Solaris
1986 · Space Combat · Atari 2600
Overview
Solaris (1986) is Doug Neubauer's late Atari 2600 space epic: a 16-quadrant galaxy of Zylon fleets, minefields and wormholes, searched for the lost planet Solaris.
Deep Dive
The player pilots a starship across a galaxy of 16 quadrants and 48 sectors, charted on a Galactic Scanner. Sectors held by the Zylons must be cleared of enemy ships, while others contain star clusters, mine fields and wormholes. On planets the player can fight aliens, rescue humans and refuel at docking stations, and when Zylons attack a Federation planet in the current quadrant there are 40 seconds to defend it. The game needed 16K of bank-switched ROM, a large cartridge for the console.
Developer Story
Neubauer, who had made Star Raiders in 1980, pitched the game to Atari in 1984, and the company suggested tying it to the film The Last Starfighter. Development stalled after Jack Tramiel bought Atari, and it was revived and released in November 1986.
Did You Know?
- Fans have called it the true successor to Neubauer's Star Raiders, but Neubauer said it is not a sequel.
- In June 1989, three years after release, Electronic Gaming Monthly reported it as the best-selling 2600 or 7800 game in the US that month.
Sources & further reading
- Solaris (video game) — Wikipedia
