Robotron: 2084

Robotron is a twin-stick shooter game in which the player controls the on-screen protagonist from a top-down perspective. The game uses a two-joystick control scheme; the left joystick controls the on-screen character's movement, while the right is used to fire the character's weapon in specific directions. Both joysticks allow for an input direction in one of eight ways. The game is set in the year 2084 in a fictional world where "Robotrons" have, after a robot uprising, eradicated most of the human race. The main protagonist is a super-powered genetically engineered mutant who attempts to save the last human family. == Development ==

Robotron: 2084 was developed in six months by Eugene Jarvis and Larry DeMar, founders of Vid Kidz. Vid Kidz served as a consulting firm that designed games for Williams Electronics, whom Jarvis and DeMar had previously worked for. Under the working title Robot Wars, the pair used a Gimix 6809 computer to write the game's program in assembly language. The game was designed to provide excitement for players; Jarvis described the game as an "athletic experience" derived from a "physical element" in the two-joystick design. After spending 18 months working collectively on Defender and Stargate, the developers desired a new creative focus and chose robots. The initial concept involved a passive main character; the object was to force robots chasing the protagonist to collide with stationary, lethal obstacles. The shooting elements drew inspiration from the 1978 arcade game Space Invaders, which had previously inspired Defender, their first arcade game. Though contemporary games began to use scrolling to facilitate larger levels, the pair chose a single screen to confine the action. The machine consists of five circuit boards that coordinate different processes required to operate the game: a main central processing unit (CPU), a read-only memory (ROM) board, a soundboard, an interface controller board, and the power supply. The blitters generate the on-screen objects and visual effects. Because they transfer memory faster than the CPU, the game is able to simultaneously animate a large number of objects. The unit includes settings to adjust the gameplay difficulty and the point threshold for earning additional game lives. The machine also provides arcade owners with usage statistics, such as the average time per play, which Williams recommended businesses use to gauge when to increase the difficulty setting. The dual-joystick design was developed by Jarvis. Prior to development, Jarvis injured his right hand in an automobile accident. His hand was still in a cast when he returned to work, which prevented him from using a traditional joystick with a button. While in rehabilitation, he thought of Berzerk. Though Jarvis enjoyed the game and similar titles, he was dissatisfied with the control scheme; Berzerk used a single joystick to move the on-screen character and a button to fire the weapon, which would shoot in the same direction the character was facing. Jarvis noticed that if the button was held down, the character would remain stationary and the joystick could be used to fire in any direction. This method of play inspired Jarvis to add a second joystick dedicated to aiming the direction projectiles were shot. Jarvis and DeMar created a prototype using a Stargate arcade system board and two Atari 2600 controllers attached to a control panel. The final production models use joysticks manufactured by Wico Corporation. In retrospect, Jarvis considers the design a contradiction that blends "incredible freedom of movement" with ease of use. == Release ==

Williams debuted Robotron at the Amusement Operators Expo in March 1982. The company filed the stylized logo with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on April 8, 1982. However, Walt Disney Productions filed a lawsuit against Williams in May 1982, citing Robotron as infringing on the trademark of its film Tron, which was scheduled to release that summer. Williams rebuked the lawsuit as frivolous. The developer promoted the game at the 1982 summer Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Chicago, Illinois. Williams would go on to sell approximately 19,000 arcade cabinets; mini cabinets and cocktail versions were later produced. While the upright cabinets remained common in 2004, machines in working condition cost more than other games, which video games writer David Ellis attributed to Robotrons enduring popularity. The smaller cabaret and cocktail versions are much rarer and sell for a premium. Atari planned to release them in the second half of the year. However, the 2600 version was never released. The Atari 5200 port released in spring 1984 and included an accessory that holds two joysticks to mimic the arcade controls. The Atari 7800 conversion was promoted as a launch title for the then-new console prior to shipping. It was anticipated to release in the third quarter of 1984. In August 1984, Celeste Dolan reported that it included an accessory similar to the 5200 version. Programmed by David Brown, the game was eventually released in 1986 without the controller accessory. The company assigned the various system ports to different programmers; for example, Judy Bogart, Steven Hays, and Tom Griner handled the conversions to Atari 8-bit, Apple II, and Commodore 64 home computers, respectively. The company considered a ZX Spectrum port after briefly entering the market with arcade conversions. Following the release of Silicon Kid's Wild West Hero—an unlicensed Robotron clone—in 1983, Atarisoft threatened the creators with legal action. To avoid a court case, Silicon Kid's programmer, Paul Holmes, worked with Atarisoft to modify the game into an official Robotron: 2084 port. However, Atarisoft exited the Spectrum market prior to publication. Video game journalist Stuart Campbell obtained a completed copy in the 1980s and provided it to Holmes over 15 years later. They then published the game online for the Spectrum emulation community. Robotron: 2084 has been included in several multi-platform compilations: the 1996 ''Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits, the 2000 Midway's Greatest Arcade Hits, the 2003 Midway Arcade Treasures, and the 2012 Midway Arcade Origins. Many of the anthologies were created by Digital Eclipse, who used emulation to run the original source code. The company included Robotron because of its high recognizability. In 2000, a web-based version of Robotron'', along with nine other classic arcade games, were published on Shockwave.com, Macromedia's game portal that used its Shockwave platform. Four years later, Midway Games also launched a website featuring the Shockwave versions. In 2004, Midway Games planned to release a plug and play version of Robotron: 2084 as part of a line of TV Games; however, it remained unreleased by 2009. The game became available for download via Microsoft's Xbox Live Arcade in November 2005. It featured high-definition graphics, online scoreboards, and two-player cooperative multiplayer with one player controlling the movement and another the shooting. Microsoft later removed the game from the service in February 2010 citing permission issues. Robotron: 2084, along with many other Midway arcade games, appear in the 2016 Midway Arcade expansion of Lego Dimensions. The developer, Traveller's Tales, considered recreating them in Lego form but decided to present them in their original forms to maintain what they felt made the games good. Lego versions of Robotron characters appear outside the emulated games in the expansion's virtual Lego world. In 2021, the game joined other classic arcade games on the Antstream Arcade gaming platform. It left the service in 2023 after the licensing agreement expired. A homebrew enthusiast created a port for the ColecoVision home console in 2022. == Reception ==

Robotron garnered praise soon after its debut. Steve Bloom of Video Games magazine proclaimed it the "best new game" at the Amusement Operators Expo and noted that attendees constantly played it. Writing for RePlay Magazine, Todd Erickson noted that Williams' early use of difficulty settings in its arcade machines set it apart from other manufacturers by providing flexibility. He cited Robotron as an example, noting that arcade owners had increased their income by steadily intensifying the challenge from lower settings. Almost two years later, Jean Michel Navarre of Tilt included Robotron in the war games section of his imaginary arcade museum, citing the game's scenario. Robotrons graphics were also a common point of praise. Kunkel described the visuals as groundbreaking for the amount of moving onscreen characters and the use of colors. The ports also received an overall positive contemporary reception. The Video Game Updates writer praised the Apple port's graphics and gameplay. They summarized the review urging fans of the arcade to play the "excellent translation". ACE magazine staff praised the quality of the conversion to the 8-bit Atari XE in 1987 but mentioned that the game was showing its age. Reviewing the Lynx release, ACEs David Upchurch commented that despite the poor graphics and basic design, the gameplay's simplicity was a strong point. While he lauded the addictiveness and audio, Upchurch acknowledged that some players may find the difficulty too challenging lauded. Robotrons inclusion in the various releases of ''Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits was well received by gaming publications. Next Generation magazine staff praised the "arcade-perfect" conversion of the PC and Macintosh releases and noted the historical importance, calling it one of the "greatest arcade classics". Reviewing the Sega Genesis conversion, GamePros Captain Cameron singled out Robotron: 2084 as the best of the anthology. Four Electronic Gaming Monthly reviewers—Shawn Smith, Dan Hsu, Crispin Boyer, and Sushi-X—were enthusiastic about the port, calling it an arcade-perfect conversion and a technical achievement. Hsu and Boyer praised the gameplay but recommended playing Robotron with a six-button controller as the standard three-button controller made the game too difficult. While Robin Alway of GamesMaster and Official Dreamcast Magazines Alex Huhtala were both critical of the Dreamcast compilation, they considered Robotron an exception; Alway called it one of the few "all-time classics" in the collection, and Huhtala wrote that Robotron''s gameplay holds up against contemporary standards. Retrospective The game has received a positive retrospective reception decades after its release as well. Authors Rusel DeMaria and Johnny Wilson enjoyed the excitement created by the constant waves of robots and fear of the character dying. They called it one of the more impressive games from its era. Digital media professor John Vince considered the reward system and strategic elements as positive components. DeMaria and Wilson considered the control scheme a highlight that provided a tactical advantage. Similarly, Retro Gamer writers described the control systems as "one of the greatest". Chris Wilkins of Eurogamer called Robotron the "epitome of organised chaos" and the "ultimate in twitch gaming". In scoring the arcade game a perfect ten, he cited the balanced gameplay, addictiveness, and exquisite cabinet design. David Thiel, a former Gottlieb audio engineer, referred to the game as the "pinnacle of interactive game design". Archer Maclean was a great admirer of Jarvis's early video games, like Robotron, because of their graphical effects and gameplay. Christian Donlan of Eurogamer noted that Maclean never moved into a studio without installing the arcade cabinet. Similarly, Donlan observed a Robotron cabinet in the headquarters of PopCap Games. In addition to praising the playing field design, Jeff Peters from GearWorks Games described the gameplay's required strategy and dexterity as a challenge to the senses. He summarized the game as "one of the best examples of game play design and execution." The following year, Next Generation staff listed the arcade and PlayStation versions as number 63 on their "Top 100 Games of All Time", citing the game's constant action and dual joystick controls. Two years later, they ranked it number 21 on a similar "Top 50" list, describing Robotron as the pinnacle of "tension and challenge" as well as the "most intense interactive entertainment experience ever created". Game Informer staff ranked the game 72nd in its "Top 100 Games of All Time" special feature in 2001, calling it the "pinnacle of relentless arcade action". In 2007, the readers and writers of Edge magazine ranked Robotron 81st on their "100 Best Video Games" because of the execution of its control scheme. The next year, Guinness World Records named it the number eleven arcade game in technical, creative and cultural impact. Also in 2008, Retro Gamer staff rated the game the second top arcade game, citing its simple and addictive design. == Legacy ==

Jarvis's contributions to the game's development are often cited among his accolades. Vince considered him one of the originators of "high-action" and "reflex-based" arcade games, citing Robotron: 2084s gameplay among other games designed by Jarvis. Scores for Robotron, among many popular games, were tracked at the Video Championship, a long-distance competition between players in California and North Carolina, in August 1982. Twin Galaxies, who officiated and tracked competitive high scores for players, recorded high scores for the arcade version into the 2010s. Because of its popularity, Robotron has been referenced in facets of popular culture: the Beastie Boys' song "The Sounds of Science" on the album ''Paul's Boutique'', Lou Reed's song "Down at the Arcade" on his New Sensations album, and the comic strip Bob the Angry Flower. The characters make a cameo appearance during the climax of the 2015 feature film Pixels. Remakes and sequels Vid Kidz developed a sequel, Blaster, in 1983. Thematically similar to Defender, the game is a 3D shooter that takes place in a world overrun by Robotrons a year after the original. The player flies a ship through space defeating enemies and rescuing lost spacemen. Jarvis planned to develop more sequels, but the video game crash of 1983 halted most video game production for a few years. The company planned to sell an arcade conversion kit for games with a vertically oriented monitor, which had become popular following the 1983 crash. Management felt that a sequel would improve the kit's saleability and considered a follow up to either Robotron: 2084 or Joust, ultimately choosing the latter. announced plans at the end of 1994 to develop an update of Robotron for the Atari Jaguar and high performance PCs. However, the update—Robotron X—was released on the Sony PlayStation console in 1996. Developed by Player 1, Robotron X is a 3D remake featuring new enemies and stages that was also released on Windows PCs in 1997. The game was later ported to the Nintendo 64 in 1998 as Robotron 64. Ian Morrison programmed both versions. Also writing for Gamasutra, John Harris observed several action games, such as Ikari Warriors, Gauntlet, and Alien Syndrome, featuring hordes of enemies swarming the player character after Robotrons release. Robotrons use of dual joysticks popularized the design among 2D shooting games and has since been copied by other arcade-style games. For example, Taito released two games in arcades with similar control schemes later in 1982: Space Dungeon and Front Line. Soon after, Atari released a conversion kit to change Robotron arcade machines, as well as several other Williams games, into its new multidirectional shooter, Cloak & Dagger. Midway Games also implemented the control scheme in several of its future titles. Other Midway Games releases include Inferno and Total Carnage. Minter released an upgraded version titled Minotron: 2112 for iOS twenty years later that reproduces the dual joystick design with touchscreen controls. Most 3D games, however, use the dual joystick scheme to control the movement of a character and a camera. Few console games, like the 2004 Jet Li: Rise to Honor, use two joysticks for movement and attacking. The 2003 Geometry Wars and its sequels were at the forefront of the control scheme's revival. == Notes ==