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Collection of original technical and promotional materials for the early arcade racing games Gran Trak 10 by Atari (May 1974), and its Kee Games clone, Formula K (July 1974). The collection contains various schematics, manuals, part list sheets, and in-house notes, and is highlighted by five original Formula K blueline schematics from Kee Games, which include:
- two 34 x 22 schematics identified as “Race Track Schematic,” both dated March 8, 1974, issued as Drawings “EL740313-1” (Sheet 1 of 2) and “EL740313-2” (2 of 2), with the first sheet annotated “Formula ‘K’ and both manufactured by “Kee Games, 330 Mathew St., S.C, CA.”
- two 22 x 17 schematics identified as “K-3, RT Harness,” dated March 25-27, 1974, issued as Drawings “EL 740327-1” (1 of 2) and “EL 740327-2” (2 of 2), respectively titled “Wire-Harness” and “Electric-Dwg”
- 17 x 11 schematic identified as “RT Lap-Timer K-3,” drawing “EL 740219-10.”
Also includes:
Color 11 x 8.5 dual-sided Kee Games promotional flyer for Formula K, with the reverse bearing a cabinet diagram and a list of features
Red spiral-bound ‘Operation and Service Manual’ for Formula K by Kee Games, 14 pages with additional technical schematics
Three identical stapled Formula K ‘operator manuals’ issued by Kee Games in April 1974, each 15 pages, with sections for Adjustments, Diagnosis and Procedures, Service, TV Schematics, and Illustrations
Stapled 10-page photocopied Atari ‘Parts List Specification’ packet dated to March 1974, which includes job titles like “R. T. Electronics Tray Assy,” “Panel Assy, GT 10,” “Cash Door Assembly, GT 10,” and “Chute Assy, Coin Guide, GT 10.” This packet was likely used for Gran Trak 10, which used the codename ‘Race Track’
Three copies of Atari schematics, each 17 x 11, including two sheets marked “Race Trak ‘F’ Schematic,” and one marked “Wiring Enclosure Diagram”
In overall very good to fine condition, with scattered wear, and some tape to schematic folds. Accompanied by a mixture of photocopies and original paperwork related to game adjustments and troubleshooting.
Gran Trak 10 and Formula K are basically two faces of the same game, sitting right at the birth of the video racing genre. Together they represent the first really convincing car-driving video game in arcades, ahead of titles like Taito’s Speed Race (1974) and Atari’s own Night Driver (1976), which would later evolve the scrolling and first-person perspectives. As early racers, they established a lasting template – realistic controls using a steering wheel, pedals, and a gear shifter; a fixed, learnable track; and time-based scoring instead of direct on-screen opponents. Their hardware experimentation with ROM-based graphics also influenced how later arcade PCBs stored and rendered imagery. You can see a clear design lineage from Gran Trak / Formula K into later Atari/Kee racing titles like Indy 800, Sprint 2, Sprint 1, and Super Bug, all of which build on the same top-down, dots-and-lines driving formula while expanding to multiple players, scrolling tracks, and more sophisticated layouts.
Run by Joe Keenan (a close friend and neighbor of Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell), Kee functioned as a shell competitor, initially releasing clones of Atari games and later developing original titles like Tank and Pursuit. Kee formally merged into Atari in September 1974, with Keenan named as Atari president, and Kee Games kept as a separate division. When Bushnell left Atari in December 1978, Keenan joined him a few months later to help manage his Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre restaurant/arcade franchise.
