Drive to survive and blast away anything in your path with Atari Games’ 1987 combat racer, RoadBlasters!
You’re a nameless road warrior piloting a futuristic vehicle, competing in a life-or-death race across the vast reaches of the post-apocalypse. Put your foot to the floor and your finger on the trigger, because your opponents don’t just want to cross the finish line – they want to finish you, too!
The terrain proves deadly, too; with roadside turrets, land mines, and pools of acid littering your path. Collect fuel globes (and destroy enemies to reveal bonus fuel) and don’t let your tank empty – as long as you’ve got gas, you can keep cruising to your goal. Upgrade ships fly over and drop attachments for your vehicle, so you can use sub-weapons like the Uzi or Cruise Missile (which you’ll need to blow up the purple Command Cars) and special items like speed-boosting Nitro or the Electro Shield that lets you drive through any enemy or obstacle for a short while. If you crash and burn, don’t worry: You’ll quickly respawn, but with a little less fuel – so step on it!
RoadBlasters was the last game released on the Atari System I platform. To push players to try and complete the game, it originally advertised a free t-shirt contest for anyone that managed to beat all 50 levels and get a personalized secret code. The marketing didn’t end there: A full toy line was produced by Matchbox, complete with playsets and tracks! One of the first pseudo-3D arcade racing games to emphasize car combat, RoadBlasters preceded the hugely successful Twisted Metal series and the cult classic Carmageddon. RoadBlasters even made an appearance in the 2012 animated film “Wreck-It Ralph”, as a game in Litwak’s Arcade!
Can you steer your way to victory in the ultimate race, or will you end up in the rear view mirror? Cruise down to Ground Kontrol and find out!