Battlezone

The MS-DOS version is the one this page covers: the information, review and main screenshots are from this platform.

Battlezone for Atari ST presents Atari's tank battles with a view from inside the vehicle, a radar and enemies drawn with lines. The intro screen credits the programming to Andromeda and shows the 1985 Atari copyright. This copy is in English.

The disk contains BATTLE.PRG in its root directory. The player opens it automatically with the owner's TOS. Wait for the intro tank and the prompts F1 START GAME, F2 ONE PLAYER, F3 SKILL LEVEL and F4 USE JOYSTICK to appear.

Starting out and maneuvering

F1 starts the game. The arrow keys let you move forward, back up and turn. Movement continues after you release a direction. Press the opposite direction to stop that maneuver. If you combine forward movement and turning, the tank describes a curve. Watch the mountains and the obstacles to notice the change of position.

The radar occupies the center of the top panel. Its sector marks the area in front of you and the dots show the positions of the enemies. The crosshair appears in the center of the battlefield. The warnings on the left report how close the enemy is and how many tanks you have left. The scores are shown on the right.

Lining up the crosshair and firing

Space fires the cannon. Turn until you have the opponent in front of you and use the radar when it leaves your view. A shot has to complete its flight before you can fire the next one. Obstacles on the terrain can cut the trajectory, so it is wise to change position when they block your sight.

In the test of this copy, advancing, turning and firing were checked. The screenshots show the original intro and a projectile during a game controlled with the keyboard. The screen keeps the colors and the panel of the Atari ST version.

Options, video and download

The intro menu shows the keys for choosing players, difficulty and controls. The original Atari ST manual explains those options and the controls of this edition. The tests for this page were carried out with one player and a keyboard.

ClaBa Player lets you pause, mute, enlarge the screen, take a screenshot, restart and close. Restart reloads the disk and its intro. This edition does not offer persistent save states in the browser.

The download keeps the ZIP and the original ST disk. To use it outside the site you need a compatible Atari ST emulator and your own TOS. The video in the Videos tab comes from the same collection and shows a game on this platform. The box identifies Atari ST and the screenshots were taken by running its disk.

Battlezone for Game Boy is part of Arcade Classics: Super Breakout & Battlezone. The compilation lets you choose between the two games from its title screen. This game page opens the Battlezone mode of the compilation's game image. The text is in English and the player uses the monochrome Game Boy image.

Choosing Battlezone

Wait for the selection screen. Check that the Battlezone logo appears and use the D-pad if you need to change the selected game. On the player's keyboard, the arrow keys stand in for that D-pad. Enter corresponds to Start and begins the game you have selected.

Battlezone shows the radar, the crosshair, the mountains, the obstacles, and the enemy warnings. The score and the high score appear at the top. Vehicles are drawn with lines, and the field of view takes up the center of the screen.

Moving the tank and firing

The arrow keys let you aim and move the tank. Use Left and Right to turn until the enemy is in front of you. Up moves you forward. Watch the mountains, the blocks, and the pyramids to recognize the change in direction and position. The radar helps you find the enemy when it is outside the crosshair.

Z corresponds to the A button and fires. In testing, firing with X, which corresponds to the B button, was also confirmed. A small square projectile appears in front of the crosshair and travels across the battlefield. Wait for it to finish its path before firing again.

The warnings may indicate that the enemy is to your right, behind you, or within range. Motion Blocked means that an obstacle prevents you from continuing to move. Change your heading and look at the terrain before trying to move forward again. The screenshots on this game page show the compilation's menu and a game controlled with the keyboard.

The compilation's game image

The collection contains the same game image in the Game Boy and Super Game Boy folders. Their 262,144 bytes were compared and they match entirely. The online entry uses the Game Boy core and shows Battlezone in black and white. Super Breakout remains available in the original selection of that same game image.

ClaBa Player lets you pause, mute, enlarge the screen, take a screenshot, restart, and close. Restart returns you to the start of the compilation. The download keeps the original ZIP. To use it outside our site you need an emulator compatible with Game Boy.

The Arcade Classics box comes from the owner's collection. The screenshots were taken by running its game image.

Battlezone 2000 for Atari Lynx keeps the view from the tank, the vehicles drawn with lines and the radar of Battlezone. The intro of this edition shows the Atari copyright of 1991 and 1994. The game image includes its setup and combat screens with English text.

Choosing and preparing the tank

Wait for the intro and press X to move on. From Enemy Review, X opens the Setup menu to prepare the tank. Setup shows the vehicle and its parameters. The Up and Down arrows change the selection. When you want to go into combat, select OK and confirm with Z.

In the game that was tested, the Wolf tank was chosen and the first wave was reached. Check that the battlefield appears before you accelerate or fire. Enter corresponds to Pause. If the action is stopped, pressing Enter resumes it.

Finding your way among the enemies

The arrow keys move the tank. Up moves forward, and Left and Right change your heading. Watch the mountains, the shapes on the terrain and the vehicles to notice the movement. The radar on the right helps you locate the enemy when it is out of your sights.

The panel shows Shield, Fuel and Ammo. Their bars let you follow the state of the armor, the fuel and the ammunition. At the bottom appear the wave and the score. The messages in the center report the enemy's position and whether it is within range.

Z corresponds to the Lynx controller's A button and fires the cannon. X corresponds to the B button and launches a missile. Both inputs were checked during combat. To follow the direction of the projectile, fire with the tank facing a visible landmark on the terrain.

The original manual explains how to prepare the vehicle and distinguishes the functions of the A and B buttons. You can read it at the Battlezone 2000 manual kept by AtariAge.

The download

The download keeps the original ZIP and its 262,208 bytes of Lynx image. To open it outside the site you need a compatible emulator and whatever system files it requires.

The screenshots were taken by running this game image. The video shows combat in the Lynx edition. ClaBa Player lets you pause, mute, enlarge the screen, take a screenshot, restart and close.

Battlezone for Atari 2600 puts the view from the tank, with its cannon at the bottom and a circular radar at the top. The horizon combines gray mountains, bands of sky, and colored terrain. Enemy vehicles appear as solid figures that change size as they get closer. This edition uses the U.S. cartridge.

Going into combat

Wait for the battlefield to appear and press Enter. This key stands in for the console's Reset switch and starts a new game. Check the score and the tank symbols shown at the bottom. The original manual says you start with five tanks. This start was verified from the player during testing.

The tank you are currently driving is part of that reserve. When you lose it, the game continues as long as vehicles remain. If you press Enter again, you start another game from its initial state.

Driving and firing

The arrow keys stand in for the joystick. Left and Right turn the tank and change the orientation of the landscape and the radar. Up moves you forward. To recognize movement, watch the silhouette of the mountains and the position of the vehicles. The radar helps you find enemies that are outside the forward view.

X stands in for the fire button. When you press it, a bright projectile appears in front of the cannon and continues along its path across the battlefield. The tests verified turning in both directions, moving forward, and firing input. The screenshots show different moments of that run, with enemies visible and changes in the terrain's orientation.

Consulting the manual

The manual distinguishes tanks, supertanks, fighters, and flying saucers. It explains how to recognize them and how to use the radar to guide your search. You can consult the original Battlezone manual for Atari 2600, which includes instructions in Spanish.

The cartridge in the collection

The download keeps the original ZIP. To use it outside the site, you need an emulator compatible with Atari 2600. The gallery adds images captured by running the same cartridge in the browser.

The video on this page shows the Atari 2600 edition. ClaBa Player lets you pause, mute, enlarge the screen, take a screenshot, restart, and close. The player's pause lets you stop the emulation while you read the instructions.