Asteroids [Unreleased Prototype] (Atari 5200 - 1982) [NA Only]

Old-School Computer Theater
Asteroids [小惑星]
Atari 5200
Action/Shooter
1982
Atari, Inc./Atari Corporation
NA Only
Normal Difficulty Mode
[Unreleased Prototype]

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RELATED VIDEO PLAYLISTS:
-The Attract Mode Project: https://rumble.com/playlists/GWQng0_fMzs
-Old-School Console Theater: https://rumble.com/playlists/NZeHms3PVHc
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GAME INFORMATION:
Asteroids is a space-themed multidirectional shooter arcade video game designed by Lyle Rains and Ed Logg released in November 1979 by Atari, Inc. The player controls a single spaceship in an asteroid field which is periodically traversed by flying saucers. The object of the game is to shoot and destroy the asteroids and saucers, while not colliding with either, or being hit by the saucers' counter-fire. The game becomes harder as the number of asteroids increases.

Asteroids was conceived during a meeting between Logg and Rains, who decided to use hardware developed by Wendi Allen (then known as Howard Delman) previously used for Lunar Lander. Asteroids was based on an unfinished game titled Cosmos; its physics model, control scheme, and gameplay elements were derived from Spacewar!, Computer Space, and Space Invaders and refined through trial and error. The game is rendered on a vector display in a two-dimensional view that wraps around both screen axes.

Asteroids was one of the first major hits of the golden age of arcade games; the game sold 47,840 upright cabinets and 8,725 cocktail cabinets and proved both popular with players and influential with developers. In the 1980s it was ported to Atari's home systems, and the Atari VCS version sold over three million copies. The game was widely imitated, and it directly influenced Defender, Gravitar, and many other video games.

Asteroids was released for the Atari VCS (later renamed Atari 2600) and Atari 8-bit computers in 1981. Programmers Brad Stewart and Bob Smith were unable to fit the Atari VCS port into a 4 KB cartridge. It became the first game for the console to use bank switching, a technique that increases ROM size from 4 KB to 8 KB. A port for the Atari 5200, identical to the Atari 8-bit computer version, was in development in 1982, but was not published.

An Atari 7800 version was published in 1986 with the official launch of the console. It includes cooperative play; the asteroids have colorful textures and the "heartbeat" sound effect remains intact.

(Source - Wikipedia)