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Strap yourself in, and get ready for the green light. It's time to put the pedal to the metal and burn rubber down the quarter mile. Speed is the name of the game, and you'll have to push your engine to the absolute limit in order to win, because this week's game is Dragster!
Game Information
- Game Name: Dragster
- Released By: Activision, 1980
- Left Difficulty: No Effect
- Right Difficulty: No Effect
- Game Mode: Game 1 - Straight-ahead Dragster
- Chosen By: Goochman
As before, next week's game will be chosen by the next person in the member list, which happens to be mikeftrevino! Please send me a private message with your choice of game for next week!
If you are not a member of the High Score Club, but would like to be, then all you have to do is post a score for this week's game, and I'll add you to the list!
Current Best Times
- 5.61 (D.Yancey) [+11]
5.61 (the 5th ghost) [+11] - 5.64 (Christophero Sly) [+10]
- 5.74 (Thomas Jentzsch) [+9]
- 5.81 (keilbaca) [+8]
- 5.84 (sku_u) [+7]
- 5.87 (LarcenTyler) [+6]
- 5.91 (Malc74) [+5]
- 5.97 (Numan) [+4]
- 6.07 (vdub_bobby) [+3]
6.07 (SpiceWare) [+3] - 6.14 (Goochman) [+2]
- 6.24 (arlo) [+1]
6.24 (video game addict) [+1] - 6.34 (shadow460) [+1]
6.34 (silverpoodleman) [+1]
6.34 (supercat) [+1] - 6.51 (scogey) [+1]
- 6.54 (Gamemaster_ca_2003) [+1]
- 6.71 (Atarifever) [+1]
- 7.18 (Keir) [+1]
- DNF (khryssun) [+1]
- D.Yancey [+2]
- World Class Dragster Club - Beat 6 seconds and get 2 bonus points.
- D.Yancey, the 5th ghost, Christophero Sly, Thomas Jentzsch, keilbaca, sku_u, LarcenTyler, Malc74, Numan [+2]
- D.Yancey, the 5th ghost, Christophero Sly, Thomas Jentzsch, keilbaca, sku_u, LarcenTyler, Malc74, Numan [+2]
- 05.510 (Todd Rogers)
- 05.610 (David B Yancey)
- 05.740 (Wolff K Morrow)
(Game 1, Difficulty B)
Coming Soon! |
Member List
- mikeftrevino, StanJr, Osbo, Numan, vdub_bobby, Dones, Gamemaster_ca_2003, awsomo3000, Voch, Stingray, scogey, Bubbledragon, video game addict, pitfallaimee, Blackjack, racer raul, SpiceWare, Robert M, Lord Helmet, Lord Thag, Mad Scientist, Dan Iacovelli, iguana, Luigi301, Gateway, Damon Plus, gospeedde, Kepone, internetotaku, panda_racer, KaeruYojimbo, cyberneticimplant, bjk7382, davepesc, neotokeo2001, xeex, bmlbytes, Omegamatrix, the 5th ghost, Xebec's Demise, khryssun, vgcollector666, chadtower, moycon, Malc74, shadow460, Atarifever, Keir, supercat, FireTiger, Philflound, Fellow Atari Man, keilbaca, brendano, Cybergoth, durden26, sku_u, mitsubachi, arlo, Recycled, LarcenTyler, silverpoodleman, 128bytes, Goochman
- You do not score points in Dragster, rather you are judged based on the time it took to complete the run. Getting the best time requires you to shift at the proper times without blowing your engine. See the manual for more info.
The Manual said:
As always, you really should read the manual.
What's that? You don't have the manual? Well, AtariAge happens to have both a scanned copy and a typed version of it online for your reading pleasure. Here are the tips the manual provides:
- The key to World Class times in Dragster is training your reflexes to clutch and shift quickly, accelerating at maximum power in each gear without blowing your engine. Call it racing shifting, if you like, but it's the only way you'll get your speed down under seven seconds.
- There are a couple of tricks that are not so obvious. For example, put the clutch in during the last numbers of the countdown, hold it in, rev up (careful) and pop the clutch by letting go of the Joystick the instant the screen reads 0.
- Then you should try to rev your engine to keep the tach in the red as you go through all four gears (without blowing your engine). You've got to keep your revs up for speed.
- If you drop out of the red in any gear (and particularly in third or fourth), try tapping the Joystick quickly to the left a few times ("popping the clutch") to get added acceleration.
- Do a wheelie? Sure, go ahead. When your front wheels come up off the road, you're getting maximum acceleration. But watch out! Push the gas too hard and you'll blow!
What's that? You don't have the manual? Well, AtariAge happens to have both a scanned copy and a typed version of it online for your reading pleasure. Here are the tips the manual provides:
- The key to World Class times in Dragster is training your reflexes to clutch and shift quickly, accelerating at maximum power in each gear without blowing your engine. Call it racing shifting, if you like, but it's the only way you'll get your speed down under seven seconds.
- There are a couple of tricks that are not so obvious. For example, put the clutch in during the last numbers of the countdown, hold it in, rev up (careful) and pop the clutch by letting go of the Joystick the instant the screen reads 0.
- Then you should try to rev your engine to keep the tach in the red as you go through all four gears (without blowing your engine). You've got to keep your revs up for speed.
- If you drop out of the red in any gear (and particularly in third or fourth), try tapping the Joystick quickly to the left a few times ("popping the clutch") to get added acceleration.
- Do a wheelie? Sure, go ahead. When your front wheels come up off the road, you're getting maximum acceleration. But watch out! Push the gas too hard and you'll blow!
Christophero Sly said:
If your RPMs are too high as you near the end of a run, you can avoid a blowout and coast the final few pixels to the finish line by releasing the throttle and engaging the clutch.
D.Yancey said:
The part about starting in 2nd gear is just a matter of getting out of 1st gear ASAP. You actually still begin in 1st when you pop the clutch, but you shift to 2nd as quickly as is possible for you. I usually let 2nd rev as highly as possible to shift to 3rd without letting off the button. The red line will peak out during the shift and fall back dramatically. As soon as that wheelie hits the ground, I'm shifting to 4th. I don't let 3rd wind out at all, but I don't try to skip it completely either. Then my 4th gear is just as many quick crisp taps as will fit without blowing the engine, letting the wheelie hit the ground between each tap.
Christophero Sly said:
Expanding on D. Yancey's tips... tapping the shifter in 4th gear (popping of wheelie) in order to maximize your RPMs is the critical factor in scoring low times. Try to make 4 - 6 taps, taking your RPMs as close to blowout as you dare.
D.Yancey said:
How long are you running 2nd gear?
Just long enough so that I can shift to 3rd without blowing the engine while the clutch is in. So it depends on how responsive you joystick is and how quickly you can shift.
After I shift from 2nd into 3rd I don't really listen to the RPM's. As soon as the 3rd gear wheelie hits the ground, I slap it into 4th and start tapping. I usually get 6 or 7 4th gear taps on my best runs, but I've gotten in 8 before. We're talking quick taps with a firm/tight joystick. The quality of the stick is paramount when you've gotten to this level of play.
Just long enough so that I can shift to 3rd without blowing the engine while the clutch is in. So it depends on how responsive you joystick is and how quickly you can shift.
After I shift from 2nd into 3rd I don't really listen to the RPM's. As soon as the 3rd gear wheelie hits the ground, I slap it into 4th and start tapping. I usually get 6 or 7 4th gear taps on my best runs, but I've gotten in 8 before. We're talking quick taps with a firm/tight joystick. The quality of the stick is paramount when you've gotten to this level of play.
Good luck everyone!
--Ze_ro
I am obviously not patient enough for this, I keep blowing out or running early.
