Space Race (video game) screen while avoiding obstacles. Development of "Space Race" began in Summer 1972 under the name "Asteroid" by Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell, based on ideas by him and co-founder Ted Dabney. The final design was done by Dabney, possibly with assistance by Bushnell and "Pong" designer Allan Alcorn. The game was planned to be quick to create to fulfill an earlier contract with Bally Midway. The engineering and prototyping was done by Alcorn; after it was completed and the design given to Midway to be released as "Asteroid", Atari produced its own nearly identical version as "Space Race". Fifty "Space Race"
Ted Dabney their military products section. This work led to him becoming involved in early video imagery products within Ampex, including vidicon systems. By around 1969 Ampex had also hired Nolan Bushnell, who worked alongside Dabney and where they became friends. Bushnell, prior to joining Ampex, had come up with the idea of making a carnival-like pizza place with animatronics and games, and discussed this idea with Dabney. After seeing a computer system at the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, the two came up with the concept of using a smaller computer or video systems, adding coin slots, and allowing people to pay