Indy 800

Indy 800 is an eight player arcade game by Atari Inc., originally released in 1975.[1]

Indy 800
Developer(s)Atari Inc.
Platform(s)Arcade
Release
Genre(s)Racing
CabinetUnique
CPUDiscrete
SoundAmplified Stereo (two channel)
DisplayHorizontal orientation, raster (color), Standard Resolution

Technology

The game is housed in a large custom rectangular cabinet that takes up 16 square feet (1.5 m2). Each side of the cabinet has two steering wheels and four pedals. The 25 inch monitor is set in to the top face of the cabinet and looked down upon.[2] The game uses a full color RGB display and does not use color overlays.

The processing electronics consist of a card cage that includes a "Backplane" or "Motherboard", eight identical car function boards, and three unique, common processing boards that the backplane board supports and interconnects. Each of the eleven boards has its own onboard fixed 5 volt regulator IC. All of the logic circuitry is TTL, and no microprocessors are used.

Each game was sold with two spare car boards and one each of the three processing boards, so that the game owner could repair it by simple circuit board substitution. Two "card extender" boards were furnished with each game sold that enabled technicians to probe individual components on suspect boards while they were still operating in the game. A complete set of circuit board logic diagrams was also furnished, as was a set of schematics for the modified GE color monitor.

The cabinet also features overhead mirrors to allow spectators to watch the game while it's being played.

Gameplay

Gameplay is a simulation of an Indianapolis 500 style race, in which players compete by racing each other with simulated IndyCar race cars. The players race blocky cars around a simple track with a top-down overhead view. The player car colors are purple, peach, yellow, green, light blue, white, red and dark blue.

Legacy

  • A clone of the game, bearing the same name, was released by Atari subsidiary Kee Games.
  • Indy 800 was followed up the following year with a smaller 4 player version entitled Indy 4.
  • A scaled down version of Indy 800 was a launch title for the Atari 2600 in 1977, renamed Indy 500.

References

  1. "Indy 800 Killer List of Video Games Entry". Retrieved 2007-07-10.
  2. "An Interview with Dan Van Elderen". Next Generation. No. 35. Imagine Media. November 1997. p. 81.
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