Battlezone

Battlezone from Atari is one of the most significant milestones of early 3D graphics in arcades. The game places the player at the periscope of a combat tank amid a vast desert landscape rendered in vector graphics – thin green lines on a black background, with no filled surfaces, yet with an impression of real three-dimensional space that had no equal in 1980.

The player controls the tank using two levers, one for each track unit, allowing smooth turning and movement similar to a real armored vehicle. The goal is to destroy enemy tanks, missiles, and other objects, with the game relying on estimating the distance and speed of the target – no automatic sight makes anything easier. The cabinet also featured a periscope viewfinder through which the player literally looked into the game world, making Battlezone one of the first titles with the ambition to simulate a real combat experience rather than just an abstract score. This viewfinder also blocked out distracting surroundings and fully immersed the player in a simply rendered but spatially convincing battlefield.

Battlezone's influence on the later development of 3D games and military simulators is well documented – the US Army even had a modified version made for training purposes. This collaboration between the arcade industry and military training was, at the time, a rare example of how gaming technology could find use outside entertainment. In gaming history, it stands as clear proof that vector graphics could create a convincing spatial experience even with the limited technical means of the era.

Why play it: a groundbreaking vector 3D experience that defined the direction tank simulations would take.