Big Brother. The object of the game involves the servant bot going through 126 levels, turning red squares to blue to destroy Big Brother's shield and eye. The player can switch to the second game, Doodle City, a drawing tool that lasts for three minutes.
Crossbow is a light gun shooter video game released in arcades by Exidy in 1983. It was later published by Absolute Entertainment for the Commodore 64 and MS-DOS, and by Atari Corporation for the Atari 2600, Atari 7800, and Atari 8-bit family starting in 1987. The game is controlled via a positional gun that resembles a full-sized crossbow.
Air-Sea Battle is a game developed by Atari, Inc. for the Atari VCS, and was one of the nine original launch titles for that system when it was released in September 1977. It was published by Sears as Target Fun and was the pack-in game with the original Sears Tele-Games version of the Atari VCS.
Dodge 'Em is a driving-themed maze game programmed by Carla Meninsky and published in 1980 by Atari, Inc. for the Atari VCS. Similar to Sega's 1979 Head On arcade game, Dodge 'Em is played on a single screen of four concentric roadways. Sears released the game for the "Sears Video Arcade" as Dodger Cars.
Vanguard is a scrolling shooter arcade video game developed by TOSE. It was released by SNK in Japan and Europe in 1981, and licensed to Centuri for manufacture in North America in October and to Zaccaria in Italy the same year. Cinematronics converted the game to cocktail arcade cabinets in North America. The player flies a ship through forced-scrolling tunnels with sections that move horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, to reach a boss at the end. The ship is controlled with an 8-way joystick, and it can fire in four directions via four buttons in a diamond arrangement.
The Video Pinball brand is a series of first-generation single-player dedicated home video game consoles manufactured, released and marketed by Atari, Inc. starting in 1977. Bumper controllers on the sides or a dial on the front are used to control the games depending on the game selected. There are three game types in the first model of the Video Pinball series: Pinball, Basketball, and Breakout.
Avalanche is an arcade video game designed by Dennis Koble and released by Atari, Inc. in 1978. The object is to catch falling rocks with a controllable set of paddles that diminish in number and size as the rocks fall faster and faster. The concept gained a much wider audience after Activision released an unauthorized adaptation in 1981 as Kaboom! for the Atari 2600. The only official home port of Avalanche is for the Atari 8-bit family.
Starship 1 is a first-person shooter space combat game developed and manufactured for arcades in 1977 by Atari, Inc. The game, which takes great inspiration from the then very popular television series Star Trek, contains the first known Easter egg in any arcade game. The arcade game was distributed in Japan by Namco in 1978, and it was ported to the Atari 2600 as Star Ship.
Jet Fighter is an arcade shooter video game released in 1975 by Atari, Inc. It was distributed in Japan by Nakamura Seisakusho (Namco).
Stunt Cycle is an arcade video game by Atari, Inc., originally released in 1976. In the style of the Evel Knievel craze of the mid-1970s, the game allows the player to perform simulated motorcycle jumping stunts. The arcade cabinet is modeled like a real motorcycle handlebar, and the player twists the right side for acceleration. The monitor is a 19-inch black and white cathode-ray tube with a black and white overlay. It accommodates 1 player or 2 players alternating.
Cosmic Avenger is a horizontally scrolling shooter developed by Universal Entertainment Corporation and released in arcades by Universal in July 1981. It is one of the first shooters with forced X-axis scrolling along with Konami's Scramble released earlier in the year. The final installment in Universal's Cosmic series, players take control of the Avenger space fighter and use bullets and bombs against enemy forces.
Street Racer is a racing video game developed for the Atari Video Computer System, later known as the Atari 2600. It was programmed by Larry Kaplan and released by Atari, Inc. in September 1977 as one of the nine Atari VCS launch titles. The game was also published by Sears for their Tele-Games product line as Speedway II.
Space Zap is a space-themed fixed shooter arcade video game developed by Game-A-Tron and licensed to Midway Manufacturing in 1980. Space Zap shipped in three form factors: standard upright, cocktail, and Bally's Mini-Myte reduced size cabinet. The player controls the defenses of an immobile base at screen center. The base is attacked from four sides, and the player must rapidly press one of four corresponding buttons to fire in the direction of an incoming attacker.
 | This arcade game-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This Atari-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |