 Big
Trak
Big Trak, the brainchild of an electronically minded
Milton Bradley Company (who released Simon and Microvision during the
same period), looked like a toy version of the futuristic armored RV
from Damnation Alley.
The squat, low and sturdy appearance of the truck had
an almost militaristic feel, which was heartily reinforced by Big
Trak's ability to fire 'Photon' lasers (actually a focused high
wattage light bulb behind a red filter). The toy retailed for about
US$43.00, a price high enough that it was often relegated to the
envious land of 'toys other people have in their homes'.
 Big
Trak also had one 'trailer hitch' accessory that, for anyone who saw
Big Trak commercials, was an absolutely necessary purchase. The
trailer sold for US$12.00 and could be used to haul cool stuff around
the house. In the commercial, a kid giddily programs his Big Trak to
surprise his father with a cool, refreshing drink, perhaps thanking
him for spending so much on this techno-wonder. In the end,
remotely serving your father his evening gin & tonic was about the
limit of Big Trak's practical applications. The plastic multi-colored
numeric directional keypad located on Big Trak's back was just
complicated enough to make navigating the hallways and rooms of the
average family home a daunting task at best.
 There
was a difficult system of pressing numbers and arrows in sequence in
order to command the vehicle to "go forward", "turn left", "go forward
again", "fire photon", "retreat" etc. This was made more problematic
by the fact that each time the forward arrow was pressed in the
sequence of commands, the Big Trak would move approximately 13 inches.
This was not a particularly helpful formula for precise driving, and a
lot of living room furniture suffered as a result . . .
 Even
if Big Trak was eventually proven ineffective as a toy, its lure and
appeal were supreme. While the electronic aspects were particularly
hypnotic, the idea that Big Trak offered an element of control to a
child that had very little power over the world around them was like
entering the realm of magic.
A child's environment is often dominated by schedules,
rules and parameters designed by someone else's hand. Big Trak
promised a child his own agency in decision-making. Move here. Turn
there. Fire weapon. Bring me a drink. Obey me, Big Trak, for I am your
god.
For a brief, ecstatic moment, the future had finally
arrived, even if it was eventually relegated to the back of a suburban
cupboard stuffed behind clothing two sizes too small and boxes of
forgotten trading cards.
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