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Pole Position

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Pole Position was developed by Namco and published by Atari in 1982. Race your Indy car around the Fuji course before the timer runs out. The first run is the qualifying lap, and your starting position is determined by your completion time. Avoid road hazards and other cars as you drive, ear...

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Developer
Namco

Released on
1982

Size
1 Player

Version
Arcade

Requirements
Arcade

Downloads
Racing

Publisher
Atari

ESRB Rating
Not Rated

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Description

Pole Position was developed by Namco and published by Atari in 1982.

Race your Indy car around the Fuji course before the timer runs out. The first run is the qualifying lap, and your starting position is determined by your completion time. Avoid road hazards and other cars as you drive, earning extra time for each completed lap

Prepare to qualify! A sophisticated game for its day, with scalable foreground objects and speech. Keep an eye out for the billboards! Also, famous for burning the power input edge connectors and finger contacts on the PCB. Several custom integrated circuits.

Pole Position was created by Namco Inc. who also manufactured the game for the entire world except for the United States. Aside from the words which are in Japanese found on and in the Namco version, the graphics on the side of the cabinet are basically the same as well as the billboards that are seen throughout the game. Compared to the Atari release, the only differences are the Atari Racing decal on the simulated dashboard and the little blimp that can be seen at the beginning of a race that is marked Atari with the message Prepare To Qualify. In the Namco version, the blimp has no markings on it.

Pole Position

Overview & History

Released by Namco in 1982 and distributed in North America by Atari, Pole Position revolutionized the arcade landscape by introducing a pseudo-3D, rear-view perspective that made driving feel astonishingly immersive for its time. Designed by Toru Iwatani—the mastermind behind Pac-Man—the game was also a monumental milestone for licensed tie-ins, themed around the real-world Fuji Speedway and Formula One racing culture. It went on to become the highest-grossing arcade game of 1983 in North America, spawning numerous home ports, an animated television series, and cementing the foundational blueprint for the entire racing genre.

Gameplay Features & Mechanics

Unlike modern racers with sprawling campaigns, Pole Position is a race against both a ticking clock and a relentless field of AI competitors. Players must first conquer a grueling 60-second time-trial qualifying lap to determine their starting grid position. Once the main race begins, the objective is simply to survive and cross the finish line across four increasingly difficult tracks while dodging billboards, roadside obstacles, and erratically weaving rival cars. Sustaining high-speed crashes results in explosive, fiery wrecks, immediately eating away at precious seconds as your car respawns. Success demands absolute mastery of the game's two-speed gear shifter (Low and High) and precise braking technique, as entering sharp hairpin turns at top speed guarantees a disastrous spin-out.

Keyboard Controls

Arrow Keys / D-Pad: Steer left and right
Action Keys: Accelerate (Up) and Brake (Down) / Shift Gears (Left/Right Shift)
Enter: Start / Pause