The official Atari-approved version of the popular arcade game. "Insist on the original version, accept no substitutes," shouts the inlay of Battlezone. Very little other detail is given on the inlay (although the loading screen helpfully informs you that instructions and keyboard controls will be given immediately after the auto-run demo). What has happened to the justly famed Quicksilva absurd scenario? Is this lack an indication that Atari didn't approve or a case that under their new masters (ASP) Quicksilva have taken a turn for the serious? In any event it seems a shame, and an indication of Atarian sluggishness, that one of their most popular arcade games should be converted to a home micro in time to be at the tail end of a whole series of similar games.
Battlezone surely requires no introduction (serious one that is). The Spectrum version comes complete with tanks, flying saucers and missiles and uses the keyboard to simulate caterpillar track movement, which is to say that the two top quarters control forward movement on left and right tracks, while the two bottom quarters control reverse movement on left and right tracks. This means that you can move forward or backward in a straight line, turn slowly or spin faster on the spot by using opposed quarters diagonally. The screen display shows a mountainous backdrop (including an unanimated volcano) with a few objects here and there which may be used as shields. Above the viewscreen is the radar, an indication of enemy to the left or right, whether the enemy is In range, and the score lines.