Editing Cinematronics

{{Short description|Arcade game developer}}
{{About||the Windows game developer|Cinematronics, LLC|the album by Ugress|Cinematronics (album)}}
{{more citations needed|date=April 2019}}

{{Infobox company
| name = Cinematronics Incorporated
| logo = Cinematronics Inc logo.jpg
| fate = [[Purchasing|Purchased]] by [[Tradewest]] and assets used to created [[Leland Corporation|The Leland Corporation]]
| successor = The Leland Corporation
| foundation = April 1, 1975
| defunct = October 21, 1987
| location = [[El Cajon, California|El Cajon]], [[California]]
| industry = [[Video game industry|Video games]]
| key_people = Jim Pierce (co-founder)<br>Thomas Stroud<br>Fred Fukumoto
| products = ''[[Space Wars]]''<br>''[[Star Castle]]''<br>''[[Dragon's Lair (1983 video game)|Dragon's Lair]]''<br>"World Series: The Season"|<!--some of company's notable products-->
| num_employees = <!--peak number of employees-->
| parent = <!--former parent companies, if any-->
| subsid = Cinematronics International, Inc.
}}
'''Cinematronics Incorporated''' was an [[arcade game]] [[video game developer|developer]] that primarily released [[vector graphics]] games in the late 1970s and early 1980s. While other companies released games based on [[raster graphics|raster display]]s, early in their history, Cinematronics and [[Atari, Inc.]] released vector-display games, which offered a distinctive look and a greater graphic capability (at the time), at the cost of being only black and white (initially). Cinematronics also published ''[[Dragon's Lair (1983 video game)|Dragon's Lair]]'' in 1983, the first major [[LaserDisc]] video game.

== History ==
Cinematronics Inc. was founded on April 1, 1975, by two players of the [[San Diego Chargers]] football team, Dennis Partee and Gary Garrison, as well as Jimmie Dale “Jim” Pierce (1937–2011) in San Diego, California. Garrison initially served as president until Pierce assumed that role.<ref>{{Citation |title=Articles of Incorporation |date=April 1, 1975 |publisher=Cinematronics, Inc.}}</ref> The company first entered the market creating clones of ''Pong'', selling them in the local area. Their first game offered nationally was ''Flipper Ball'' (1976) followed by ''Embargo'' (1977). The company struggled to stay afloat and in 1977 Garrison sold his share to [[mortgage broker]] Ralph Clarke.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rhoades |first=Frank |date=1977-04-29 |title=Cinematronics |work=[[San Diego Union]] |pages=B-2}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Alexander |title=They create worlds: the story of the people and companies that shaped the video game industry |date=2020 |publisher=CRC Press, Taylor & Francis group |isbn=978-1-138-38990-8 |location=Boca Raton, [Florida] London New York, [New York]}}</ref>

=== Vector Games ===
At the end of 1977, Cinematronics released the game ''[[Space Wars]]'', developed by independent game developer Larry Rosenthal. The game was a [[Transistor–transistor logic|TTL]]-based recreation of the [[mainframe]] game ''[[Spacewar!]]'' which ran using a custom [[vector monitor]] display. Cinematronics, approaching bankruptcy, agreed to manufacture the game in exchange for a five percent royalty on each cabinet to Rosenthal.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Keith |date=2012-11-21 |title=The Golden Age Arcade Historian: The Ultimate (So Far) History of Cinematronics/Vectorbeam - Pt 2 |url=https://allincolorforaquarter.blogspot.com/2012/11/at-end-of-part-1-cinematronics-was-in.html |access-date=2024-02-28 |website=The Golden Age Arcade Historian}}</ref>

''Space Wars'' was first shown at the Amusement and Music Operators of America show in October 1977, but Cinematronics was not ready to produce it. They brought in manufacturing expert Ken Beuck who had worked at [[Atari, Inc.|Atari Inc.]] and salesman Bill Cravens to help sell the game.<ref name=":0" /> To finance the operation and keep the company from dissolving, San Diego coin-op operator Thomas B. Stroud bought out Partee's share in the company.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1978-01-28 |title=Cinematronics Has New Management Team: Pierce Stays On As President |journal=Cash Box |volume=39 |issue=35 |pages=60}}</ref>

When the first units were shipped at the end of 1977,<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1977-12-17 |title=California Clippings |journal=Cash Box |volume=39 |issue=29 |pages=49}}</ref> ''Space Wars'' was the first commercially available video game using [[vector graphics]], which enabled a higher resolution display than [[raster graphics]] of the time. The game became the best-selling coin-operated video game of 1978 and sold around 7,000 units.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=May 1979 |title=THE 25￠ SPACE PROGRAM |journal=Starlog |pages=16}}</ref> The success helped save Cinematronics, but Rosenthal along with Bill Cravens were discontented with the company. In April 1978, Rosenthal left the company to found a new operation called Sunrise Research in [[Northern California]].<ref>{{Citation |title=Articles of Incorporation |date=May 5, 1978 |publisher=Sunrise Research, Inc.}}</ref> At the behest of his lawyer, he took with him all the documentation necessary to create vector games on his hardware system. Cinematronics retained a [[licensing agreement]] to create games using Larry Rosenthal's patents for his vector hardware, but was deprived on the knowledge to do so. Rosenthal's company was eventually renamed Vectorbeam, a marketing name that had been used for the technology at Cinematronics.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1978-07-15 |title=Space Wars man starts company |journal=Play Meter |volume=4 |issue=13 |pages=67}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Keith |date=2012-11-26 |title=The Golden Age Arcade Historian: The Ultimate (So Far) History of Cinematronics/Vectorbeam, Pt. 3 |url=https://allincolorforaquarter.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-ultimate-so-far-history-of_26.html |access-date=2024-02-28 |website=The Golden Age Arcade Historian}}</ref>

Luckily, Cinematronics managed to continue creating games due to two bits of happenstance. Firstly, an engineer named Bob Long had copied the operational codes for Rosenthal's system. Second, Rosenthal had evaluated a new employee named Tim Skelly prior to his departure. Skelly arrived at Cinematronics after Rosenthal had left and developed their first new game after the departure, with the help of technical engineers Dennis Halverson and Rob Patton.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Wolf |first=Mark J. P. |title=Before the crash: early video game history |date=2012 |publisher=Wayne State University Press |isbn=978-0-8143-3450-8 |series=Contemporary approaches to film and media series |location=Detroit}}</ref>

Throughout 1978, Cinematronics experienced a realignment of management. Ralph Clarke departed the company and Tom Stroud's son Tom A Stroud took on the responsibility of salesman.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=May 1978 |title=Cineamtronics & Segasa Pact |journal=RePlay |volume=3 |issue=8 |pages=13}}</ref> Pierce briefly stepped down as president before reassuming the role.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1978-10-21 |title=California Clippings |journal=Cash Box |volume=40 |issue=21 |pages=67}}</ref> The company did not release any product that year, but debuted Tim Skelly's first game for them, ''[[Starhawk (1979 video game)|Starhawk]]'' (1979), at the Amusement Trade Expo (ATE) in January 1979.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lally II |first=Ralph |date=1979-03-15 |title=It wasn't too bad after all |journal=Play Meter |volume=5 |issue=5 |pages=46–48}}</ref> Released in March, the game was successful, outcompeting the offering by Vectorbeam, ''[[Speed Freak]]'' (1979).

Jim Pierce and Tom Stroud kept in communication with Rosenthal to convince them to sell his patents to them. After little more than a year of independence, Vectorbeam was sold to Cinematronics along with the rights to his two patents on vector game technology on June 1, 1979.<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite journal |date=July 1979 |title=Vectorbeam sold |journal=Play Meter |volume=5 |issue=13 |pages=59}}</ref> Vectorbeam became a subsidiary, with Tom A Stroud as the President and Tim Skelly as head of product development.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=June 1979 |title=Cinematronics/Vectorbeam Pact |journal=RePlay |volume=4 |issue=9 |pages=7}}</ref> Rosenthal continued developing games including ''[[Tail Gunner]]'' (1979) and the unreleased ''Oops!'' (1979)<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Garcia |first=Guy |date=1979-08-13 |title=Oops! |journal=New West |pages=10}}</ref> before departing the company. He later sued Cinematronics for payment of his contractual buyout of his patents.

Vectorbeam served as an alternative factory and label for Cinematronics products through the rest of 1979. ''Barrier'' (1979) and ''[[Warrior (arcade game)|Warrior]]'' (1979) were released under the Vectorbeam name. In November 1979, Cinematronics sold the Vectorbeam factory and assets to [[Exidy|Exidy Inc.]] who relabeled them as Exidy II. Through this, Exidy gained the rights to develop vector games after their release of ''Tailgunner'' as ''Tailgunner II''.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1980-03-22 |title=Vectorbeam Is Now 'Exidy II' |journal=Cash Box |volume=41 |issue=43 |pages=42}}</ref> A few Vectorbeam staff took positions at Cinematronics in San Diego.

In 1980, Cinematronics began exploiting their rights to the vector game patents more readily. They sued Atari Inc. for their creation of games like ''[[Lunar Lander (1979 video game)|Lunar Lander]]'' and ''[[Asteroids (video game)|Asteroids]]'' with their own vector system.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1980-04-15 |title=Cinematronics sues Atari, claims patent infringement |journal=Play Meter |volume=6 |issue=7 |pages=41}}</ref> The case was eventually settled out of court.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1981-10-15 |title=News briefs |journal=Play Meter |volume=7 |issue=19 |pages=148}}</ref> They began licensing their games to be produced in the [[Arcade_cabinet#Cocktail_cabinets|cocktail table]] format by [[Rock-Ola]], who used their license to develop vector games ''Demon!'' (1982) and ''QB-3'' (1982). They later gained a landmark judgement in video game copyright when they halted the sale of illegal copies of ''[[Star Castle]]'' (1980).<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1981-06-01 |title=Star Castle 'copies' in court |journal=Play Meter |volume=7 |issue=10 |pages=22}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |date=1981-07-15 |title=Star Castle copies come to El Cajon under fed order |journal=Play Meter |volume=7 |issue=13 |pages=34}}</ref>

''Star Castle'' was co-developed by Skelly and new programmer Scott Boden. It became Cinematronics’ most successful game, selling over 10,000 units and remaining in production over most of 1981.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=January 1981 |title=El Cajon's "Hit Castle" |journal=RePlay |pages=71–72}}</ref> A dispute between Skelly and Cinematronics management led to his departure from the company. He was then hired by [[Gremlin Industries|Sega/Gremlin]], who was also developing vector games, inciting Cinematronics to sue Gremlin and Skelly personally over alleged theft of [[trade secret]]s.<ref name=":1" />

The company moved into a newly built 78,000 sq ft facility on 1841 Friendship Drive in El Cajon in June 1981.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=July 1981 |title=Cinematronics Hosts Housewarming For New El Cajon, California Facility |journal=Vending Times |pages=56}}</ref> After releasing the last game developed by Skelly for them, ''[[Armor Attack]]'' (1981), Cinematronics struggled to find new product to fill their factory. Scott Boden developed ''[[Solar Quest]]'' (1981) to fill a slot after ''Star Castle''’s production had ceased but failed to find the same success. They attempted to formalize product development, bringing in official managers to set deadlines as well as leading to them developing a tank gunner simulator under a military contract.<ref>''[https://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/access/text/2012/11/102706168-05-01-acc.pdf A Culture of Innovation: Insider Accounts of Computing and Life at BBN]'', edited by David Walden and Raymond Nickerson, p. 503.</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Keith |date=2013-01-05 |title=The Golden Age Arcade Historian: The Ultimate (So Far) History of Cinematronics/Vectorbeam - Pt. 6 |url=https://allincolorforaquarter.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-ultimate-so-far-history-of_5.html |access-date=2024-03-02 |website=The Golden Age Arcade Historian}}</ref> Their development of a color vector hardware resulted in the release of the unsuccessful ''Boxing Bugs'' (1982).

=== Bankruptcy and LaserDisc Games ===
Former Vice President of Finance of the company, Fred Fukumoto, assumed the Presidency of Cinematronics from Jim Pierce in January 1982.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1982-01-30 |title=Around The Route |journal=Cash Box |volume=43 |issue=34 |pages=41}}</ref> Fukumoto's plan for assuring product flow into the company was to license video games from Japanese companies, similar to how Midway had found success with the likes of ''[[Space Invaders]]'' and ''[[Galaxian]]''. They imported the games ''Naughty Boy'' (1982) and ''[[Jack the Giantkiller]]'' (1982) which were both unsuccessful. They canceled many projects including their military contract. In August 1982, they were foreclosed on by Security Pacific Bank and entered [[Chapter 11 Bankruptcy]]. Fukumoto left the company and Pierce resumed duties as president.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Shaw |first=Mike |date=1982-10-15 |title=Pierce Back to Save Cinematronics |journal=Play Meter |pages=19–20}}</ref>

Still operating in bankruptcy, they maintained a small internal development team – developing the game ''[[Cosmic Chasm]]'' (1983) – and started a partnership with the company [[RDI Video Systems|Advanced Microcomputer Systems]]. After releasing the game ''[[Zzyzzyxx]]'' (1982), AMS convinced Cinematronics to manufacture their proposed [[Laserdisc game]], ''[[Dragon's Lair (1983 video game)|Dragon’s Lair]]'' (1983), in partnership with [[Don Bluth Productions]]. The heads of all three companies formed the entity Starcom to control the rights for the game and any subsequent Laserdisc game releases.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ressner |first=Jeffrey |date=1983-05-21 |title=Cinematronics Gambling With Laserdisc-Controlled Vid Game |journal=Cash Box |volume=44 |issue=48 |pages=37, 41}}</ref> Cinematronics organized the production of the game and rode a wave of massive interest to success. ''Dragon’s Lair'' kept the company out of bankruptcy and gave them a national profile as leaders in video game technology.

By the time of the follow-up to Dragon's Lair, ''[[Space Ace]]'' (1984), the partnership between the companies had fallen apart. The collapse of Laserdisc games and the diverging interests of AMS and Don Bluth Productions led them away from developing more games together. Cinematronics location tested ''[[Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp|Dragon’s Lair II: Time Warp]]'', but did not release it at the time. It would eventually be the final arcade release of [[Leland Corporation|The Leland Corporation]] in 1991.

=== Raster Games and Cinemat System ===
Still in bankruptcy, Cinematronics reformed its internal development structure. They abandoned the development of the vector game technology and started creating their own raster games again for the first time since ''Embargo''. Many of the developers came from Sega/Gremlin, another San Diego company who had recently shed their internal development apparatus. Starting with ''Freeze'' (1984), they rebuilt their game-making capacity.

In 1985, Cinematronics introduced the Cinemat system hardware. Part of a trend which included the [[Nintendo VS. System|Nintendo VS System]], [[Capcom]]'s CPS, and later [[Neo Geo (system)|Neo Geo]], the Cinemat was a standardized cabinet which allowed operators to change out their current games for a fraction of the price of a full upright cabinet. The software, marquee, and control panel could be changed out of a standard housing.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=March 1985 |title=Cinematronics Up & Cookin' with New 'Cinemat' System's First Game, 'Cerberus'; Celebrates 10th Anniversary |journal=RePlay |pages=139}}</ref> Their first release ''Cerberus'' (1985) was followed by more, including ''World Series: The Season'' (1985). ''World Series'' was a huge technological leap and a significant hit for the company after the [[Golden age of arcade video games|Golden Age of Arcade Video Games]].

None of their follow-up products from ''World Series'' were nearly as successful and the company remained in [[Chapter 11 bankruptcy]] – reportedly the longest in the history of California. Jim Pierce felt that he needed to sell the company to keep it operation, so he sold the company on March 30, 1987, to Tradewest, an arcade game licensor and manufacturer operated by Leland Cook, Byron Cook, and John Rowe.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=April 1987 |title=A Done Deal |journal=RePlay |pages=4}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |date=April 1987 |title=Tradewest buys Cinematronics |journal=Play Meter |pages=38}}</ref> Cinematronics was taken through bankruptcy, with Tradewest acquiring all of the assets and reforming them as [[Leland Corporation|The Leland Corporation]]. The legal entity of Cinematronics was dissolved on October 21, 1987.

=== Legacy ===
In bringing vector graphics to the coin-op industry with ''Space Wars'', Cinematronics helped to inaugurate an entirely different type of arcade game. Large video game manufacturers like Atari, [[Midway Manufacturing|Midway]], and Sega/Gremlin all created vector games after viewing the success of Cinematronics. Developments in 3D-based vector hardware, as in Atari's ''[[Battlezone (1980 video game)|Battlezone]]'', also provided the technological basis for some of the earliest games with three-dimensional graphics in the arcade.

Cinematronics’ other major innovation, the Laserdisc game in ''Dragon’s Lair'', has been seen as a landmark moment in the evolution of [[multimedia]]. Though the game was criticized for its lack of interactivity, it was the first commercially successful game incorporating traditional audio-visual elements with video game mechanics. Subsequent versions of ''Dragon’s Lair'' and ''Space Ace'' were [[porting|ported]] and converted to various home systems in the 1980s and 1990s, though they did not contain the Cinematronics branding.

Games like ''Warrior'' and ''Rip Off'' have been praised as innovative takes on arcade gameplay, showing early stages of [[fighting game]]s and [[Cooperative video game|co-operative gameplay]], respectively. ''Star Castle'', ''Armor Attack'', and ''World Series: The Season'' have been considered among the best arcade games of all time.

Many of Cinematronics’ games received ports to the [[Vectrex]] home console under license. One of the original Vectrex titles, ''Cosmic Chasm'' (1982), was converted into an arcade game by Cinematronics.

The rights to Cinematronics’ titles were retained by [[Midway Games]] after their purchase of Tradewest in 1994. Tim Skelly was asked to sign a legally binding agreement to give the rights to his games developed at Cinematronics to Midway.<ref name=":1" />

== Coin-operated games ==
All games developed by Cinematronics unless otherwise noted.

* Unknown Pong clone (1975)
* ''Flipper Ball'' (1976)
* ''Embargo'' (May 1977)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1977-05-07 |title=Combat On The High Seas Is Theme Of New 'Embargo' By Cinematronics |journal=Cash Box |volume=38 |issue=49 |pages=54}}</ref>
* ''Space Wars'' (December 1977) Developed by independent designer Larry Rosenthal.
* ''Starhawk'' (March 1979)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1979-03-17 |title=3-D Action In New Cinematronics 'Starhawk' Video |journal=Cash Box |volume=40 |issue=42 |pages=49}}</ref>
* ''Barrier'' (August 1979)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1979-08-11 |title=Vectorbeam Bows New 'Barrier' 3-D Video Machine |journal=Cash Box |volume=41 |issue=11 |pages=49–50}}</ref> Released under the Vectorbeam label.
* ''Sundance'' (October 1979)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1979-10-13 |title=Cinematronics Bows 'Sundance' |journal=Cash Box |volume=41 |issue=20 |pages=56}}</ref>
* ''Warrior'' (October 1979)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1979-10-13 |title=Vectorbeam Delivers 'Warrior' Video |journal=Cash Box |volume=41 |issue=20 |pages=57}}</ref> Released under the Vectorbeam label.
* ''Tailgunner'' (March 1980)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1980-03-08 |title=Exciting Space Combat Action In New Cinematronics 'Tailgunner' Video |journal=Cash Box |volume=41 |issue=41 |pages=41}}</ref> Developed by Vectorbeam. Later released by Exidy as Tailgunner II.
* ''Rip Off'' (March 1980)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1980-03-29 |title=Cinematronics Announces 'Rip Off' |journal=Cash Box |volume=41 |issue=44 |pages=103}}</ref>
* ''Star Castle'' (October 1980)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1980-10-18 |title=California Clippings |journal=Cash Box |volume=42 |issue=21 |pages=46}}</ref>
* ''Armor Attack'' (June 1981)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1981-06-06 |title=Cinematronics 'Armor Attack' Brings combat Action To The City Streets |journal=Cash Box |volume=43 |issue=1 |pages=37}}</ref>
* ''Solar Quest'' (October 1981)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1981-10-31 |title=Search & Destroy |journal=Cash Box |volume=43 |issue=22 |pages=C-15}}</ref> Developed by independent developer Scott Boden.
* ''Boxing Bugs'' (May 1982)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1982-05-22 |title=Cinematronics, Dynamo Announce Pact |journal=Cash Box |volume=43 |issue=50 |pages=42}}</ref>
* ''Naughty Boy'' (June 1982)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1982-06-19 |title=Naughty Video |journal=Cash Box |volume=44 |issue=2 |pages=41}}</ref> Developed by [[Jaleco]].
* ''Jack the Giantkiller'' (1982)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1982-05-01 |title=Storybook Video |journal=Cash Box |volume=43 |issue=47 |pages=35}}</ref> Developed by Hara Industries.
* ''Zzyzzyxx'' (December 1982) Developed by Advanced Microcomputer Systems. Later renamed Brix.
* ''War of the Worlds'' (February 1983) Also offered in a kit form by Progressive Game Distributors.
* ''Cosmic Chasm'' (April 1983)<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1983-05-07 |title=Space Wars |journal=Cash Box |volume=44 |issue=46 |pages=45}}</ref>
* ''Dragon’s Lair'' (July 1983) Developed by Advanced Microcomputer Systems. Licensed from Starcom.
* ''Space Ace'' (February 1984) Developed by Advanced Microcomputer Systems. Licensed from Magicom.
* ''Freeze'' (January 1985)
* ''Cerberus'' (February 1985)
* ''Mayhem 2002'' (March 1985)
* ''Power Play'' (September 1985)
* ''World Series: The Season'' (November 1985)
* ''Alley Master'' (May 1986)
* ''Danger Zone'' (December 1986)
* ''Redline Racer'' (December 1986) Also published by Tradewest.

=== Unreleased ===

* ''Doctor Strange'' (1980) A vector-based combat game based on the [[Marvel Comics]] [[Doctor Strange|character of the same name]], experimented by Tim Skelly with immediately after ''Warrior''.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=December 2006 |title=The Making Of... Warrior |journal=Edge Gaming |pages=101–103}}</ref>
* ''Catch and Throw'' (1980) A Tim Skelly concept where players were their own shooting projectile. Later worked on at Sega/Gremlin before eventually becoming ''[[Reactor (video game)|Reactor]]'' (1982) which Skelly independently developed for D. Gottlieb & Co.<ref name=":1" />
* ''Sentinel'' (1981) A fixed turret shooting game at advancing targets developed by Scott Boden and Tim Skelly. Evolved into ''Boxing Bugs''.
* ''Hovercraft'' (1983) An advanced vector graphics game utilizing polarized 3D imaging. Was location tested and planned to be shown at a trade show,<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite journal |date=1983-04-02 |title=Around the Route |journal=Cash Box |volume=44 |issue=41 |pages=32}}</ref> but was shelved in favor of ''Dragon’s Lair''.
* ''Cutter'' (c. 1983) A game where players destroyed the web of a spider.<ref name=":4" />
* ''Express Delivery'' (1984) A top-down racing and maze game with similar objectives to ''[[Paperboy (video game)|Paperboy]]'' (1985).<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1984-11-17 |title=The AMOA Exhibits |journal=Cash Box |volume=47 |issue=22 |pages=29}}</ref>
* ''Striker'' (c. 1986) The four player version of ''Power Play''.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*[http://www.dadgum.com/giantlist/archive/cinematronics.html Tim Skelly's History of Cinematronics and Vectorbeam] Retrieved Jul. 8, 2005.

== External links ==
* [http://www.dragons-lair-project.com/ The Dragon's Lair Project] history of Laser Disc games
* [http://www.klov.com/manuf_detail.php?manuf_id=258 KLOV.com: Cinematronics] — ''entry on the [[Killer List of Videogames|KLOV−Killer List of Videogames]]''.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071231000817/http://www.thedoteaters.com/p2_stage1.php The Dot Eaters.com: History of Cinematronics] and the development of early games such as ''Space Wars''
* [https://dadgum.com/giantlist/archive/cinematronics.html History of Cinematronics and Vectorbeam] by Tim Skelly

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1975 establishments in California]]
[[Category:1987 disestablishments in California]]
[[Category:Companies that have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy]]
[[Category:Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1982]]
[[Category:Cinematronics games| ]]
[[Category:Companies based in El Cajon, California]]
[[Category:Video game companies established in 1975]]
[[Category:Video game companies disestablished in 1987]]
[[Category:Defunct video game companies of the United States]]
[[Category:Video game development companies]]
[[Category:Defunct companies based in California]]
[[Category:Entertainment companies based in California]]