Centuri, based in Hialeah, Florida, was one of the top six suppliers of coin operated video game machinery in the United States in the 1980s. Many of the machines distributed in the US under the Centuri name were licensed from overseas manufacturers, particularly Konami.
Centuri in its modern inception was formed when former Taito of America president Ed Miller and his partner Bill Olliges took over a company called Allied Leisure, Inc. and renamed it "Centuri" in 1980. Centuri discontinued their video game operations in January 1985.[1]
List of games
Allied Leisure and Centuri published the following arcade games in the United States:
Select games released as Allied Leisure (1969-1979):
- Monkey Bizz (1969)
- Unscramble (1969)
- Wild Cycle (1970)
- Sea Hunt (1972)
- Spooksville (1972)
- Crack Shot (1972)
- Monte Carlo (1973)
- Paddle Battle (1973)
- Tennis Tourney (1973)
- Chopper (1974)
- Super Shifter (1974)
- F-114 (1975)
- Fire Power (1975)
- Dyn O' Mite (1975; solid-state pinball machine)
- Bomac (1976)
- Chase (1976)
- Daytona 500 (1976)
- Battle Station (1977)
- Take Five (1978; cocktail pinball)
- Battlestar (1979; unreleased?)
- Lunar Invasion (1979; unreleased?)
- Space Bug (1979; unreleased?)
- Clay Champ (1979; licensed from Namco)
- Star Shooter (1979; cocktail pinball)
- Clay Shoot (1979; video version of Clay Champ)
Games released as Centuri (1980-1984):
- Rip-Off (1980; color cocktail version licensed from Cinematronics)
- Targ (1980; cocktail version licensed from Exidy)
- Eagle (1980; developed by Nichibutsu as Moon Cresta)
- Killer Comet (1980; developed in-house; licensed to Game Plan)
- Megatack (1980; developed in-house; licensed to Game Plan)
- Phoenix (1980; developed by unidentified "smaller Japanese developer" according to former Centuri employee Joel Hochberg); licensor: Amstar Electronics
- Route 16 (1981; developed by Sun Electronics); licensor: Tehkan
- Pleiades (1981; developed by Tehkan)
- Round-Up (1981; developed by Amenip); licensor: Hiraoka & Co.
- The Pit (1981; developed by AW Electronics); licensor: Zilec
- Vanguard (1981; developed by TOSE); licensor: SNK
- Challenger (1981; developed in-house)
- D-Day (1982; developed by Olympia)
- Locomotion (1982; developed by Konami)
- Swimmer (1982; developed by Tehkan)
- Time Pilot (1982; developed by Konami)
- Tunnel Hunt (1982; developed by Atari)[1]
- Aztarac (1983; developed in-house)
- Gyruss (1983; developed by Konami)
- Guzzler (1983; developed by Tehkan)
- Track & Field (1983; developed by Konami)
- Munch Mobile (1983; developed by SNK)
- Circus Charlie (1984; developed by Konami)
- Hyper Sports (1984; developed by Konami)
- Mikie: High School Graffiti (1984; developed by Konami)
- Badlands (1984; developed by Konami)
References
- ^ Kent, Steven (November 1997). "Retroview: The Owen Rubin Memorial Gameroom". Next Generation. No. 35. Imagine Media. p. 34.
- ^ "Financial Desk: Company Briefs", The New York Times, January 17, 1985. (subscription required). "Centuri Inc., Hialeah, Fla., said it would discontinue operations of its video games division and close its National Interport Services Inc. boat repair facility in Hampton, Va., resulting in a $2.5 million charge against 1984 results."