| In April 1987 the US trade monthly Play Meter listed Arkanoid under Romstar, dated 1986, in its spring buyer's guide, and its report on the ACME '87 show called Arkanoid the previous year's top conversion. At that show Romstar showed Tournament Arkanoid, and one attendee called the original the best game for him since Ms. Pac-Man. | p. 110, Spring Buyer's Guidep. 126, conversion kits at ACME '87p. 126, conversion kits at ACME '87p. 64 (PDF p. 60), ACME '87 show reportp. 64 (PDF p. 60), ACME '87 show report | Magazine |
| Konami introduced the arcade Contra to US operators in Play Meter's April 1987 issue, as a two-player dedicated upright with buy-in and continuation features. An operator's column in the same issue had it on test for some weeks and doing well. | printed p. 138, Contraprinted p. 118, Konami Contra | Magazine |
| Play Meter's April 1987 notice describes the arcade game: each player has an eight-way joystick and shoot and jump buttons, six bonus weapons (machine gun, laser, spread gun, fireball, a barrier, and rapid fire) come from destroying small flashing sensors, and destroying the large sensor at the end of each stage opens the next. Its stages run from a jungle through two enemy bases seen as 3-D mazes, a vertically scrolling waterfall, a snow field, and a hangar to the Alien's Lair. | printed p. 138, Contraprinted p. 138, Contraprinted p. 138, Contraprinted p. 138, Contra | Magazine |
| In North America the arcade game was Romstar's Sky Shark: Akagi Masumi's list credits it to Toa Plan and Romstar in March 1987, and Play Meter's April 1987 report on the American Coin Machine Expo (ACME '87) says Romstar showed it there as a conversion kit and that it was the Romstar game operators raved about most. The magazine's picks from the show gave it the award for best conversion kit. | p. 60, ACME 1987 show reportp. 126, Best Conversion Kitp. 126, Best Conversion Kitp. 110, Romstar advertisement | Book |
| The arcade manual told operators that Matchbox Toys would advertise its Road Blasters line on television in the spring and fall of 1987. Play Meter's April 1987 product introduction said the same: the game was developed in conjunction with Matchbox Toys, which would support its Road Blasters line with a nationwide campaign. | p. 136 (image 136), product introduction, Road Blastersp. 136 (image 136), product introduction, Road Blasters | Manual |
| Play Meter's April 1987 product introduction announced Road Blasters as a dedicated driving game in a high-tech cockpit, available then, and said a System I upright and a conversion kit would follow, converting Atari's other System I games: Marble Madness, Peter Pack Rat, Road Runner and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. | p. 136 (image 136), product introduction, Road Blastersp. 136 (image 136), product introduction, Road Blastersp. 136 (image 136), product introduction, Road Blasters | Magazine |
| Play Meter's report on the ACME trade show of 1987 called Road Blasters "the hit video game of the show", a driving-and-shooting game offered as a sit-down, an upright or a kit, and said the sit-down was to ACME what Out Run had been to AMOA, with lines always waiting. The magazine's picks of the show, by Steve Harris and the U.S. National Video Game Team, named it the best video game of the show. | p. 64 (image 60), ACME 1987 show reportp. 64 (image 60), ACME 1987 show reportp. 64 (image 60), ACME 1987 show reportp. 121 (image 121), Best Games of ACME, From a Player's Viewp. 125 (image 125), Best Video Game of Showp. 125 (image 125), Best Video Game of Show | Magazine |
| The Best Video Game of Show piece by Steve Harris and the U.S. National Video Game Team described Road Blasters as Pole Position meeting Spy Hunter, praised its animation and the variety of its weapons, and called it "a gem of a game and a must for owners of System I mainframes". | p. 125 (image 125), Best Video Game of Showp. 125 (image 125), Best Video Game of Showp. 125 (image 125), Best Video Game of Showp. 126 (image 126), Best Video Game of Show, continuedp. 121 (image 121), Best Games of ACME, From a Player's View | Magazine |
| An operator's column in Play Meter's April 1987 issue said that Robert Weatherby, an Atari software designer who had led the projects for Super Sprint and Championship Sprint, "had a hand in bringing us RoadBlasters". | p. 118 (image 118), operator's column, System Games, Atari RoadBlastersp. 118 (image 118), operator's column | Magazine |
| Play Meter's April 1987 report on the second annual American Coin Machine Exposition (ACME), held March 20-22, says Rolling Thunder, "a dedicated game that was introduced a little over a month ago and that Atari licensed from Namco", was in Atari's booth. In its summary, the game pits the Rolling Thunder undercover police organization against the secret society Geldra, and Agent Albatross shoots his way through the enemy's headquarters to save Leila, a captured agent. | printed p. 64, ACME show reportprinted p. 64, ACME show reportprinted p. 64, ACME show reportprinted p. 64, ACME show report | Magazine |
| In April 1987 Play Meter listed Rolling Thunder among the video games earning over $100 at a popular West Coast arcade, and an operator in the same issue called it an Elevator Action and Kung Fu type of upright with excellent graphics that had been earning in the operator's top five route videos for the last few weeks. | printed p. 37printed p. 37printed p. 118, "Atari Rolling Thunder" | Magazine |
| In North America the game was sold as Victory Road by Tradewest. Akagi Masumi's list dates it to February 1987 under the name "Victory Roads", in SNK's overseas section "via Trade West" and in Trade West's section as an SNK game. Play Meter's April 1987 issue listed Victory Road under Tradewest among dedicated video games in its spring buyer's guide, and reported that Tradewest had had "a tremendous hit" with Ikari Warriors and similar success with its latest game, Victory Road. | p. 98 (image 98), Spring Buyer's Guide, dedicated videosp. 38 (image 38), news, Tradewest buys Cinematronicsp. 38 (image 38), news, Tradewest buys Cinematronicsp. 38 (image 38), news, Tradewest buys Cinematronics | Book |