Daley Thompson's Decathlon is a computer game

Personal computer game

A PC game, also known as a computer game, is a video game played on a personal computer, rather than on a video game console or arcade machine...

 based on Konami's

Konami

is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...

 Track and Field, developed and released under license by Ocean Software

Ocean Software

The British company Ocean Software was one of the biggest European video game developers/publishers of the 1980s and 90s...

 in 1984. It was released in the wake of Daley Thompson's

Daley Thompson

Francis Morgan Ayodélé "Daley" Thompson CBE , is a former decathlete from England. He won the decathlon gold medal at the Olympic Games in 1980 and 1984, and broke the world record for the event four times....

 popularity following his gold medals in the decathlon

Decathlon

The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word decathlon is of Greek origin . Events are held over two consecutive days and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not...

 at the 1980

1980 Summer Olympics

The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament...

 and 1984 Olympic Games

1984 Summer Olympics

The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...

.

Gameplay

The player takes part in the ten events of the modern decathlon:

• Day 1: 100 metres
  100 metres
  The 100 metres, or 100-metre dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, it is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896...
  
  , Long jump
  Long jump
  The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength, and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a take off point...
  
  , Shot put
  Shot put
  The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....
  
  t, High jump
  High jump
  The high jump is a track and field athletics event in which competitors must jump over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without the aid of certain devices in its modern most practiced format; auxiliary weights and mounds have been used for assistance; rules have changed over the years....
  
  , 400 metres
  400 metres
  The 400 metres, or 400 metre dash, is a common sprinting event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 . On a standard outdoor running track, it is exactly one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and...
  
  
• Day 2: 110 hurdles, Pole vault
  Pole vault
  Pole vaulting is a track and field event in which a person uses a long, flexible pole as an aid to leap over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the ancient Greeks, as well as the Cretans and Celts...
  
  , Discus
  Discus throw
  The discus throw is an event in track and field athletics competition, in which an athlete throws a heavy disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than his or her competitors. It is an ancient sport, as evidenced by the 5th century BC Myron statue, Discobolus...
  
  , Javelin
  Javelin throw
  The javelin throw is a track and field athletics throwing event where the object to be thrown is the javelin, a spear approximately 2.5 metres in length. Javelin is an event of both the men's decathlon and the women's heptathlon...
  
  , 1500 metres
  1500 metres
  The 1,500-metre run is the premier middle distance track event.Aerobic endurance is the biggest factor contributing to success in the 1500 metres but the athlete also requires significant sprint speed.In modern times, the 1,500-metre run has been run at a pace faster than the average person could...
  
  

The player starts the game with three lives; failure to reach the minimum standard in an event results in the loss of one life. Success in the 1500 Meters event results in the game returning to Day 1 to repeat the events with more difficult qualification criteria.

Running is simulated by hitting two keys (representing the left and right leg) alternately and as quickly as possible. The game rapidly gained a reputation amongst players as a "joystick killer" because of the constant vigorous waggling of the joystick required during many of the events.

Music

The game's soundtrack was composed by Martin Galway

Martin Galway

Martin Galway is one of the best known composers of music for the Commodore 64 sound chip, the SID soundchip, and for the Sinclair ZX Spectrum...

. The introduction music is based on the 1978 electronic music

Electronic music

Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...

 piece "Rydeen

Solid State Survivor

Solid State Survivor was the second album by Japanese electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra, released in 1979. Solid State Survivor was never released in the United States, but many of the songs from this album were compiled for release in the States as the US pressing of ×∞Multiplies ,...

" by Yellow Magic Orchestra

Yellow Magic Orchestra

Sakamoto first worked with Hosono as a member of his live band in 1976, while Takahashi recruited Sakamoto to produce his debut solo recording in 1977 following the split of the Sadistic Mika Band...

(YMO).