Genre: Racing

Racing games are about speed against a rival or the clock: finishing first, beating a lap time or covering as much ground as you can before time runs out. On the Atari 2600 they range from simple two-player contests on a single screen to scrolling courses with changing scenery, all drawn with the console’s handful of moving objects and coloured lines.
The genre was there from launch day. Indy 500 was one of the nine games sold when the console arrived in September 1977, and it came with its own driving controllers. They look like paddles, but the dial spins endlessly in either direction, so you can steer round a track without running out of turn. Carla Meninsky’s Dodge ‘Em (1980) mixed racing with a maze, as you collect dots while a computer car drives straight at you.
Activision brought more detail to the track. David Crane’s Dragster (1980) is a quarter-mile sprint where changing gear at the right moment matters most, and Larry Miller’s Enduro (1983) is a long-distance race through day and night, snow and fog. Atari’s Pole Position (1983) adapted Namco’s arcade game, making you set a qualifying time before the race itself. Racing also lasted into the console’s later years, with Atari releasing the top-down Sprint Master in 1988.
Pick a race from the list below, get on the grid and play right here in your browser.