The Army Battlezone Q & A
Q: What is Army Battlezone?
A: Army Battlezone is a modified version of Atari Inc.'s Battlezone arcade game. Instead of driving a futuristic tank fighting other futuristic tanks, the player was cast as the gunner in an Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) against real-life opponents.
Q: What is the Infantry Fighting Vehicle?
A: The Infantry Fighting Vehicle is a cavalry/scout vehicle, that carries a pair of scouts, additional radios, ammunition, TOW (Tube-launched Optically-guided Weapon) missile rounds, and Dragon or Javelin anti-tank missiles. It was eventually renamed the M3 Cavalry Fighting Vehicle, a.k.a. the Bradley Fighting Vehicle.
{See a picture of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle}
Q: Why was Army Battlezone made?
A: The United States Army, always interested in saving money, was looking at using computer simulators for military training. Someone in the Pentagon heard about the Battlezone arcade game, which prompted the question of whether or not arcade games could be adapted to the task. Thus Army Battlezone was born.
Q: Who commissioned Atari to make Army Battlezone?
A: Atari was contacted for the project by a military "think-tank" organization formed by retired Army officers. All of Atari's involvement with Army Battlezone was through this intermediary company.
Q: Why didn't the Army contact Atari directly?
A: Using an intermediary made things easier for everyone. The Army would not have to go through the usual procurement procedure, Atari would not have to be investigated for security risks, and Warner Communications would not have to be treated as a defense contractor (which requires the release of financial records). Instead, the Army's intermediaries could simply hire Atari to make video games, and Atari could treat it as usual.
Q: How was Army Battlezone used?
A: Only two prototypes were ever actually made, and a few machines shipped (see below). The few that were delivered ended up being installed in public places on military bases, such as recreation centers and commissaries. There, soldiers on break could play the game, compete for high scores, and improve their skills in the process.
Q: Who worked on Army Battlezone?
A: The Atari employees who worked on Army Battlezone were--
Q: Were there any problems in the Army Battlezone project?
A: The main problem was a political one. At the time, a large part of Atari's engineering staff had strong anti-war feelings; they believed that Atari should have no involvement with the military in any form.
To be fair, other Atari employees were in favor of the project. A common argument was that, if Army Battlezone could help improve the Army's capabilities in some way (especially by reducing the danger of fratricide), then it was a good thing and deserved full support.
Ed Rothberg has publically admitted that he was angry and frustrated during the time he worked on Army Battlezone.
Q: How long did the Army Battlezone project take to complete?
A: Army Battlezone took about 10 months from initial proposal to final closure. Actual reprogramming of the game by Ed Rothberg took about three months.
Q: What are the differences between Battlezone and Army Battlezone?
A: There were changes in the controls and the game. The Battlezone controls were replaced with a simplified version of the IFV real-life gunnery controls. A gunnery yoke allowed the user to aim in the X and Y axis. A potentiometer allowed the player to dial in the target range, while a series of switches allowed the player to choose different weapons and change views (normal or magnified). There were no driving controls.
In the game, the player was cast as the gunner in an IFV. While the computer drove the tank, the player had to identify enemy targets and destroy all enemies. Available weapons were a 7.62mm machine gun, a cannon with HE (high explosive) or AP (armor-piercing) shells, and a TOW missile (Tube-launched Optically-guided Weapon). If the cannon was used, the player had to guess the size of the target, measure the distance, and adjust the potentiometer dial accordingly. If the TOW missile was used, the player had to steer it to the target with a set of on-screen crosshairs.
A major point of the game was to teach the player to destroy enemy targets with their first shot. Missing an enemy would bring immediate retaliation; using multiple shots to find the target was not a workable strategy. Destroying a friendly target immediately ended the game.
Q: When was Army Battlezone released?
A: The closest thing Army Battlezone had to a release was at a military conference in 1981. The nearly-finished prototype was supposedly well received, though details are not available. That was around when the project ended.
Q: So Army Battlezone was never released?
A: Apparently not. At best, only a handful of machines were made and shipped to the military. Two prototypes are known to exist, though their owners have been kept anonymous.
Q: Why is it difficult to get definitive answers about Army Battlezone?
A: Hard to say. Part of it is the relatively secret nature of the U.S. Army. Part of it is due to the secretive nature of Atari's upper management. Part of it is due to the frustrations of some of the engineers close to the project. And part of it is just fading memories. When folks still had fresh memories about Army Battlezone, they were not allowed to talk about it. When they were allowed to talk about it, their memories were no longer fresh.
Maybe someday a declassified Pentagon report will give all the details. Until then...
