Coleco Electric Quarterback is a small handheld video game first produced in 1978. It was part of a wide range of handheld games and in particular sports games to hit the market most notably from Tomy, Coleco and Mattel. Hockey, baseball, basketball, auto racing and soccer were other commonly found games during this time.
This is one of the very first video games I ever played having received it at Christmas as a present when I was about 9 or 10, shortly after it first came out. At the time, it was a great option for kids and adults who were getting into video games at a time when the industry was just beginning to develop.
Game Design
Some older versions of the game have white buttons rather than the blue and red buttons of the original and another version has black directional buttons. Modern versions of the game were also manufactured so you can find newer versions of a similar design that were actually manufactured years later than the 1978 version. A Sears-branded version of the game called Electronic Touchdown was also designed and sold.
The game features directional arrows for moving players up and down and forward. You cannot move backwards however. A vertical switch lets you choose between passing and running the ball. You have two skill levels to choose from. Switching to Skill 2 adds an extra defensive player and the game appears to move a bit faster. There is also a red D button that when pressed alternates between showing the score of the game and the yard position and current downs. There is another red K/P button that either throws or runs the ball when you’re on offense.
Gameplay
Coleco Electronic Quarterback features a stripped down game of NFL-style American football with 3 offensive players and 6 players (easier skill) or 7 players (harder skill) on the defensive side operated by the computer depending on which skill level you choose.
The game uses small red blips representing the players and a smaller round flashing blip as the ball when it’s thrown or kicked. It’s technically a two-person game where each player plays offense against the computer who plays defense. Having said that, you can play by yourself and just play offense for both sides.
Offensively the game allows both running and passing plays and you can kick field goals too. Like in the real game, not all field goals are successful. Once you get good at it, you can rack up the points with long running and passing plays but watch out for the interceptions. Once you start to figure out how the defense works, you can get good with the game but regardless it’s a fun way to pass the time.
Scoreboard
The scoring and display was fairly basic at the time and you access this screen by holding down the red Display button to display the Down, Yards to Go and Field Position.
If you release the red Display button and then press it again, it will then display the score and the time remaining. The time is a shortened clock so even though it says 15 minutes, it isn’t really that long as the clock runs down much faster.
Game Quirks
One of the interesting things to consider: Normally in real football, when you run down the field, your opponent would of course have to run after you to catch up and tackle you. Electronic Football game play is simplified so when you run with the ball and your man (the red blip representing the runner) moves across the screen, the defensive players remain in the same spot even as you progress down the field and are capable of tackling you even though you have run technically run past them. Again, the game play is simplified and is a 1978 design.
All in, it’s a fun game and a great way to pass the time.