A second bug, which allows the pterodactyl to be easily defeated, was discovered after the game

was first distributed. Newcomer had always designed the game and its AI with each sprite's
dimension in mind, but the pterodactyl's sprite had been altered to improve the appearance one day
before the game was finished. The new sprite allowed the pterodactyl to be easily defeated an
unending number of times. The player could sit on the center ledge, with a single enemy knight
caught indefinitely in the hand of the Lava Troll, and kill an unlimited number of pterodactyls simply
by turning to face them as they entered the screen. Using this flaw, the player could quickly
accumulate a very high score, and a large cache of lives, with no significant skill required. Upon
learning of the flaw, Williams shipped a new ROM for the arcade cabinets to assuage distributors'
complaints.[6][13] Atari, Inc. published Joust for its own systems and under the Atarisoft label for
others: Atari 2600, Atari 5200,[16] Atari 7800,[17] Atari 8-bit family, Apple II, Macintosh, and MS-DOS.
Joust was ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System—programmed by Satoru Iwata.[18]
A port of Joust to the BBC Micro was done by Stuart Cheshire under the pseudonym "Delos D.
Harriman" (which he also used for his networked tank game, Bolo[19]), but since Atarisoft had
reportedly ceased releasing titles for other systems, the work remained largely unavailable and was
subsequently acquired by Aardvark Software, publisher of Frak and Zalaga, whereupon it received
its first review.[20] The game nevertheless remained unavailable for over a year before eventually
being released as Skirmish by Godax for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron.[21][22][23]
Given the peculiar control scheme, Williams was concerned that the game would be unsuccessful,
and arcades were hesitant to purchase the game. However, Williams eventually shipped
26,000 units,[11] and Electronic Games in 1983 described it as "tremendously popular". [24] In the United
States, it topped the Play Meter arcade charts in January 1983,[25] and the RePlay upright arcade
cabinet charts from January[26] to February 1983.[27] It was among the thirteen highest-grossing arcade
games of 1983 in the United States.[28]
A cocktail table version was later released, engineered by Leo Ludzia. [11] It is unique among cocktail
games with its side-by-side seating rather than opposing sides,[9][11] allowing Williams to reuse the
same ROM chip from the upright cabinets.[6] With substantially fewer units manufactured than the
upright arcade machine,[9][11] the cocktail version is a rare collector's item. [9][29]
French magazine Tilt rated the arcade game four out of six stars in 1983. [30] Computer and Video
Games rated the Atari VCS version 83% in 1989.[31]

Retrospective
In 1996, Next Generation listed the arcade version as number 83 on its "Top 100 Games of All
Time", calling it "a perfect example of the three ingredients that all too often make a classic: Original
concepts, quirky designs, and - above all - playability. With only three controls (left, right, and
flap), Joust creates an entire world of elegant combat." [32] Video game historian Steve Kent
considered Joust one of the more memorable games of its time. [33] Author David Ellis agreed, and
stated that the game remains enjoyable to this day.[9] In 2008, Guinness World Records listed it as
the number sixty-nine arcade game in technical, creative, and cultural impact. [34] A writer for Video
Gaming Illustrated called Joust exotic with lifelike animation.[35] Antic called the Atari 8-bit version a
"unique, addictive arcade game" that was "almost identical" to the original. The magazine concluded
that Joust was "Atari's finest since Star Raiders".[36]
Kevin Bowen of GameSpy's Classic Gaming wrote that Joust has an "incredibly stupid" concept but
is an appealing game with good controls and competitive gameplay. He said it is "one of the first
really fun multiplayer games", differentiated from other contemporary multiplayer games, and a
precursor to the video game deathmatch.[37]
Retro Gamer writer Mike Bevan called the game's physics "beautifully" realized, and
described Joust as one of the "most remarkable and well-loved titles" of the Williams library.
[6]
 A Computer and Video Games writer called the game "weird and wonderful".[38] Author John Sellers
praised the competitive two-player gameplay, and attributed the game's appeal to the flapping
mechanism.[5] In 2004, Ellis described Joust as an example of innovative risk absent in the then-
current video game industry.[9]