Yars' Revenge is a video game developed for the Atari 2600. It is one of the games created for the 2600 system most fondly remembered by enthusiasts. It was created by Howard Scott Warshaw, who also wrote the 2600 titles Raiders Of The Lost Ark and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Yars' Revenge was Atari's best selling original title for the 2600. The game was released in 1981. In 1999, a Game Boy Color version was developed by Vatical Entertainment and released by Telegames Ltd. Image File history File links Yars_revenge. ... A video game developer is a software developer (a business or an individual) that creates computer or video games. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Video game publishers are companies that publish video games that they have either developed internally or have had developed by a video game developer. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A game designer is a person who designs games. ... Howard Scott Warshaw is a former game designer who worked for Atari in the early 1980s, where he designed and programed the games Yars Revenge, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and the infamous flop, E.T. He has also written two books and directed two video documentaries. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... Computer and video games are generally and popularly categorised into genres. ... A fixed shooter game, also known as a 2-D shooter or shoot-em-up (shmup for short), is a video game where the player has limited control of their character and the focus is almost entirely on annihilation of their enemies. ... In computer games and video games, single-player refers to the variant of a particular game where input from only one player is expected throughout the course of the gaming session. ... The Atari 2600, released in 1977, is the first successful video game console to use plug-in cartridges instead of having one or more games built in. ... The Game Boy Color came in a myriad of different colors, as did earlier incarnations of the Game Boy. ... Namcos Pac-Man was a hit, and became a cultural phenomenon. ... The Atari 2600, released in 1977, is the first successful video game console to use plug-in cartridges instead of having one or more games built in. ... Howard Scott Warshaw is a former game designer who worked for Atari in the early 1980s, where he designed and programed the games Yars Revenge, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and the infamous flop, E.T. He has also written two books and directed two video documentaries. ... E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is a video game developed by Howard Scott Warshaw based on the film of the same name and released by Atari for the Atari 2600 video game system in 1982. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... For the entire Game Boy series of handheld consoles, see Game Boy line. ...

The game began as a licensed port of the Cinematronics arcade game, Star Castle. In the original game, a powerful cannon is protected by three layers of counter-rotating shields. The player must shoot holes in these shields in order to destroy the cannon inside. But once these holes are made, the cannon can also shoot out at the player. If the outermost layer is completely destroyed, new layers of shields are grown. Harassing the player are two free roaming torpedoes that hunt out the player's ship. Cinematronics was a pioneering console and arcade game developer that had its heyday in the era of vector display games. ... Star Castle is a vector-based fixed shooter arcade game, made by Cinematronics in 1980. ...

Screenshot

As the Atari version grew, change after change was introduced until the final product had very little resemblance to the original. In this game, the hero (a Yar) is an insect-like creature who must nibble or shoot through a barrier in order to fire his "Zorlon Cannon" into the breach and destroy the evil Qotile, which exists on the other side of the barrier. The Qotile can shoot at the Yar even if the barrier is undamaged, by turning into the "Swirl" - fortunately, the player is warned before the shot is fired, and he can retreat to a safe distance to dodge the enemy's energy blast. Also in the game is a safe area, "the neutral zone", where the pursuing enemy torpedo cannot harm him (although the Swirl can). The Yar cannot shoot from within the neutral zone. Image File history File links A2600_Yars_Revenge. ... Image File history File links A2600_Yars_Revenge. ...

The game had an Easter egg. After killing the Qotile, if the player moved vertically along the line where the Qotile was killed, the programmers initials could be seen. This would end the game, however, and initial players trying to reach high scores found it somewhat frustrating. This is typically done by shooting the Swirl in mid-shot, so that a vertical line appears on the screen. The first easter egg For the decorated eggs given out to celebrate the Easter holiday, see Easter egg. ...

As with several other video games for the 2600 system, a miniature comic book was included in the game package, illustrating the story behind Yars' Revenge and giving the game an additional appeal. [1] The comic book explained the "revenge" of the game's title: that the Yars were avenging the destruction of one of their worlds, Razak IV. Atari also released an album, under the label Kid Stuff Records, which contained a theme song and a radio drama-style reading of the story in the comic book. A comic book is a magazine or book containing the art form of comics. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion, because: If you disagree with its speedy deletion, please explain why on its talk page or at Wikipedia:Speedy deletions. ... The theme music of a radio or television program is a melody closely associated with the show, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits. ... Radio drama is a form of audio storytelling broadcast on radio. ...

Trivia:

• The Yar race and the planet Razak were named after Ray Kassar, CEO of Atari at the time.
• A sequel to this game (Yars' Return) was created in 2005 for the Atari Flashback 2.0 system.

Raymond E. Kassar (born January 2, 1928) was president, and later CEO, of Atari from 1978 to 1983. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Atari Flashback and Atari Flashback 2 are dedicated video game consoles marketed by Atari in the mid-2000s. ...

External links

A screenshot of the Easter Egg

• Digital Press interview with Yars' Revenge programmer Howard Scott Warshaw
• Digital Press Easter egg entry for Yars' Revenge
• AtariAge entry for Yars' Revenge
• Yars' Revenge at MobyGames
• Yars' Revenge at The Guru