NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Battlezone

Battlezone is an arcade game from Atari released in 1980. It displays a wireframe view (using vector graphics rather than raster graphics) on a horizontal black and white CRT (with green and red sectioned color overlay). Due to its novel gameplay and look, this game was very popular for many years. Battle zone may refer to: Battlezone (arcade game), an arcade game from Atari released in 1980 Battlezone (computer game), an Activision game where two nations fight for control of a new resource in space. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... A video game developer is a software developer (a business or an individual) that creates video games. ... This article is about a corporate game company. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This article is about a corporate game company. ... A game designer is a person who designs games. ... 1980 1980 in games 1979 in video gaming 1981 in video gaming Notable events of 1980 in computer and video games. ... Video games are categorized into genres based on their gameplay. ... A screenshot from The Sims: Deluxe Edition. ... Centipede by Atari is a typical example of a 1980s era arcade game. ... The Atari 2600, released in October 1977, is the video game console credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor based hardware and cartridges containing game code, instead of having non-microprocessor dedicated hardware with all games built in. ... VIC-20 with accessories. ... The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was commercially popular from 1985 to the early 1990s. ... An Atari 800XL, one of the most popular machines in the series. ... The Lynx was a handheld game console released by Atari in 1989. ... The Sony PlayStation ) is a video game console of the 32/64-bit era, first produced by Sony Computer Entertainment in the mid-1990s. ... The Super Nintendo Entertainment System or Super NES (also called SNES and Super Nintendo) was a 16-bit video game console released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia, and Brazil between 1990 and 1993. ... It has been suggested that Arcade Racer Joystick be merged into this article or section. ... The Dreamcast , code-named Dural, Dricas and Katana during development) is Segas fifth and final video game console and the successor to the Sega Saturn. ... â€œGBAâ€ redirects here. ... â€œPS2â€ redirects here. ... The Xbox is a sixth generation era video game console produced by Microsoft Corporation. ... This article is about the hand-held telephone. ... A personal computer (PC) is a computer whose price, size, and capabilities make it useful for individuals. ... For other uses, see Joystick (disambiguation). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Button (computing). ... This arcade cabinet, containing Centipede, is an upright. ... â€œCPUâ€ redirects here. ... The MOS Technology 6502 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed by MOS Technology in 1975. ... A sound chip is an integrated circuit (i. ... There are several meanings for Pokey. ... A computer display monitor, usually called simply a monitor, is a piece of electrical equipment which displays viewable images generated by a computer without producing a permanent record. ... It has been suggested that Vector monitor be merged into this article or section. ... Centipede by Atari is a typical example of a 1980s era arcade game. ... This article is about a corporate game company. ... Year 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar). ... A wire frame model is a visual presentation of an electronic representation of a three dimensional or physical object used in 3D computer graphics. ... It has been suggested that Vector monitor be merged into this article or section. ... Suppose the smiley face in the top left corner is an RGB bitmap image. ...

Development

The vector technique is similar to the visuals of games such as Asteroids. The game was designed by Ed Rotberg, who designed many games for Atari, Atari Games, and Sente. Asteroids is a popular vector-based video arcade game released in 1979 by Atari. ... This article is about a corporate game company. ... Atari Games was an American producer of arcade games, and originally part of Atari Inc. ... Go terms are terms in Go, technical terms likely to be met in books and articles about go in English, and in other languages also. ...

A version called The Bradley Trainer (also known as Army Battlezone or Military Battlezone) was also designed for use by the U.S. Army as targeting training for gunners on the Bradley Fighting Vehicle.^[1] Approaching Atari in December of 1980, some developers within Atari refused to work on the project because of its association with the Army,^[2] most notably original Battlezone programmer Ed Rotberg.^[3] Ed only came on board after he was promised by management he would have no future plans to do anything with the military.^[4] Only two were produced; one was delivered to the army and is presumed lost, and the other is in the private collection of Scott Evans.^[5] The gunner yoke was based on the Bradley Fighting Vehicle control and was later re-used in the popular Star Wars game.^[4] The Bradley Trainer differs dramatically from the original Battlezone as it features helicopters, missiles, and machine guns; furthermore, the actual tank does not move - the guns simply rotate. The United States Army is the largest and oldest branch of the armed forces of the United States. ... General Characteristics (M2 Bradley) Length: 21 ft 2 in (6. ... This article is about a corporate game company. ... Star Wars is an arcade game produced by Atari and released in 1983. ...

Also, one cocktail version of Battlezone was developed as a prototype. This is also in a private collection.

Because of its use of first-person 3D graphics combined with an actual "viewing goggle" that the player puts his face into, Battlezone is widely considered the first true Virtual Reality game. Likewise, The Bradley Trainer is considered the first VR training device used by the U.S. Army. ... The rewrite of this article is being devised at Talk:3D computer graphics/Temp. ... This article is about the simulation technology. ...

Gameplay

Gameplay is on a plain with a mountainous horizon featuring a memorable erupting volcano, distant crescent moon, and various geometric solids (in vector outline) like pyramids and blocks. The player views the screen, which includes an overhead radar view to find and destroy the rather slow tanks, or the faster moving supertanks. Saucer-shaped UFOs and guided missiles occasionally appear for a bonus opportunity. The saucers differ from the tanks in that they do not fire upon the player, and do not appear on radar. The player can hide behind the solids or maneuver in rapid turns once fired on to buy time with which to fire himself. Common play in the US could run from 25 cents to a dollar per game, depending on machine setting. The typical setting is for 25 cent play, with three tanks. For other uses, see Radar (disambiguation). ... â€œUFOâ€ redirects here. ...

Scoring points in Battlezone is simple. A standard enemy tank is worth 1,000 points when destroyed; a supertank is worth 3,000 points; and the flying saucer is worth 5,000 points. The guided missile is worth 2,000 points when destroyed. All of these targets can be destroyed with a single shot from the player's tank. One bonus tank is awarded when the player's score reached 15,000 points; an additional tank is then awarded at 100,000 points, and every 100,000 points after that. The game only includes one hostile enemy on the game board at all times; the player never has to battle two enemy tanks at once, or a tank and guided missile. The UFO can appear on the screen at the same time as an enemy tank, and it can occasionally be destroyed by enemy fire.

The geometric solid obstacles are indestructible, and could block the movement of a player's tank. However, they are also useful as shields, as they block enemy fire as well.

Myths

There was a persistent rumor/myth that one could actually drive to the erupting volcano in the background, up the side, into the crater and discover a castle inside. This was false, but plans to include such a feature in future versions were inspired by this myth^[6]. A similar rumor insisted if one kept driving in the same direction for at least an hour without dying, one would eventually reach the mountains and see a "tank factory" pumping out enemy tanks. Others involved the UFO, including one in which a mothership would attack after a set number of UFOs were destroyed. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Cabinet

Battlezone was housed in a standard upright arcade cabinet with a novel "periscope" viewfinder which the player used to view the game. The game action could also be viewed from the sides of the viewfinder for spectators to watch. A later, less common version of the cabinet removed the periscope to improve visibility to non-players and improve the ergonomics for players who could not reach the periscope; hygienic concerns with the periscope, against which users pressed their faces, may have played a role in its removal^{[citation needed]}. This modification also was welcomed by some operators, who felt that the small windows present in the "periscoped" version did not attract enough attention to the game when played. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... This arcade cabinet, containing Centipede, is an upright. ... Principle of the periscope. ...

A smaller version of the cabinet (known as a "cabaret cabinet") also existed with the screen angled upwards, and no periscope. A cocktail table version was tested as a prototype but not produced; it lacked the color overlays as the display would have to flip for opposing players.

The controls consisted of left and right joysticks, each controlling the treads on that side of the player's tank. One joystick contained a button used to fire projectiles at enemy targets. For other uses, see Joystick (disambiguation). ...

Legacy

A Battlezone clone for Apollo Domain/OS was written by Justin S. Revenaugh in 1986 and re-written for the X Window System by Todd Mummert in 1990. Domain/OS was the operating system used by the Apollo/Domain line of workstations manufactured by Apollo Computers, Inc. ... â€œX11â€ redirects here. ...

A clone (author unknown) of the game for DOS called "bzone.exe" circulated through the BBS community in the 1980s. This article is about the family of closely related operating systems for the IBM PC compatible platform. ... â€œBBSâ€ redirects here. ... The 1980s refers to the years from 1980 to 1989. ...

Throughout the 1980s, Battlezone was ported to several home computer systems, including DOS, the Apple II, Atari ST, the Commodore 64, the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, the Atari XEGS and the Atari Lynx (within that version is a hidden game with filled polygons). An Atari 2600 version was also released, but has coloured raster graphics due to graphical limitations. A prototype exists for an Atari 5200 version as well.^[7] Battlezone was included in Microsoft Arcade in the 1990s; although very similar to the original arcade game, it was newly written, not a port of the original game's code. In computer science, porting is the process of adapting software so that an executable program can be created for a computing environment that is different from the one for which it was originally designed (e. ... Children playing on a Amstrad CPC 464 in the 1980s. ... The 1977 Apple II, complete with integrated keyboard, color graphics, sound, a plastic case and eight expansion slots. ... The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was commercially popular from 1985 to the early 1990s. ... C-64 redirects here. ... The ZX Spectrum is a home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd. ... Atari built a series of 8-bit home computers based on the MOS Technology 6502 CPU, starting in 1979. ... The Lynx was a handheld game console released by Atari in 1989. ... The Atari 2600, released in October 1977, is the video game console credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor based hardware and cartridges containing game code, instead of having non-microprocessor dedicated hardware with all games built in. ... The Atari 5200 SuperSystem, or simply Atari 5200, is a video game console that was introduced in 1982 by Atari as a replacement for the famous Atari 2600. ... Microsoft Arcade was a package of classic arcade games released in 1993 on a single 1. ...

A Battlezone clone named Stellar 7 was released on the Commodore 64 in the 1980s. It was ported to Apple II, DOS and Amiga. Its sequel, Nova 9, was later released on the Amiga and DOS by Sierra Online. Stellar 7 is a futuristic shooter computer game in which the player assumes the role of a tank pilot. ... This article is about the family of home computers. ... Nova 9 is a futuristic shooter computer game in which the player assumes the role of a tank pilot. ... Sierra Entertainment was a computer game developer and publisher active from 1980 to 2004. ...

The 1991 Macintosh tank game Spectre and its sequels such as Spectre VR owed much to Battlezone for their gameplay and appearance. The first Macintosh computer, introduced in 1984, upgraded to a 512K Fat Mac. The Macintosh or Mac, is a line of personal computers designed, developed, manufactured, and marketed by Apple Computer. ... Spectre was a computer game for the Apple Macintosh, released in 1991 by Velocity Development and Peninsula Gameworks. ...

The SGI workstations had a Battlezone derived game in the early nineties called BZ [1] which added network play. BZ also had guided missiles, where the player would fly the missile after launch, returning to the tank on impact. Silicon Graphics, Inc. ... For the band, see 1990s (band). ...

Activision, the video game publishing giant, released a game for Microsoft Windows inspired by and named Battlezone in 1998. Aside from the name, however, the game bears little resemblance to the original arcade game. Activision, Inc. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Windows redirects here. ... This article needs copyediting (checking for proper English spelling, grammar, usage, etc. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ...

The game Tank Hunter on Pogo.com is almost an exact replica of Battlezone, complete with imitation vector graphics. The open source game BZFlag (BattleZone capture Flag) is available on SourceForge, and provides network play and full 3D graphics instead of vector graphics. Screenshot of The New Pogo. ... Open source refers to projects that are open to the public and which draw on other projects that are freely available to the general public. ... BZFlag (an abbreviation for Battle Zone capture the Flag) is a three dimensional first person tank shooting game. ... SourceForge is a collaborative revision control and software development management system. ...

There was a bug in some machines which caused very high phony scores into the seven digits to be posted (after a player would enter his initials). Good players could actually reach this level after an hour or two of play.

Trivia

â€œTchaikovskyâ€ redirects here. ... The 1812 Overture (full title: Festival Overture The Year 1812 in E flat major, Op. ... Tron is a 1982 science fiction film starring Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn (and his counterpart inside the electronic world, Clu), Bruce Boxleitner as Alan Bradley (and Tron), Cindy Morgan as Lora Baines (and Yori) and Dan Shor as Ram. ... See also: The Philadelphia Experiment (movie) The Philadelphia Experiment is a supposed secret experiment conducted by the U.S. Navy at the Philadelphia Naval Yards at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on or before October 28, 1943, which went horribly awry. ... Running Scared is a 1961 American song written by Roy Orbison and Joe Melson and sung by Orbison. ... Panther a battle tank simulator, is one of the earliest first-person shooter computer games developed. ... PLATO was one of the first generalized Computer assisted instruction systems, originally built by the University of Illinois (U of I) and later taken over by Control Data Corporation (CDC), who provided the machines it ran on. ... Official language(s) English[1] Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Largest metro area Chicago Metropolitan Area Area Ranked 25th - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 kmÂ²) - Width 210 miles (340 km) - Length 390 miles (629 km) - % water 4. ...

Encyclopedia > Battlezone

Contents

Development

Gameplay

Myths

Cabinet

Legacy

Trivia

See also

References

External links