''Dodge Racer'' (also shown in the manual as ''Dodge-Racer'' and ''DodgeRacer'')
[ is a ]maze video game
Maze game is a video game genre description first used by journalists during the 1980s to describe any game in which the entire playing field is a maze. Quick player action video game, action is required to escape monsters, outrace an opponent, o ...
programmed by Rob Re for Atari 8-bit computers and published by Synapse Software
Synapse Software Corporation (marketed as SynSoft in the UK) was an American video game development and publishing company founded in 1981 by Ihor Wolosenko and Ken Grant. It initially focused on the Atari 8-bit family, then later developed for th ...
in 1981.[ It is a clone of the 1979 arcade video game '' Head On'',][ where the player drives around a rectangular track, divided into lanes, collecting dots and avoiding collisions. ''Dodge Racer'' was the second release from Synapse and the company's first game.
]
Gameplay
A player-controlled car and enemy car move in opposite directions through a course of concentric rectangles. When a car passes through gaps in each of the four cardinal directions, it can change lanes. The goal is to collect all the dots without crashing into the other vehicle.[
Up to four players can take turns or there's a there's a mode for two players to alternate between controlling the player and enemy car.][ There are options for whether the level fully resets after a crash, adding a second enemy car starting in round 3, having two cars from the start of the game, and enabling an automatic speed increase partway through a round.][
The ''Dodge Racer'' track has six lanes, while ''Head On'' has five]Dodge 'Em
''Dodge 'Em'' is a driving-themed maze game programmed by Carla Meninsky and published in 1980 by Atari, Inc. for the Atari VCS (later renamed to the Atari 2600). Similar to Sega's 1979 '' Head On'' arcade game, ''Dodge 'Em'' is played on a singl ...
'' for the Atari VCS has four.
Development
Synapse Software co-founders Ihor Wolosenko and Ken Grant met Rob Re at an Atari computer user group. They had already been working on the database File Manager 800 and asked Re if they could sell ''Dodge Racer''.[ It became the second release from Synapse, following File Manager 800, and the company's first game.
''Dodge Racer'' is written in Assembly Language with set up in Basic. The BASIC cartridge needs to be inserted on the Atari 400 and 800 computers.][
]
Reception
''Book of Atari Software 1983'' gave an overall letter grade of C: "It is an addicting game, although I think it is a bit too fast and frustrating for beginners. It has decent graphics, presents a challenge, and the price is right".[ '']ANALOG Computing
''ANALOG Computing'' (an acronym for Atari Newsletter And Lots Of Games) was an American computer magazine devoted to the Atari 8-bit family of home computers. It was published from 1981 until 1989. In addition to reviews and tutorials, ''ANAL ...
'' reviewer Tony Messina echoed parts of that, labeling the game "frustratingly addictive" and giving an 8 out of 10 for graphics and sound.[ Bill Kunkel compared the game to another clone of ''Head On'' in the March 1982 issue of '']Electronic Games
An electronic game is a game that uses electronics to create an interactive system with which a player can play. Video games are the most common form today, and for this reason the two terms are often used interchangeably. There are other common ...
'':
References
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External links
* {{atarimania, id=1655
Gameplay video
1981 video games
Atari 8-bit computer games
Atari 8-bit computer-only games
Maze games
Synapse Software games
Video game clones
Multiplayer and single-player video games