Gauntletak
Gauntletak is a multidirectional shooter video game written by Donald R. Lebeau for the Atari 8-bit family of home computers. It was released as shareware in 1984 with a full-version available for registration of . Gameplay is divided into separate screens (50 in all) with terrain and enemies. The game was originally titled Gauntlet, but was renamed after the "Gauntlet" arcade game from Atari Games was released in 1985. Gameplay. The player controls a saucer-shaped ship using a joystick and the keyboard, and can fire weapons in eight directions, both at the terrain (to dig holes or  tunnels) and at enemies. The player uses the joystick to apply thrust in different directions, meaning the ship can be moving in one direction and firing in any other (strafing the ground or enemies). The codice_1 key on the keyboard causes the ship to full-stop. Various kinds of enemies are found in the game, each of which reacts to the player differently. Some attack the player immediately, some wait until the player is within close proximity, some wait until the player is in their line of sight, etc. Some large enemies release smaller enemies that in turn attack the  player. Additionally, the player has an arsenal of different weapons to choose from: fusion bolts, homing missiles, flares, and so on that have different effects For example, fusion bolts are similar to the counter-missiles in "Missile Command"; they explode when they hit other objects, including explosions. The player can fire repeatedly in the same direction causing explosions to "walk back" towards their ship, providing a kind of shield against enemies. Name change. A year after the game was published, Atari Games released the hack and slash arcade game "Gauntlet" (itself based on another Atari computer game, "Dandy"). Despite having  trademarked the name, after talking with his lawyers, Donald renamed the registered version of his game "Gauntletak" to avoid infringement. The registered version was released in 1987.