The popularity of both its upright and cockpit arcade cabinets was such that, by the end of 1983, it’s reported to have raised tens of millions dollars (around $150m in today’s money) for its North American publisher, Atari, as well as cementing a place as that continent’s highest-grossing arcade game for the year. Pac-Man creator Toru Iwatani was on design duties for Namco and helped make Pole Position a phenomenal success. Like Speed Race before it, Pole Position arrived on the scene thanks to a video game legend. So after my second free pizza, they took it out.” “Hey man, I got so good at that in four nights that a couple years later, they had a pizza parlor in Scotts Valley and if you got more than 36 points, you got a free pizza. It was called Gran Trak 10,” Wozniak once revealed. “I'd be out playing the very first video game that was about to come out with driving. Its special place in history means Gran Trak 10 arcade cabinets are prized to this day by collectors who lovingly restore them to their former glory.Īmongst its many claims to fame is the fact that Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak played it in his downtime while developing Atari’s Breakout over an intense four-day period. Consisting of a single, black and white static screen it nonetheless boasted a track with multiple twists and turns along with a number of arcade cabinet innovations, including a steering wheel, four-speed gearbox and gas and brake pedals.

This single-player time-attack racer from Atari is widely considered to be the granddaddy of car-based racing games.

Top pc games 2015 ign