Arcadia Unlimited game #18: Pole Position (1982 Atari)

Now here is a game that Atari absolutely knocked out of the park. Compared with other driving games from 1982 (and before), it is stunningly good. In fact, in my opinion, it really stands up against every first person driver as far as the feel, sound effects, physics, etc. It really feels great and has aged well. Obviously, the graphics are primitive by today's standards. But they are adequate and if you just want a really fun driving game, Pole Position still delivers. Challenge-wise, it is just right in my opinion. Easy to learn, difficult to master. Anyone can walk up and make it through the race and usually qualify for the "race." But in order to be able to continue making several laps on the same quarter, you really have to do almost perfectly - no crashes or even going off the road. And it is tough to do this. Pole Position II came out just after this and contained the same original track, but added 3 more tracks. However, the other tracks aren't as fun as the Fuji one, so I'm not sure Pole 2 adds that much. Both came in the exact same cabinet, but had different marquees and bezels. I chose to put an original pole 1 in Unlimited because I think it is the iconic game that started everything and I doubt many people care about the other tracks on Pole 2. If I'm wrong, let me know. I have Pole 2s I could put in. Unlike (almost) all of our games, I decided to put a "replacement Pole Position PCB" in this game. The original Pole Position PCBs are unusually flaky and unreliable at this point. They draw too much power for the power supplies Atari used, and so the connectors always get hot and burn up. So it is really hard to run an original Pole on original boards when your arcade is open 7 days a week, 365 days a year. However this Pole position does have a CRT monitor and original controls, so it should play exactly as you remember it! Here is a link to the Facebook page for Arcadia Unlimited:   / ilarcadiaunlimited