Gauntlet (1985 video game)

File:ARC Gauntlet.png

The game is set within a series of top-down, third-person, orthographic mazes where the object is to kill monsters, gather treasures, and find the exit in every level. An assortment of special items can be located in each level. These items can increase the player's health, unlock doors, award more points and destroy all of the enemies on screen.{{MobyGames|id=/gauntlet|name=Gauntlet}}

Each player controls one of four playable fantasy-based characters: Thor, a warrior; Merlin, a wizard; Thyra, a valkyrie; or Questor, an Elf. The characters are named on the cabinet artwork, but in-game they are referred only by the title of their classes. Each character has his or her own unique strengths and weaknesses. For example, the warrior is strongest in hand-to-hand combat, the wizard has the most powerful magic, the valkyrie has the best armor, and the Elf is the fastest in movement.{{cite web | url=http://www.arcade-history.com/?n=gauntlet&page=detail&id=938 | title=Gauntlet The Arcade Video Game by Atari Games Corp. | publisher=Arcade History}} The characters are assigned by control panel in the four-player version, whereas in the two-player version each player selects their own character at the start of the game or while joining during the middle of play.

The enemies are an assortment of fantasy-based monsters, including ghosts, grunts, demons, lobbers, sorcerers, and thieves. Each enters the level through specific generators, which can be destroyed. The most dangerous enemy is Death, who can only be destroyed by using a magic potion—otherwise Death will vanish automatically after it has drained a certain amount of health from the player.

As the game progresses, higher levels of skill are needed to reach the exit, with success often depending on the willingness of the players to cooperate by sharing food and luring monsters into places where they can be engaged and slaughtered more conveniently. While contact with enemies reduces the player's health, health also slowly drains on its own, thus creating a time limit. When a character's health reaches zero, that character dies. The character can be revived in place with full health by spending a game credit—inserting a coin in the arcade—within a certain short time window after it died. This allows even the least proficient players to keep playing indefinitely, if they are willing to keep inserting coins. However, each player's final score will be divided by the amount of credits they used to play.

Aside from the ability to have up to four players at once, the game is also noted for the narrator's voice, which is produced by a TMS5220C speech chip. The TMS5220C speech was encoded by Earl Vickers. The narrator (voiced by Ernie Fosselius) frequently makes statements repeating the game's rules, including: "Shots do not hurt other players, yet", "Remember, don't shoot food", "Elf shot the food", and "Warrior needs food, badly". The narrator occasionally comments on the battle by saying, "I've not seen such bravery" or "Let's see you get out of here". When a player's life force points fall below 200, the narrator states, "Your life force is running out", "Elf needs food", or "Valkyrie is about to die".

The control panel for the four-player cabinet is wider than other standard uprights in order to accommodate four people at the same time. Each player has an eight-way joystick and two buttons: one for "fire" (ranged attack) and one for "magic". The "magic" button also starts the game. After Gauntlet{{'}}s release, other games started using this design, so it was a popular conversion target for newer games after it had its run.

Originally called Dungeons, the game was conceived by Atari game designer Ed Logg. He claimed inspiration from his son's interest in the paper-based game Dungeons & Dragons and from his own interest in the 1983 four-player dungeon crawl for the Atari 8-bit computers, Dandy.

The game's development spanned from 1983 to 1985, with a team being led by designers Ed Logg and Roger Zeigler. The working title became legally unavailable in April 1985, so it was renamed Gauntlet in May. Based upon some of the most elaborate hardware design in Atari's history to date, it is the company's first coin-operated game that features a voice synthesizer chip.{{cite web|last=Scimeca|first=Dennis|date=March 8, 2012|title=The Making Of Gauntlet -- A Classic Arcade Game That Atari Never Saw Coming|url=http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/721573/the-making-of-gauntlet-a-classic-arcade-game-that-atari-never-saw-coming/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303210117/http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/721573/the-making-of-gauntlet-a-classic-arcade-game-that-atari-never-saw-coming/|archive-date=March 3, 2016|access-date=November 2, 2014|publisher=G4TV}}

Another game that Gauntlet bears a striking resemblance to is Time Bandit (1983), especially its Atari ST version released in 1985, which led to claims of one possibly being a "clone" of the other. However, Time Bandit designer Harry Lafnear stated that his game was based on Konami's earlier arcade game Tutankham (1982), and that he only found out about Gauntlet after the Atari ST version was completed in late 1985. He believes neither game copied each other, but that their similarities stem from being inspired by earlier "maze shoot 'em up" titles such as Tutankham.{{cite web |title=Harry Lafnear Interview |url=https://www.atarilegend.com/interviews/interviews_detail.php?selected_interview_id=4 |website=Atari Legend |date=September 5, 2003}} In 2008, Retro Gamer magazine called Tutankham "an early Gauntlet".{{cite magazine|date=August 2008|title=Developer Lookback: Konami Part I|url=https://archive.org/stream/retro_gamer/RetroGamer_053#page/n27/mode/2up|magazine=Retro Gamer|publisher=Imagine Publishing|issue=53|page=29}}

Ed Logg, the co-creator of Asteroids and Centipede, is credited with the original game design of Gauntlet in the arcade version, as well as the 1987 NES release. After its release, John Palevich threatened a lawsuit, asserting that the original concept for the game was from Dandy, a game for the Atari 8-bit home computers written by Palevich and published in 1983. The conflict was settled without any suit being filed, with Atari Games doing business as Tengen allegedly awarding Palevich a Gauntlet game machine.{{Citation|publisher=ATARI PROTOS.com| title=Dark Chambers |url=http://www.atariprotos.com/7800/software/darkchambers/darkchambers.htm |access-date=September 11, 2007}} While he is credited with "special thanks" through 1986, Logg is entirely removed from credits on later releases{{Citation|publisher=Moby Games| title=Gauntlet Credits|url=http://www.mobygames.com/game/gauntlet/credits|access-date=September 11, 2007}} and as of 2007 Logg claims no involvement with the NES game.{{cite web |publisher=Atari HQ|title=Tetris Forever|author=tsr|url=http://www.atarihq.com/tsr/special/el/el.html | access-date=September 11, 2007}} Dandy was later reworked by Atari Corporation and published for the Atari 2600, Atari 7800, and Atari 8-bit computers as Dark Chambers in 1988.{{cite web |last=Vendel |first=Curt |title=The Atari 65XEM (AMY Sound Processor) |url=http://www.atarimuseum.com/computers/8bits/xe/xe_protos/65xem.html |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20110913013745/http://www.atarimuseum.com/computers/8bits/xe/xe_protos/65xem.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 13, 2011 |access-date=June 5, 2007 |df=mdy-all }}

File:Gauntlet-NES-1989.jpg

Gauntlet was ported to MS-DOS, Apple II, Mac, MSX, Nintendo Entertainment System, Apple IIGS, Master System, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Atari 8-bit computers, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, and the original PlayStation console as part of Midway's Arcade's Greatest Hits: The Atari Collection 2. An X68000 version was under development by M2, before being showcased to Tengen and released as Gauntlet IV for Sega Genesis.{{cite web|url=https://www.mtwo.co.jp/en/corp-profile/|title=Corporate Profile|date=December 20, 2013 |publisher=M2|access-date=2019-09-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190921215431/https://www.mtwo.co.jp/en/corp-profile/|archive-date=2019-09-21|url-status=live}}

The NES version was developed and published by Tengen, Atari Games' consumer software publishing division, and was released in 1988, and was the very first title to be developed in the United States for the NES.{{cite web |url=https://retrocdn.net/File:ComputerEntertainer_US_Vol.7_05.pdf |title=Volume 7, Issue 5 |date=August 2017 |work=Computer Entertainer |access-date=2017-03-26}}

Gauntlet: The Deeper Dungeons is an expansion pack for the original computer ports of Gauntlet with 512 new levels. It was released in 1987 by the British company U.S. Gold in the UK and Europe, and Mindscape in the United States for the Amstrad CPC, MSX, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum ports of Gauntlet.{{MobyGames|id=/gauntlet-the-deeper-dungeons|name=Gauntlet: The Deeper Dungeons}} It was developed by Gremlin Graphics.

Many of its levels were entries in a competition throughout Europe in which ten winners were awarded prizes, a Gauntlet T-shirt and a copy of the program for their computers.Gauntlet: The Deeper Dungeons instructions. The contest was announced in the instructions of many of the ported games.Original Gauntlet cassette tape version instructions released by U.S. Gold. The levels are presented randomly and its artwork is the side panel artwork of the arcade cabinet with only the main characters shown. The enemies were removed from the image and replaced with a pink background.

Reviewers noted that the levels were much harder than those in the original game, although the consensus was that it was not quite as good as the first game or the newly released arcade sequel.{{cite journal | title=The Deeper Dungeons review | first=Sara | last=Biggs | journal=Your Sinclair | issue=18 | date=June 1987 | page=58 | url=https://archive.org/stream/your-sinclair-18/YourSinclair_18_Jun_1987#page/n59/mode/1up | access-date=17 June 2015}}{{ cite magazine | title=The Deeper Dungeons review | magazine=Sinclair User | issue=63 | date=June 1987 | page=49 | url=https://archive.org/stream/sinclair-user-magazine-063/SinclairUser_063_Jun_1987#page/n48/mode/1up | access-date=17 June 2015}}{{cite journal | title=The Deeper Dungeons review | journal=ZX Computing | date=June 1986 |page=35 | url=https://archive.org/stream/zxcomputing-magazine-1987-06/ZXComputing_1987_06#page/n34/mode/1up | access-date=17 June 2015}}{{ cite journal | title=The Deeper Dungeons review | journal=Computer Gamer | date=June 1987 | issue=27 | page=73 | url=https://archive.org/stream/Computer_Gamer_Issue_27_1987-06_Argus_Press_GB#page/n72/mode/1up | access-date=17 June 2015}}

{{Video game reviews

|title = Reception (ports)

|ACE = 859/1000{{cite journal|journal=ACE | title=Gauntlet Review | date= October 1990 | issue=37 | page=87 | publisher=EMAP | url=https://archive.org/stream/ace-magazine-37/ACE_Issue_37_1990_Oct#page/n86/mode/1up}}

|AAction = 93% {{small|(CPC)}}{{cite journal|journal=Amstrad Action | title=Gauntlet Review | date= January 1987 | issue=16 | pages=68–69 | publisher=Future plc | url=https://archive.org/stream/amstrad-action-016/Amstrad_Action_016#page/n67/mode/2up}}

|CRASH = 92%{{cite journal| journal=Crash! | date=February 1987 | issue=37 | pages=16–17 | title=Gauntlet Review | publisher=Newsfield |url=https://archive.org/stream/Crash_No._37_1987-02_Newsfield_GB#page/n15/mode/2up}}

|CVG = CPC 464: 36/40{{cite journal| journal=C+VG | date=January 1987 | issue=63 | pages=36–37 | title=Gauntlet Review | publisher=EMAP |url=https://archive.org/stream/Computer_Video_Games_Issue_063_1987-01_EMAP_Publishing_GB/Computer__Video_Games_Issue_063_1987-01_EMAP_Publishing_GB#page/n35/mode/2up}}
SMS: 92%,{{cite journal| journal=C+VG | date=January 1991 | issue=110 | pages=120–121 | title=Gauntlet By US Gold | publisher=EMAP |url=https://archive.org/stream/computer-video-games-magazine-110/CVG110_Jan_1991#page/n119/mode/2up}} 90%{{cite journal |title=Guide: Sega |journal=Computer and Video Games |date=November 1990 |issue=Complete Guide to Consoles: Volume IV |pages=89–110 |url=https://archive.org/details/Complete_Guide_to_Consoles_Volume_IV_1990_EMAP_Publishing_GB/page/n88}}

|Dragon = {{Rating|4|5}}

|JS = 79%{{cite journal|journal=Joystick | title=Gauntlet Review | date= April 1991 | issue=15 | page=107 | url=http://amr.abime.net/review_44755}}

|SUser = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite journal| journal=Sinclair User | date=February 1987 | issue=59 | pages=40–41 | title=Gauntlet Review | publisher=EMAP |url=https://archive.org/stream/sinclair-user-magazine-059/SinclairUser_059_Feb_1987#page/n39/mode/2up}}

|TGM = 72%{{cite journal|journal=The Games Machine | title=Version Update Gauntlet | date= February 1987 | page=56 | issue=11 | publisher=Newsfield | url=https://archive.org/stream/thegamesmachine-magazine-11/TheGamesMachine_11#page/n55/mode/1up}}

|YSinclair = 9/10{{cite journal|journal= Your Sinclair | date= February 1987 | issue=14 | pages=56–57 | publisher=Future plc | url=https://archive.org/stream/your-sinclair-14/YourSinclair_14_Feb_1987#page/n57/mode/2up|title=Running the Gauntlet|access-date=November 17, 2014}}

|Z64 = 93%{{cite journal| journal=Zzap!64 | date=February 1987 | issue=63 | pages=20–22 | title=Gauntlet Review |publisher=Newsfield |url=https://archive.org/stream/zzap64-magazine-022/ZZap_64_Issue_022_1987_Feb#page/n19/mode/2up}}

|rev1 = Commodore User

|rev1Score = 9/10{{cite journal|journal=Commodore User | title=Gauntlet Review | date= January 1987 | issue=40 | pages=18–19 | publisher=EMAP | url=https://archive.org/stream/CommodoreUserIssue401987Jan/Commodore_User_Issue_40_1987_Jan#page/n17/mode/2up}}

|rev2 = Computer Gamer

|rev2Score = 94%{{cite journal|journal=Computer Gamer | title=Gauntlet Review | date= February 1987 | pages=46–47 | issue=23 | publisher=Argus Press | url=https://archive.org/stream/Computer_Gamer_Issue_23_1987-02_Argus_Press_GB#page/n45/mode/2up}}

|rev3 = Console XS

|rev3Score = 80%{{cite magazine |title=Software A-Z: Master System |magazine=Console XS |date=23 April 1992 |issue=1 (June/July 1992) |publisher=Paragon Publishing |location=United Kingdom |pages=137–47 |url=https://archive.org/details/console-xs-01/page/137}}

|rev4 = Your Computer

|rev4Score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite journal|journal=Your Computer | title=Gauntlet Review | date= February 1987 | issue=23 | pages=47–48 | publisher=PC Electrical-Electronic Press | url=https://archive.org/details/your-computer-magazine-1987-02/page/n44}}

| award1Pub = Crash

| award1 = Crash Smash

| award2Pub = Your Sinclair

| award2 = Megagame

| award3Pub = Amstrad Action

| award3 = MastergameGame review, Amstrad June magazine, Future Publishing, issue 16, January 1987

}}

The game was highly profitable upon its November 1985 launch in North America, reportedly earning one San Mateo, California arcade operator $15,000 in sixteen weeks and another Canadian operator US$4,500 in nine days. In the United States, it topped the monthly RePlay upright arcade cabinet chart in December 1985,{{cite magazine |title=RePlay: The Players' Choice |magazine=RePlay |date=December 1985 |volume=11 |issue=3 |page=4 |url=https://archive.org/details/re-play-volume-11-issue-no.-3-december-1985-600dpi/RePlay%20-%20Volume%2011%2C%20Issue%20No.%203%20-%20December%201985%20%28Compressed%29/page/4}} and topped the Play Meter arcade video game charts from January 1986{{cite magazine |title=National Play Meter |magazine=Play Meter |date=January 15, 1986 |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=20–1 |url=https://archive.org/details/play-meter-volume-12-number-1-january-15th-1986-600DPI/Play%20Meter%20-%20Volume%2012%2C%20Number%201%20-%20January%2015th%201986%20%28Compressed%29/page/20}}{{cite magazine |title=National Play Meter |magazine=Play Meter |date=February 1986 |volume=12 |issue=2 |pages=30–1 |url=https://archive.org/details/play-meter-volume-12-number-2-february-1986-600dpi/Play%20Meter%20-%20Volume%2012%2C%20Number%202%20-%20February%201986%20%28Compressed%29/page/30}} to March 1986; after being displaced by Sega's Hang-On in April,{{cite magazine |title=National Play Meter |magazine=Play Meter |date=April 1, 1986 |volume=12 |issue=5 |pages=116–7 |url=https://archive.org/details/play-meter-volume-12-number-5-april-1986-600DPI/Play%20Meter%20-%20Volume%2012%2C%20Number%205%20-%20April%201986%20%28Compressed%29/page/116}} Gauntlet returned to the top spot in May.{{cite magazine |title=National Play Meter |magazine=Play Meter |date=July 15, 1986 |volume=12 |issue=12 |pages=74–5 |url=https://archive.org/details/play-meter-volume-12-number-12-july-15th-1986-600dpi/Play%20Meter%20-%20Volume%2012%2C%20Number%2012%20-%20July%2015th%201986%20%28Compressed%29/page/74}} RePlay listed it as the second highest-grossing arcade video game of 1986 in the United States, below Hang-On,{{cite news |title=Top 20 of 1986 |work=Top Score |date=July–August 1987 |publisher=Amusement Players Association |page=3 |url=http://www.videoparadise-sanjose.com/ts-3.htm}} while AMOA listed it as the year's highest-earning dedicated arcade cabinet.{{cite magazine |title=AMOA JB, Games & Cig Vending Awards Winners |magazine=Cash Box |date=December 6, 1986 |page=30 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1986/CB-1986-12-06.pdf#page=54 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200812042831/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1986/CB-1986-12-06.pdf |archive-date=August 12, 2020 |url-status=live }} Atari ultimately sold a total of 7,848 Gauntlet video game arcade cabinets.

In Japan, Gauntlet was a commercial success for Namco. At a Japanese trade show in late 1985, the game drew large crowds and set record earnings for an Atari arcade cabinet.{{cite magazine |title=Atari Scores a Breakthrough with 'Gauntlet' |magazine=RePlay |date=November 1985 |volume=11 |issue=2 |page=104 |url=https://archive.org/details/re-play-volume-11-issue-no.-2-november-1985-600DPI/RePlay%20-%20Volume%2011%2C%20Issue%20No.%202%20-%20November%201985/page/104}} Game Machine listed Gauntlet on their March 15, 1986 issue as being the second most-popular upright/cockpit arcade game for the previous two weeks, below Sega's Space Harrier,{{cite magazine|title=Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - アップライト, コックピット型TVゲーム機 (Upright/Cockpit Videos)|magazine=Game Machine|issue=280|publisher=Amusement Press, Inc.|date=15 March 1986|page=21|url=https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19860315p.pdf#page=11|lang=ja|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191201074755/https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19860315p.pdf|archive-date=1 December 2019|url-status=live}} before Gauntlet topped the chart in April.{{cite magazine|date=15 April 1986|title=Best Hit Games 25|url=https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19860415p.pdf#page=11|magazine=Game Machine|publisher=Amusement Press, Inc.|issue=281|page=21|lang=ja|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191201074825/https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19860415p.pdf|archive-date=1 December 2019|url-status=live}} It went on to be Japan's third highest-grossing upright/cockpit arcade game during the first half of 1986 (below Hang-On and Space Harrier),{{cite magazine |title=Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25: '86 上半期 |trans-title=Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25: First Half '86 |magazine=Game Machine |issue=288 |publisher=Amusement Press, Inc. |date=15 July 1986 |page=28 |lang=ja |url=https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19860715p.pdf#page=15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200131230825/https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19860715p.pdf |archive-date=31 January 2020 |url-status=live }} and the sixth highest during the second half of the year.{{cite magazine |title=Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25: '86 下半期 |trans-title=Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25: Second Half '86 |magazine=Game Machine |issue=300 |publisher=Amusement Press, Inc. |date=15 January 1987 |page=16 |lang=ja |url=https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19870115p.pdf#page=9 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191102030942/https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19870115p.pdf |archive-date=2 November 2019 |url-status=live }} It was Japans's fourth highest-grossing upright/cockpit arcade game of 1986 (below Hang-On, Space Harrier and Pole Position II).

In the United Kingdom, the home computer conversions topped the UK sales chart in December 1986.{{cite magazine |title=The Charts |magazine=Your Computer |volume=7 |issue=3 |date=March 1987 |page=16 |url=https://archive.org/details/your-computer-magazine-1987-03/page/n15}} It went on to sell more than 200,000 copies in the UK by 1987,{{cite magazine|date=February 1988|title=Out Run|journal=Crash|publisher=Newsfield|issue=49|pages=22–23 (22)|issn=0954-8661|url=https://archive.org/stream/crash-magazine-49/Crash_49_Feb_1988#page/n21}} and over 300,000 copies {{as of|1988|lc=y}}.{{cite magazine |title=History in the Making: The First Three Years |magazine=Computer and Video Games |date=16 August 1988 |issue=83 (September 1988) |page=51 |url=https://archive.org/details/computer-video-games-magazine-083/page/n50/mode/1up}}

The arcade game received a positive review from Clare Edgeley of Computer and Video Games upon release.{{cite magazine |title=Arcade Action: Gauntlet |magazine=Computer and Video Games |date=16 November 1985 |issue=50 (December 1985) |page=88 |url=https://archive.org/details/computer-video-games-magazine-050/page/n87}} Yung Min Choi reviewed the home computer conversion of Gauntlet with Demon Stalkers for Computer Gaming World, and stated that "in reality, players who crave this type of action will not be disappointed with either game".<{{Cite magazine |last=Choi |first=Yung Min |date=April 1988 |title=Ramparts and Rodents: A Look at Two Action Adventure Dungeons |url=https://archive.org/details/Computer_Gaming_World_Issue_46/page/n39/mode/2up?view=theater |access-date=2024-12-11 |magazine=Computer Gaming World |pages=40–41}} Entertainment Weekly picked the game as the 14th-greatest game available in 1991, saying: "There have been sequels to this game, but nothing matches the original Gauntlet, an innovative, fast-playing mix of mazes, monsters, and magic spells".{{Cite magazine|last=Strauss|first=Bob|title=Video Games Guide|url=https://ew.com/article/1991/11/22/video-games-guide/|access-date=2020-09-05|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|language=EN}}

The Mac version was reviewed in 1989 in Dragon No. 150 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game four out of five stars.{{Citation|last1=Lesser|first1=Hartley|title=The Role of Computers|date=October 1989|url=https://archive.org/stream/DragonMagazine260_201801/DragonMagazine150#page/n69/mode/2up|journal=Dragon|issue=150|pages=68–73, 95|postscript=.|last2=Lesser|first2=Patricia|last3=Lesser|first3=Kirk}} Compute! praised the Macintosh version's sound effects.{{Cite magazine |last=Aycock |first=Heidi E. H. |date=December 1989 |title=Compute! Specific: Mac |url=https://archive.org/stream/1989-12-compute-magazine/Compute_Issue_115_1989_Dec#page/n17/mode/2up |magazine=Compute! |page=16}} Computer and Video Games praised the accuracy of the Amstrad version, and said that it had "great graphics, good sounds, and perfect playability". Crash praised the smooth and fast scrolling, and the longevity, with Avenger being listed as the only alternative. In their Master System review, ACE said that people of all ages could quickly master the controls and tasks. The Spectrum version was the biggest-selling game of 1986, and was voted number 38 in the Your Sinclair Readers' Top 100 Games of All Time.{{citation |url=https://archive.org/stream/your-sinclair-72/YourSinclair_72_Dec_1991#page/n27/mode/2up | title=Top 100 Speccy Games | publisher=Future plc | journal=Your Sinclair | date= December 1991 | issue=72 | pages=27–29 }}{{Cite web|url=http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/ystop100_3.htm|title=Alt URL|access-date=June 18, 2015|archive-date=May 9, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509183458/http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/ystop100_3.htm|url-status=dead}}

More than a decade after release, the Official UK PlayStation Magazine noted that they "spent many a night hunched over a fag-stained Gauntlet machine", but said that the limitations had become apparent in the late 1990s.Atari Greatest Hits review, Official PlayStation Magazine, Future Publishing issue 36, page 125, September 1998 Next Generation, while not including the game in their "Top 100 Games of All Time", noted in the intro that "for the record, Gauntlet was number 101".{{cite magazine|date=September 1996|title=Top 100 Games of All Time|url=https://archive.org/details/nextgen-issue-021/page/n39/mode/2up|magazine=Next Generation|publisher=Imagine Media|issue=21|page=37}} In 1995, Flux magazine rated the game 89th on their "Top 100 Video Games."{{Cite journal |date=April 1995 |title=Top 100 Video Games |url=https://archive.org/details/flux-issue-4/page/n31/mode/2up |journal=Flux |publisher=Harris Publications |issue=4 |pages=32 |access-date=August 4, 2022}} In 1996, GamesMaster ranked Gauntlet 18th in its "Top 100 Games of All Time."{{Cite journal |date=July 1996 |title=Top 100 Games of All Time |url=https://retrocdn.net/images/c/cf/GamesMaster_UK_044.pdf |journal=GamesMaster |issue=44 |pages=77 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211211224737/https://retrocdn.net/images/c/cf/GamesMaster_UK_044.pdf |archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live }}

At the 1986 Golden Joystick Awards in London, Gauntlet won Game of the Year, and was runner-up in the category of Arcade Game of the Year.{{cite journal|title=Golden Joystick Awards|journal=Computer and Video Games|date=April 1987|issue=66|page=101|publisher=EMAP|url=https://archive.org/stream/Computer_Video_Games_Issue_066_1987-04_EMAP_Publishing_GB/Computer__Video_Games_Issue_066_1987-04_EMAP_Publishing_GB#page/n99/mode/2up}} It also received a Smash Hit award from ZX Computing magazine.{{cite journal| journal=ZX Computing | date=March 1987 | pages=82–83 | title=Gauntlet Review | publisher=Argus Press |url=https://archive.org/stream/zxcomputing-magazine-1987-03/ZXComputing_1987_03#page/n81/mode/2up}} It also won "Best Audio Enhancement in a Video Game" and "Most Innovative Video Game" at the 1986 Amusement Players Association's Players Choice Awards; the overall Game of the Year award went to the arcade version of Super Mario Bros.{{cite news |title=Amusement Players Association's Players Choice Awards |work=Top Score |date=Winter 1987 |publisher=Amusement Players Association |url=https://archive.org/details/1987WinterTopScore/page/n19}}

{{Timeline of release years

| compressempty = yes

| title =

| subtitle =

| 1985 = Gauntlet

| 1986 = Gauntlet II

| 1990 = Gauntlet: The Third Encounter

| 1991 = Gauntlet III: The Final Quest

| 1993 = Gauntlet IV

| 1998 = Gauntlet Legends

| 1999 = Gauntlet Dark Legacy

| 2005 = Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows

| 2014 = Gauntlet

}}

The arcade original was followed by a 1986 sequel, Gauntlet II, which was followed by further sequels on home platforms, including Gauntlet: The Third Encounter, Gauntlet III: The Final Quest, and Gauntlet IV. The arcade series was revived with Gauntlet Legends in 1998, which itself saw the sequels Gauntlet Dark Legacy and Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows. The original Gauntlet arcade game is included in Midway Arcade Treasures (2003) for the GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Microsoft Windows, and Midway Arcade Origins (2012) for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

The game was rebooted in 2014 on home platforms as Gauntlet.

{{Reflist}}

• Casus Belli #35 (Dec 1986)
• {{Cite web|url=https://rpggeek.com/rpgissuearticle/138561/ludotique|title=Ludotique | Article | RPGGeek|website=rpggeek.com}}

• {{KLOV game|7922|name=Gauntlet}}
• [http://www.arcade-history.com/?page=detail&id=938 Gauntlet] at the Arcade History database
• {{WoS game|id=0001989|name=Gauntlet}}
• {{Internet Archive game|arcade_gauntlet|Gauntlet}}

{{Gauntlet series|state=expanded}}

{{Atari Games}}

{{Golden Joystick GOTY}}

{{Authority control}}

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