Out of Control

How to play Out of Control online

• Take control: press Space (or A for the Player 2 joystick)
• Choose a game: up and down arrow keys, then Space to start
• Rotate the ship: left and right arrow keys
• Thrust: Space bar
• Pause: F2 (the Colour/B-W switch)
• Restart: F12 (the console’s Reset switch)

Gameplay

Each course has three stages. First you pass the Space Buoys in order; the next one you need turns white. Pass a single buoy on the side its flashing arrow shows, fly between a pair, and go through or around a line of three. Hit a buoy and you must repeat the last set you cleared. Next, ten Space Balloons appear one at a time, and you pop each one by flying into it. Finally, you must stop inside the Dock without touching it. Only a weak maneuvering thruster works while you dock. The clock stops once you are parked, and your time is your result.

The title describes the handling. The ship slows down only gradually, so to brake quickly you turn around and fire the other way. If you drift off the course, the ship turns red until you steer back towards the centre.

The manual lists 28 games in pairs that share a course. In the odd-numbered game of each pair the ship reacts faster; in the even-numbered one, more slowly. Higher numbers mean longer courses, from 10 buoys in games 1 and 2 up to 82 in games 27 and 28. The manual lists Jacob’s own best time for each course to race against.

Tips

• Tap, don’t hold. Speed you build up must be braked away again.
• Turn early. Rotating to brake takes time, so start before you reach the buoy.
• Learn on even numbers. The slower-reacting ship is easier to control.
• Creep into the Dock. The weak thruster gives you little stopping power.

About the game

The manual calls Out of Control Avalon Hill’s “space race game” and says it runs on both the Atari 2600 and the Sears Video Arcade. AtariAge rates the cartridge extremely rare. Collectors who have tried to match the designer’s times say they are very hard to beat, even on the shortest course.