Atari Coin Connection

Issue: Vol 5 Num 04 - 1981 June

VOLUME 5 NUMBER 4
SUMMER 1981
ATARI® Sponsors Coin-Op Industry's
First National Video Game Tournament
The Atari $50,000.00 World Championships
program features local tournaments leading up
to Chicago finals extravaganza
tari is sponsoring the
first international tourna-
ment for coin-operated
video games. The ATARI
$50,000.00 World Champion-
ships will be held in Chicago at
the Expocenter at the same time
as the annual AMOA meeting
(October 29, 30, 31 and Novem-
ber 1, 1981 ). $50,000.00 in cash
and prizes will be awarded to
winners in various categories.
The Atari World Champion-
ships are being held in conjunc-
tion with the Tournament Games
Spectacular $400,000.00 Week-
end, a production of Tournament
Games, Inc. There will be 30,000
square feet of tournament play
with 256 ATARI games dominat-
ing the center area and the ac-
tivities. Operators attending the
AMOA will be invited to view the
tournament as it is in progress.
The international tournament
begins with local contests in par-
ticipating family game centers
and street locations. Winners of
these tournaments can qualify
for a free entry certificate to the
open finals valued at $60.00.
Through the use of Atari Tour-
nament Location Kits, operators
can produce local tournaments.
The Kits provide all the materials
necessary to run five Double
Elimination Tournaments or five
high score promotion periods in
a location. This works out to five
weeks or every other day for
two weeks of intense promotion
on the part of the operator.
Each Kit is a $300.00 value,
containing five Atari free Entry
Certificates into the finals in
Chicago. The Kits, available
• through Tournament Games,
Inc., cost $125.00 each. But,
through a unique subsidy pro-
ATARI INC.
ATARI®
gram, Atari will contribute
$100.00 toward each Kit pur-
chased by an operator who has
purchased any of the designated
ATARI "Tournament Games".
The $100.00 Atari Promotional
Subsidy reduces the operator's
Kit cost to a mere $25.00.
The "Tournament Games" in-
clude Battlezone™, Asteroids
Deluxe™, Warlords™, Red Baron
and Centipede TM, as well as any
ATARI game produced between
now and October 1, 1981.
The games to be used in the
Chicago finals will be selected
from this group. The game se-
lection will be announced on
September 1, 1981 , so that play-
ers will have plenty of time to
practice for the final competition.
Your local Atari distributor has
the Atari Tournament Kit Order
Cards available. These cards
should be sent with a check for
$125.00, or if you have pur-
chased any of the "Tournament
Games", a check for $25.00
with an Atari Tournament Kit
Subsidy card, to: Tournament
Games, Inc., P.O. Box 80605,
Seattle, WA 98108. Tournament
Games will also be answering
any questions from Kit purchas-
ers, making sure that they un-
derstand how to use the promo- Games Quarterly" , a news mag-
tional materials enclosed in it.
azine published by Tournament
Atari and Tournament Games, Games, Inc.
Inc., are highlighting the Atari
We are pleased with the re-
World Championships in trade
sponse so far," said Frank
journal advertising to make op-
Ballouz, Vice President of Mar-
erators aware of the program.
keting. "Since the initial an-
Player awareness is being
nouncement of the Tourna-
aroused th rough the distribu-
ment, over 3000 phone inqui-
tion and mailing of 100,000
ries have been reported.
Atari World Championships
Many local tournaments
location posters, 100,000
are already under way.
Players Guides and 25,000 ATAR 1® The Atari tournament is
issues of " Tournament
I"\ I J
the first of its kind, de-
1265 BORREGAS AVENUE
. .
' '
.. .. ..... . .
. - ..
.. .
. .
...
-
signed to promote competitive
play and awareness of the com-
pany's games," he said. "We
expect it to be a blockbuster
event for everyone, so we en-
courage our operators to take
advantage of the program early
to gain maximum benefit."
For additional information
call toll-free 1-800-426-8897;
from Alaska, Hawaii, Wash-
ington and Canada call
1·206-763-1362.
SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA 94086
.•
Giant Insects Challenge Players in new Centipede™
Atari's new Centipede is no
garden-variety coin-op video
game. It's a fantastic new one
or two player game with play ac-
tion that's totally fresh and differ-
ent. As soon as the player starts
to get comfortable, the game
changes, picking up speed, add-
ing more monsters, creating
more player challenge.
Game play begins as a lethal
centipede winds its way down
the screen through a field of
mush rooms: It's heading
.
towards the player's bug blaster,
but every time it runs into a
Centipede Kit
Now Available
ATARI is offering an advertis-
ing and promotional materials kit
to operators to help promote the
game to locations and players.
Among the items available are
full-color posters and t-shirts.
Specially prepared radio scripts
and tip sheets on how to place
radio ads for maximum effectiv-
ity, sample ad slicks, fact sheets,
data sheets and contest ideas
and promotions are included.
To order the advertising ma-
terials kit, please contact ATARl's
Coin-op Marketing Services,
1265 Borregas Avenue, Sunny-
mushroom in its path it must
turn to avoid it. The player tries
to hit the centipede as it ap-
proaches. If the player is able to
eliminate the entire centipede,
the screen changes color and a
new centipede begins at the top.
Further danger appears in the
form of a mushroom-dropping
flea, a deadly spider that unex-
pectedly pounces from the side
of the screen, and a poisonous
scorpion. The scorpion sails
across the playfield, poisoning
any mushrooms that it touches.
If the centipede, in its travels
down the screen, comes into con-
tact with any of these poisoned
mushrooms, it too becomes poi-
soned and heads straight toward
the player's position.
Special features included on
Centipede are Atari's unique
Trak-Ball™ control, which the
player uses to position his bug
blaster, the special Atari High
Score table with non-volatile
memory which retains the three
top scores when power is off,
operator-adjustable number of
game lives, 256 coinage options,
and much more.
The game will be offered in all
three of Atari's cabinet styles:
Upright, Cabaret™ for areas
with minimal space, and sophis-
ticated Cocktail.
"Centipede is a truly exciting
new game," commented Frank
Ballouz, Vice President of Mar-
keting for Coin-op. " The intensity
of the action builds, making it
not only a great game to play,
but also a great game to watch.
The player is constantly chal-
lenged, and although it is easy
to learn, mastering Centipede is
another matter entirely."
Centipede to Challenge
Players at ATARI World
Championships Finals
r ·, . in Chicago
,ki;:;_
~ •-
4
vale, California 94086.
Included in the Kit is an order
form for pre-recorded radio
spots, T-shirts and posters, avail-
able from Coin-op Customer Ser-
vice at 1105 N. Fairoaks Ave.,
Sunnyvale, CA 94086. The ma-
terials kit is free, but there is a
nominal charge for T-shirts and
radio cassettes.
ATARI has just announced
that Centipede will be the game
on which players will compete at
the ATARI $50,000.00 World
Championships. (See article,
front cover).
" Players have responded so
enthusiastically to Centipede, it
was a natural choice for the
tournament," stated Frank
Ballouz, Vice President of Mar-
keting. "With the continuous
challenge it offers and with the
following Centipede has devel-
oped, it became apparent to us
that we should announce it be-
fore the scheduled September 1
date to allow players plenty of
time to practice before the
Championships playoffs, and to
give operators time to take ad-
vantage of the increased atten-
tion to the game."

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