Fire Truck
1978 · Racing · Arcade
Overview
Fire Truck (1978) is Atari's co-operative driving game: one player steers the cab and another steers the ladder trailer of an articulated fire engine.
Deep Dive
Fire Truck is a driving game built around teamwork. The cabinet has two steering wheels — one for the cab and one for the rear trailer — and because the back of the vehicle steers independently, getting the truck around corners without clipping the scenery takes real coordination between the drivers. It simulated the handling of a hook-and-ladder engine at a time when almost every other arcade game pitted players against each other rather than asking them to cooperate.
Developer Story
Fire Truck was developed by Atari and released in 1978. It was built for two players working together — one steering the cab, the other steering the rear trailer. The articulated fire truck mechanic, where the back of the vehicle steered independently, was a novel simulation of the real steering dynamics of large emergency vehicles.
Did You Know?
- Fire Truck was one of the first arcade games built around two-player co-operative play.
- The articulated trailer mechanic required genuine coordination between players — the front and rear steered independently, making teamwork essential.
- The game used a unique dual steering wheel setup: one player steered the cab, another steered the trailer.
- It was released the same year as Space Invaders — while Taito was changing arcades globally, Atari was experimenting with co-operative social gaming.
Sources & further reading
- Fire Truck (video game) — Wikipedia
