Pole Position
Encyclopedia
Pole Position is a racing video game released in 1982 by Namco
. It was published by Namco in Japan and by Atari, Inc. in the United States. The game popularized the use of sprite-based, pseudo-3D
graphics with its "rear-view racer format"—where the player’s view is behind and above the vehicle, looking forward along the road with the horizon in sight—which would remain in use even after true 3D computer graphics
became standard for racing game
s.
In this game, the player
controls a Formula One
race car. The player completes a time trial
lap within a certain amount of time to qualify for an F1 race at the Fuji Racetrack
. After qualifying, the player races against other cars in a championship race.
Pole Position was the leading game in arcades worldwide due to its relatively realistic graphics for the time. While it wasn't the first game to use the "rear-view racer format" (the first was Turbo
(1981) by Sega
), it pioneered the format which is used in many games today. It also led to contemporary imitators of the format, most notably Sega's Out Run
in 1986.
Pole Position set the template for future racing games, featuring a rear-view format, AI
cars to race against, a time limit pushing the player to go faster, and a track based on a real racing circuit. It also featured crashes caused by collisions
with other vehicles and roadside signs, and was the first game to feature a qualifying lap, where the player needs to complete a time trial
before they can compete in Grand Prix
races. The game's publisher Atari publicized the game for its "unbelievable driving realism" in providing a Formula 1 experience behind a racing wheel
at the time, for which it is considered the first attempt at a driving simulation
. The game's graphics featured full-colour landscapes with scaling sprites, including race cars and other signs, and a perspective view of the track, with its vanishing point swaying side to side as the player approaches corners, accurately simulating forward movement into the distance.
with a choice of two games in 1982. Bally Midway chose Mappy
while Atari was left to publish Pole Position, which turned out to be the most popular game of 1983.
within a video game, with billboards around the track advertising actual companies. However, some billboards were specific to the two versions such as Pepsi
and Canon in the Japanese version, or 7-Eleven
, Dentyne
, or Centipede
in the Atari version, which replaced such billboards as that of Marlboro and Martini & Rossi
, who although were prominent motorsport sponsors at the time, would be found inappropriate in the American market for a game aimed towards children. Other billboards did appear in both versions.
to a number of home computer
s and consoles
by Atarisoft
in the early 1980s. In the mid-1990s Pole Position made a comeback on Windows PCs when it was included as part of Microsoft Return of Arcade. It later appeared on the Sony PlayStation
and Sega Dreamcast
systems in a game collection named Namco Museum
. Since then, Pole Position has been included in most Namco Museum releases, such as on the PlayStation 2
, GameCube
, Game Boy Advance
, and Xbox
. Fuji Speedway
was renamed Namco Speedway in the Museum releases and a Plug and Play version except Namco Museum Virtual Arcade which renamed Blue Speedway.
A Pole Position (Puffer Version) was created—but not published— that used the Puffer exercise bike controller.
A version of Pole Position was released for iPod
on January 21, 2008. On September 14, 2008, a version of Pole Position was released for iOS devices called Pole Position: Remix. The game features upgraded graphics and several different control methods, but remains similar in content to the original. The version of Pole Position also has tracks from Pole Position II and new track called Misaki Point.
was released in 1983, and adding three additional courses along with the original Fuji track. It features slightly improved graphics, as well as a different starting tune.
While many considered the three-screened racer TX-1
, released in 1984 by Atari and designed by Tatsumi to be a sequel to Pole Position II, the true sequel arrived in 1987 with the release of Final Lap
, which may be considered an unofficial Pole Position III.
There is also Pole Position Remix for iPod
and iPhone
which has updated graphics, music, and all of the courses for Pole Position II plus a new course.
despite there being very little in common between the two.
Pole Position was referenced in the motion picture "The Goonies
." In the attic when "Chunk" and Mikey discovered the antique map, Chunk exclaimed "1632...Is that a year or something?" to which "Mouth" sarcastically answered "No, it's your top score in Pole Position."
Pole Position is played by the characters Daryl and Turtle in the motion picture "D.A.R.Y.L.
and is one of the first times in the film where Daryl—a seemingly normal boy who is actually an android—displays some of his super-human abilities by earning an amazingly high score in the game.
Pole Position was featured in the music video for Judas Priest
's Freewheel Burning
.
A poster of Pole Position is prominently visible on the bedroom wall of the main character in the film Cloak & Dagger, a movie with a plot that revolved around an Atari videogame.
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
. It was published by Namco in Japan and by Atari, Inc. in the United States. The game popularized the use of sprite-based, pseudo-3D
2.5D
2.5D , 3/4 perspective and pseudo-3D are terms used to describe either:* 2D graphical projections and techniques which cause a series of images or scenes to fake or appear to be three-dimensional when in fact they are not, or* gameplay in an otherwise three-dimensional video game that is...
graphics with its "rear-view racer format"—where the player’s view is behind and above the vehicle, looking forward along the road with the horizon in sight—which would remain in use even after true 3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
became standard for racing game
Racing game
A racing video game is a genre of video games, either in the first-person or third-person perspective, in which the player partakes in a racing competition with any type of land, air, or sea vehicles. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to entirely fantastical settings...
s.
Gameplay
Player character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...
controls a Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
race car. The player completes a time trial
Time trial
In many racing sports an athlete will compete in a time trial against the clock to secure the fastest time. In cycling, for example, a time trial can be a single track cycling event, or an individual or team time trial on the road, and either or both of the latter may form components of...
lap within a certain amount of time to qualify for an F1 race at the Fuji Racetrack
Fuji Speedway
is a race track standing in the foothills of Mount Fuji, in Oyama, Suntō District, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. It was built in the early 1960s and hosted the first Formula One race in Japan in 1976. In the 1980s, Fuji Speedway was used for the FIA World Sportscar Championship and national racing...
. After qualifying, the player races against other cars in a championship race.
Pole Position was the leading game in arcades worldwide due to its relatively realistic graphics for the time. While it wasn't the first game to use the "rear-view racer format" (the first was Turbo
Turbo (video game)
Turbo is a racing game released in 1981 by Sega. The game was brought into arcades in both the standard upright cabinet format, and a semi-enclosed sit-down version to better simulate driving a real car.. The cars in the game resemble Formula 1 race cars. It was the first game to feature the now...
(1981) by Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
), it pioneered the format which is used in many games today. It also led to contemporary imitators of the format, most notably Sega's Out Run
Out Run
is an arcade game released by Sega in 1986. It was designed by Yu Suzuki and Sega-AM2. The game was a critical and commercial success. It is notable for its innovative hardware , pioneering graphics and music, a choice in both soundtrack and route, and its strong theme of luxury and relaxation...
in 1986.
Pole Position set the template for future racing games, featuring a rear-view format, AI
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
cars to race against, a time limit pushing the player to go faster, and a track based on a real racing circuit. It also featured crashes caused by collisions
Collision detection
Collision detection typically refers to the computational problem of detecting the intersection of two or more objects. While the topic is most often associated with its use in video games and other physical simulations, it also has applications in robotics...
with other vehicles and roadside signs, and was the first game to feature a qualifying lap, where the player needs to complete a time trial
Time trial
In many racing sports an athlete will compete in a time trial against the clock to secure the fastest time. In cycling, for example, a time trial can be a single track cycling event, or an individual or team time trial on the road, and either or both of the latter may form components of...
before they can compete in Grand Prix
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
races. The game's publisher Atari publicized the game for its "unbelievable driving realism" in providing a Formula 1 experience behind a racing wheel
Racing wheel
A racing wheel is the preferred method of control for use in racing video games, racing simulators, and driving simulators. They are usually packaged with a large paddle styled as a steering wheel, along with a set of pedals for gas, brake, and sometimes clutch actuation, as well as various shifter...
at the time, for which it is considered the first attempt at a driving simulation
Sim racing
Sim racing is the collective term for computer software that attempts to simulate accurately auto racing , complete with real-world variables such as fuel usage, damage, tire wear and grip, and suspension settings...
. The game's graphics featured full-colour landscapes with scaling sprites, including race cars and other signs, and a perspective view of the track, with its vanishing point swaying side to side as the player approaches corners, accurately simulating forward movement into the distance.
Development
For release in the United States, Namco approached Bally MidwayMidway Games
Midway Games, Inc. is an American company that was formerly a major video game publisher. Following a bankruptcy filing in 2009, it is no longer active and is in the process of liquidating all of its assets. Midway's titles included Mortal Kombat, Ms.Pac-Man, Spy Hunter, Tron, Rampage, the...
with a choice of two games in 1982. Bally Midway chose Mappy
Mappy
is a 1983 arcade game by Namco. In the United States, it was manufactured and distributed by Bally/Midway. Mappy is a side-scrolling platformer that features cartoon-like characters, primarily cats and mice. The game's main character itself is a mouse. Mappy runs on Namco Super Pac-Man hardware,...
while Atari was left to publish Pole Position, which turned out to be the most popular game of 1983.
Advertising
The game was an early example of product placementProduct placement
Product placement, or embedded marketing, is a form of advertisement, where branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies, music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs. The product placement is often not disclosed at the time that the...
within a video game, with billboards around the track advertising actual companies. However, some billboards were specific to the two versions such as Pepsi
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
and Canon in the Japanese version, or 7-Eleven
7-Eleven
7-Eleven is part of an international chain of convenience stores, operating under Seven-Eleven Japan Co. Ltd, which in turn is owned by Seven & I Holdings Co...
, Dentyne
Dentyne
Dentyne is a series of brands of chewing gum available in several countries globally. It is owned by Cadbury Adams, a division of Cadbury.In 1899, a New York City druggist named Franklin V. Canning formulated a chewing gum which he promoted as an aid to oral hygiene. "To prevent decay, To sweeten...
, or Centipede
Centipede (video game)
Centipede is a vertically-oriented shoot 'em up arcade game produced by Atari, Inc. in 1980. The game was designed by Ed Logg along with Dona Bailey, one of the few female game programmers in the industry at this time. It was also the first arcade coin-operated game to have a significant female...
in the Atari version, which replaced such billboards as that of Marlboro and Martini & Rossi
Martini & Rossi
Martini & Rossi is an Italian multinational alcoholic beverage company primarily associated with the Martini brand of vermouth and also with sparkling wine . It also produces the French vermouth, Noilly Prat.-History:...
, who although were prominent motorsport sponsors at the time, would be found inappropriate in the American market for a game aimed towards children. Other billboards did appear in both versions.
Ports
Pole Position was portedPorting
In computer science, porting is the process of adapting software so that an executable program can be created for a computing environment that is different from the one for which it was originally designed...
to a number of home computer
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
s and consoles
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
by Atarisoft
Atarisoft
Atarisoft was a brand name used by Atari, Inc in 1983 and 1984 to market video games they published for home systems made by their competitors. Each platform had a specific color attributed by Atarisoft for its game packages...
in the early 1980s. In the mid-1990s Pole Position made a comeback on Windows PCs when it was included as part of Microsoft Return of Arcade. It later appeared on the Sony PlayStation
PlayStation
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console first released by Sony Computer Entertainment in Japan on December 3, .The PlayStation was the first of the PlayStation series of consoles and handheld game devices. The PlayStation 2 was the console's successor in 2000...
and Sega Dreamcast
Sega Dreamcast
The is a 128-bit video game console which was released by Sega in late 1998 in Japan and from September 1999 in other territories. It was the first entry in the sixth generation of video game consoles, preceding Sony's PlayStation 2, Microsoft's Xbox and the Nintendo GameCube.Dreamcast sales were...
systems in a game collection named Namco Museum
Namco Museum
Namco Museum refers to the series of video game compilations released by Namco for various 32-bit and above consoles, containing releases of their games from the 1980s and early 1990s...
. Since then, Pole Position has been included in most Namco Museum releases, such as on the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
, Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
, and Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
. Fuji Speedway
Fuji Speedway
is a race track standing in the foothills of Mount Fuji, in Oyama, Suntō District, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. It was built in the early 1960s and hosted the first Formula One race in Japan in 1976. In the 1980s, Fuji Speedway was used for the FIA World Sportscar Championship and national racing...
was renamed Namco Speedway in the Museum releases and a Plug and Play version except Namco Museum Virtual Arcade which renamed Blue Speedway.
A Pole Position (Puffer Version) was created—but not published— that used the Puffer exercise bike controller.
A version of Pole Position was released for iPod
IPod
iPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle...
on January 21, 2008. On September 14, 2008, a version of Pole Position was released for iOS devices called Pole Position: Remix. The game features upgraded graphics and several different control methods, but remains similar in content to the original. The version of Pole Position also has tracks from Pole Position II and new track called Misaki Point.
Sequels
Pole Position IIPole Position II
Pole Position II is a racing arcade game that was released by Namco in 1983 as the sequel to Pole Position, which was released the previous year. As with the original, Namco licensed Pole Position II to Atari for US manufacture and distribution...
was released in 1983, and adding three additional courses along with the original Fuji track. It features slightly improved graphics, as well as a different starting tune.
While many considered the three-screened racer TX-1
TX-1
TX-1 is a 1983 racing arcade video game developed by Tatsumi. It was licensed to Namco, who in turn licensed it to Atari for release in the United States, thus the game is considered a successor to Pole Position II...
, released in 1984 by Atari and designed by Tatsumi to be a sequel to Pole Position II, the true sequel arrived in 1987 with the release of Final Lap
Final Lap
Final Lap is a racing video game produced by Namco, and released by Atari Games for the United States in 1987. It was the unofficial sequel to the popular Pole Position games....
, which may be considered an unofficial Pole Position III.
There is also Pole Position Remix for iPod
IPod
iPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle...
and iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
which has updated graphics, music, and all of the courses for Pole Position II plus a new course.
Other media
The title spawned a cartoon of the same namePole Position (TV series)
Pole Position is an animated cartoon series produced by DIC Entertainment.The name Pole Position was used under license from Namco, who held the rights to the name due to the video game Pole Position. The show sought to capitalize on the popularity of the video game...
despite there being very little in common between the two.
Pole Position was referenced in the motion picture "The Goonies
The Goonies
The Goonies is a 1985 American adventure-comedy film directed by Richard Donner. The screenplay was written by Chris Columbus from a story by executive producer Steven Spielberg. The premise surrounds a band of pre-teens who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon hoping to save...
." In the attic when "Chunk" and Mikey discovered the antique map, Chunk exclaimed "1632...Is that a year or something?" to which "Mouth" sarcastically answered "No, it's your top score in Pole Position."
Pole Position is played by the characters Daryl and Turtle in the motion picture "D.A.R.Y.L.
D.A.R.Y.L.
D.A.R.Y.L. is a 1985 American science fiction film which was written by David Ambrose, Allan Scott and Jeffrey Ellis. It was directed by Simon Wincer and stars Barret Oliver, Mary Beth Hurt, Michael McKean, Danny Corkill, and Josef Sommer...
and is one of the first times in the film where Daryl—a seemingly normal boy who is actually an android—displays some of his super-human abilities by earning an amazingly high score in the game.
Pole Position was featured in the music video for Judas Priest
Judas Priest
Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...
's Freewheel Burning
Freewheel Burning
"Freewheel Burning" is a song by the British heavy metal band Judas Priest, appearing on their 1984 album Defenders of the Faith, and first released as the first single off that album. The EP version of the song contained an extended guitar intro that was omitted on the full length release...
.
A poster of Pole Position is prominently visible on the bedroom wall of the main character in the film Cloak & Dagger, a movie with a plot that revolved around an Atari videogame.