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Pole Position (Arcade)

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Title Screen

Pole Position

Developer: Namco
Publishers: Namco (JP/INT), Atari, Inc. (US)
Platform: Arcade (Pole Position hardware)
Released in JP: July 1982
Released in US: November 1982


RegionIcon.png This game has regional differences.


Hmmm...
To do:
Rip the Prepare to Qualify/Race signs as the font is different between the Namco International version and the Atari version.

Pole Position was a hugely successful and influential racing game from the designer of Pac-Man. It laid the groundwork for the racing genre, which was built upon throughout the following decade and beyond.

Regional Differences

Title Screen

Namco Atari
PolePosition-Title-Namco.png PolePosition-Title-Atari.png

The Namco logo was replaced with an Atari one. There it is.

Graphics

Fun fact: The game uses palette trickery to allow two designs to be stored in the same graphic.

Namco Atari
PolePosition-Blimp-Namco.png PolePosition-Blimp-Atari.png

The blimp flying the banner at the beginning of the game was changed from a Goodyear one to an Atari one.

Namco Atari
PolePositionAC-Namcocheckpoint.png PolePositionAC-Fujicheckpoint.png

The Namco sign is replaced by a Fuji sign at a checkpoint.

Billboards

All the signs on the side of the road were changed in some way. The Namco version uses product placement from various outside companies (also one of the first video games to do so). The Atari version replaces all this with references to Atari/Namco and their games.

Namco Atari
PolePosition-Sign1.1-Namco.png
S.E.V. Marchal
That is the game you're playing
Pole Position
Smoking is bad for your health
Marlboro
POOKA
Dig Dug
PolePosition-Sign2.1-Namco.png
Agip
What's this doing on Fuji Speedway...?
USA
PolePosition-Sign2.2-Namco.png
Pepsi
PolePosition-Sign2.2-Atari.png
Centipede
PolePosition-Sign3.1-Namco.png
Champion
PolePosition-Sign3.1-Atari.png
Atari
Don't drink and drive
Martini & Rossi
PolePosition-Sign3.2-Atari.png
Namco
PolePosition-Sign4.1-Namco.png PolePosition-Sign4.1-Atari.png
PolePosition-Sign4.2-Namco.png PolePosition-Sign4.2-Atari.png
PolePosition-Sign5.1-Namco.png
Canon
PolePosition-Sign5.1-Atari.png
Atari
PolePosition-Sign5.2-Namco.png
Namco
PolePosition-Sign5.2-Atari.png
Namco

Regarding the last one, the top of the "a" in the Namco logo was slightly modified.