Space Race
1973 · Racing · Arcade
Overview
Space Race is an arcade game developed by Atari, Inc. and released on July 16, 1973. It was the second game by the company, after Pong (1972), which marked the beginning of the commercial video game industry along with the Magnavox Odyssey.
Deep Dive
Space Race is an arcade game developed by Atari, Inc. and released on July 16, 1973. It was the second game by the company, after Pong (1972), which marked the beginning of the commercial video game industry along with the Magnavox Odyssey. In the game, two players each control a rocket ship, with the goal of being the first to move their ship from the bottom of the screen to the top. Along the way are asteroids, which the players must avoid. Space Race was the first racing arcade video game and the first game with a goal of crossing the screen while avoiding obstacles.
Developer Story
Space Race was Atari's second arcade game, released in 1973. It was designed internally by Atari engineers as a two-player competitive game where spaceships race from bottom to top while dodging asteroids. The game established Atari's early pattern of taking simple competitive sports concepts and translating them into electronic form.
Did You Know?
- Space Race used the same basic hardware architecture as Pong, helping Atari to manufacture it quickly and cheaply.
- It was one of the first arcade games to feature a two-player simultaneous competitive mode with a vertical scrolling field.
- The game sold around 900 units — far fewer than Pong — but it helped fund Atari's expansion into new game concepts.
- Kee Games, secretly a subsidiary of Atari, released a near-identical clone called Elimination to help Atari avoid exclusive distribution contracts.
