Battlecars (video game)
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Summit Software
| Battlecars | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | SLUG |
| Publisher(s) | Games Workshop Summit Software |
| Designer(s) | SLUG Julian Gollop |
| Platform(s) | ZX Spectrum |
| Release | 1984: Games Workshop 1987: Summit |
| Genre(s) | Vehicular combat |
| Mode(s) | Multiplayer, Single-player |
Battlecars is a vehicular combat game released for the ZX Spectrum in 1984.[1][2] It is based on Games Workshop's miniature wargame, Battlecars. The game is set in 2084 in a future where road accidents have been eliminated by technology, and the world is relatively bloodless; however, people now entertain themselves by drivers using 20th century automobiles in violent, gladiatorial contests.[2]
Up to two players battle each other or the computer with vehicles that use an assortment of armor, weapons, and other components including missiles, mines, machine guns, lasers, oil, and smoke.[1] Players can fight their cars on a racetrack, in an arena (the Autodrome), or on the streets of Slug City.[1] On the racetrack, players navigate through a narrow circuit, competing primarily against rough terrain and a clock.[1] The Autodrome is a bare arena where two cars can focus on battling each other.[1] Slug City is a townscape where cars could battle each other on narrow streets.[1] A player can play against the computer or a second player in either the racetrack or Autodrome; however, players can only play each other in Slug City.[1][3]
Except for when racing on the racetrack, the primary goal of the game is to find your opponent and destroy their car.[3] Players can take advantage of gas stations and service garages to obtain fuel or repairs, but using either makes a player vulnerable to attack from their opponent.[3] A notable gameplay element at the time of the game's release in 1984 was that cars would realistically "drift" when they tried to turn at a high speed.[3]
When playing a game, players are presented a screen that shows the area in which they are driving their car, a map of the entire venue, the current speed and fuel of their car, any damage it receives, and information about available weapons.[1][2][3] When there are two players, each player has their own playing screen on the computer monitor.[3] The game is played using twelve keys on a keyboard to control each car and its weapons.[1][2] The game has eight car configurations from which players could choose.[1] Battlecars also comes with a program, Designer, which allows players to customize the vehicles they want to use in battle.[1][2]
Development
Battlecars was developed for the ZX Spectrum by SLUG (a Harlow co-operative of programmers who formerly worked for Red Shift) using BASIC.[1][2][3][4][5] Julian Gollop notably developed the Designer program which allows players to edit the cars in the game.[2][4][6] Games Workshop released Battlecars as a computer game for the ZX Spectrum in 1984.[1][2][3] The game came with a sixteen-page instruction manual.[2] Summit Software re-released the game in 1988.[5]
