#PA2036, Published by Atari Corp.

In this episode Monty and I cover one of the best arcade combat racing games for the Lynx, RoadBlasters, released for the Lynx in 1990. In addition to providing statistics, gameplay, reviews and ratings, fun facts and trivia, and listener feedback about the game, I pose an easy Atari Lynx trivia question to Monty, who refuses to join in the fun and to provide an answer because he is not a fan of pub quizzes…

…nor of my singing.

“Let’s all go to A & W! Food’s more fun at A & W!…”

<figure class="wp-caption alignright" id="attachment_4567" style="width: 186px;"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text" id="caption-attachment-4567">The RoadBlasters upright arcade cabinet was released by Atari Games in 1987.</figcaption></figure>

ROADBLASTERS VITAL STATISTICS

Release Date: October of 1990.

Initial Retail Price: $36.99-$39.99 in the US; £29.99 in the UK.

Cartridge Information: 256kb stereo curved lip-style cartridge.

Game Genre: Behind-view 3-dimensional arcade combat racing game for 1 player.

Screen Playfield Orientation: Landscape (horizontal).

Based On: RoadBlasters arcade cabinet released by Atari in 1987.

Ports to Other Systems: The Amstrad CPC (1988), the Atari ST (1989), the Commodore Amiga (1988), the Commodore 64 (1988), the Nintendo Entertainment System (1990), the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive (1991), and the ZX Spectrum (1988).

Game Levels: There are 50 levels, or rallies, in RoadBlasters. Level 50 includes no hazards or obstacles.

Number of Players: 1 (no ComLynx support).

Packaging: A full-color standard flap-tab regular-size box (5 3/8″ by 4 3/8″ by 7/8″). There was also a blister-pack released in Europe for RoadBlasters, as well as a Japanese variant.

Instruction Manual: A 16-page (including front and back covers) stapled regular-sized booklet manual in monochrome, measuring the usual 4 7/8” high by 3 ¾” wide. The English-language manual released in North America was likely written by Scott Rhoades. There was also in a full-color Japanese-language manual released in Japan.

<figure class="wp-caption alignright" id="attachment_2483" style="width: 300px;"><figcaption class="wp-caption-text" id="caption-attachment-2483">A line of Matchbox toy die-cast vehicles were released between 1987 and 1988 to cash in on the popularity of the RoadBlasters arcade game.</figcaption></figure>

ROADBLASTERS CREDITS

Publisher: Atari Corporation

Licensee: Tengen, Inc.

Programmer: D. Scott Williamson.

Artwork: Robert Nagel.

Music/Sound Effects: David Tumminaro (title music), Matt Scott (additional music; founder of Byte-Size Sound, Inc.)

Special Thanks: Atari Games for Their Support and Cooperation.

Be sure to check out our partner AtariGamer.com to stay “Lynxed In” to all of the latest news about our favorite handheld gaming console!

LYNX LYNKS

Kieren Hawken’s 2019 book “The A-Z of Atari Lynx Games Volume 1”.

LYNX LYNKS

Information About RoadBlasters:

Atari Age title info/rarity guide for RoadBlasters

Atari Gamer title info/rarity guide for RoadBlasters

Digital Press title info/rarity guide for RoadBlasters

GameFAQs article about RoadBlasters

Moby Games article about RoadBlasters

Wikipedia article about RoadBlasters

“Atari Lynx Hint Book”, published by Atari in 1993 for Lynx game developers. How to find an Easter Egg displaying digitized photos of RoadBlasters programmers D. Scott Williamson and Matt Scott can be found on page 55. A more detailed write-up about the same cheat for RoadBlasters, including screen shots of the programmers, is printed on Page 32 of Issue #21 (April 1991) of Electronic Gaming Monthly, can be found here.

Cujo’s podcast Squid Nova: 30 Minutes of Diabolical episode (April 20, 2017), entitled “The War of 1989,” about the handheld gaming console battle of that year, includes snippets about Atari Lynx games, ending with a passionate story about RoadBlasters from an Australian guest on the episode (found at 21:40 ). A link to the entire episode can be found here.

A portion of Kieren Hawken’s interview with RoadBlasters‘ programmer D. Scott Williamson was printed in his article in Issue #129 of the UK publication Retro Gamer Magazine celebrating the Atari Lynx’s 25th Anniversary; readable photos of the entire article can be found <