Comment by biot

I don't know the copyright claims process Atari uses, but the review[0] of Vector Tank the Kickstarter page links to says:

  First, let's step back a moment and take a look at the overall 
  Vector Tanks situation. Peter's original Vector Tanks appeared 
  in the App Store, published by Chillingo, just over one year ago. 
  It delivered a stylized iPhone take on Ed Rotberg's 1980 arcade 
  classic Battlezone, with a large helping of modern-day retro, 
  thanks to the lovely glowing vector effects that make the iPhone's 
  screen feel more like an Atari Quadrascan display than a 3.5-inch 
  LCD.

That's fairly telling. Additionally, if I were to come up with a generic name to describe Battlezone, Vector Tanks would be a top pick. I'm not experienced with copyright with respect to clones of games, but Atari might be the victim here.

EDIT: Even more damning, the original Vector Tanks review details how the creator loved Battlezone so much he wanted an iPhone version[1]. So he created one. The original app's description:

  Vector Tanks is a Battlezone remake with a "future retro" feel. 
  It's great fun and is perhaps the most enjoyable retro offering
  to be found in the App Store.

EDIT 2: The VentureBeat article[2] puts the nail in the coffin:

  Vector Tanks programmer Peter Hirschberg commented to VentureBeat: 
  “The cruel irony here is that I tried for years to get ahold of 
  Atari to license their IP but they seemed to have fallen off the 
  planet. Now this. It’s very depressing.”

The developer originally recognized the need for a license but, unable to contact Atari, decides to clone the game anyways.

[0] http://toucharcade.com/2010/03/01/a-closer-look-at-vector-ta...

[1] http://toucharcade.com/2009/02/16/a-look-at-retro-3d-shooter...

[2] http://venturebeat.com/2011/12/30/ataris-latest-legal-action...