Matt Patrol

About

Matt Patrol is a vertical scrolling shooter that puts you in control of a car racing across an alien landscape. You must jump over craters while shooting down enemies that pop up from the ground below. The gameplay loops endlessly as your speed increases and obstacles get more frequent. It runs on the ColecoVision hardware, which gives it a distinct retro feel compared to later systems. The story behind this release is just as interesting as the code itself. Matt Householder started the project in 1984 before AtariSoft canceled development while he was still working on the title screen. The version you play today features a placeholder intro with Selma presenting the game since the official credits never happened. It leaked onto the internet years later after being sold to a collector, so it remains a curious piece of gaming history rather than a polished commercial product.