Gravitar

''Gravitar'' is a color vector graphics multidirectional shooter arcade video game released by Atari, Inc. in 1982. Using the same "rotate-and-thrust" controls as ''Asteroids'' and ''Space Duel'', the game was known for its high level of difficulty. It was the first of over twenty games (including the 1983 ''Star Wars)'' Mike Hally designed and produced for Atari. The main programmer was Rich Adam and the cabinet art was designed by Brad Chaboya. Over 5,427 cabinets were produced. An Atari 2600 version by Dan Hitchens was published by Atari in 1983.

Gameplay

The player controls a small blue spacecraft. The game starts in a fictional solar system with several planets to explore. If the player moves their ship into a planet, they will be taken to a side-view landscape. Unlike many other shooting games, gravity plays a fair part in ''Gravitar'': the ship will be pulled slowly to the deadly star in the overworld, and downward in the side-view levels. Great precision is demanded of the player, as the ship rotates too slowly to allow a player to correct their mistake if they apply too much thrust and fly toward an obstacle.

The player has five buttons: two to rotate the ship left or right, one to shoot, one to activate the thruster, and one for both a tractor beam and force field. ''Gravitar'', ''Asteroids'', ''Asteroids Deluxe'' and ''Space Duel'' all used similar 5-button controlling system.

In the side-view levels, the player has to destroy red bunkers that shoot constantly, and can also use the tractor beam to pick up blue fuel tanks. Once all of the bunkers are destroyed, the planet will blow up, and the player will earn a bonus. Once all planets are destroyed, the player will move onto another solar system.

The player will lose a life if they crash into the terrain or get hit by an enemy's shot, and the game will end immediately if fuel runs out.

''Gravitar'' has 12 different planets. ''Red Planet'' is available in all 3 phases in the universe; it contains a reactor. Shooting the reactor core activates a link. Escaping the reactor successfully moves the player to the next phase of planets, awards bonus points and 7500 units of fuel. Reactor escape time reduces after each phase and eventually becomes virtually impossible to complete.

After completing all 11 planets (or alternatively completing the reactor three times) the player enters the second universe and the gravity will reverse. Instead of dragging the ship towards the planet surface, the gravity pushes it away. In the third universe the landscape becomes invisible and the gravity is positive again. The final, fourth universe, has invisible landscape and reverse gravity. After completing the fourth universe the game starts over. However, the reactor escape time will never reset back to high levels again.

The programmers thought that even the best players could never complete the most difficult planets on the invisible levels. Neither of the key developers themselves, Mike Hally and Rich Adam, have ever completed their own game in their own words: "without cheating."

Development

''Gravitar'' was developed under the name ''Lunar Battle''.

Ports

The silver label version of Atari 2600 ''Gravitar'' was originally only available to Atari Club members. It was later sold in stores in limited quantities. Atari eventually released it in the red box and label style with larger distribution.

Legacy

''Gravitar'' inspired the 1986 computer game ''Thrust''.

Dual-stick shooter ''Black Widow'' was offered as a conversion kit for ''Gravitar''. The kit included a new marquee, control panel, side art, and an additional wiring harness. The kit used the original ''Gravitar'' PCB, with a few small modifications and a new set of ROM chips. Many factory-built ''Black Widows'' were produced using unsold ''Gravitar'' cabinets, and although they contain original (not ''Gravitar'' conversion) board sets, they had ''Black Widow'' side art applied over the ''Gravitar'' sideart.

''Gravitar'' is part of the ''Atari Anthology'' for Windows, Xbox, and PlayStation 2 as well as the '' Atari Anniversary Edition Vol. 2'' for Dreamcast, PlayStation, and Windows. ''Gravitar'' is also included in the Atari Flashback 3. In April 2019, ''Gravitar'' was added to the TeslAtari game collection included in Tesla vehicles.

In the 1983 James Bond film ''Never Say Never Again'', Domino Petachi (Kim Basinger) is seen about to play ''Gravitar'' before meeting up again with Bond (Sean Connery) at Casino de Monte Carlo. The indoor scene was filmed at Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire, England - the arcade cabinets used would have been sourced from Atari's European factory in Ireland.

A revamped version of the game, titled ''Gravitar: Recharged'', released on May 12, 2022 for Atari VCS and on June 2, 2022 for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

Records

Dan Coogan, of Phoenix, Arizona, set a ''Gravitar'' world record, scoring 8,029,450 points from December 22 to 23, 2006, playing for 23 hours and 15 minutes. The previous world record for score was 4,722,200, which held for 24 years, set by Ray Mueller of Boulder, Colorado, on December 4, 1982, after playing for 12 hours and 21 minutes.

References

External links

*
''Gravitar''
at the Arcade History database
Dan Coogan's ''Gravitar'' PageVideos of ''Gravitar'' advanced gameplay

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1982 video games
Arcade video games
Atari 2600 games
Atari arcade games
Multidirectional shooters
Multiplayer video games
Vector arcade video games
Video games developed in the United States