Is Vanguard on Steam?

No. Vanguard is not distributed on Steam, so there is no Steam Charts or SteamDB player count for it. Its live popularity is tracked here via Twitch viewership instead.

What platforms is Vanguard on?

Vanguard is available on Arcade, Atari 2600, PlayStation 3, Atari 5200, PlayStation Portable.

When did Vanguard release?

Vanguard was first released on July 1, 1981.

Vanguard

Jul 1, 1981ShooterArcadeArcadeAtari 2600 PlayStation 3 Atari 5200 PlayStation Portable

Vanguard — frequently asked questions

Is Vanguard on Steam?: No. Vanguard is not distributed on Steam, so there is no Steam Charts or SteamDB player count for it. Its live popularity is tracked here via Twitch viewership instead.
What platforms is Vanguard on?: Vanguard is available on Arcade, Atari 2600, PlayStation 3, Atari 5200, PlayStation Portable.
When did Vanguard release?: Vanguard was first released on July 1, 1981.

About Vanguard

Vanguard is a shoot 'em up game which leads the player through five different zones to the City of Mystery where the creature Gond awaits him which he has to kill. The five zones run horizontally as well as vertically and are filled with different enemies for each zone. Being hit by an enemy, a projectile or the walls results in losing a life. There are, however, collectable items which grant the player a short time of invincibility. Shooting differs somewhat from other shoot 'em ups: The player's ship is able to fire in all four directions depending on the direction the player steers his ship. However, in doing so, the ship flies in that direrction as well which may result in crashing into an obstacle. The ship is constantly running out of fuel which can be replenished by killing enemies. After defeating Gond the game starts anew on a higher difficulty level.

Summary via IGDB.

Game details

Platforms: Arcade, Atari 2600, PlayStation 3, Atari 5200, PlayStation Portable
Developer: Tose
Publisher: Atari
Game modes: Single player, Multiplayer
Themes: Action, Science fiction

Details via IGDB.

Reception

IGDB rating

49/100

from 8 ratings

Every version compared

Prices, contemporary reception and the studio credited for each release

Platform	Year	Loose	Complete	Sealed	Period reviews	Built by
Atari 2600	1982	$6	$15	$25	3 reviews	GCC (designed by Dave Payne)

Also released on: Arcade · PlayStation 3 · Atari 5200 · PlayStation Portable. We haven’t priced or authenticated those versions yet.

Collector value & authenticity

Atari 2600 · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-06

Loose

Complete

$15

Sealed

$25

Release record

Territory	Label	Catalog #	Rarity
North America Atari	Silver	CX2669	Common+

Also released in South America by Polygram, Polyvox.

Source: Catalog numbers, label types, rarity, controllers and player counts: AtariAge 2600 software database

Region: NA+EU
Released: 1982
Controller: Atari Joystick
Players: 1 - 2
Authenticity: Low

Not in Atari 50 — other compilations and plug-and-plays are not tracked hereLow counterfeit risk

Atari 2600 prices, all games & how to spot a fake

Atari's 2600 port of an early forced-scrolling arcade shooter, common and cheap.

Vanguard is a 1981 arcade scrolling shooter developed by Tose and published by SNK, licensed to Centuri in North America. It was one of the first shooters with forced scrolling, mixing horizontal, vertical and diagonal sections as you fly through tunnels toward a boss, and the arcade ship could fire in four directions.

Atari released the Atari 2600 port in December 1982, with a PAL release in 1983. GCC developed it, with Dave Payne credited as designer.

How it was made

Developed by GCC for Atari, with Dave Payne credited as the 2600 programmer. Released in North America in December 1982 and in PAL regions in the second quarter of 1983.

What the press said at the time

Computer Entertainer Vol. 1 No. 10	January 1983	Graphics ★★★½ · Play-Action ★★★★
Electronic Fun with Computers & Games Vol. 1 No. 6	April 1983	3 joysticks
JoyStik July 1983	July 1983	★★★★

“After several recent disappointments from their young designers, Atari's VCS people have done one fantastic job”
— Electronic Games, May 1983

“Altogether we found this a very satisfying game. Graphics are well done and extremely colorful, and game play is so varied that it's difficult to imagine anyone becoming bored, even in long playing sessions.”
— Computer Entertainer, January 1983

“Actually, despite the bland title, it's one of the better video games I've played in recent months. … Taken as a whole, Vanguard is a splendid space odyssey.”
— Electronic Fun with Computers & Games, April 1983

“It's this wild and wooly action that certifies Vanguard as a first-rate translation and makes it as much fun to play as any arcade game on the market.”
— Electronic Games, May 1983

Computer Entertainer rated graphics first and play action second, from four symbols (excellent) to one (poor) — stars in most years, diamonds in 1986–87 — comparing each game only with other games for the same system. Electronic Fun rated games out of four joysticks. JoyStik’s capsule ratings run from one star to five.

Cartridge & preservation record

Program size 8 KB, measured from the preserved dump.

Catalogue number as recorded for the physical release.

How the Atari 2600 version differs

Video magazine called the 2600 cartridge a marvelous home translation, saying its designer made elegant simplifications to the graphics while keeping the arcade game's look and action.

The 2600 version was the first game cartridge to offer a continue option.

Period reviewers preferred it to the later 5200 version: Video Games Player said the 5200 controls were worse than the VCS version's.

Also on other platforms

Arcade · Atari 5200

Atari 2600	GCC (designed by Dave Payne)
Arcade	Tose
Atari 5200	Atari, Inc.

Atari 5200. The 5200 version won Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Videogame at the 5th Arkie Awards for its graphics, though Computer Games said it "looks good but plays bad".

Worth knowing

Continued play. Electronic Games' May 1983 review praised "the first programmable videogame's use of the "continued play" option."
Released January 1983. Atari Age's Master Strategy Guide said of Vanguard: "it came out in January 1983".
A slow-burn hit. Atari Age called Vanguard "a \"sleeper\" when it was first released", adding that nearly a year later it was "on best-seller lists from coast to coast".

Before you buy

Low risk; a common Atari cart and not a reproduction target. Loose copies are inexpensive, and boxed copies cost a few times as much. Check box condition before paying for a complete one.