Atari Coin Connection

Issue: Vol 6 Num 01 - 1982 February

VOLUME 6 NUMBER 1
FEBRUARY 1982
Space Duel'" is New Video Challenge
pace Duel is the latest
entry from ATARI® in the
coin-operated games
arena. Equipped with the spec-
tacular QuadraScan TM Color
monitor display system and . new
4-speaker sound, this fantastic
space challenge
is actually four
.
.
games ,n one.
Fighters is either a single
player or two-player game
where the player controls a
space ship. Players must dodge
space mines and saucers, all
the while trying to hit and des-
troy mysterious targets which
split in half when hit the first
time. A single player battles for
high score, while two players
play competitively.
In the two player version of
Fighters, one player can shoot
the other player, temporarily
eliminating the hit player from
the screen. The hit player's ship
will return in about five sec-
onds, however, and will receive
automatic shield protection
while reentering .
Space Stations can also be
played by one or two players.
Players control a space station,
two ships linked by a fuse, try-
ing to avoid mines and saucers
and hit the splitting targets. Sin-
gle players control both ships
with one set of controls, but in
the two player version, players
must work cooperatively to
achieve high scores.
Targets appear on the screen
in waves, each wave introduc-
ing more targets. Targets also
continued on next page
New President Named for
ATARI Coin-Op Division
Kenneth K. Harkness has
joined Atari, Inc. as President
of the Coin Operated Games
Division. Raymond Kassar,
Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer of ATARI , announced the
appointment, commenting:
ATARI INC.
"Harkness has tremendous ex-
pertise in the marketing and
sales areas. His experience will
be of great value as ATARI con-
tinues to lead the industry in
technological advancement and
innovation ."
For the two years prior to
joining ATARI , Harkness was
president and chief executive
officer of Revell, Inc., one of the
largest toy companies in Eur-
ope. Before that, he spent ten
years at the Racquet Sports
Division of Wi lson Sporting
Goods, where he mapped out
the strategic direction of Wil-
son's tennis business. There, he
held various management posi-
tions and eventually became
president of the division.
Harkness received his bache-
lor's degree in economics
from Williams College in
Massachusetts and received
his master's from Harvard
University. He and his
family ~ill r~side in Ather-
ton, Cal1forn1a.
I J
1
ATAR
1265 BORREGAS AVENUE

SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA 94086
Space Duel continued
increase in speed as the game
progresses. There are 7 splitting
targets.
An onslaught wave is initiated
each time all of the targets dur-
ing a wave are eliminated by
the player. A low humming will
be heard and suddenly the
screen is framed by a border
which prevents players from
"wrapping around." The hum-
ming increases in pitch while
stars, fuzzballs and saucers ap-
pear as targets for the player.
The onslaught wave is over
when the player has destroyed
all of the objects on the screen
at one time, or when the hum-
ming has reached its highest
pitch.
Some of the features that
make Space Duel an instant hit
with players are the new 4-
speaker sound and the Quadra-
Scan Color display. Two speak-
ers under the control panel and
two speakers under the attrac-
tion panel enhance the life-like
feeling of the game and give
the players the sensation of the
"real thing". The electrifying
graphics display of the Quadra-
Scan Color monitor adds to the
realism, making Space Duel
impossible to pass up.
For operators, there
is a special operator
accounting display which
shows the total time a game
has been on, along with
the average game times,
the number of games
played by type, and the
total seconds each game
has been played.
"With Space Duel players re-
ally have a choice, " said Frank
Ballouz, V.P. of Marketing. "It's
an exciting game whether there
are one or two players, whether
they play Fighters or Space Sta-
tions. And the spectacular
graphics and powerhouse
sound make Space Duel a real
game playing experience, one
that any video enthusiast w ill
enjoy."
Space Duel is available in
standard upright or cocktail
cabinet models. A new "Euro-
pean" cabinet, available in Eu-
rope only, has wood grain sides
with optional side panel decals
available from the factory for a
nominal charge.
Did You Know?
ATARI conducts an annual
operator study during the
AMOA. At the 1981 AMOA
Show, 860 U.S. operators were
interviewed.
A significant number of new
operating companies have en-
tered the amusement machine
business since the upsurge of
interest in video games.
Close to one out of every
four operators interviewed re-
presented companies that have
been in this business for two
years or less.
Asteroids DeluxeT~ Tempest™
Receive CSA Certification
ATARI® has received certification
from the Canadian Standards As-
sociation on two of its most recent
games, Asteroids Deluxe and
Tempest. ATARI is currently pursu-
ing CSA certification for Cen-
tipede™ also, and will practice a
policy of acquiring CSA certification
for all future games.
• The Canadian Standards Asso-
ciation is an organization similar to
Underwriters Laboratories, Inc.,
the U.S. company that inspects
manufactured items for safety
features. ATARI is the first com-
pany in the video game industry
to acquire the CSA certification.
"We are eager to receive CSA
certification along with the Under-
writers Laboratories approval of
({i-
STANOARO C22 .2 NO.I NORME
VIDEO
.. - - - -
Atvi 885857
,a1NTEO IN CANADA
NA·1·2
our games," said Frank Ballouz,
V.P. of Marketing. "In this way we
can assure our customers both in
the U.S. and Canada that our
games will meet the highest safe-
ty standards.
ATARI Product Safety is also
checking into the process of get-
ting approvals from V.D.E. and
other European safety groups.
Update: UL Listing
Number of years in business.
In the September 1981 issue
of the Coin Connection, we told
you that Centipede TM was the
first UL-l isted video game. We
also stated that we would con-
tinue to seek UL approval on all
future ATAR I games. In that
same issue, our Promotion for
Profit article suggested that op-
erators of games in conven-
ience stores might install head-
phones on the games to mini-
mize the noise during game
play.
We would like to make sure
that operators are aware that
any change made to a game
will void the UL listing. So, al-
though adding headphones to
games would certainly solve
some problems for convenience
store owners, managers and
employees, this addition may af-
fect the safety of the games.
We thank those readers who
pointed out this fact to us. And
we still continue to receive UL
listing on our current games.
Just remember that any tam-
pering with a game does void
the UL certification .

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