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This is a list of video games produced for the Vectrex, a vector graphics-based video game console. There were 28 games officially released for the console (includes built-in game) in the US.[1]
This list also includes official unreleased games from GCE, as well as homebrew titles released from 1996 to the present (games, music, demos, utility and diagnostic cartridges).
Official releases (1982–1984)
Games were released in the US by General Consumers Electronics (GCE), in Europe and Canada by Milton Bradley (MB) and in Japan by Bandai.[2]
| Title | Developer | Publisher | Year | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3D Crazy Coaster * | GCE | GCE | 1983 | *Requires 3D Imager headset. |
| 3D MineStorm * | GCE | GCE | 1983 | *Requires 3D Imager headset. Included as a pack-in cartridge with the 3D Imager headset. |
| 3D Narrow Escape * | Richard Moszkowski | GCE | 1983 | *Requires 3D Imager headset. |
| AnimAction * | GCE | GCE | 1983 | *Requires light pen. |
| Armor Attack | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | |
| Art Master * | GCE | GCE | 1983 | *Requires light pen. Included as a pack-in cartridge with the Vectrex Light Pen. |
| Bedlam | Lenny Carlson & William Hawkins | GCE, MB | 1983 | |
| Berzerk | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | |
| Blitz! | GCE | GCE, MB | 1982 | GCE's subtitle: "Action Football"; MB's subtitle: "American Football". |
| Clean Sweep | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | Also existing is a complete boxed custom produced special edition made for Mr. Boston with the game title: "Mr. Boston Clean Sweep". This edition along with a boxed Vectrex console was shipped to various retail sales locations to advertise Mr. Boston products to the customer at the counter. After the game booted up in the Vectrex, and before starting game play, a screen was shown to the customer stating "MR BOSTON FINE LIQUORS: FLAVORED BRANDIES CORDIALS SCHNAPPS COCKTAILS BRANDY PRESENT". After the advertising screen the game Clean Sweep would start. Inside the game play the main character's vacuum cleaner graphic is replaced with a top_hat similar to the one Mr. Boston's mascot wears as seen in the company's branding logo. This variation is exceedingly rare with and only 3 complete boxed known games to exist. And less than 10 total cartridges known to exist. |
| Cosmic Chasm | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | |
| Fortress of Narzod | GCE | GCE, MB | 1983 | |
| Heads Up | GCE | GCE, MB | 1982 | MB's title: "Soccer/Football" |
| Hyperchase | Jeff Corsiglia & Chris King | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | Subtitle: "Auto Race" |
| Melody Master * | GCE | GCE | 1983 | *Requires light pen. |
| Mine Storm | GCE | 1982 | Built-in console game. A bug-fix version on physical cartridge was released by mail-order only in 1983, titled "Mine Storm II". | |
| Polar Rescue | GCE | GCE | 1983 | |
| Pole Position | GCE | GCE | 1983 | |
| Rip-Off | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | |
| Scramble | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | Bandai's title: "Scramble Wars". |
| Solar Quest | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | |
| Space Wars | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | |
| Spike | GCE | GCE, MB | 1983 | The only Vectrex game to include speech in the game. Notable for using the built in hardware to provide the speech unlike most other consoles of the time that needed external add-on hardware to create speech. Game speech provided during scene interludes as a recorded phrase playback. Speech playback used so much of the Vectrex resources that speech during regular game play action that it would have affected game play. |
| Spinball | GCE | GCE, MB | 1983 | MB's title: "Flipper Pinball" |
| Star Castle | GCE | GCE | 1983 | |
| Starhawk | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | |
| Star Trek: The Motion Picture | GCE | GCE, MB, Bandai | 1982 | MB's title: "Star Ship"; Bandai's title: "Harmagedon". |
| Web Wars | GCE | GCE, MB | 1983 | MB's title: "Web Warp". |
Unreleased
 |
Unreleased titles by official publishers (General Consumer Electronics (GCE), Milton Bradley (MB) and Bandai.
- Mail Plane (1983) (requires light pen). Prototype game. Introduced GCE/MB marketing literature in USA, Canada, Europe, and Japan. The prototype for the USA area map version appears to be a complete game. Also pictured in MB Finnish language marketing literature for Nordic and European areas indicated MB intended to provide a release with maps specific to Europe.[3] In 2013 Mail Plane was recovered from a prototype cartridge by Chris Romero (a.k.a. "Vectrexer"). The recovered software was released on December 1, 2013[4] as binary image via made available for public download.
- Test Cart (a.k.a. Test REV. 4) (1982) The Test Cart is a test and diagnostic cartridge for the Vectrex. Various functions are supported based mainly around testing display alignment and intensity, controller functionality, and sound generation. A function to check the installed BIOS checksum is also included. The Test Cart is meant to be used along with the Vectrex Service Manual when repairing and testing the Vectrex game system. Also found later in 2000 was a single Overlay for use with the Test Cart. The Test Cart Overlay was acquired in a private sale from a former GCE employee. The Test Cart Overlay was scanned by Chris Romero (a.k.a. "Vectrexer") and made available in 2001 for public usage,[5] and later on Spike's Big Page.[6]
- Cube Quest (1983)
- Dark Tower
- Pitchers Duel
- Tour de France
Homebrew titles (1996 to present)
|
- 3D Lord of the Robots
- 3D Sector-X
- 3D Sector-X Hell's Fury
- 3D Scape
- 3D Scape First Edition
- Alien Hunter
- All Good Things
- Asteroid Cowboy
- Beluga Dreams
- Berzerk Debugged
- Big Blue
- BRECHER
- Chimney Hunt
- Circus Vectrex
- City Bomber
- Colorclash
- Colorclash Limited Edition
- Colorclash Slim
- Continuum
- Continuum The Infernal Tetramorph
- Continuum The 7 Pillars of Purgatory
- Continuum Time Warp
- Cronotics
- Crush of Lucifer
- Cube Quest
- Dead of Knight
- Debris Exclusive Edition
- Debris Limited Edition
- Debris Revisited
- Debris Revisited VIP
- Everyday is Halloween
- FRESSSAKK – Highscore Edition
- Frontier
- Galaxy Wars/Space Launcher
- Gravitrex Plus
- Hell Hole
- Hex
- Hexed!
- I, Cyborg
- I, Cyborg: Edition X
- I, Cyborg: OMEGA
- Irrelevant
- Karl Quappe
- KnightEx
- Logo
- Mail Plane
- MENSCHENJAGD
- MineX
- Moon Lander
- N. E. L. S.
- Nebula Commander
- NOX/Death Chase
- Obsolet
- Omega Chase Deluxe
- Omega Chase Deluxe – Collector's Edition
- Patriots
- Patriots Limited Edition
- Performance VX
- Pitcher's Duel
- Player 2
- Protector LE
- Protector/Y*A*S*I
- Quartz's Quest
- Revector
- Release
- Robot Arena
- Rockaroids (limited edition)
- Rockaroids Remix
- Rotor
- Royal 21
- Royal 21 Boston
- Royal 21 Christmas
- Royal 21 Vegas
- RushHour
- Sectis
- Sectis Limited Edition
- Sectis Master Edition
- Shifted
- Snowball
- Space Frenzy
- SpideX
- Spike and the Angry Vortex Bird
- Spike Hoppin'
- Spike's Circus
- Spike's Water Balloons Analog
- Spin-Cart
- Spinnerama
- Spudster's Revenge
- Star Sling LE
- Star Sling Premium Limited Edition
- Star Sling Turbo Edition
- Star Trek Debugged
- STERNENKRIEGER
- Stramash Zone
- Sundance
- Sundance: Dark of the Sun
- Thrust
- Tour de France
- Trapped
- Tsunami/VIX
- Tsunami/VIX – Collectors Edition
- V-Frogger
- V-Hockey
- Vaboom!/Vectrace
- VeCaves/Spike's Spree
- VecMan
- Vecmania
- Vec Sports Boxing
- Vec Sports Boxing Limited Edition
- Veccy Bird
- Vec Wars: Retro Devolved
- Vectoblox
- Vectopia
- Vector 21
- Vector 21: A Fistful of Wildcards!
- Vector 21: OMEGA
- Vector Patrol
- Vector Pilot
- Vector Vaders
- Vectorblade
- Vectrexagon
- Vectrexians
- Vectrexians Deluxe
- Verzerk
- War of the Robots
- War of the Robots: CGE2K3
- War of the Robots: OMEGA
- War of the Worlds
- War of the Worlds Time Rift
- Warrior
- Wireout
- Wireout RE
- Xmas Cart 2014
- Xmas Cart 2014 + 2015 Double Pack
- Xmas Cart 2015
- Zantis
- Zantis: 99 Ways to Die
- Zombie Apocalypse: USA
References
- ^ Classic Videogame Hardware Genius Guide Imagine Publishing. Chapter 9.
- ^ Vectrex Collector site
- ^ Romero, Chris (1983). "Swedish MB Vectrex Marketing Literature Poster". MB. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
- ^ Romero, Chris. "Vectrex Mail Plane Release Notice on Vector Forums Release". vectorgaming.proboards.com. Chris Romero. Archived from the original on 9 October 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
- ^ Romero, Chris (1 August 2001). "Test Cart Overlays are here!". Newsgroup: rec.games.vectrex. d798d1f3.0108271821.66571675@posting.google.com. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
- ^ Romero, Chris. "Vectrex Test Cart Overlay from Chris Romero on Spike's Big Page". Spike's Big Page. Corey c. (a.k.a. "BaronVR"). p. http://www.atarihq.com/vectrex/Test_Cart_150DPI.jpg. Archived from the original on 9 November 2001. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vectrex.
