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Moon Patrol

Moon Patrol - Japanese Title

Moon Patrol - marquee

Manufacturer: Irem
Year: 1982
Class: Wide Release
Genre: Platform
Type: Videogame

Monitor:

  • Orientation: Horizontal
  • Type: Raster: Standard Resolution
  • CRT: Color
  • 19-inch Wells-Gardner
Conversion Class: Irem
Number of Simultaneous Players: 1
Maximum number of Players: 2
Gameplay: Alternating
Control Panel Layout: Single Player
Controls:
  • Joystick: 2-way (left, right) [Decelerate|Accelerate]
  • Buttons: 2 [Fire|Jump]

Sound: Amplified Mono (one channel)

Moon Patrol


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Moon Patrol 3-D Model (QuickTime (TM))

Moon Patrol Control Panel Image
Moon Patrol PCB Image


Moon Patrol Description

Player drives a moon buggy jumping over craters, rocks and land mines, shooting simultaneously at rocks in front and aliens above while dodging their missiles. Features very catchy background music and cute bouncing tires when the buggy is destroyed. Foreground and background terrain scroll at different rates giving the illusion of depth.

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Cabinet Information

Two small transparent stickers are placed on the side-art. The first is a rectangular "T.M." (Trademark) sticker placed on the "L" of the Moon Patrol logo. The second is a circle with an "R" inside it (Registered Trademark), placed after the Williams logo.

Cheats, Tricks and Bugs

TRICK: You have a better chance of hitting a UFO directly above if you jump while firing rapidly. This will compress your shots, making it harder for a UFO to slip through the space between bullets.

Game Play

The object is to complete the varying legs of the patrol course as quickly as you can while avoiding rocks, craters, mines, and attacks from enemy craft. Your buggy has two guns: a short-range cannon that fires ahead of you and an anti-aircraft gun that fires upwards. You can use the cannon to blast away rocks that block your progress. Most rocks will crumble in one hit, but large ones qill need two hits. There are also tiny rocks that can only be destroyed with precision shooting (otherwise, you will have to jump it).

Your on-screen display has three indicator lights to warn you of approaching danger.

  • When the top one flashes, there are enemy saucers coming in. Attack them using your gun and avoid their bombs. The spinning saucers are particularly nasty, as they bomb the ground ahead of you and make fresh craters.
  • The middle light indicates a minefield. Proceed with caution here and time your jumps to avoid the mines on the road.
  • Finally, the bottom light indicates an enemy behind you. Sometimes, an enemy hovercraft will stalk behind you for a bit and then charge at you. You need to jump so it passes under you and then take it out with your cannon when you come back down.
  • Points E, J, O, and T are checkpoints. When you reach them, you are evaluated against the average. If you beat the average, you gain bonus points. If you reach the end of the course (point Z), you automatically receive a special bonus in addition to any time bonus you may receive.

    59 seconds is the fastest time possible to reach checkpoints E, J, O, T, or Z. The game keeps track of the best times to reach these points. If you complete the Beginner's Course, the second course is called the Champion (or Expert) Course which repeats after successful completion. Mastering speed control and simultaneous use of jump/fire buttons will give you the edge you need to master the game.

    Miscellaneous

    BOOTLEG: Moon Ranger

    The game was created by Irem Corporation (Japan) and licensed to Williams Electronics, Inc. for US manufacture and distribution.

    VAPS Arcade Census

    GAMES OWNED, WANTED, or FOR SALE BY MEMBERS OF THE VIDEO ARCADE PRESERVATION SOCIETY

    Very Common - There are 178 known instances of Moon Patrol owned by one of our 900 members. Of these, 112 of them are original dedicated machines, 2 of them are conversions in which game circuit boards (and possibly cabinet graphics) have been placed in (and on) another game cabinet, and 64 of them are only circuit boards which a collector could put into a generic case if desired.

    Of the 57,113 video games (3,420 unique) tracked by the Video Game Preservation Society, this game ranks a 72 on a scale out of 100 (100 = most commonly seen, 1=least common) in popularity based on ownership records.

    Wanted - Very Popular - There are 19 VAPS members currently looking for Moon Patrol.

    For Sale - There are 12 VAPS members with Moon Patrol machines for sale. There are 12 VAPS members with extra Moon Patrol circuit boards for sale. VAPS members are totally independent of VAPS and the International Arcade Museum, and we are unable to recommend, endorce, or guarantee any person or company selling games or game parts.

    Rarity is NOT necessarily an indication of value. Some common games show up as very rare here because collectors don't want them (they are common because arcade operators might be sitting on tons of them in warehouses), while some fairly scarce games are grabbed by collectors every time they show up. Additionally, some games made in the last 5 years are still making money for operators and are thus not yet affordable to the typical collector. For a clue to value, compare how many people have this game vs. how many people want this game and then click on the eBay links to help determine an accurate price range.

    Technical

    The game uses a Z80 microprocessor and a 6803 microprocessor. For sound it uses two AY-3-8910 PSGs and a MSM5205.

    Some boardsets are configured to use a positive composite sync. Use a TTL inverter (e.g. 7404) to convert this signal to the JAMMA standard negative composite sync.

    The boardset is comprised of three equal-sized PCBs and a 1/3 size PCB for sound generation. The main PCB utilizes a Z-80. The boardset requires a 22/44 pin edge connector for interfacing.

    eBay Listings

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    TODAY'S PICKS FOR:

    Moon Patrol

    1. MOON PATROL PCB tested and working by williams 1982

    Auction ends in: 1 day, 23 hours

     5 bids
     
    $12.01
     
    2. moon patrol arcade video game

    Auction ends in: 4 days, 13 minutes

     BuyItNow:
     
    $500.00
     
    3. MOON PATROL ARCADE VIDEO GAME by WILLIAMS ***CLASSIC***

    Auction ends in: 5 days, 6 hours

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    $995.00
     
    4. MOON PATROL HEADER MARQUEE nice shape original

    Auction ends in: 2 days, 3 minutes

     1 bid
     
    $9.01
     
    5. Original Williams Moon Patrol Drawing Set

    Auction ends in: 6 days, 19 hours

     eBay Stores (Fixed Price):
     
    $19.99
     
    6. MOON PATROL WIRE HARNESS AC & DC

    Auction ends in: 2 days, 7 minutes

     1 bid
     
    $9.01
     
    7. Moon Patrol Non Jamma Arcade Pcb Manual

    Auction ends in: 1 week, 5 days

     eBay Stores (Fixed Price):
     
    $4.99
     
    8. WILLIAMS POWER SUPPLY, for moon patrol, joust, robotron

    Auction ends in: 2 days, 19 minutes

     1 bid
     
    $9.01
     
    9. Moon Patrol Coin-op Arcade Manual

    Auction ends in: 2 weeks, 5 days

     eBay Stores (Fixed Price):
     
    $6.99
     
    10. MOON PATROL MONITOR BEZEL silkscreened glass

    Auction ends in: 2 days, 1 hour

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    $9.01
     
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    Manuals

    1. Drawing Set  25 Pages, 1354 KB File.

    Foto-Finder™

    1. The Encyclpedia of Arcade Video Games, Kurtz (ISBN 0764319256): Page: 134; Color photo;


    Moon Patrol - Title screen image


    Moon Patrol - Title screen image

    Moon Patrol - Title screen image

    Moon Patrol - Title screen image

    Moon Patrol - Title screen image


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