A fantasy realm of dark dungeons, mysterious wizards, and evil demons comes alive in the 1985 Atari game Gauntlet. In one of the earliest fantasy role-playing games, players venture through this magical world as an elf, a valkyrie, a wizard, or a warrior. The objective of the game is to navigate through a series of dungeon labyrinths while battling an onslaught of otherworldly enemies. Players must collect food to maintain their health, treasure to earn points, and potions to use as magical weapons.
Gauntlet is a multiplayer game. The extra wide cabinet can accommodate up to four players, each controlling a joystick and two buttons. The innovative design of the cabinet made it a popular choice for conversion into other four player games.
Gauntlet was praised as a success in the arcades. As a result, the arcade game was ported to a number of home systems, including: NES, Atari Lynx, Apple II, and Commodore 64 to name a few. Gauntlet also inspired a collection of arcade sequels: Gauntlet II, Gauntlet Legends, and Gauntlet Dark Legacy. Gauntlet and Gauntlet 2 can both be found on the arcade compilation Midway Arcade Treasures for Nintendo Game Cube, Xbox, PlayStation 2, and Windows.