Track & Field (video game)

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 This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2008)
It has been suggested that Hyper Athlete be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)
For the sport, see Athletics (track and field).
Track & Field
European arcade flyer of Track & Field.
European arcade flyer of Track & Field.
Developer(s) Konami
Publisher(s) Konami
Ocean Software (home computer versions)
Platform(s) Arcade, Atari 2600, Atari 8-bit, MSX, NES, Commodore 64, Game Boy, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, Nintendo DS (appears on Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits), Xbox 360 (XBLA)
Release date(s) 1983
1988 (home computer versions)
Genre(s) Sports
Mode(s) Single player, two players simultaneously
Four players total
Input methods 4 buttons
Cabinet Upright
Sound Mono
Display Raster, Horizontal orientation, 256 x 224 resolution

Track & Field, known in Japan as Hyper Olympics (ハイパーオリンピック?), is a 1983 Olympic-themed arcade game developed and published by Konami.

The arcade version was released in 1983 as an arcade game. The simple gameplay, based on quick, repeating, button presses set the basics for sequels and similar games in the genre for the next decades. There were several home versions of the original; note that the ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC versions were only released as part of the Game, Set and Match II compilation in 1988, and are poorly regarded by fans[1] and[2] . The NES version was especially well-received and big-selling.

Contents

[edit] Gameplay

In the original arcade game, the player uses two "run" buttons (or a trackball in some early units) and one "action" button to control an athlete competing in following six events:

  • 100 Meter Dash – Running by quickly alternating button presses.
  • Long jump – Running by alternating button press and correct timing for jump. Hold jump button to set angle.
  • Javelin throw – Running by alternating button presses and then using action button correct timing for angle (~42 degrees is optimal).
  • 110 Meter Hurdles – Running by alternating button presses and using action button to time hurdles
  • Hammer throw – Spinning initiated by pressing a run button once and then correctly timed press of action button to choose angle (45 is optimal).
  • High jump – Running (speed set by computer) and then action button must be held down to determine angle of jump. Once in the air, the run button can be rapidly pressed for additional height.
Gameplay screenshot of the long jump event.

In each event, there is a qualifying time or level that the player must achieve to advance to the next event; failing to qualify (in one heat for running events or three tries in the other events) ends the game.

Gameplay screenshot of the start of the 100m dash.

The game can accommodate up to four players, who compete in pairs for the running events, and individually for the others. If there are fewer than four players, the remaining slots are played by the computer (or player "CPU"). In all multiplayer heats, though, the relative performance of the players has no effect on the game, and advancing is based solely on qualifying times. While most multiplayer arcade games had each set of controls relative to the players going from left to right, this game (which has two sets of controls) had a somewhat different setup. The left set of controls were for players 2 and 4, while the right set was for players 1 and 3. This is one of the few classic arcade games where single player mode was played on the right set of controls rather than the left. If a player completes all six events after a brief medal ceremony, he or she is sent back to the field for another round, with higher qualifying levels.

[edit] Easter eggs

100m Dash and 110m Hurdles: If both players finish with the same time, a man with a key will run across the screen and a 1000 point bonus is awarded.

Long Jump: If you make three jumps of exactly the same length, a man with a key will run across the screen and a 1000 point bonus is awarded.

Javelin: Throw the javelin off the top of the screen and you will hit a bird, which falls to the ground. A 1000 point bonus is awarded.

High Jump: Fail on your first two attempts, then qualify using your last remaining attempt. A mole will pop up out of the ground and a 1000 point bonus is awarded.

[edit] Legacy

Konami continued releasing games on the series:

In the follow-up Hyper Sports, there were seven events: 100-meter freestyle, skeet shooting, vault, archery, triple jump, weight lifting and pole vault.

[edit] Ports and re-releases

The NES version of Track & Field was re-released in Europe in 1992 as Track & Field in Barcelona by Kemco in the light of the 1992 Summer Olympics. The opening song for the NES Version, is the Chariots of fire tune. The Game Boy version was also re-released as part of the Konami GB Collection series.

The Xbox Live Arcade version of the game was released on the Xbox 360 for 400 Microsoft Points ($5 USD) on August 8, 2007. It features updated graphics and sounds, leaderboards, and online play over the Xbox Live service.

Track & Field introduced[citation needed] the button-tapping style of gameplay, in which a player must hit a button on their controller as fast and as many times as possible in order to make their in-game character interact with its environment. This design is incorporated into inspired titles like Epyx's Summer Games. The technique is still used in gameplay today.

[edit] In the Competitive Arena

On December 18, 2008, Hector Rodriguez, of La Puente, California, scored 95,350 points on the classic arcade game Track & Field. Playing under Twin Galaxies Tournament Settings, Rodriguez beat the 23-year-old record of 95,040 points set on June 30, 1985 by Kelly Kobashigawa, of Los Angeles, during Twin Galaxies' 1985 Video Game Masters Tournament in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.

According to the Twin Galaxies' Official Video Game & Pinball Book of World Records - Arcade Volume, history's largest video game contest was the 1984 March of Dimes International Konami/Centuri Track & Field Challenge. The editors say: "More than 1 million contestants played Track & Field between April 30 and May 26, hoping to be among three finalists going to Japan to represent the USA. As a fundraiser for the March of Dimes, the event was held in Aladdin's Castles and National Convenience Stores. Gary West of Oklahoma City won the U.S. Finals, but Phil Britt, of Riverside, California, won the World Championship in Tokyo on June 10, 1984."

[edit] References

  1. ^ "The Amstrad CPC Resource : : Track and Field by Ocean Software for the Amstrad CPC/GX 4000". CPC Zone. http://www.cpczone.net/index.php?game=1511. Retrieved on 2009-07-03. 
  2. ^ "Track and Field". Sinclair Infoseek. http://www.worldofspectrum.org/infoseekid.cgi?id=0005360. Retrieved on 2009-07-03. 

[edit] External links

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Konami Track & Field video game series
Games
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Track_%26_Field_(video_game)"
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