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Astron Belt(アストロンベルト) is aLaserDisc video gamein the form of a third-person,space combatrail shooter,released inarcadesin 1983 bySegainJapan,and licensed toBally Midwayfor release in North America.[4][5]Developed in 1982,[6]it was the first major arcade laserdisc video game.[4][5]The game combinesfull-motion video(FMV) footage from the laserdisc withreal-time2D graphics.The arcade game was available in both upright and cockpitarcade cabinets,with the latter having illuminated buttons on the control panel, a larger 25 "monitor (the upright used a standard 19" ), and aforce feedbackvibrating seat.
| Astron Belt | |
|---|---|
 Arcade flyer | |
| Developer(s) | Sega |
| Publisher(s) | |
| Platform(s) | Arcade,MSX |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Rail shooter,space combat |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Arcade system | Sega Laserdisc |
The game was first unveiled at the 20thAmusement Machine Show,held inTokyoduring September 1982, and then atChicago's Amusement & Music Operators Association (AMOA) show, held during November 18–20, 1982.[7][8]This marked the beginning of laserdisc fever in the video game industry,[4]and released in Japan during early 1983, with Sega projecting to ship 10,000 cabinets that year.[7]It was subsequently released in Europe, where it was the first laserdisc game released in the region.[9]However, Bally Midway delayed the game's release in the United States to fix several hardware and software bugs, by which time it had been beaten to public release by several laserdisc games includingDragon's Lair.[4]
The game was a commercial success in arcades, especially in Japan where it was the top-grossing upright/cockpit arcade game for four months. Critical reception was initially positive following its AMOA 1982 debut and then its European release, but was later mixed following its North American release as it drew unfavorable comparisons with other laserdisc games.Astron Beltwas ported to theMSXhome system in 1984 inJapan.
Gameplay
editThe player controls a lone spacecraft on a mission to singlehandedly take down the entire enemy armada. Enemy fighters and ships shoot at the player, and there are mines and other objects that must be shot or avoided.
The game is divided into waves. At the end of each wave is a command ship that must be destroyed. In later waves the enemy fighters move and shoot more aggressively, and their shots are more accurate. Some waves take place in open space, while others require the player to battle enemies while flying through narrow trenches and tunnels. The player is on a timer at the beginning of the game, with an unlimited number of lives available. The length of the timer can be adjusted by the machine operator, but is normally 60 seconds. After the timer expires, the player is given a limited number of additional lives. When all of those lives are lost, the game ends.
The background videos used in the game are a mixture of original artwork and borrowed material. In addition to the scenes created specifically for the game, the designers also incorporated footage from threescience fictionmovies:Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan,Battle Beyond the Stars,andMessage from Space.
Technical
edit
Astron Beltinitially used aPioneerlaserdisc player.[7]In total, it used one of four laserdisc players, either a Pioneer LD-V1000 or LD-V1001, or aHitachiVIP-9500SG or VIP-9550. Two different versions of the laser disc itself were also pressed, a single-sided version by Pioneer and a double-sided version by Sega. However, both discs have the same information and may be used in any of the four players.
Running on theSega Laserdischardware, the game combinespre-renderedlaserdisc footage with areal-time2D computer graphicsplane. The real-time graphics plane generates sprite graphics similar to an earlier Sega title,Buck Rogers: Planet of Zoom(1982),[1]and was overlaid by imitating amattingtechnique. As theCRTmonitorscanshorizontally across the screen, it is fed information from the laserdisc up until the point where it is fed information from thecomputer graphicssystem, after which information coming from the laserdisc stops, creating a black mask into which aspriteis inserted. It uses acollision detectionsystem where both the laserdisc and sprite planes can interact with each other. Each frame of the laserdisc footage is coded with a hit detection spot stored inROMmemory.TheZilog Z80CPUreads the number of the laserdisc frame, and checks the laserdisc hit spots with the shots fired by the player, and if the coordinates correspond, it instructs the laserdisc player to display an explosion sequence. For sections where the player must navigate between walls, the walls in the laserdisc footage are also coded and use collision detection.[10]
Reception
editIn Japan,Game MachinelistedAstron Beltas the top-grossing upright/cockpit arcade cabinet for four months in 1983. In June 1983, it was the top upright/cockpit cabinet of the month.[11][12]It remained at the top of theGame Machineupright/cockpit charts through October 1, 1983,[13]before being dethroned byNamco'sPole Positionon October 15, 1983.[14]Astron Beltremained in the top ten through December 1983.[15]
In the United States,Astron Belttopped thePlay Meterlaserdisc arcade charts for street locations by August 1, 1984, while being in the top three forarcade locations.[16]It remained among the top five laserdisc arcade games for street locations and top ten for arcade locations through November 1984.[17]
Reviews
editVideo Gamesgave the arcade game a highly positive review following its AMOA 1982 demonstration, calling it a "large screen science fiction space shooting game that's played againstfilm footageof spaceships, planets and explosions! "They stated that, for"manyplayers, this is theultimatevideo game! "[8]Computer and Video Gamesgave it a positive review upon its European release, calling it a pioneering game and praising the realistic visuals and audio, thecontinuefeature, the futuristic cockpit cabinet, and the vibrating seat, but criticizing "a few rough edges" in the gameplay, the high price of£0.40(equivalent to £1.7 in 2023) per play, and for sometimes vibrating "more than is comfortable." They concluded that "any arcade player who wants a future in gaming should try his hand at Astron Belt as soon as possible" but "it remains to be seen if Astron Belt is the shape of games to come."[1]
Upon its North American release, the game received mixed reviews fromComputer Gamesmagazine, comparing it unfavorably with other laserdisc games. One of the two reviewers was game designerEugene Jarvis,who criticized the collision detection and the lack of realistic gameplay or direction, but he praised the "sense of power" and "macho feel" it gives, particularly with the explosions.[18]
Legacy
editAstron Beltwas responsible for starting the LaserDiscinteractive moviecraze when it was shown at the 1982 AMOA show. One of the games it inspired wasDragon's Lair(1983).[19]
Sega introduced a sequel,Star Blazer,at Tokyo'sAmusement Machine Show(AM Show) in September 1983. It was unanimously hailed as the "strongest" LaserDisc game of the show.[20]Bally Midway distributed it asGalaxy Rangerin North America in 1984. It had the same controls and very similar gameplay toAstron Belt,and one machine could be converted to the other by simply changing the LaserDisc, gameROMs,and sound board.[citation needed]In Japan,Game MachinelistedStarblazeron their January 15, 1984 issue as being the third most-successful upright arcade unit of the month.[21]
References
edit- ^abcdComputer and Video Games,issue 22 (August 1983),page 30Archived2015-09-24 at theWayback Machine,published 16 July 1983
- ^Akagi, Masumi (13 October 2006)."Sega of America".アーケードTVゲームリスト quốc nội • hải ngoại biên (1971-2005)(in Japanese) (1st ed.). Amusement News Agency. p. 131.ISBN978-4990251215.
- ^Akagi, Masumi (October 13, 2006).アーケードTVゲームリスト quốc nội • hải ngoại biên (1971-2005)[Arcade TV Game List: Domestic • Overseas Edition (1971-2005)] (in Japanese). Japan: Amusement News Agency. pp. 124–5.ISBN978-4990251215.
- ^abcd"ASTRON BELT".Atari HQ.Archivedfrom the original on 20 March 2011.Retrieved2011-03-25.
- ^ab"Astron Belt".AllGame.Archived fromthe originalon 2014-01-01.
- ^Mark Isaacson (2002)."The History of Sega: From Service Games to Master Systems".Archived fromthe originalon 2019-11-04.Retrieved2011-03-25.
- ^abc"Overseas Readers Column: Sega's Astron Belt Will Be Shipped Soon"(PDF).Game Machine.No. 211.Amusement Press, Inc.1 May 1983. p. 30.
- ^ab"Top Ten Hits".Video Games.Vol. 1, no. 7. Pumpkin Press. March 1983. p. 66.
- ^"Looks at Lasers: The Shape of Games to Come".Computer and Video Games.No. 26 (December 1983). 16 November 1983. pp. 86–7.Retrieved2018-01-05.
- ^"Photographic image of book page"(GIF).Dragons-lair-project.Retrieved23 January2018.
- ^"Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - アップライト, コックピット hình TVゲーム cơ (Upright/Cockpit Videos)"(PDF).Game Machine(in Japanese). No. 213.Amusement Press, Inc.1 June 1983. p. 29.
- ^"Best Hit Games 25"(PDF).Game Machine(in Japanese). No. 214. Amusement Press, Inc. 15 June 1983. p. 27.
- ^"Best Hit Games 25"(PDF).Game Machine(in Japanese). No. 221. Amusement Press, Inc. 1 October 1983. p. 29.
- ^"Best Hit Games 25"(PDF).Game Machine(in Japanese). No. 222. Amusement Press, Inc. 15 October 1983. p. 35.
- ^"Best Hit Games 25"(PDF).Game Machine(in Japanese). No. 226. Amusement Press, Inc. 15 December 1983. p. 33.
- ^"National Play Meter".Play Meter.August 15, 1984.
- ^"National Play Meter".Play Meter.Vol. 10, no. 21. 15 November 1984. pp. 28–9.
- ^Bloom, Steve (April 1984)."The Lasers Have Landed! Here Comes the Videodisc Invasion".Computer Games.Vol. 3, no. 1. United States: Carnegie Publications. pp. 16–20.
- ^Wolf, Mark J. P. (2008).The Video Game Explosion: A History from PONG to Playstation and Beyond - Mark J. P. Wolf - Google Books.ISBN9780313338687.Retrieved2018-01-05.
- ^""Somber" JAMMA Show Hosts Five Laser Disc Games "(PDF).Cash Box.October 15, 1983. pp. 32, 34.
- ^"Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - アップライト, コックピット hình TVゲーム cơ (Upright/Cockpit Videos)".Game Machine(in Japanese). No. 228.Amusement Press, Inc.15 January 1984. p. 31.
