Re:Tempest vs. Tempest: The Making and Remaking of Atari's I...
by chuckmeyer on Wednesday April 22, 2026 @11:46PM
(#47872067)
The vector graphics are why I always seek this game out first in any arcade.
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Re:Tempest vs. Tempest: The Making and Remaking of Atari's I...
by Angostura on Thursday April 23, 2026 @05:01AM
(#47873602)
Not the tank game (Battletanks?)
Re:Tempest vs. Tempest: The Making and Remaking of Atari's I...
by toast0 on Thursday April 23, 2026 @11:48AM
(#47877219)
Battlezone
Re:Tempest vs. Tempest: The Making and Remaking of Atari's I...
by Angostura on Thursday April 23, 2026 @01:10PM
(#47878371)
That’s the one. Thanks!
Re:Tempest vs. Tempest: The Making and Remaking of Atari's I...
by m463 on Thursday April 23, 2026 @11:42AM
(#47877104)
Also the spinner. The physical spinner is key (but unacknowledged or at least underappreciated)
Re:Tempest vs. Tempest: The Making and Remaking of Atari's I...
by LanceH on Thursday April 23, 2026 @11:22PM
(#47885116)
It was weighted and solid, like from an old stereo. You let it spin and stop it to move a longer distance quickly instead of doing multiple turns.
My family had multiple (various) machines in an arcade and we kept this at home for some time. I often think of this specific example piece of hardware versus everything plastic today.
Re:Tempest vs. Tempest: The Making and Remaking of Atari's I...
by greedo on Thursday April 23, 2026 @05:15PM
(#47882144)
I once got in a huge argument about the superiority of vector graphics displays around 2010. The idea that LCD could match what Tempest had was silly to me, but the kid I was arguing with had never seen a Tempest cabinet and just assumed old meant bad...
Re:Tempest vs. Tempest: The Making and Remaking of Atari's I...
by ButlerianJihad on Thursday April 23, 2026 @05:23PM
(#47882247)
Vector vs. raster isn’t about superiority. Each technology can do unique things that aren’t matched by the other.
The dichotomy hasn’t gone away, though. Vector plotters may still be running in certain print shops or scientific settings.
PostScript, PCL, TrueType fonts incorporate vector technology. SVG is a very popular graphics file format for both writing and reading. I know several artists who specialize in SVG and contribute them to Wikimedia Commons.