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Space Duel (version 2)
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About Space Duel (version 2)
Arcade Video game published 44 years ago:
Space Duel (c) 1982 Atari.
Space Duel is a 1- or 2-player game with a color X-Y video display. This display, with its 3-color guns and higher voltage, has the same technology that was used in previous Atari black-and-white X-Y displays. However, the screen now displays dazzling color and unique visual effects in a spectacular multi-dimensional video display.
Space Duel offers players a choice of 4 different game versions. One player can control a fighter or a space station. Two players, playing at the same time, can control fighters or a space station. The game offers players 12 different targets (7 split when hit), and 18 different waves. At the beginning of each wave, objects enter from the screen edge. The player(s) then tries to shoot and destroy the objects. The wave ends when all the objects are destroyed.
Gameplay begins with the first wave. In the space station game, two ships appear near the center of the screen. The ships are joined together by a 'fuse'. In the fighter game, the red ship appears above the red controls. The green ship appears above the green controls. A sound is heard any time a ship appears on the screen.
A ship may fire as many as four shots on the screen at one time. However, if a ship is damaged, it may fire only one shot on the screen. Also the ship is slower to react. In space stations, a second hit to either ship destroys that ship. Then, the fuse between ships starts to burn, and the other ship explodes.
Player layout in our catalog: 2P sim.
If you are exploring by feel rather than by title, jump from the tags above into the matching genre rooms, or return to the Arcade hall for the full wall.
Open Play on this page to start Space Duel (version 2). Keyboard, USB/Bluetooth pads, and the on-screen touch gamepad all work inside the emulator bar. Save states and fullscreen live on that same bar so you can pause mid-session and resume later.
Space Duel (version 2) — play guide
What Space Duel wants from you
Space Duel (Atari) is an arena / vector shoot cab: clear waves with lane honesty and bomb peeks before continues empty. Lane honesty beats spray. Learn Space Duel windows cold—do not paste Asteroids charts blindly—the duo and bomb scripts are their own exam. Calm first waves until bomb timing is narratable; spacduel chrome is packaging, not free invulnerability or free wave clears on every board for vanity bombs dumped into thin screens while a flank stream finishes the life.
First minutes in Space Duel
First waves: hold a side lane, take clean shot windows, and learn duo peeks before center-spray tourism through every rock. Power-cycle once so Space Duel chrome stops looking like Asteroids. Early waves teach Space Duel grammar: planned bombs before spray routes that die mid-wave when denser packs arrive on later boards. Hold that grammar before vanity bombs. One clean stretch with composure left beats three surround deaths that looked flashy until a flank arrived mid-rock.
Core systems in Space Duel
Rotate, thrust, shoot, bomb as wired, wave goals, lives/continues, and Space Duel UI define the systems. Skill is bomb economy under pressure—not dumping bombs into thin screens for vanity mid-wave clears. After continues, reconfirm bomb and duo state before racing again. Keep a one-sentence bomb-economy rule ready before the second wave starts on this Atari vector set, and reclaim a stable lane after every bomb instead of drifting into the next spawn door.
Score, continues, and resources in Space Duel
Wave clears and survival score the run; hits and empty bombs tax continues. Continues are coins while learning denser later waves. Fewer panic sprays and fewer wasted bombs keep credits alive. Farming easy waves forever without reading denser packs still leaves Space Duel unread. Progress is Atari chrome that no longer forces death loops mid-wave on later boards, not a pasted clear that still empties bombs into fodder and dies on the first real surround.
Mistakes that burn credits in Space Duel
Spraying center every wave, wasting bombs on thin packs, ignoring formation tells, tunneling on sparkle while a hit finishes you, and freezing until the screen fills burn Space Duel credits. Power-cycling mid-tilt without a plan burns another credit. Next credit: lane hold, bomb when dense—stop mash tourism for scenery and wave panic on later Atari boards.
Next steps after Space Duel
When Space Duel waves clear without constant empty-bomb deaths, compare Asteroids and Tempest deliberately for Atari contrast, then return with bomb drills on the denser waves that still tax you. Bomb stock lasts longer once panic dumps stop mid-wave. Cousin Atari vector cabinets help as contrast after Space Duel feels automatic—not as escape from waves you still freeze for chrome. Clear one careful wave before vanity bombs return on denser Atari boards.
Sources cited below under Further reading.
Cabinet dossier
Space Duel (version 2) is filed in our catalog as a 1980 release.
Player layout on this cabinet: 2P sim.
Genre tags on Classic Arcade Games: Shooter.
Credit line lists Atari as developer.
Next cabinets
Nearby cabinets you may also open from this hall (each on its own play page):Asteroids Deluxe (rev 3), Asteroids (rev 4), Blasteroids (rev 4), Bradley Trainer, Black Widow, Centipede (revision 4), Gravitar (version 3), Liberator (set 1), Millipede, Orbit, Red Baron (Revised Hardware), Sky Raider
Explore more on this site
Same series
Asteroids Deluxe (rev 3) · Asteroids (rev 4) · Blasteroids (rev 4)
How to play Space Duel (version 2) online
- Arcade stick feel: Arrow keys for the joystick, X/Z (and nearby keys) for buttons, Enter=Start.
- USB / Bluetooth pads map cleanly; six-button fighters use the face-button cluster.
- On phones, open the on-screen pad from the emulator bar; rotate sits next to fullscreen.
- Save states, load, volume, and fullscreen stay on the emulator bar between credits.
Studio notes — Atari
Atari appears on this cabinet’s credit line. Browse more titles from the same studio on the developer shelf, or stay on this page and try the next cabinets in the same hall.
Asteroids Deluxe (rev 3) · Asteroids (rev 4) · Bradley Trainer · Black Widow · Centipede (revision 4) · Gravitar (version 3) · Liberator (set 1) · Millipede
Questions about Space Duel (version 2)
Can I play Space Duel (version 2) free in a browser?
Yes. Classic Arcade Games hosts Space Duel (version 2) as a Arcade cabinet you can start on this page. The emulator loads in the browser; you do not need to install a separate app.
What controls does Space Duel (version 2) support?
Arcade stick feel: Arrow keys for the joystick, X/Z (and nearby keys) for buttons, Enter=Start. USB / Bluetooth pads map cleanly; six-button fighters use the face-button cluster.
Are there other games in the same series as Space Duel (version 2)?
Yes — related series cabinets on this site include Asteroids Deluxe (rev 3), Asteroids (rev 4), Blasteroids (rev 4). Each has its own play page with the same browser emulator path.
Further reading
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