<s>
is	O
an	O
arcade	B-Application
racing	B-Application
simulation	I-Application
video	O
game	O
released	O
by	O
Namco	O
in	O
1982	O
and	O
licensed	O
to	O
Atari	O
,	O
Inc	O
.	O
for	O
US	O
manufacture	O
and	O
distribution	O
,	O
running	O
on	O
the	O
Namco	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
arcade	B-Application
system	O
board	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
considered	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
important	O
titles	O
from	O
the	O
golden	O
age	O
of	O
arcade	B-Application
video	I-Application
games	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
was	O
an	O
evolution	O
of	O
Namco	O
's	O
earlier	O
arcade	B-Application
racing	O
electro-mechanical	O
games	O
,	O
notably	O
F-1	B-Application
(	O
1976	O
)	O
,	O
whose	O
designer	O
Sho	O
Osugi	O
worked	O
on	O
the	O
development	O
of	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
becoming	O
the	O
highest-grossing	B-Application
arcade	B-Application
game	I-Application
of	I-Application
1982	I-Application
in	O
Japan	O
,	O
it	O
went	O
on	O
to	O
become	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
coin-operated	O
arcade	B-Application
game	O
internationally	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
North	O
America	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
highest-grossing	B-Application
arcade	B-Application
game	O
for	O
two	O
years	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
and	B-Application
1984	I-Application
and	O
still	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
top	O
five	O
arcade	B-Application
video	I-Application
games	I-Application
of	I-Application
1985	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
is	O
regarded	O
as	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
influential	O
video	O
games	O
of	O
all	B-Device
time	I-Device
,	O
and	O
it	O
is	O
considered	O
to	O
be	O
the	O
most	O
influential	O
racing	O
game	O
in	O
particular	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Its	O
sequel	O
,	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
II	I-Application
,	O
was	O
released	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
this	O
game	O
,	O
the	O
player	O
controls	O
a	O
Formula	B-Application
One	I-Application
race	O
car	O
and	O
has	O
to	O
complete	O
a	O
time	O
trial	O
lap	O
within	O
a	O
certain	O
amount	O
of	O
time	O
(	O
between	O
57	O
and	O
120	O
seconds	O
)	O
to	O
qualify	O
for	O
an	O
F1	O
race	O
at	O
the	O
Fuji	O
Racetrack	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
was	O
the	O
first	O
racing	O
video	O
game	O
to	O
feature	O
a	O
track	O
based	O
on	O
a	O
real	O
racing	O
circuit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
also	O
the	O
first	O
game	O
to	O
feature	O
a	O
qualifying	O
lap	O
,	O
requiring	O
the	O
player	O
to	O
complete	O
a	O
time	O
trial	O
before	O
they	O
can	O
compete	O
in	O
Grand	B-Application
Prix	I-Application
races	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
's	O
publisher	O
,	O
Atari	O
,	O
publicized	O
the	O
game	O
for	O
its	O
"	O
unbelievable	O
driving	O
realism	O
"	O
in	O
providing	O
a	O
Formula	B-Application
1	I-Application
experience	O
behind	O
a	O
racing	B-Application
wheel	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
earlier	O
three-dimensional	O
arcade	B-Application
driving	O
games	O
emphasized	O
staying	O
on	O
the	O
road	O
while	O
avoiding	O
crashes	O
,	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
gives	O
a	O
higher	O
reward	O
for	O
passing	O
rival	O
cars	O
and	O
finishing	O
among	O
the	O
leaders	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
was	O
released	O
in	O
two	O
configurations	O
:	O
a	O
standard	O
upright	O
cabinet	O
and	O
an	O
environmental/cockpit	O
cabinet	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
was	O
created	O
by	O
both	O
Shinichiro	O
Okamoto	O
and	O
Galaxian	B-Application
designer	O
Kazunori	O
Sawano	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Based	O
on	O
Namco	O
's	O
experience	O
with	O
producing	O
coin-operated	O
electro-mechanical	O
driving	O
games	O
in	O
the	O
1970s	O
,	O
notably	O
F-1	B-Application
(	O
1976	O
)	O
designed	O
by	O
Sho	O
Osugi	O
,	O
Sawano	O
showed	O
Okamoto	O
rough	O
sketches	O
of	O
his	O
idea	O
,	O
who	O
liked	O
the	O
idea	O
and	O
began	O
production	O
of	O
a	O
video	O
racing	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Okamoto	O
wanted	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
be	O
a	O
true	O
driving	B-Application
simulation	I-Application
game	O
that	O
used	O
a	O
3D	O
perspective	O
and	O
allowed	O
the	O
player	O
to	O
execute	O
real-world	O
techniques	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
development	O
team	O
used	O
two	O
16-bit	B-Device
processors	I-Device
to	O
power	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
which	O
Okamoto	O
says	O
was	O
an	O
unheard-of	O
concept	O
for	O
arcade	B-Application
games	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
—	O
for	O
a	O
while	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
only	O
video	O
game	O
to	O
use	O
a	O
Z8000	B-Device
CPU	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pac-Man	B-Application
creator	O
Toru	O
Iwatani	O
chose	O
the	O
name	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
as	O
he	O
thought	O
it	O
sounded	O
"	O
cool	O
"	O
and	O
appealing	O
,	O
and	O
he	O
shortly	O
after	O
filed	O
a	O
trademark	O
for	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
's	O
arcade	B-Application
cabinet	O
,	O
a	O
sit-down	O
"	O
environmental	O
"	O
machine	O
,	O
was	O
chosen	O
due	O
to	O
their	O
popularity	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
was	O
officially	O
released	O
in	O
Japan	O
on	O
September	O
16	O
,	O
1982	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
its	O
release	O
,	O
Osugi	O
stated	O
that	O
all	O
of	O
Namco	O
's	O
older	O
electro-mechanical	O
driving	O
games	O
were	O
discontinued	O
,	O
as	O
the	O
company	O
saw	O
the	O
future	O
of	O
arcade	B-Application
racers	O
in	O
the	O
form	O
of	O
video	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Japan	O
,	O
Game	O
Machine	O
magazine	O
listed	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
as	O
the	O
highest-grossing	B-Application
arcade	B-Application
game	I-Application
of	I-Application
1982	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Game	O
Machine	O
later	O
listed	O
it	O
in	O
their	O
June	O
1	O
,	O
1983	O
issue	O
as	O
the	O
second	O
top-grossing	O
upright	O
arcade	B-Application
unit	O
of	O
the	O
month	O
,	O
before	O
it	O
returned	O
to	O
being	O
the	O
top-grossing	O
game	O
of	O
the	O
month	O
in	O
October	O
1983	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Internationally	O
,	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
was	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
arcade	B-Application
game	I-Application
of	I-Application
1983	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Europe	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
a	O
top-grossing	O
arcade	B-Application
game	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
,	O
it	O
sold	O
over	O
21,000	O
arcade	B-Application
cabinets	O
for	O
an	O
estimated	O
( $	O
adjusted	O
for	O
inflation	O
)	O
by	O
1983	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
US	O
RePlay	O
arcade	B-Application
charts	O
,	O
it	O
topped	O
the	O
upright	O
cabinet	O
charts	O
for	O
seven	O
months	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
,	O
from	O
March	O
through	O
August	O
and	O
again	O
in	O
December	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
also	O
topped	O
the	O
US	O
Play	O
Meter	O
arcade	B-Application
charts	O
for	O
six	O
consecutive	O
months	O
from	O
March	O
through	O
August	O
1983	O
,	O
and	O
then	O
topped	O
the	O
street	O
locations	O
chart	O
in	O
November	O
1983	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
ended	O
the	O
year	O
as	O
the	O
highest-grossing	B-Application
arcade	B-Application
game	I-Application
of	I-Application
1983	I-Application
in	O
North	O
America	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
RePlay	O
and	O
the	O
Amusement	O
&	O
Music	O
Operators	O
Association	O
(	O
AMOA	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
again	O
became	O
the	O
highest-grossing	B-Application
arcade	B-Application
game	I-Application
of	I-Application
1984	I-Application
in	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Several	O
years	O
after	O
its	O
release	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
still	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
top	O
five	O
highest-grossing	B-Application
arcade	B-Application
video	I-Application
games	I-Application
of	I-Application
1985	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
United	O
States	O
between	O
1986	O
and	O
1990	O
,	O
the	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
2600	I-General_Concept
version	O
sold	O
units	O
for	O
,	O
the	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
5200	I-General_Concept
version	O
sold	O
units	O
for	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
Atari	O
XE	O
version	O
sold	O
units	O
for	O
,	O
adding	O
up	O
to	O
units	O
sold	O
and	O
grossed	O
between	O
1986	O
and	O
1990	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
compared	O
it	O
favorably	O
with	O
Sega	O
's	O
Turbo	B-Application
(	O
1981	O
)	O
,	O
referring	O
to	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
as	O
"	O
Turbo	B-Application
Deluxe	O
"	O
in	O
"	O
a	O
speedway	O
,	O
not	O
a	O
cross-country	O
race.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
called	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
the	O
"	O
ultimate	O
test	O
of	O
driving	O
skill	O
for	O
only	O
the	O
very	O
best	O
video	O
game	O
roadstars.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Electronic	O
Games	O
reviewed	O
the	O
arcade	B-Application
game	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
,	O
writing	O
that	O
it	O
"	O
keeps	O
the	O
action	O
on	O
track	O
from	O
start	O
to	O
finish	O
"	O
with	O
"	O
challenging	O
play	O
"	O
,	O
noting	O
that	O
the	O
gameplay	O
is	O
"	O
reasonably	O
faithful	O
to	O
real	O
life	O
"	O
Formula	B-Application
One	I-Application
races	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
gave	O
it	O
the	O
1983	O
Arcade	B-Application
Award	O
for	O
Coin-Op	O
Game	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
,	O
praising	O
the	O
racing	O
gameplay	O
,	O
"	O
beautiful	O
graphics	O
"	O
and	O
"	O
breathtaking	O
"	O
scenery	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
"	O
the	O
two-heat	O
format	O
for	O
the	O
race	O
itself	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computer	O
and	O
Video	O
Games	O
reviewed	O
the	O
arcade	B-Application
game	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
,	O
writing	O
that	O
it	O
"	O
is	O
simply	O
the	O
most	O
exhilarating	O
driving	B-Application
simulation	I-Application
game	O
on	O
the	O
market	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
compared	O
it	O
favorably	O
with	O
Turbo	B-Application
,	O
stating	O
that	O
,	O
while	O
Turbo	B-Application
"	O
featured	O
better	O
landscapes	O
"	O
,	O
it	O
"	O
ca	O
n't	O
match	O
the	O
speed	O
,	O
thrills	O
and	O
skill	O
behind	O
this	O
new	O
race	O
game	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
said	O
Pole	B-Application
Positions	I-Application
"	O
graphics	O
are	O
sophisticated	O
and	O
believable	O
"	O
,	O
noting	O
that	O
cars	O
"	O
turning	O
corners	O
are	O
shown	O
in	O
every	O
graphic	O
detail	O
of	O
the	O
maneuvre	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
praised	O
the	O
gameplay	O
,	O
concluding	O
that	O
"	O
trying	O
to	O
hold	O
a	O
screaming	O
curve	O
or	O
overtake	O
"	O
offers	O
"	O
thrills	O
to	O
compare	O
with	O
the	O
real	O
racetrack	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
considered	O
the	O
all-time	O
best	O
racing/driving	O
game	O
by	O
InfoWorld	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
and	O
Computer	O
Games	O
in	O
early	O
1985	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
reviewing	O
the	O
Atari	B-Device
8-bit	I-Device
version	O
,	O
InfoWorld	O
called	O
it	O
"	O
by	O
far	O
the	O
best	O
road-race	O
game	O
ever	O
thrown	O
on	O
a	O
video	O
screen	O
"	O
with	O
"	O
bright	O
and	O
brilliant	O
"	O
graphics	O
,	O
but	O
said	O
the	O
Commodore	O
64	O
version	O
"	O
looks	O
like	O
a	O
rush	O
job	O
and	O
is	O
far	O
from	O
arcade-game	O
quality	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computer	O
Games	O
magazine	O
criticized	O
the	O
Commodore	O
conversions	O
for	O
lacking	O
various	O
features	O
from	O
the	O
arcade	B-Application
original	O
,	O
giving	O
the	O
C64	O
version	O
a	O
mixed	O
review	O
and	O
the	O
VIC-20	B-Device
version	O
a	O
negative	O
review	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computer	O
and	O
Video	O
Games	O
reviewed	O
the	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
2600	I-General_Concept
version	O
,	O
stating	O
it	O
is	O
"	O
the	O
best	O
driving	O
game	O
available	O
"	O
on	O
the	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
VCS	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
reviewing	O
the	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
5200	I-General_Concept
version	O
,	O
Hi-Res	O
in	O
1984	O
found	O
"	O
the	O
playability	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
be	O
limited	O
and	O
the	O
graphics	O
to	O
be	O
the	O
strongest	O
aspect	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
magazine	O
preferred	O
Adventure	O
International	O
's	O
Rally	O
Speedway	O
to	O
both	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
and	O
Epyx	O
's	O
Pitstop	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2007	O
,	O
Eurogamer	O
gave	O
it	O
a	O
mixed	O
retrospective	O
review	O
,	O
calling	O
it	O
"	O
a	O
simulation	B-Application
down	O
to	O
the	O
core	O
:	O
those	O
dedicated	O
will	O
eventually	O
reap	O
success	O
but	O
most	O
will	O
be	O
deterred	O
by	O
the	O
difficulty.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Entertainment	O
Weekly	O
called	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
one	O
of	O
the	O
top	O
ten	O
games	O
for	O
the	O
Atari	B-General_Concept
2600	I-General_Concept
in	O
2013	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
is	O
regarded	O
as	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
influential	O
video	O
games	O
of	O
all	B-Device
time	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Bill	O
Loguce	O
and	O
Matt	O
Barton	O
listed	O
it	O
as	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
25	O
most	O
influential	O
games	O
of	O
all	B-Device
time	I-Device
,	O
calling	O
it	O
"	O
arguably	O
the	O
most	O
important	O
racing	O
game	O
ever	O
made	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2015	O
,	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
topped	O
IGN	O
's	O
list	O
of	O
The	O
Top	O
10	O
Most	O
Influential	O
Racing	O
Games	O
Ever	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
stated	O
that	O
it	O
had	O
"	O
a	O
drastically	O
better-looking	O
"	O
third-person	O
"	O
chase	O
cam	O
view	O
"	O
than	O
Turbo	B-Application
,	O
was	O
"	O
the	O
first	O
racing	O
game	O
based	O
on	O
a	O
real-world	O
racing	O
circuit	O
(	O
Fuji	O
Speedway	O
in	O
Japan	O
)	O
"	O
,	O
"	O
introduced	O
checkpoints	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
the	O
first	O
to	O
require	O
a	O
qualifying	O
lap	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
its	O
success	O
,	O
as	O
"	O
the	O
highest-grossing	B-Application
arcade	B-Application
game	O
in	O
North	O
America	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
,	O
cemented	O
the	O
genre	O
in	O
place	O
for	O
decades	O
to	O
come	O
and	O
inspired	O
a	O
horde	O
of	O
other	O
racing	O
games	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
spawned	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
clones	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Top	B-Application
Racer	I-Application
from	O
Commodore	O
International	O
,	O
which	O
led	O
to	O
a	O
lawsuit	O
from	O
Namco	O
against	O
Commodore	O
Japan	O
that	O
led	O
to	O
the	O
seizure	O
of	O
Top	B-Application
Racer	I-Application
copies	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Parker	O
Brothers	O
published	O
the	O
Pole	B-Application
Position	I-Application
board	O
game	O
in	B-Application
1983	I-Application
.	O
</s>
