How to play Tac-Scan online
Tac-Scan was made for the Atari paddle controller, a dial you turn to slide the squadron from side to side. The emulator above switches to paddle mode automatically for this game. There are no game variations or difficulty switch options.
- Move the squadron: left and right arrow keys
- Fire a missile salvo: Space bar
- Start a new game: F12 (the console’s Reset switch)
- Switch between paddle and joystick mode: Alt + L
- Save and load your progress: Ctrl + 0–9 saves to a slot, Alt + 0–9 loads it
Gameplay
Enemy ships are closing in on your command base, and your five-ship squadron is the only defence. Each press of the fire button sends a salvo of missiles up from every ship still in the formation. The enemies shoot back with laser bolts that knock individual ships out of your squadron.
Destroy ten enemy ships and the round ends. Then comes the docking phase: replacement ships drop down one at a time, and you steer the formation so they slot into the empty places. A ship you miss is not lost; it goes back into reserve. You start with no reserves and earn one for each round you finish. The unusual rule is how the game ends: when the last ship in your flying formation is destroyed, it is game over, even if you still have ships waiting in reserve.
After four rounds the game moves up a difficulty level, the screen colours change, and enemy ships are worth more. From level 5 onwards each one is worth 100 points times the level number. There are also bonuses:
| Bonus | Points |
|---|---|
| Shimmering mystery ship | 500 |
| End of round (levels 1 / 2 / 3) | 1,000 / 2,000 / 5,000 |
| End of round (level 4 and up) | 20,000 |
| Three enemies hit with one salvo | 10,000 |
| Four enemies hit with one salvo | 20,000 |
Tips
- Let dangerous enemies go. There is no penalty for letting an enemy fly past, so you don’t have to chase every one.
- Wait for groups. Hitting three or four enemies with a single salvo is worth far more than picking them off one by one.
- Build a reserve early. Skipping a few replacement ships during the easy rounds keeps them in reserve for the harder levels.
- Always shoot the mystery ship. The shimmering ship is an easy 500 points.
From arcade to Atari 2600
The arcade Tac/Scan, designed by Michael Hendricks and Brian Millar at Sega Electronics, came out in North America in September 1982. It used vector graphics and switched between an overhead view, a third-person view from behind the squadron, and a flight down a space tunnel. The 2600 cartridge, released in March 1983, keeps the squadron, the formation battle and the ship-docking idea, but its manual describes no tunnel or 3-D stage. Reviews of the home version have been mixed. The arcade game was later included as an unlockable extra in the PlayStation 2 version of Sega Genesis Collection.
