Gauntlet

ガントレット (Gantoretto)Arcade, ZX Spectrum, Other, NES +101985

  1. JP1986
  2. NA1985
  3. EU1985
  4. RU—

Gauntlet kept its name everywhere and was released in Japan by Namco as ガントレット (Gantoretto). Before release it was called Dungeons. No current digital store release could be confirmed; the arcade game has been reissued in compilations such as Midway Arcade Treasures (2003) and Midway Arcade Origins (2012).

Gauntlet is an Atari Games arcade game that opened in UK arcades on 15 October 1985 and in North America in November 1985; Namco released it in Japan in February 1986. Ed Logg led the design team, and it was one of the first multiplayer dungeon crawl arcade games, for up to four players. It was originally called Dungeons, but that title became legally unavailable in April 1985, so it was renamed Gauntlet in May.

Gauntlet was Atari's first coin-op with a voice synthesizer chip, and its narrator was voiced by Ernie Fosselius. Atari distributed 7,848 arcade units. John Palevich claimed the concept came from his 1983 Atari 8-bit game Dandy, and the dispute was settled without a lawsuit.

The game was converted to many home computers and consoles. Tengen's NES version was the first NES title developed in the United States.1

Names and releases

RegionTitle on the boxPlatformDatePublisherSrc
NA Gauntletfour-player cabinet; two-player cabinet June 1986 Arcade November 1985 Atari Games 1
NA GauntletAtari ST; region not stated in source Other October 1987 — 1
NA Gauntletthe article also mentions 1987 once NES July 1988 Tengen 1
NA Gauntletregion not stated in source MS-DOS 1988 — 1
NA Gauntletregion not stated in source Mac May 1989 — 1
NA Arcade's Greatest Hits: The Atari Collection 2compilation; also Windows PlayStation 1998 Midway 1
NA Midway Arcade Treasurescompilation; also GameCube, Xbox and Windows PlayStation 2 2003 Midway 1
NA Midway Arcade Originscompilation; also PS3 Xbox 360 2012 Warner Bros. 1
EU GauntletUK Arcade Oct 15, 1985 Atari Games 1
JP ガントレットGantoretto Arcade February 1986 Namco 1
EU GauntletAmstrad CPC, Commodore 64 and MSX versions also 1986 in Europe ZX Spectrum 1986 U.S. Gold 1
EU Gauntlet Master System November 1990 — 1

Also known as: ガントレット JP1Gantoretto JP1Dungeons WW1

Version differences

  • GameplayArcade (4-player cabinet)Arcade (2-player cabinet)

    On the four-player cabinet each character is tied to a spot on the control panel, while the two-player cabinet lets players choose a character when starting or joining a game.1

  • ContentArcade (JP, Namco)

    For the Japanese release Namco redesigned the cabinet, with levers and buttons following Namco's standard layout.2

  • ContentHome computers (The Deeper Dungeons)

    The home computer versions received an expansion, The Deeper Dungeons (1987), with 512 new levels that reviewers found much harder than the original's.1

Reception

Gauntlet topped the RePlay and Play Meter charts in the US, and AMOA named it the highest-earning dedicated cabinet of 1986; in Japan it topped Game Machine's chart in April 1986. The home conversions sold over 300,000 copies in the UK by 1988, and the game won Game of the Year at the 1986 Golden Joystick Awards.1

Sources

  1. 1en.wikipedia.org
  2. 2ja.wikipedia.org

Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13

Spotted a mistake? Write to atlas@old-games.net.