Accepted [+] [X] Astro Fang - Super Machine [Model WAV-E1-01] Update submitted by Guy
Astro Fang - Super Machine (c) 1990 A-Wave
Astro Fang is a car racing/shooter game developed and published by A-Wave. The RS-121 planet used to be home of a prosperous and flourishing advanced civilization. However, a string of disasters horrifically transformed the planet and turned it into a devastated and barren wasteland. Among the ruins of the ancient civilization lies a long highway called the Black Line, and a mysterious and forgotten legend that remains unsolved to this day. The player takes control of Raibā, an elite car driver, who has decided to put the legend to the test. On board his Astro Fang Supermachine, he must drive on the cursed highway, push other marauders off the road or hit them with a limited amount of missiles. The Astro Fang includes a rather unusual feature - pressing the down button squeezes the car and makes it a lot slimmer and more compact, allowing the player to successfully navigate through obstacles and enemy cars. The Astro Fang also comes with a limited amount of fuel and repair shops are scattered around the game for quick repairs or to replenish fuel or weapon supplies. Special items can also be purchased there, such as barriers, snow tires (used in later stages) and the fang shield (pushes off enemies on contact). Finally, several bonus items can be collected along the way, and they range from blue icons (extra fuel), red icons (shield) and white icons (fang shield). Astro Fang consists of six large stages, each punctuated by a boss fight - but the Black Line is a complex maze made of many junctions and a map is provided before each level to guide the player through the game.
- TECHNICAL -
Game ID: WAV-E1-01
- TRIVIA -
Astro Fang was released on October 29, 1990 in Japan for 6700 Yen.
The game was never released outside Japan.
- SOURCES -
Game's ROM.
Game's description by Laurent Kermel; http://www.videogameden.com
Accepted [+] [X] Rally-X [Mini-Myte model] [Model 937] Update submitted by vecchiom
Rally-X (c) 1980 Midway Mfg. Co.
Export release. Manufactured by Midway under license from Namco. For more information about the game, please see the original Namco entry.
- TECHNICAL -
[Mini-Myte model]
[No. 937]
- TRIVIA -
Rally-X [Mini-Myte model] was released in January 1981 in the USA.
- SOURCES -
Game's Flyer.
Accepted [+] [X] Rally-X [Upright model] [Model 935] Update submitted by vecchiom
Rally-X (c) 1980 Midway Mfg. Co.
Export version by Bally/Midway for North America. Game developed in Japan by Namco. For more information about the game, please see the original Namco entry.
- TECHNICAL -
[Upright model]
[No. 935]
- TRIVIA -
Rally-X was released by Midway Manufacturing, under license from Namco, in the USA on December 21, 1980.
In the introduction to the bonus stages, the Namco version misspelled 'Challenging' as 'Charanging'. This was corrected in this export version.
In 1981, "Defender", "Pac-Man", and "Battlezone" were shown alongside Rally-X at a trade show sponsored by the Amusement Machine Operators of America. It was believed that Rally-X would be the top money-earner. Defender went on to sell more than 60,000 units - more than disproving these projections - and cemented its place in video game history.
A Midway Rally-X unit appears in the 1982 movie 'Tron'.
- PORTS -
NOTE: Only ports released in North America [US] are listed here. For ports released in other regions, please see the original Namco entry.
* CONSOLES:
Sony PlayStation (jul.31, 1996) "Namco Museum Vol.1 [Model SLUS-00215]"
Microsoft XBOX (aug.30, 2005) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model NMO-2201A-NM]"
Nintendo GameCube (aug.30, 2005) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NE-USA]"
Sony PS2 (aug.30, 2005) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model SLUS-21164]"
Microsoft XBOX 360 (nov.4, 2008) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade [Model 21022]"
Nintendo Wii (nov.16, 2010) "Namco Museum Megamix"
* HANDHELDS:
Sony PSP (aug.23, 2005) "Namco Museum Battle Collection [Model ULUS-10035]"
Nintendo Gameboy Advance (aug.30, 2005) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model AGB-B5NE-USA]"
* COMPUTERS:
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (jul.31, 1998) "Microsoft Revenge of Arcade"
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (oct.25, 2005) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
* OTHERS:
Arcade (1996) "Namco Classics Collection Vol.2"
Namco Classics TV Game (2003) by Jakk's Pacific
Arcade (2010) "Pac-Man's Arcade Party"
Arcade (2018) "Pac-Man's Pixel Bash"
- SOURCES -
Game's Flyer.
Accepted [+] [X] Rally-X Update submitted by vecchiom
Rally-X (c) 1980 Namco, Limited.
In Rally-X, the player drives a car around a maze picking up all of the yellow flags, of which there are ten, before the car's fuel runs out. The game-play has a similar feel to another Namco legend, "Pac-Man"; although in Rally-X, the mazes are much larger and, with each maze having only ten flags to collect, is more sparsely populated than Namco's pill-eating legend.
In-game opponents consist of red enemy cars that try to ram into and destroy the player's car, a problem compounded by the fact that enemy cars are faster than the player's. A smoke screen can be activated which trails behind the player's car and causes any pursuing enemies to crash. Each maze also has rock formations which, if crashed into, will result in the loss of a player car. A radar display to the right hand side of the playing area shows the positions of both the flags, and the enemy vehicles.
- TECHNICAL -
Main CPU : Zilog Z80 (@ 3.072 Mhz)
Sound Chips : Namco 3-channel WSG and discrete circuitry for the crash sound.
Players : 2
Control : 4-way joystick
Buttons : 1 (SMOKE SCREEN)
- TRIVIA -
Rally-X was released in Japan on November 22, 1980.
- UPDATES -
In the introduction to the bonus stages, the Namco version misspells 'Challenging' as 'Charanging'. This was corrected in the Midway version.
- SCORING -
Collecting a flag : 100 points x the flag collected up to a maximum of 1,000 points. If you lose a life, the points awarded will reset to 100 when you restart.
Collecting the Special Flag : Doubles points for the Special Flag and all flags collected thereafter until you clear the round or lose a life. If you clear the entire round without losing a single life, the tenth flag is always worth 2,000 points because it is guaranteed that at some point, you will have collected the Special Flag. However, losing a life will cancel out the Special Flag's scoring effect when you restart.
End of stage bonus : Points for remaining fuel
- TIPS AND TRICKS -
* Your only goal is to collect all ten flags as quickly as possible. You need to pay constant attention to two things: the zoomed in view of the world that occupies most of the screen, and the radar view of the world to the right.
* The radar view provides you with two key pieces of information: the relative position of the flags in the world, and the proximity of the enemy cars to yours. Yellow dots in the radar view denote the flags' locations, red dots represent the enemy cars, and the dot flashing black and gray represents you.
* The method you use for collecting the flags is of utmost importance. It is usually best to try to hop from one flag to whichever flag is closest, but the enemies will make that quite difficult to do. As a general rule, do not reverse your direction unless it is absolutely necessary and completely safe to do. If you have to choose between getting close to an enemy to pick up a nearby flag, and abandoning that flag for a farther flag, go for the farther flag. The more distance you put between you and the other cars, the safer you will remain.
* In general, you will be safe off if you choose a direction to collect flags, clockwise or counter-clockwise, and stick to it throughout the duration of the stage. The smokescreen is an invaluable and incredibly tempting tool to use. But if you use it excessively, you will deplete your fuel supply very rapidly, making it more likely that you will run out of fuel before you collect all ten flags, which will almost ensure your demise.
* Challenging stages occur before each maze change, which occurs each time the round number is one less than a multiple of four (the challenging stages occur on the third, seventh, and every fourth round thereafter. In these stages, you are free to collect all of the flags without being harassed by enemy cars until your fuel runs out. However, you can still crash into parked cars and rocks, so be careful.
* Easter Egg :
1) Enter service mode.
2) Keep B1 pressed and enter the following sequence : UP(x2), DOWN(x7), RIGHT, LEFT(x6)
3) '(c) Namco LTD. 1980' will be added at the bottom of the screen.
- SERIES -
1. Rally-X (1980, Arcade)
2. New Rally-X (1981, Arcade)
3. Rally-X Arrangement (1996, Arcade): part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.2"
4. New Rally-X Arrangement (2005, PSP): part of "Namco Museum Battle Collection"
5. Rally-X Remix (2007, Wii): part of "Namco Museum Remix"
6. Rally-X Rumble (2011, App Store)
- PORTS -
NOTE: For ports released in the USA, please see the Midway version entry.
* CONSOLES:
Nintendo Famicom [AS] (1989) "Jovial Race" by Sachen
[JP] Nintendo Famicom (199?) "Mi Hun Che"
[JP] Sony PlayStation (nov.22, 1995) "Namco Museum Vol.1 [Model SLPS-00107]"
[AU] Sony PlayStation (1996) "Namco Museum Vol.1 [Model SCES-00243]"
[EU] Sony PlayStation (aug.1996) "Namco Museum Vol.1 [Model SCES-00243]"
[JP] Sony PS2 (jan.26, 2006) "Namco Museum Arcade Hits! [Model SLPS-25590]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (mar.24, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
[EU] Sony PS2 (mar.31, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model SLES-53957]"
[EU] Nintendo GameCube (may.5, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NP-EUR]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (may.15, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
[AU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (june.4, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
[JP] Microsoft XBOX 360 (nov.5, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade [Model 2RD-00001]"
* HANDHELDS:
[EU] Sony PSP (dec.9, 2005) "Namco Museum Battle Collection [Model UCES-00116]"
[JP] Sony PSP (feb.24, 2005) "Namco Museum [Model ULJS-00012]"
Sony PSP [KO] (may.2, 2005) as 'Banggor' in "Namco Museum [Model UCKS-45005]"
[EU] Nintendo GBA (mar.31, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model AGB-B5NP-EUR]"
* COMPUTERS:
[JP] MSX (mar.30, 1984)
Fujitsu FM-7 [JP] (1984)
[EU] Amstrad CPC (1984) "Hold-Up" : Different sprites but same game.
[JP] Sharp X68000 (1988) by IT
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [JP] (nov.28, 1997) "Namco History Vol.2"
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] [AU] (mar.27, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (may.19, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
- SOURCES -
Game's ROM.
Game's picture.
Accepted [+] [X] Defender Update submitted by vecchiom
Defender (c) 1980 Williams.
Defender is a legendary sideways-scrolling shoot-em-up - the very first of its genre - in which the aim is to pilot a laser-firing spaceship and protect humanoids stranded on the planet's surface from swarms of alien abductors.
A long-range scanner at the top of the screen shows the positions of both the humanoids and the attacking aliens. The ideal strategy is to shoot down the alien ships before they reach the humanoids. If a humanoid is captured, the alien abductor can still be destroyed, but the player must then catch the falling humanoid and return it to the safety of the planet's surface before it falls to its death.
If an alien is allowed to carry its victim to the very top of the screen, the humanoid will mutate, becoming a permanent part of the alien that captured it. This new and deadly mutation will then immediately join in the alien attack.
The challenge becomes more intense as action progresses. Fighter ships and their mines will soon join the abductors. There are also mother ships that must be destroyed; these are particularly difficult as a direct hit smashes the mother ship into a swarming mass of mini-ships that must also be wiped out. Throughout the entire mission, the player must act quickly or face possible destruction by the cosmic baiter, a fast and dangerous enemy.
Players have two escape options to use as a last resort. The first is the 'smart bomb', which destroys all on-screen enemies. The second option is 'hyperspace', which randomly teleports the player's ship to another part of the level. This is highly risky as it may place the player's ship in a position more dangerous than the one it left.
If all humanoids are successfully abducted, the planet will explode in a blinding flash and the waves remaining until the next planet is reached take place in outer space, and consist solely of destroying enemy waves.
- TECHNICAL -
Board Number : D75 (top), D71F (A)
Prom Stickers : DF
Main CPU : Motorola M6809 (@ 1 Mhz)
Sound CPU : M6808 (@ 894.75 Khz)
Sound Chips : DAC
Players : 2
Control : 2-way joystick (vertical)
Buttons : 5
= > THRUST, FIRE, REVERSE, SMART BOMB, HYPERSPACE
- TRIVIA -
According to Defender development lead Eugene Jarvis: The game was shown at AMOA Chicago October 31, 1980 and released a week or two later on November 15, 1980.
Along with Namco's seminal "Pac-Man", Defender shares the title of 'Highest Grossing Video Game of All Time' and to date has earned more than one billion dollars. It's interesting to note that when the now-legendary shoot-em-up was first shown at a 1981 Chicago arcade machine trade show, it was deemed to be a flop due to its high level of difficulty. Arcade industry insiders confidently predicted that both Defender and Pac-Man would be commercial flops and that Namco's "Rally-X" would be the next major arcade success.
Defender's attract mode for the game was programmed in just five hours.
Defender was noted for both its superb sound and visual effects and, moreover, for its extremely demanding gameplay. This didn't, however, stop players from accumulating millions of points when playing the game. Just minutes after the opening of the AMOA - an arcade industry trade show - Eugene Jarvis and his team - Defender's creators - were burning new ROMs for the game's display due to the fact they plugged the first burn into the board BACKWARDS and fried them. Due to the intimidating controls, hardly anyone at the show played the game and there were even rumours circulating suggesting that both Pac-Man and Defender would flop and that Namco's Rally-X would be the next big hit. Not only did Defender have the highest number of controls (five buttons, in addition to a two-way joystick) but it was also the first video game to feature an artificial 'world', in that game events occurred OUTSIDE the on-screen viewing area presented to the player.
Chris Hoffman holds the official record for this game on 'Marathon' settings with 79,976,975 points on January 1, 1984.
Bill Jones holds the official record for this game on 'Tournament' settings with 543,950 points on August 15, 2008.
Some bootlegs of this game are known as "Star Trek 1981", "Defence Command", "Defense Command", "Zero" (Jeutel), and "Tornado" (Jeutel).
Defender inspired a catchy hit song by Buckner and Garcia called 'Defender' released on the 'Pac-Man Fever' album.
A Defender unit appears in the 1983 movie 'Terms of Endearment', in the 1983 movie 'Joysticks' and in the 1983 movie 'Koyaanisqatsi - Life out of Balance'.
The official video of the 1982 pop song "Herbergsvater", by Joachim Witt, begins by featuring a Defender unit and contains long scenes of Defender gameplay.
A mini Defender unit appears in the 1983 music video 'Almost Over You' by Sheena Easton.
MB (Milton Bradley) released a board game based on this video game (same name) in 1983: win the most points by using your Defender ships to protect Humanoids from waves of aliens. A set of chance cards will bring the different aliens (Bombers, Landers and Humanoids) into play. Movement is determined with a spinner. Players can move their defenders and aliens.
- UPDATES -
Defender ROM sets were distinguished by early and later editions. The early edition supported only upright cabinets. In 1981 Williams released a cocktail cabinet version which necessitated extra code to flip the video display and to support a second set of game controls. The editions had some minor differences in the game's attract mode : The early edition gave an erroneous point value of '100' for alien landers; this was corrected to '150' in the later edition. Also, the high score value for player PGD was '14185' in the early edition and '14285' in the later edition.
Early edition ROM sets :
* Defender (White Label)
* Defender (Green Label)
* Defender (Blue Label)
Later edition ROM sets :
* Defender (Red Label)
- SCORING -
Lander : 150 points.
Mutant : 150 points.
Baiter : 200 points.
Bomber : 250 points.
Pod : 1,000 points.
Swarmer : 150 points.
Completely destroying a pod with a smart bomb : 1,150, 1,300, 1,450, 1,600, 1,750, 1,900, or 2,050 points.
* The chances that a bombed pod will score 1,150, 1,300, or 1,450 points are 1/256 each.
Getting hit by an enemy bullet : 25 points.
Saving a humanoid from a Lander : 500 points.
Depositing a humanoid into the ground : 500 points.
Humanoid landing into the ground safely on his own : 250 points.
Bonus at the end of each wave :
Wave 1 : Humanoids Left X 100.
Wave 2 : Humanoids Left X 200.
Wave 3 : Humanoids Left X 300.
Wave 4 : Humanoids Left X 400.
Wave 5 and above : Humanoids Left X 500.
- TIPS AND TRICKS -
* The enemies that initially appear in each wave are :
Wave 1 : 15 Landers
Wave 2 : 20 Landers, 3 Bombers, and 1 Pod
Wave 3 : 20 Landers, 4 Bombers, and 3 Pods
Waves 4 and up : 20 Landers, 5 Bombers, and 4 Pods
* Avoid using hyperspace unless you are about to die. Fighting off attacks, regardless of the number of enemies, will make you a better Defender player.
* Baiters can usually be overcome by hitting the reverse button twice quickly. They will fly past you and be in range for your fire power. Do NOT try to outrun them as baiters are faster than your ship.
* Swarmers are easy to defeat. You can hit reverse as soon as they fly past you and fly behind them. They cannot shoot backwards so you can blast away at will.
* Shooting a Pod will release between 1 and 7 Swarmers. The chances that it will try to release 1, 2, or 3 Swarmers is 1/256 for each. Also, the maximum number of Swarmers allowed in the game is 20. So, for example, if there are 18 Swarmers in the game and a Pod is hit, it can only release a maximum of 2 Swarmers.
* At higher levels, you will need to play God and even sacrifice some Humanoids (by killing them yourself) to preserve the rest of the planet's population. The planet is too large for you protect and you are sparing the Humanoids from a fate worst than death (mutation). Do not worry, these Humanoids reproduce quickly and overpopulation has always been a constant problem. The planet will be fully populated at the start of every fifth attack wave (configurable).
* The International Date Line : there are reverse lines for Swarmers and Mutants (AKA the 'International Date Line'). If this line is between you and the type of enemy in question, they will travel the opposite direction around the planet to get you (i.e. they won't cross this line to get to you). If a Mutant, say, is following you and you cross the Mutant reverse line (to the left of the big mountain) it will suddenly reverse direction and go around the other way. The same is true for the Swarmer reverse line (located approximately where your ship starts each wave). This doesn't affect Swarmers that you are following behind. If you're on one side of the line and a Pod is on the other and you shoot it open, the Swarmers will fly away from you and you can get in behind them immediately. The best use of these lines is where there are lots of Swarmers and/or Mutants that you don't want to hassle with. You stay near the line and go back and forth over it to keep the enemy on the other side of the planet. This is especially useful in space and waves that get really hairy.
* Freeze : you can freeze a Defender machine by picking up all ten Humanoids (on any wave, but Wave 1 is your greatest chance at success), stopping all forward motion of your ship, quieting the screen down (i.e. having no enemies moving around on it) and setting all the Humanoids straight down quickly. This seems to work better were the terrain is very close to the bottom of the screen. Everything will freeze, but you can still move your ship up and down. Thrusting will break the spell, so to speak. If you do pick a spot with shallow terrain, some Humanoids will go thru the bottom of the screen and appear suspended in mid-air near the top. This trick is good to use during marathon games when you've reached Wave 256 and need a breather.
* Some top players begin each round by shooting all the Humanoids except for one, which they pick up. The planet is too large for you protect and you are sparing the Humanoids from mutation, a fate worse than death. This keeps Mutants from developing, but it also means that the planet explodes if you lose your last Humanoid. The planet is fully repopulated at the start of every fifth attack wave (configurable). This can be considered an advanced trick.
* Due to a bug in the algorithm that computes extra lives, every scoring activity from 990,000 to 999,975 will earn one extra ship and one extra Smart Bomb. If the player suicides on something or gets shot, one ship is lost, but one ship and one smart bomb are awarded; the net effect on the number of ships is zero. Dying on hyperspace re-entry awards nothing, because this awards no points. For winning N ships from 990,000 to 999,975, the player will have to achieve N x 10000 points after passing 1,000,000 before the game's accounting balances, and ships are awarded properly at 10,000 point intervals again. For example, if a player earns 45 extra lives during this interval, he will have to score another 450,000 points before being awarded another extra life. The player gets to keep surplus ships and bombs and can have super long turns where he may bomb two to three times per wave to get out of dangerous situations.
* The trick is this: If the player wins 100+ ships between 990,000 and 1,000,000, this causes the game to start awarding extra lives right away again after turning the score over to zero. If the player wins 100 ships, the machine will have to wait 1,000,000 points to begin awarding ships again. However, since 1,000,000 is equivalent to zero, it awards them immediately at 1,010,000.
* It's possible on a real Defender machine to make the screen color inverted so that all the black space is white while you are playing. It will reset itself when you die and maybe when you use hyperspace. Smart bomb flashes are cool when it's reversed. The trick was to drop a credit in right when you die and the screen flashes white. Somehow the program gets distracted (non-masked interrupt on coin drop?) and the screen stays white.
* Defender attack waves 'roll over' at Wave 100, which is displayed, after being completed, as Wave 0. The game keeps track of the actual number of waves, even though they are not shown properly. For example, the next wave will be counted as Wave 101, even though it shows being completed as Wave 1. The game will 'roll over' again at Wave 200, which is displayed, after being completed, as Wave 0 as well.
The next 'roll over' occurs at Wave 256. Upon completion of Wave 255, the next wave is a 'blank' wave, in which no enemies appear, and the wave immediately ends after the player's ship appears on screen. This level is counted and displayed as Wave 0, and the player is awarded a bonus of humanoids left X 0 points (the bonus for this wave is always 0 points). The next is Wave 1, and the game now plays just as if the player had started a new game, except the player gets to keep his score and all of his bonus ships and smart bombs.
- SERIES -
1. Defender (1980, ARC)
2. Stargate (1981, ARC)
3. Strikeforce (1991, ARC)
4. Defender 2000 [Model J9041E] (1996, Jaguar)
- STAFF -
Staff : Eugene Jarvis (DRJ), Sam Dicker (SAM), Larry DeMar (LED), Paul Dussault (PGD), (CRB), Mike Stroll (MRS), Steve Ritchie (SSR), (TMH)
- PORTS -
* CONSOLES:
[US] Atari 2600 (1981) "Defender [Model CX2609]"
[US] Atari 5200 (1982) "Defender [Model CX5218]"
[US] Entex Adventure Vision (1982) "Defender [Model 6075]"
[EU] Emerson Arcadia (1982) "Space Squadron"
Atari XEGS
[JP] Atari 2600 (1983)
[US] Colecovision (1983) "Defender [Model 70002]"
[US] Mattel Intellivision (1983) "Defender [Model 70252]"
[US] Sega Genesis (1996) "Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits"
[EU] Sega Mega Drive (1996) "Arcade's Greatest Hits [Model T-97126-50]"
[US] Sega Saturn (1996) "Arcade's Greatest Hits [Model T-9703H]"
[US] Sony PlayStation (apr.10, 1996) "Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits [Model SLUS-00201]"
[EU] Sony PlayStation (sept.1, 1996) "Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits [Model SLES-00323]"
[US] Nintendo SNES (oct.1996) "Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits [Model SNS-AW8E-USA]"
[EU] Nintendo SNES (jan.8, 1997) "Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits [Model SNSP-AW8P-EUR]"
[US] Sega Dreamcast (june.27, 2000) "Midway's Greatest Arcade Hits Vol. 1 [Model T-9713N]"
[EU] Sega Dreamcast (jul.28, 2000) "Midway's Greatest Arcade Hits Vol. 1 [Model T-9710D-50]"
[US] Nintendo 64 (nov.14, 2000) "Midway's Greatest Arcade Hits Vol. 1 [Model NUS-NAIE-USA]"
[US] Sony PS2 (nov.18, 2003) "Midway Arcade Treasures [Model SLUS-20801]"
[US] Microsoft XBOX (nov.24, 2003) "Midway Arcade Treasures"
[US] Nintendo GameCube (dec.18, 2003) "Midway Arcade Treasures [Model DOL-GAKE-USA]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (feb.6, 2004) "Midway Arcade Treasures"
[EU] Sony PS2 (feb.6, 2004) "Midway Arcade Treasures [Model SLES-51927]"
[US] [EU] Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (nov.15, 2006) [retired in 2010]
[US] Microsoft XBOX 360 (nov.6, 2012) "Midway Arcade Origins"
[US] Sony PlayStation 3 (nov.6, 2012) "Midway Arcade Origins [Model BLUS-31083]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (nov.15, 2012) "Midway Arcade Origins"
[EU] Sony PlayStation 3 (nov.15, 2012) "Midway Arcade Origins [Model BLES-01768]"
* HANDHELDS:
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy (1995) "Arcade Classic No. 4 - Defender & Joust [Model DMG-ADJP-UKV]"
[US] Nintendo Game Boy (oct.1995) "Arcade Classic No. 4 - Defender & Joust [Model DMG-ADJE-USA]"
[US] Nintendo Game Boy Color (mar.1999) "Arcade Hits - Joust & Defender [Model DMG-AADE-USA]"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy Color (apr.1999) "Arcade Hits - Joust & Defender [Model DMG-AADP-EUR]"
[US] Nintendo Game Boy Advance (nov.22, 2001) "Midway's Greatest Arcade Hits [Model AGB-AM3E-USA]"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy Advance (nov.30, 2001) "Midway's Greatest Arcade Hits [Model AGB-AM3P-EUR]"
[US] Sony PSP (dec.13, 2005) "Midway Arcade Treasures Extended Play [Model ULUS-10059]"
[EU] Sony PSP (feb.24, 2006) "Midway Arcade Treasures Extended Play [Model ULES-00180]"
* COMPUTERS:
[US] Tandy Color Computer (1982) "Starfire"
[US] Tandy Color Computer (1982) "Planet Invasion"
[US] Tandy Color Computer (1982) "Offender"
[US] Atari 800 (1982) "Defender [Model CXL4025]"
[EU] BBC B (1982) by Acornsoft
[EU] Sinclair Zx-Spectrum (1982) "Orbiter [Model 1]" by Silversoft
[US] TI99/4a (1983) "Defender [Model RX8506]"
[EU] Commodore C64 (1983)
[US] Commodore C64 (1983) "Defender [Model RX8508]"
[US] PC [Booter] (1983)
[US] Apple II (1983)
[EU] Oric-1 (1983) "Defence Force" by Tansoft
[US] Commodore VIC-20 (1983)
[EU] BBC B (1983) "Super Defender" by Acornsoft
[EU] Acorn Electron (1984) "Guardian" by Alligata
[EU] Acorn Electron "Gauntlet" by Micropower
[EU] BBC B (1984) "Guardian" by Alligata
[EU] BBC B "Gauntlet" by Micropower
[EU] Sinclair ZX-Spectrum (1984) "Starblitz" by Softek Software
[EU] Sinclair ZX-Spectrum (1984) "Defenda" by Interstella Software
[EU] Commodore C64 (1984) "Guardian" by Alligata
[EU] Commodore C64 (1985) "Guardian II" by Hi-tech Software
[EU] Amstrad CPC (1985) "Defend or Die" by Alligata
[EU] Amstrad CPC (1985) "Gauntlet" by Micropower
[EU] Sinclair ZX-Spectrum (1986) "Defenda" by Interstella Software : 128k version improved sound/graphics.
[EU] Sinclair ZX-Spectrum (1990) "Guardian II" by Hi-Tech Software Ltd 'UK'
[EU] Atari ST (1990) "Defender II" by ARC developments, Atari UK, limited
[EU] Commodore Amiga (1990) "Defender II" by ARC developments, Atari UK, limited
[EU] Commodore Amiga (1991) "Zeron" by Acid software
[EU] Commodore Amiga (1994) "Defender" - Shareware
[US] PC [MS Windows 3.1/DOS, CD-ROM] (1995) "Williams Arcade Classics"
[US] PC [MS Windows 95/DOS, CD-ROM] (1996) "Williams Arcade Classics"
[EU] Sam Coupe (1998) by Persona
[US] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (aug.27, 2004) "Midway Arcade Treasures"
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (nov.23, 2004) "Midway Arcade Treasures"
[EU] Tangerine Microtan 65
* OTHERS:
VFD handheld game (1982) by Entex
VFD handheld game (19??) by Gakken : the screen is a little smaller than the Entex version.
[US] Palm OS "Midway Arcade Classic"
[US] Tiger Game.com (1997) "Williams Arcade Classics [Model 71-722]"
[US] Mobile Phones (june.13, 2003) by THQ Wireless
[US] Apple App Store (feb.23, 2012) "Midway Arcade [Model 476467441]"
- SOURCES -
Game's ROM.
Game's picture.
F.A.Q. by Kevin Butler A.K.A. War Doc
Accepted [+] [X] Berzerk Update submitted by vecchiom
Berzerk (c) 1980 Stern Electronics.
The player controls the 'Humanoid' and must navigate a number of robot-filled rooms; each with up to as many as eleven, laser-firing enemy robots. The Humanoid can be killed either by a single shot from a robot, by running into a robot, by running into a wall of the maze, or by being touched by the player's nemesis, 'Evil Otto'.
To advance through the game, players must fight their way through each room to an opening at one of the far walls. Each robot destroyed is worth 50 points and while it's possible to progress without killing every robot in each room, destroying all of them will earn the player a per-maze bonus (worth ten points per robot). The game has an impressive 64,000 mazes, with each level designed to be more difficult than the last.
- TECHNICAL -
The Berzerk cabinet was the first in a series of cabinets from Stern that had a patented pull out drawer that allowed access to the games circuit boards from the front of the cabinet. This title features rather primitive painted side-art that only uses two colors, but it makes up for it with the awesome comic book style art on the control panel and monitor bezel. The marquee is only a 'Berzerk' logo, and it kind of looks like something that someone might have done in their high school airbrush class.
Berzerk is technically a monochrome game. It uses a special 'color overlay' circuit board to add color to the games graphics before they go to the monitor. A side effect of this is that walking very close to a wall will cause that section of the wall to change to your color.
Berzerk, in common with other machines commonly thought to have used samples (such as Atari's "Star Wars", "Paperboy" and "Gauntlet") used LPC encoded speech and a dedicated speech synthesizer. So the speech is technically encoded data for this speech synth, rather than the now far simpler, digitized audio 'samples' for play back via a DAC.
Here is all of the robots' speech in the game:
During certain in-game events:
"Coin detected in pocket!" - heard randomly during attract mode, especially while showing the high score list.
"Intruder alert! Intruder alert!" - when Evil Otto appears.
"The Humanoid must not escape!" OR "The intruder must not escape!" - when the Humanoid escapes the room after destroying every robot.
"Chicken! Fight like a robot!" - when the Humanoid escapes the room without destroying every robot first.
"Got the Humanoid! Got the intruder!" - when the Humanoid is killed. ("Got the intruder!" is a minor third higher in pitch than "Got the Humanoid!")
Random chatter during gameplay:
"Charge...", "Attack...", "Shoot...", "Kill...", "Destroy...", OR "Get...", followed by "the Humanoid", "the intruder", "it", or "the chicken".
NOTE: In this case, you'll only hear "the chicken" if you escaped the previous maze without first destroying every robot, resulting in the "Chicken! Fight like a robot!" message.
The speed and pitch of some of the phrases vary from deep and slow to high and fast.
Main CPU : Zilog Z80
Sound Chips : Custom tone generator, custom LPC speech synthesis chip
Control : 8-way joystick
Buttons : 1 (FIRE)
- TRIVIA -
Berzerk was released in the USA on November 12, 1980.
Alan McNeil, an employee of Universal Research Laboratories (a division of Stern Electronics), had a dream one night involving a black-and-white video game in which he had to fight robots. This dream, with heavy borrowing from the BASIC game 'Robots' ('Daleks' in the UK), was the basis for Berzerk. The idea for a black-and-white game was abandoned when the color game "Defender" was released earlier the same year to significant success. At that point Stern decided to use a color overlay board for Berzerk. A quick conversion was made, and all but the earliest versions of the game shipped with a color CRT display. The game was test-marketed successfully at a Chicago singles bar before general release.
The title of the game comes from the series of books called 'The Berzerker Stories' by Fred Saberhagen. It's a novel about robots which go Berzerk and kill everybody.
Berzerk is the first robot killing game but the big selling point of Berzerk was speech.
From Tony Miller : "The speech was done using LPC coding that I believe was invented by T.I., although I remember we used a National Speech chip in it. This was when speech and memory was expensive, so we didn't just digitize sounds and dump them out through a DAC. I remember it cost something like $1,000 per word to have the compression done, so we tried to come up with a limited vocabulary which could be rearranged and reused as much as possible. There was some guy up in Silicon Gulch who did this stuff for a living - so it is possible to make money while talking in a monotone.".
The Artist Richard D. James, using his alter ego Caustic Window, has the sample : 'Humanoid must not escape' from this game in his song with the same name as the sample. It's from the album 'Caustic Window Compilation'.
Berzerk was also the first game to attempt a bit of on-screen comedy. Your robot opponents often fell foul of slapstick misfortune, shooting each other in the head or walking into walls and exploding in their attempts to kill you. And if you legged it out of a room without killing them all, the survivors would taunt you in their Speak & Spell voices : "Chicken! Fight like a robot!". Okay, it's not hilarious, but even Bob Monkhouse had to start somewhere. Sometimes when you escape as above, it will just utter "Chicken".
'Evil Otto' was named for 'Dave Otto', who worked for Dave Nutting's Arcade Engineering group as R & D director at the time Alan McNeil did. 'Evil Otto' can be considered one of the most intimidating video game villains of all time. He is, and even travels through walls, preventing a player from loafing in the room. He resembles a bouncing smiley face, and has been called a 'Malicious basketball' by some.
Berzerk was Stern's first major video game success. It was made in both upright (approx. 37,500 units) and cocktail (approx. 1,200 units) models. Berzerk suffered a bit in sales due to frequent breakdowns of it's original giant sized optical 8-way joystick. Approximately 4,200 orders were canceled by distributors and operators whose machines were frequently down from the opto-stick. Stern issued free WICO leaf switch sticks to operators after they had so much trouble with the optical stick, but this still hurt sales.
Berzerk shares a rather chilling distinction of being the first known game to be blamed for an actual player's death. In January 1981, Jeff Dailey was the first person to die playing a video game, a 19-year old Berzerk player, died of a massive heart attack right after playing his favorite game. His score was 16,660 (a very respectable score but disturbing for obvious reasons). On an equally distressing note, in October 1982 at the 'Friar Tuck Game Room' in Calumet City, Illinois : 18-year old Peter Burkowski, a physically healthy person who was alcohol-free and drug-free, inscribed his initials in Berzerk's top ten list twice in a matter of only 15 minutes. A few seconds after that, he collapsed and died of a heart attack.
In Retrogamer Issue #47, Alan McNeil addressed these legends, and has a different perspective: "...one player did die while playing the game (Alan refutes reports that claim two died). The unfortunate fellow was obese and had run upstairs to play the game", Alan explains: "The legend is he set a high score and died, but the owner of the arcade said he didn't finish the game – he was out of breath from the moment he arrived until he dropped. The legend is way better than reality: the excitement of playing a game killing a player after setting a high score..."
Steve Wagner holds the official record for this game on the 'Fast Bullets' setting with 350,340 points on March 12, 2009.
Phil Younger holds the official record for this game on the 'Slow Bullets' setting with 304,570 points on August 12, 2007.
A Berzerk unit appears in the 1982 movie 'Tron' and in the 1983 movie 'Joysticks'.
A Berzerk unit appears in the ZZ Top music video 'Legs'.
Milton Bradley (MB) released a board game based on this video game (same name) in 1983. 'Can You Survive the Frenzied Attack of the Robot Army?' In this board game version, two players face off. One player controls the Humanoid and the other player controls Evil Otto and the robots. Players alternate sides for a maximum of three rounds or until both have been zapped three times and destroyed as the Humanoid. Humanoid lives are represented by chips placed in front of the player. Each time a player's Humanoid is zapped, the player surrenders one chip. Once a player loses all three chips, that player's Humanoid is destroyed, and therefore he/she cannot control the Humanoid for the rest of the game. The object of the game is to zap more robots while controlling the Humanoid than your opponent.
Berzerk inspired a catchy hit song by Buckner and Garcia called 'Goin' Berzerk' released on the 'Pac-Man Fever' album, here are the full lyrics! :
Verse 1: (Humanoid - This is me.)
I can move in eight directions.
Once I start I'm never done.
I can go from room to room,
I can crawl or I can run.
I can wander through the maze.
It's a wonderland at night,
I can stop and aim my gun when,
there's a robot in my sight.
I can wander through the maze.
It's a wonderland at night,
I can stop and aim my gun when,
there's a robot in my sight.
Chorus: (Robots - The various colored robots.)
I think I'm going berzerk.
I think I'm losing my mind.
I'm getting lost in the shuffle.
It happens every time.
I think I'm going berzerk.
Would you like to come to?
I can't stop now - I'm addicted!
I'm berzerk over you.
Verse 2: (Evil Otto - The bouncing smiley face.)
If we fight this thing together,
there's a chance that we might win.
Now here comes Evil Otto,
push the fire buttons in.
I'm sure he's crazy too because,
he's bouncing off the floor.
There's no way to destroy him,
let him bounce right out the door.
Now here comes Evil Otto,
push the fire buttons in.
If we fight this thing together,
there's a chance that we might win.
(Repeat chorus)
Berzerk, berzerk, berzerk over you (3x),
Berzerk, berzerk over you.
(Repeat and fade)
The speech, 'Humanoid' and 'Intruder Alert!' featured heavily in 1988's seminal UK Acid track, 'Stakker Humanoid' by later Future Sound of London member Brian Dougans. His use of distortion and slightly lower pitch, leaves the game sounding quite tame by comparison...
- UPDATES -
Two different versions of the game were released. As a player's score increases, the colors of the enemy robots change, and the robots can have more bullets on the screen at the same time (once they reach the limit, they cannot fire again until one or more of their bullets detonates; the limit applies to the robots as a group, not as individuals). In the original version, the sequence goes :
* Yellow robots that don't fire
* Red robots that can fire one bullet
* Light blue robots that can fire two bullets
After 5,000 points Evil Otto doubles his speed, moving as fast as the player while robots remain in the maze, and twice as fast as the player after all the robots are destroyed.
The revised version, which had the much larger production run of the two, features a longer color sequence that also included green, purple, gray, and white robots. In this version, the robot sequence went up to five normal speed bullets, then they began firing fast bullets, starting with one fast bullet, and eventually going as high as five bullets, both normal speed and fast speed, at once. After 19,000 points the robots stay light blue and may have up to five bullets on screen for the remainder of play. To balance the greatly increased threat from the robots in this version, Evil Otto's pursuit speed remains at its normal (half or equal the player's speed) level throughout.
- SCORING -
You get 50 points per robot destroyed. It doesn't matter whether you destroy them or they get destroyed some other way.
You get a bonus of 10 times the number of robots in a maze if you clear it For example, if you destroyed all 7 robots in a maze, then your bonus would be 10 X 7 or 70 points.
- TIPS AND TRICKS -
* Here is how the rounds progress in the revised version :
Points - Robot Color - Shots fired
0-260 - Yellow - 0
260-1,200 - Red - 1
1,200-3,000 - Light Blue - 2
3,000-4,500 - Green - 3
4,500-6,000 - Purple - 4
6,000-8,000 - Yellow - 5
8,000-10,000 - White - One fast shot (2x speed)
10,000-11,000 - Light Blue - Two fast shots
11,000-13,000 - Purple - Three shots, both normal and fast
13,000-15,000 - Gray - Four shots, both normal and fast
15,000-17,000 - Yellow - Five shots, both normal and fast
17,000-19,000 - Red - Five shots, both normal and fast
19,000+ - Light Blue - Five shots, both normal and fast
Starting at about 10,000 points, Berzerk becomes largely a game of luck. If you get an open maze with a lot of robots, there is not much you can do.
* In a 1-player game, the Humanoid is always colored green.
* In a 2-player game, the players alternate turns. The Humanoid's color indicates whose turn it is - green for player 1, purple for player 2.
* When you start the game, the Humanoid will be put at the left entrance. (In a 2-player game, player 2's Humanoid will be put at the right entrance.) You will face anywhere from 1 to 11 robots. Quickly assess where the Humanoid is at and destroy the closest robots. The first 3 sets of robots are pretty easy. It's when they start firing those 3+ shots at you or the supershots things can get bad.
* Remember, the Humanoid is longer then he is wide; use this to your advantage. Always try to exit the maze from the left or right exit so that the Humanoid presents a small profile for the next maze. If the Humanoid enters from the top or bottom, you presents a bigger target. Of course, there is no defense against being put right next to a robot.
* There is a 1-2 second delay after you enter a maze before the robots come after you; use that to your advantage.
* You cannot run and shoot at the same time in this game. You have to stop and shoot. Use the joystick to aim and press the FIRE button. The Humanoid may move a little in that direction so don't try to shoot robots point-blank or you will destroy the robot while the robot vaporizes you.
* When you get into the later rounds, luck will be as much a factor as skill. This is especially true when the robots are firing supershots at you (these shots travel twice the speed of normal shots).
* Evil Otto (the bouncing happy face) will appear from where the Humanoid entered the maze. Evil Otto's appearance is directly related to how many robots you start with. The lower the number, the sooner Evil Otto appears. Evil Otto cannot be destroyed.
* Because the robots are attracted to you 'as the crow flies', they will tend to clump together and smash into each other. The best way to kill robots is to stand safely behind a wall and let them shoot and smash each other. The ball (Evil Otto) will also kill them. You can ignore some robots in the maze and let Otto kill them for you. Otto follows your position like the robots, so as he comes across the screen, lead him up and down into any remaining robots before you exit.
* If the robot cannot hit you with laser fire, they will still try to kill the Humanoid by attempting to run him over.
* The walls in the maze are deadly. If the Humanoid or a robot runs into a wall, he is vaporized. (You score the points if a robot is destroyed by running into a wall). The wall will light up if the Humanoid is too close to it.
* If you and a robot are in line and firing at each other, your shots will negate themselves out. In the later levels, this could prove deadly since they can keep up with your firepower.
* An Interesting Quirk : There is a one pixel space between the Humanoid's head and shoulders. The game doesn't register it as existing so if a robot's shot goes through that space, the Humanoid doesn't die.
* The robots always walk toward you unless you're in their line of fire; then they will pause to shoot. There are eight directions you and they can shoot. The only way to survive the higher levels (10,000 points +) is to learn the blind spots of the robots. If you are in a robot's blind spot he poses no threat, and you can concentrate on blasting the others. The angle shots are almost never necessary. It is very difficult to hit a robot with an angle shot. When you shoot, the Humanoid stops moving, when you can't move, you are vulnerable. Make your shots count and don't bother wasting your time with angles unless you are on an early level and need the practice.
* Because the robots are shorter than you, try to avoid robots at the bottom edge of the screen. By the time you move low enough to get a shot they will have already fired. In contrast, if you come 'up' on robots from the bottom, you can shoot their feet and duck back down before their shot reaches you.
* Because the Humanoid is a lot taller than he is wide, it is very easy to avoid shots from above and below. Take out the robots to the sides of you first.
* If you poke your head above a wall just far enough to shoot above it, the robots on the other side of it can't shoot you. They will only hit the wall. ALWAYS use this tactic to kill most of the robots in a maze. When you are in the right position, just hold down the fire button. This will make the Humanoid stand still. You can inch your way very close to the deadly walls without fear of running into them. When shooting up or down, that trick doesn't work. If there is a wall between you and a robot above you, run to the right and start shooting up just past the wall. If you are lucky, the robot will walk into your fire before he gets a shot off. By design, if a robot is above you, he will lock into position directly in-line with your shots, and you will shoot each other's bullets. In early rounds you can overpower a robot and outgun him, but later the robots can keep up with you and you will be in a deadlock. To defeat him, shoot up and immediately walk to the right and he will walk into your bullet.
* The robots are programmed to avoid colliding into the sides of the deadly walls, but they can't detect the start or end of a wall. If a robot is below the end of a wall, you can move up and direct him into the wall end.
* In later rounds, all of the real action takes place in the first two or three seconds of a round. If you survive the initial shots from the robots, you are as good as done with the maze. When a new maze comes on screen, you are very vulnerable. Often you are in the line of fire of five robots. As the new maze slides on-screen, you can see it before the robots appear. Use this time to decide which way to run. Assume that there will be a robot in each 'room' or 'nook'. Shoot the robot right in front of you first, and then run toward his position. By running ahead, you will exit the line of fire of any robots above/below you and also the dreaded angle shots. Once you are out of their line of fire, you can re-enter their line of fire selectively and shoot them. Get to a safe barrier as soon as possible and wait for the robots to move into easy positions.
- SERIES -
1. Berzerk (1980)
2. Frenzy (1982)
- STAFF -
Designed & programmed by : Alan McNeil
- PORTS -
* CONSOLES:
[US] GCE Vectrex (1982) "Berzerk [Model HS-4020]"
[US] Atari 2600 (1982) "Berzerk [Model CX2650]"
[JP] Atari 2600 (1983)
[US] Atari 5200 (1983) "Berzerk [Model CX5221]"
[BR] DynaVision (198?) Berzerk
[US] Emerson Arcadia (1982) "Escape [Model 1015]"
* COMPUTERS:
Tandy Color Computer [US] (1981) "Berserk"
Tandy Color Computer [US] (1981) "Robot Battle"
Tandy Color Computer [US] (1982) "Android Attack"
Tandy Color Computer [US] (1982) "Haywire"
Tandy Color Computer [US] (198?) "Monster Maze"
PC [Booter] [US] (1983) "Robot War", a part of the "Friendlyware PC Arcade" suite
Tangerine Microtan 65 [EU] (1984)
* OTHERS:
VFD handheld game [US] (1982) by Coleco : unfortunately, this game was never released.
- SOURCES -
Game's ROM.
Game's picture.
F.A.Q. by Kevin Butler A.K.A. War Doc
Passport @ everything2
Accepted [+] [X] Pac-Man [Model 932] Update submitted by vecchiom
Pac-Man (c) 1980 Midway Mfg. Co.
Export release by Bally/Midway for North America. Game developed by Namco and originally known as Puckman in Japan. For more information about the game itself, please see the original Japanese release entry, "Puckman [Upright model]".
- TECHNICAL -
Upright model
Game No. 932
- TRIVIA -
Pac-Man was released by Midway Manufacturing, under license from Namco, in the USA on October 10, 1980. 96,000 units were produced in America.
Reportedly, when Bally/Midway obtained the rights to Pac-Man, Namco was offering four different games, which ended up being licensed to Game Plan and Bally/Midway. Game Plan's Ken Anderson reports that he and Bally's Dave Marofske flipped a coin to see who would get first crack at the games. Game Plan won and chose a tank game (which they released as "Tank Battalion") over Pac-Man. The other game they got was released as "King & Balloon". Bally/Midway, meanwhile, took Pac-Man and "Rally-X".
Midway made the following changes to the game (from the original Namco version):
- The game's name (and likewise its main character) has been changed to Pac-Man. Refer to the Namco Upright version entry, Trivia section, for details behind this name change.
- The name/nickname combinations for the ghosts in this version are:
Shadow - "Blinky" (red ghost)
Speedy - "Pinky" (pink ghost)
Bashful - "Inky" (cyan ghost)
Pokey - "Clyde" (orange ghost)
- Notice that the pink ghost's nickname remains unchanged from the Japanese version.
- Unlike the Japanese version, the American version has no DIP switch for alternate ghost names.
The game's cult status in the early 80's was such that it inspired a hit song by 'Buckner and Garcia' called 'Pac-Man Fever', released in 1982 on the album of the same name.
The game also spawned a virtual cottage industry of best-selling how-to books strategy guides on how to beat the game by using patterns with names like the "Bazo's Breaker", the "Donut Dazzler" and the "GET pattern" (named after the first initials of the members of a team of players from Davis, California: George Huang, Ed Bazo, and Tom Fertado).
A Pac-Man unit appears in the movie 'Getting There', in the 1982 movie 'Jekyll & Hyde - Together Again', in the 1982 movie 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High', in the 1983 movie 'WarGames', in the 1983 movie 'Joysticks', in the 1983 movie 'Koyaanisqatsi - Life out of Balance', in the 1985 movie 'The Heavenly Kid', in the 1985 movie 'Better Off Dead', and in the 1986 movie 'The Color of Money'.
A Pac-Man unit appears in the pilot of Season One of 'The A-Team'. It is where Amy (Melinda Culea) meets Murdock (Dwight Schultz) for the first time.
MB (Milton Bradley) released a board game based on this video game in 1982 (Pac-Man Game, 'As Much Fun as the Action Packed Arcade Game of the Same Name'). In this board game, the dots in the maze are represented by white marbles. There are also yellow marbles representing the power pills in the maze. There are also two ghosts pawns of the same color in the game. The object is to roll the dice and move your Pac-Man playing piece around the maze gobbling up as many marbles as you can using the count on one die, and move either ghost pawn using the count on the other die. There are yellow dots imprinted on the game board to lay out the path each character must take; these dots do not count as spaces. Use the ghosts to try to catch your opponents. When this happens, that opponent is sent back home and surrenders two marbles to the player who moved the ghost. If a Pac-Man gobbles up a yellow marble, that player earns the right to gobble a ghost. When this happens, the gobbled ghost is returned to the ghost pen, the player takes two marbles away from any opponent, and the player's yellow marble is returned to the game board. Once the maze is cleared of white marbles, the game is over and the player with the most white marbles (yellow marbles do not count) is the winner.
'Pac-Man' is also the nickname of the Filipino boxing champion Manny Pacquiao. The two-time world champion earned the distinction as the only boxer who has knocked down both future Mexican 'Hall of Famer' Marco Antonio 'Baby Face Assassin' Barrera (knocked out in 11th round) and Erik 'El Terrible' Morales (knocked out in 10th round). Pacquiao has been on the top 10 list of the best 'pound-for-pound' fighters in the world.
In the multi-racial country of Malaysia, 'Pac-Man' is a slang term coined to describe men who only date ladies of other races.
The name 'Pac-Man' has been given to a nebula, cataloged as NGC 281. The Pac-Man Nebula is an H II region in the constellation of Cassiopeia. It includes or is near the open cluster IC 1590, the double star HD 5005, and several Bok globules. The shape of the nebula resembles the famous video game icon, Pac-Man. It is visible in amateur telescopes from dark sky locations.
The Cassini Robotic spacecraft (Cassini-Huygens) were captured images during a close pass to the moon of Saturn named 'Mimas', and collected by the composite infrared spectrometer (CIRS). The images show the fluctuating temperatures experienced by Mimas. The combined map with this images form a shape of this character Pac-Man.
On May 21, 2010, to celebrate Pac-Man's 30th Anniversary, Google, the famous internet search engine, has created the first ever interactive Doodle! This doodle allowed people to play Pac-Man on the home page (at the place of the original logo).
- UPDATES -
Midway's new revision program for Pac-Man was released in December 1981; the new program increases the difficulty of the game and adds a new challenge to players already familiar with the original.
- PORTS -
NOTE: Only ports released in North America [US] are listed here. For ports released in other regions, please see the original Namco (Japanese version) upright entry.
* CONSOLES:
Bally Astrocade "Muncher"
Emerson Arcadia "Gobbler"
Atari 2600 (1981) "Pac-Man [Model CX2646]"
Atari 5200 (1982) "Pac-Man [Model CX5208]"
Mattel Intellivision (1983) "Pac-Man [Model 70251]"
Nintendo NES (1987) by Tengen
Nintendo NES (nov.1993) "Pac-Man [Model NES-P7]"
Sony PlayStation (jul.31, 1996) "Namco Museum Vol.1 [Model SLUS-00215]"
Nintendo 64 (oct.31, 1999) "Namco Museum 64 [Model NUS-NNME-USA]"
Sega Dreamcast (june.25, 2000) "Namco Museum [Model T-1403N]"
Sony PlayStation 2 (dec.4, 2001) "Namco Museum [Model SLUS-20273]"
Microsoft XBOX (oct.9, 2002) "Namco Museum"
Nintendo GameCube (oct.9, 2002) "Namco Museum [Model DOL-GNME-USA]"
Sony PlayStation 2 (aug.30, 2005) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model SLUS-21164]"
Microsoft XBOX (aug.30, 2005) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model NMO-2201A-NM]"
Nintendo GameCube (aug.30, 2005) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NE-USA]"
Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (aug.9, 2006)
Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (nov.4, 2008) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade [Model 21022]"
Sony PlayStation 3 (jul.16, 2009) "Namco Museum Essentials [Model NPUB-30086]"
Nintendo Wii (nov.16, 2010) "Namco Museum Megamix"
Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] (feb.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum [Model NPUB-31383]"
Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (feb.26, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
Microsoft XBOX One [XBOX Store] (apr.20, 2016) "Arcade Game Series - Pac-Man"
Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] (apr.20, 2016) "Arcade Game Series - Pac-Man [Model CUSA-03955]"
* HANDHELDS:
Sega Game Gear (1991) "Pac-Man [Model T-14018]"
Nintendo Game Boy (apr.1991) "Pac-Man [Model DMG-PC-USA]"
SNK Neo-Geo Pocket Color (jul.31, 1999) "Pac-Man [Model NEOP00551]"
Nintendo Game Boy Color (aug.1999) "Pac-Man - Special Color Edition [Model DMG-AACE-USA]"
Nintendo Game Boy Advance (jul.12, 2001) "Pac-Man Collection [Model AGB-APCE-USA]"
Sony PSP (aug.23, 2005) "Namco Museum Battle Collection [Model ULUS-10035]"
Nintendo DS (sept.18, 2007) "Namco Museum DS [Model NTR-YNME-USA]"
Nintendo 3DS (jul.26, 2011) "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions [Model CTR-APGE-USA]"
* COMPUTERS:
Tandy Color Computer (1981) "Pac-Tac"
Atari 400 (1982)
Atari 800 (1982) "Pac-Man [Model CXL4022]"
Commodore VIC-20 (1982)
PC [Booter] (1982) "PC-Man"
Tandy Color Computer (1982) "Ghost Gobbler"
Tandy Color Computer (1982) "Pack Maze"
Apple II (1983)
Commodore C64 (1983) by Thunder Mountain
Commodore C64 (1983) "Pac-Man [Model RX8502]"
PC [Booter] (1983)
PC [Booter] (1983) "Ascii Man", a part of the "Friendlyware PC Arcade" suite
PC [MS-DOS] (1983)
Tandy Color Computer (1983) "Pac Jaws"
Tandy Color Computer (1983) "Pac-Tac II"
Texas Instruments TI-99/4A (1983) "Pac-Man [Model RX8500]"
Tandy Color Computer (1990) "Pac-Dude"
Apple II GS (1992) "Pac Man GS"
Apple Macintosh (1992) "Mac-Man"
PC [MS Windows 95, CD-ROM] (1995) "Mac-Man", part of "Windows Arcade Pack"
PC [MS Windows 95, 3.5"] (mar.31, 1996) "Microsoft Return of Arcade"
Tandy Color Computer 3 (1997)
PC [MS-DOS] (1997) "Champ Pac-Em" - CHAMProgramming
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (2000) "Microsoft Return of Arcade Anniversary Edition"
PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (oct.25, 2005) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
PC [MS Windows, Online] (2009) "Namco All Stars: Pac-Man and Dig Dug" by WildTangent Games
Apple iPhone/iPad (mar.31, 2010) "Pac-Man for iPad [Model 363297482]"
PC [MS Windows, Online] (aug.4, 2010) "Namco All-Stars: PAC-MAN" by WildTangent Games
Steam (feb.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum [Model 236470]"
Steam (apr.19, 2016) "Arcade Game Series - Pac-Man [Model 394160]"
* OTHERS:
VFD handheld game (1981) by Coleco.
LCD handheld game (1992) by Micro Games of America
Arcade (1996) "Namco Classics Collection Vol.2"
LCD handheld color game (1999) released by Micro Games of America
Arcade (2000) "Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga - 20th Anniversary Class of 1981 Reunion" as a hidden game.
Namco Classics TV game (2003) by Jakks Pacific
Mobile Phones (june.13, 2003)
Arcade (2005) "Pac-Man - 25th Anniversary Edition"
Super Pac-Man TV game (2006) by Jakks Pacific
Arcade Gold featuring Pac-Man (2007) by Jakks Pacific
Retro Arcade featuring Pac-Man (2008) by Jakks Pacific
Apple iPhone/iPod (jul.9, 2008) "Pac-Man [Model 281656475]"
Android Market (sept.23, 2008)
BlackBerry (june.30, 2009) "Pac-Man [Model 967]"
Android (jan.11, 2010)
Windows Mobile (mar.15, 2010)
Apple iPhone/iPod (mar.31, 2010) "Pac-Man for iPad [Model 363297482]"
Arcade (2010) "Pac-Man's Arcade Party"
Android Market (2011)
Pac-Man Connect and Play (2012) by Bandai
Apple iPhone/iPod (mar.13, 2012) "Namco Arcade [Model 465606050]"
Android Market (apr.6, 2012) by Namco Networks America
Android (mar.22, 2013) "Pac-Man + Tournaments"
Arcade (2018) "Pac-Man's Pixel Bash"
- SOURCES -
Game's ROM.
Game's picture.
Accepted [+] [X] Puckman [Upright model] Update submitted by vecchiom
Puckman (c) 1980 Namco.
Puckman is the seminal and hugely influential arcade game in which the player guides the legendary Puckman around a single-screen maze eating dots. Puckman is constantly pursued in his task by four colored ghosts. Each ghost has its own unique personality and behavioural patterns and a single touch from any of the ghosts results in Puckman losing a life. When all of Puckman's lives are lost, the game is over.
Power pills are situated in each corner of the rectangular maze and eating one of these makes Puckman temporarily invincible; the four ghosts also change to dark blue in color and can now be eaten by Puckman. But watch out...a flashing blue ghost indicates that the power pill is about to wear off and the ghosts are about to transform back to their former selves again. Once Puckman eats a blue ghost, this 'skinned' ghost then becomes visible as a pair of eyes only, will return to the ghost pen in the middle of the maze, regenerate into its former self, and return to the maze to continue its pursuit of Puckman.
Each maze contains 240 dots and 4 power pills, and all must be eaten to complete the level; whereupon the entire sequence begins again with an increased level of difficulty (the action increases in speed and power pills decrease in effectiveness).
Twice in every level, a bonus fruit or prize item will temporarily appear in the middle of the maze below the ghost pen. Puckman can eat these bonus items to receive extra points. Also, there is an escape tunnel on each side of the maze that Puckman can use to escape any ghosts that are currently closing in on him. The ghosts can also use the tunnel, but take longer to pass through it than Puckman, making escape a little easier.
Between certain rounds, funny intermissions will be played featuring Puckman and the ghosts in funny situations. Three intermissions are present:
1) The red ghost chases Puckman across the screen and off the side. Then he re-appears running in the opposite direction, having turned blue, followed by a giant Puckman! This intermission is played after Round 2.
2) The red ghost is again chasing Puckman, but this time he rips his red sheet on a nail on the ground, and we can see his pink body under the sheet! This intermission is played after Round 5.
3) The red ghost chases Puckman across the screen once more, this time with his sheet sewn. They disappear at the left side and then the ghost reappears coming back the opposite direction. This time he is bare and drags his sheet behind him. This intermission is played after Rounds 9, 13 and 17.
No intermission is present between rounds after the 18th one.
- TECHNICAL -
The original Namco Puckman Upright model came in a white cabinet that may look familiar to most gamers. This cabinet is the same 'swoopy' design used for Pac-Man and Galaxian. The only actual design difference was the coin door. The Japanese version had a tall coin door with a single coin mech, while the U.S. version, Pac-Man, had a fat coin door with two coin mechs installed. However, the graphics on the Japanese machine were completely different from those of the U.S. machine. The marquee had the 'Puckman' logo off to the right-hand side at an angle, and showed a scene with half a dozen cartoon Puckmen eating power pellets, with a few ghosts lingering off to the side. The monitor bezel was largely red and was of a circular design and had many Puckmen lounging around the perimeter of the circle. The control panel continued the reddish graphics and had instructions in Japanese, along with a yellow ball-top 4-Way joystick and Start buttons for each player. The sideart was a large circular sticker that advertised the game's name, and had many cartoon Puckmen in action around the edges of the circle, with the word Namco displayed prominently at the bottom. The cabinet was finished off with yellow t-molding on the edges.
Main CPU : Zilog Z80 (@ 3.072 Mhz)
Sound Chips : Namco 3-channel WSG
Players : 2
Control : 4-way joystick
- TRIVIA -
The game was first introduced to the Japanese arcade market on May 22, 1980 and caught the hearts and imaginations of the public like no other game before it, and few since. It is still regarded as the hallmark of the 'golden age' of video games and an icon of 1980's popular culture.
The game was originally known in Japan as Puckman, but due to the West's predilection with changing words to vulgarities by scratching part of the word off (in this case, changing the word 'Puck' to something rather less socially acceptable by scratching off part of the letter 'P'), the name was changed to Pac-Man for its release to the American arcade market in October 1980. The name 'Pac-Man' comes from the Japanese slang term 'paku-paku', which describes the motion of the mouth opening and closing during eating and translates to English as 'to eat'.
Export releases:
[US] "Pac-Man [Model 932]"
Toru Iwatani, author and designer of Puckman: "Puckman's character is difficult to explain even to the Japanese -- he is an innocent character. He hasn't been educated to discern between good and evil. He acts more like a small child than a grown-up person. Think of him as a child learning in the course of his daily activities. If someone tells him guns are evil, he would be the type to rush out and eat guns. But he would most probably eat any gun, even the pistols of policemen who need them."
Puckman was, quite literally, conceived at lunchtime. Iwatani, then in his mid 20s, was very hungry and ordered himself a pizza for lunch. He took one slice, and, looking at the rest of the pizza, Puckman was born. However, in later years, Iwatini has suggested the shape was based on the Japanese character 'kuchi', meaning mouth. He rounded off this shape, and created the classic shape. The game took 1 1/2 years to complete and had five people on its team. Puckman is the greatest selling arcade game of all time and is arguably also the world's most recognized video-game character of all time. It had its own cartoon, lunch box, board game, stickers and hundreds of other products. This was largely due to Puckman being the first truly distinctive video-game 'character', and it changed the face of video games forever. Puckman was the first video game to be as equally popular to women as it was with men.
* A place in video game history: "Pac-Man is the most universally known arcade game," said Chris Lindsey, director of the National Video Game and Coin-Op Museum in St. Louis. "Everybody knows about Pac-Man. And, I've noticed, almost everybody can play Pac-Man pretty well. Pac-Man makes just about the best use of the joystick one can imagine. It's so intuitive that it puts other games to shame in terms of how easy it is for a person to walk up, stick a quarter in the machine, and start doing something meaningful. At the time, Pac-Man introduced a completely unique style of game play and was also highly identifiable in terms of its music. With Pac-Man, everything was there. The video game industry needs another game that captures the public's heart like Pac-Man, and so far, no one has been able to come up with it."
* The great 25-cent escape: "People expect to see Pac-Man when they come into the museum, and without fail, when they see it, they want to play it," Lindsey said. "People remember spending hours and hours at Pac-Man. They like to see how good they are now when they play it. And I would say that, perhaps more than any other game, the same playing skills still apply. Perhaps it's because of the intuitive game play. You don't have to memorize the behavior of a wide array of enemies as you do with some other games. You just have to remember that when the ghosts turn blue, you only have seconds, until they start seriously blinking, to go and get them. And Pac-Man is a little looser in its style of game play - more open. For instance, you can kill time in the lower left hand corner until you see an opening between the ghosts, and you can strategize a bit more: You can play with the tunnels, you can play with the position of the ghosts in relation to the energizers. Even people who haven't played in years remember those strategies."
After all these years, the challenge of Pac-Man still remains.
"You can also get into some really fun jams, when you've got a ghost on your tail and you have to make a decision about whether you're going to go left, or right, or straight at the next junction, which is in .03 seconds," Lindsey said. "It gets to be pretty tense, especially when those ghosts start moving really fast and the energizers aren't lasting as long. Pac-Man can be a real heart-thumping game."
After the 255th level, Puckman/Pac-Man presents the player with the infamous 'split-screen' level, where the left-half of the screen is normal, but the right-half of the screen is garbled with a mess of letters, numbers, symbols and other graphics. This level cannot be completed because there are not enough dots on screen to be eaten! This is the result of a bug in the routine drawing the fruits at the bottom of the screen, according to the round number. Indeed, the code works as follows:
1) it increases the last round number by one;
2) it checks if the result is smaller than 8 (in this case, you still would not have enough fruits to fill the line and some blank space must be drawn);
3) it checks if the result is larger than 19 (in this case, it has only to draw keys);
4) finally, it fills the bottom bar with the correct fruits.
In particular, if the round number is smaller than 8, the game draws as many fruits as the previous round number. This produces an undesirable effect right after the 255th level.
Indeed, 256 = 255+1 becomes 00 for the CPU (which expects to use the last 2 hexadecimal digits only, and 256 = 100 in hex)!
Therefore, the game thinks to be in one of the first 7 levels (because 0 is smaller than 7), but it tries to draw 255 fruits (because the last round number was 255). Of course, there is no space for that many fruits to be displayed and the game starts to draw garbage on the main screen.
Fixing the original code (either through a cheat in emulation, or hacking the roms on the PCB) would results in a 256th level identical to the first one (cherries will appear) but harder, since ghosts will behave as they do in levels beyond the 19th.
The alien spaceship 'Galaxian' makes an appearance as the prize in the 9th and 10th boards.
Note : Excluding bootlegs, there are 23 different name/nickname combinations for the ghosts in Puckman/Pac-Man (29 including 'Sue' from 'Ms. Pac-Man', 'Tim' from 'Jr. Pac-Man', 'Common' and 'Grey Common' from the Japanese version of 'Pac-Mania', and 'Funky' and 'Spunky' from the American version of 'Pac-Mania').
'Galaxian' boards will run in Pac-Man machines, but the sound pinout is different, so the pinout at the connector would have to be modified. To fire, one would have to press UP on the joystick.
Billy Mitchell, Rick Fothergill, Chris Ayra, Tim Balderramos and Donald Hayes all hold the official record for this game on 'Regular (TGTS)' settings with a perfect score of 3,333,360 points on July 3, 1999, July 31, 1999, February 16, 2000, December 4, 2004 and July 21, 2005, respectively.
Chris Ayra holds the official record for the fastest time to get a perfect game on 'Regular' settings with 3:42:05 on April 2, 2002.
Ron Corcoran holds the official record for this game on 'Speedup' settings with 1,321,020 points on May 13, 2001.
- UPDATES -
The attract mode's title sequence introduces the ghosts with name/nickname combinations displayed on the upper half of the screen.
The default name/nickname combinations for the ghosts in the original Japanese version are :
Oikake - "Akabei" (translation: Chaser - "Red Guy") (red ghost)
Machibuse - "Pinky" (translation: Ambusher - "Pink Guy") (pink ghost)
Kimagure - "Aosuke" (translation: Fickle - "Blue Guy") (cyan ghost)
Otoboke - "Guzuta" (translation: Stupid - "Slow Guy") (orange ghost)
The Japanese version also has a DIP switch for alternate name/nickname combinations for the ghosts. These alternate names are :
Urchin - "Macky" (red ghost)
Romp - "Micky" (pink ghost)
Stylist - "Mucky" (cyan ghost)
Crybaby - "Mocky" (orange ghost)
The name/nickname combinations for the ghosts in the North American version are :
Shadow - "Blinky" (red ghost)
Speedy - "Pinky" (pink ghost)
Bashful - "Inky" (cyan ghost)
Pokey - "Clyde" (orange ghost)
Unlike the Japanese version, the American version has no DIP switch for alternate ghost names.
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
In a later revision ("Japan Set 2" in Mame):
* At the top of the title screen, instead of 'Nickname', it says 'Ghost'.
* The 'Press Start' screen displays 1981 as the year of release, instead of 1980.
- SCORING -
Dot : 10 points.
Power pill (energizer) : 50 points.
Ghosts : 200, 400, 800, 1,600 points.
Cherry : 100 points.
Strawberry : 300 points.
Peach : 500 points.
Apple : 700 points.
Pineapple : 1,000 points.
Galaxian : 2,000 points.
Bell : 3,000 points.
Key : 5,000 points.
- TIPS AND TRICKS -
* The number of lives Puckman starts with depends on the 'Lives' dip switch setting (1, 2, 3, or 5; the default is 3).
* An extra life is awarded based on the 'Extra Lives' dip switch setting (10,000, 15,000, 20,000, or None; the default is 10,000).
* Fruits appear twice on each board. The first fruit appears after Puckman has eaten 70 dots; the second fruit appears once there are only 70 dots remaining in the maze.
* At the beginning of a round, the ghosts won't immediately pursue Puckman. Use this time the best as you can.
* Puckman can turn corners faster than the ghosts can, so turning many corners can help you escape ghosts.
* The tunnel allows Puckman and the ghosts to instantly travel from one side of the maze to the other. While traveling through the tunnel, Puckman moves at normal speed, but the ghosts' speed is reduced in half. This provides Puckman with a good opportunity to put some distance between him and the ghosts, but be careful not to get trapped by another ghost entering the opposite side.
* Stall Puckman from entering the tunnel and then, just before the ghosts reach him, send him through the tunnel. By attracting the ghosts to one side of the screen, you reduce Puckman's chances of meeting them when he emerges on the other side of the screen.
* If you hold the joystick in a direction that is blocked by a wall, Puckman will turn in that direction as soon as he reaches a passage leading in that direction. Remember this to turn corners as fast as you can.
* Remember that eating dots will slow Puckman down a little bit: avoid parts of the maze in which you've not been yet if you are trying to escape ghosts!
* Try not to eat power pills until the ghosts are near. The longer Puckman waits, the closer the ghosts get, and the easier it is for Puckman to eat them once they have turned blue.
* Mind that, as the levels increases, the ghost speed increases as well!
* In later rounds, you're not going to be able to eat ghosts after eating a power pill, because the vulnerability time decreases to zero. This is when you need to learn how to avoid the ghosts understanding their movement and their moving patterns!
* Right above the ghost pen, there are two paths leading upward to the upper part of the maze. The ghosts never travel upward through these holes while they're in their normal forms; they only do while they're blue after Puckman has eaten a power pill. Indeed, they only exit the area around the ghost pen from the sides or the bottom. These are not completely safe corners, since ghosts can travel downward through them, anyway they often represents a safe passage to flee from ghosts pursuing you around the ghost pen.
* Ghosts' Movements : First of all, remember that ghosts are not always following you! Their movements follow two distinct phases: one in which they avoid Puckman and one in which they hunt him down. In the former phase, each ghost patrols his personal corner of the maze. In the latter one, they will try to find Puckman, following their personal 'behavior':
1) The red ghost tends to patrol the top-right corner of the maze and he follows Puckman always trying to minimize their respective distance.
2) The pink ghost tends to patrol the top-left corner of the maze and he follows Puckman trying to reach a position slightly in front of Puckman, in the direction he's moving.
3) The cyan ghost tends to patrol the bottom-right corner of the maze and he has the most complicated AI since he moves towards a point determined by both Puckman's position and the red ghost's position.
4) The orange ghost tends to patrol the bottom-left corner of the maze and he only tries to be close to Puckman, without hunting him directly.
Ghosts alternate these two different behaviors (hiding and hunting) a few times in each round, then they start to pursue Puckman restlessly until all the dots are eaten, or they manage to catch him.
Additionally, as soon as a certain number of dots has been cleared from the maze (this number decreases as the levels pass), the red ghost's speed will increase and he won't stop to search for Puckman anymore.
- SERIES -
1. Puckman (1980, ARC)
2. Super Pac-Man (1982, ARC)
3. Pac & Pal (1983, ARC)
4. Pac-Land (1984, ARC)
5. Pac-Mania (1987, ARC)
6. Hello! Pac-Man [Model SHVC-PN-JPN] (1994, Super Famicom, Mega Drive)
7. Pac-In-Time [Model SHVC-APTJ-JPN] (1994, Super Famicom; 1995, Game Boy)
8. Pac-Man Arrangement (1996, ARC) : part of "Namco Classics Collection Vol.2"
9. Pac-Man World [Model SLPS-02345] (1999, PS)
10. Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness [Model SLPS-03000] (2000, PS)
11. Pac-Man World 2 [Model SLPS-25141] (2002, PS2, PC)
12. Pac-Man Arrangement (2005, PSP) : part of "Namco Museum [Model ULJS-00012]"
13. Pac 'n Roll [Model NTR-APNJ-JPN] (2005, DS)
14. Pac-Pix [Model NTR-APCJ-JPN] (2005, DS)
15. Pac-Man Arrangement Plus (2006, PSP) : part of "Namco Museum Vol.2 [Model ULJS-00047]"
16. Pac-Man Championship Edition (2007, XBLA)
17. Pac-Man Championship Edition DX (2010, XBLA, PSN)
18. Pac-Man Party [Model RVL-SP7J-JPN] (2010, Wii)
19. Pac-Man Battle Royale (2011, ARC)
20. Pac-Man Tilt (2011, 3DS) : part of "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions [Model CTR-APGJ-JPN]"
21. Pac-Man Championship Edition DX+ (2013, XBLA, PSN)
22. Pac-World (2014, 3DS, Wii U, PS3)
23. Pac-World 2 (2014, 3DS, Wii U, PS3)
- STAFF -
Designed by : Toru Iwatani
Programmed by : Hideyuki Mokajima
Music & Sound by : Toshio Kai
- PORTS -
NOTE: For ports released in North America, please see the Midway Pac-Man (North American version) upright entry.
* CONSOLES:
[JP] Atari 2600 (1983)
[JP] Nintendo Famicom (nov.2, 1984) "Pac-Man [Model NPM-4500]"
[EU] Nintendo NES (1990)
[AU] Nintendo NES (1990)
[JP] Nintendo Famicom Disk (may.18, 1990) "Pac-Man [Model NDS-PAC]"
[JP] Sony PlayStation (nov.22, 1995) "Namco Museum Vol.1 [Model SLPS-00107]"
[AU] Sony PlayStation (1996) "Namco Museum Vol.1 [Model SCES-00243]"
[EU] Sony PlayStation (aug.1996) "Namco Museum Vol.1 [Model SCES-00243]"
[JP] Sony PS2 (jan.26, 2006) "Namco Museum Arcade Hits! [Model SLPS-25590]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (mar.24, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
[EU] Sony PS2 (mar.31, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model SLES-53957]"
[EU] Nintendo GameCube (may.5, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model DOL-G5NP-EUR]"
[EU] [JP] [AU] Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (aug.9, 2006)
[EU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (may.15, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
[AU] Microsoft XBOX 360 (june.3, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade"
[JP] Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (nov.5, 2009) "Namco Museum - Virtual Arcade [Model 2RD-00001]"
[JP] Sony PlayStation 3 (jan.29, 2009) "Namco Museum.comm [Model NPJB-00012]"
[EU] Sony PlayStation 3 (apr.1, 2010) "Namco Museum Essentials [Model NPEB-00104]"
[AU] Sony PlayStation 3 (apr.1, 2010) "Namco Museum Essentials"
[KO] [EU] [AU] Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (feb.26, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
[EU] [AU] Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] (feb.26, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum [Model NPEB-01892]"
[KO] Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] (feb.26, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
[JP] Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] (june.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
[JP] Sony PlayStation 3 [PSN] (june.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
[EU] [AU] [JP] Microsoft XBOX One [XBOX Store] (apr.20, 2016) "Arcade Game Series - Pac-Man"
[EU] [AU] Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] (apr.20, 2016) "Arcade Game Series - Pac-Man [Model CUSA-03862]"
[JP] Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] (apr.20, 2016) "Arcade Game Series - Pac-Man [Model CUSA-03670]"
* HANDHELDS:
[JP] Nintendo Game Boy (nov.16, 1990) "Pac-Man [Model DMG-PCA]"
[JP] Sega Game Gear (jan.29, 1991) "Pac-Man [Model T-14017]"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy (1991) "Pac-Man [Model DMG-PC-NOE]"
[AU] Nintendo Game Boy (1991) "Pac-Man [Model DMG-PC-AUS]"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy Color (1999) "Pac-Man - Special Colour Edition [Model DMG-AACP-EUR]"
[JP] SNK Neo-Geo Pocket Color (aug.26, 1999) "Pac-Man [Model NEOP00550]"
[EU] SNK Neo-Geo Pocket Color (oct.1, 1999) "Pac-Man [Model NEOP0055]"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy Advance (dec.7, 2001) "Pac-Man Collection [Model AGB-APCP]"
[JP] Nintendo Game Boy Advance (jan.11, 2002) "Pac-Man Collection [Model AGB-APCJ-JPN]"
[JP] Sony PSP (feb.24, 2005) "Namco Museum [Model ULJS-00012]"
[KO] Sony PSP (may.2, 2005) "Namco Museum [Model ULJS-45005]"
[EU] Sony PSP (dec.9, 2005) "Namco Museum Battle Collection [Model UCES-00116]"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy Advance (mar.31, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary [Model AGB-B5NP-EUR]"
[JP] Nintendo DS (oct.11, 2007) "Namco Museum DS [Model NTR-YNMJ-JPN]"
[EU] Nintendo DS (feb.29, 2008) "Namco Museum DS [Model NTR-YNMP-EUR]"
[JP] Nintendo 3DS (june.23, 2011) "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions [Model CTR-APGJ-JPN]"
[AU] Nintendo 3DS (aug.25, 2011) "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions [Model CTR-APGP-AUS]"
[EU] Nintendo 3DS (aug.26, 2011) "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions [Model CTR-APGP-EUR]"
* COMPUTERS:
Exidy Sorcerer (1981) "Chomp"
[EU] BBC B (1982) by Acornsoft : Renamed "Snapper" after Acornsoft was sued.
[EU] Commodore C64 (1983)
[JP] Sharp X-1 (1983)
[EU] Sharp MZ-80K Pacman
[JP] Fujitsu FM-7 (1984)
[EU] Acorn Electron (1984) "Snapper"
[JP] MSX (1984)
[EU] MSX (1984)
[EU] Amstrad CPC (1985)
[EU] Thomson TO8 (1986) "Compilation Contacthoms"
Atari ST (1986) "Spook - Mighty Munchers"
[EU] Sinclair ZX Spectrum
[JP] Sharp X68000 (1988)
[JP] PC9801 (nov.13, 1992) by Wiz
[JP] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (june.9, 1998) "Namco History Vol.3"
[AU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (mar.27, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (may.19, 2006) "Namco Museum - 50th Anniversary"
[AU] PC [Online] (feb.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
[EU] Steam (feb.25, 2014) "Pac-Man Museum"
[JP] PC [Online] (apr.20, 2016) "Arcade Game Series - Pac-Man"
* Arcade :
[JP] (1996) "Namco Classics Collection Vol.2"
- SOURCES -
Game's ROM.
Machine's picture.
Pac-Man Help file from Microsoft Return of Arcade.
All In Color For a Quarter - Keith Smith
Mark Longridge, Scott Lawrence and Don Hodges webpages, for the analysis of the 256th level bug.
Accepted [+] [X] Moon Cresta [Model 800-3121] Update submitted by vecchiom
Moon Cresta (c) 1980 Gremlin.
Manufactured by Gremlin under license from Nichibutsu. For more information on the original game, please see the Nichibustu entry.
- TECHNICAL -
BOARD # 800-3121
- TRIVIA -
Moon Cresta was released by Gremlin, under license by Nichibutsu, in the USA on September 1, 1980.
- STAFF -
Designed & programmed by: Shigeki Fujiwara
- SOURCES -
Game's ROM.
Accepted [+] [X] Moon Cresta [Model MCA-5001] Update submitted by vecchiom
Moon Cresta (c) 1980 Nichibutsu
Moon Cresta is a single screen shoot-em-up with the player controlling an armed ship that moves horizontally along the bottom of the screen and must use their ship to destroy waves of attacking aliens.
The player begins the game with a small ship armed with a single laser cannon. Upon successful completion of the first four waves of alien attacks, the player's ship will be able to dock with the next 'stage' of fighter ship, although the docking procedure must be completed within a set time. This larger, two-stage ship has increased fire power (three lasers).
After successfully clearing a further two alien waves and surviving a meteor shower, the two-stage ship will be able to dock with the third and final piece, giving the player the largest and most powerful ship, which is now armed with five lasers. Bonus points are awarded depending on how quickly the docking procedures are completed.
If the multi-stage ship is hit, the player continues with whatever stages remain. If players achieve a score of 30,000, they are awarded a free game and their score continues to accumulate.
Upon completion of the first eight screens, the player's ship will revert back to its small, single-stage incarnation and the game begins again with an increased level of difficulty.
- TECHNICAL -
Model MCA-5001 (Upright)
Main CPU : Zilog Z80 (@ 3.072 Mhz)
Sound Chips : Tone generator & discrete circuits
Screen orientation : Vertical
Video resolution : 224 x 256 pixels
Screen refresh : 60.61 Hz
Palette colors : 98
Players : 2
Control : 2-way joystick (RIGHT and LEFT)
Buttons : 1 (FIRE/THRUST)
- TRIVIA -
Moon Cresta was released in Japan on June 1, 1980.
Marcus McHaffie holds the official record for this game with 153,490 points.
- SCORING -
Scoring in this game is relatively simple. Each alien (except meteors and arrows) come in two different colors for each screen.
Eyes (Break in half) : 50 points
Eyes (Destroy other half) : 100 points
Flies : 30 points
Birds : 60 points
Fireballs : 200 points
Arrow Ships : 100 points
Docking is a big way to increase your score. You get the time remaining from 30 seconds multiplied by 100 for your docking bonus.
- TIPS AND TRICKS -
* When you start the game, all three stages of your ship will come from the bottom of the screen. After going halfway up, the ship on top separates from the other 2 and it settles onto the bottom of the screen ready for battle.
* Remember, you can only keep one set of shots in the 'air' at one time. This means you need to plan your shots out so you don't end up with a lot of misses when the aliens decided to come after your ship.
* In the later screens, the aliens start moving much quicker and you have to be on your toes to keep up with them and avoid being taken out.
* Although the aliens do not fire, they still can cause a lot of hate and discontent by their wild maneuvering. There is no real safe place on the screen from the aliens since they go into the lower corners of the screen, reappear from the bottom after they have apparently 'left' the screen, or just appear right above your ship.
* In the earlier waves, you have to split apart 2 eyes before the rest automatically split and come after your ship. In the later screens, the eyes automatically split upon entering the screen. That means eight instead of four aliens you have to deal with.
* If you manage to dock all three ships together, you will have a lot of firepower (5 shots at once) to send out. Here are some ways, unfortunately, you can lose ships and what ships are lost :
1) Besides the aliens, docking is the second way people lose a lot of ships. The only ship destroyed is the ship attempting to dock.
2) If an alien hits any part of your ships (if all stages are joined), only the stage hit is lost. This can create an amusing circumstance if you lose stage II and you only have stages I and III to fight with.
* Don't worry if you lose Stage I early in the game. One has to be very skilled to fight four screens with Stage I. Stage II is the best stage to fight with. It is a small target plus it has enough firepower to defend itself. Stage III on the other hand, is just a lumbering junkyard. The lasers are too spread out to do much good plus there is a very wide-open area in the middle for aliens to hit.
* The bird stages present the most challenge of the aliens. They appear and disappear at will. Sometimes they will appear right next to your ship so on these stages, be extra alert. If you see one disappear and don't hear the familiar bird chirp of it reappearing, assume it is on the screen somewhere still.
* The best place to 'hide' during the fireball stage is in the lower right corner. The fireballs will not hit your ship in this corner. You can do hit and runs by moving your ship out, shooting at a fireball, then going back to the corner again.
* During the arrow screen, the aliens will hover around the top, then turn into arrows and attempt to ram your ship. In the later screens, they won't even hover but just try to ram your ship.
* Your goal is to make it to 30,000 points so you can have a fresh ship waiting in case you lose all the stages of your present ship.
* Docking isn't that hard to do. After finishing off a wave just before the docking stage, try to center your ship on the screen. That way, all you have to do is move that ship left or right to successfully dock. You want to avoid using the thrusters unless your ship is in extreme peril. The docking bonus can be the most amount of points you score in the game. If you happen to miss a dock, then you will continue the next set of screens with the ship that failed to dock.
- SERIES -
1. Moon Cresta (1980)
2. Terra Cresta (1985)
3. Dangar - Ufo Robo (1986)
4. Terra Force (1987)
5. Terra Cresta II - Mandoraa no Gyakushuu (1992, NEC PC Engine)
- STAFF -
Moon Cresta was developed by game developer company Jorudan.
Designed & programmed by : Shigeki Fujiwara
- PORTS -
* CONSOLES:
[JP] Nintendo Super Famicom (may.26, 1995) "Nichibutsu Arcade Classics [Model SHVC-AACJ-JPN]"
[JP] Sony PlayStation (dec.29, 1995) "Nichibutsu Arcade Classics [Model SLPS-00184]"
[JP] Sony PS2 (jul.21, 2005) "Moon Cresta [Oretachi Geasen Zoku] [Model SLPM-62645]"
Nintendo Wii [Virtual Console Arcade] [JP] (mar.9, 2010)
[JP] Sony PS4 [PSN] (aug.26, 2014) "Arcade Archives - Moon Cresta [Model CUSA-00649]"
Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] [US] (may.29, 2015) "Arcade Archives - Moon Cresta [Model CUSA-00982]"
Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] [AS] (june.12, 2015) "Arcade Archives - Moon Cresta"
Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] [EU] [AU] (sept.29, 2015) "Arcade Archives - Moon Cresta [Model CUSA-02669]"
Sony PlayStation 4 [PSN] [KO] (nov.13, 2015) "Arcade Archives - Moon Cresta [Model CUSA-00649]"
* COMPUTERS:
Microtan 65 [EU] (1985)
[EU] Sinclair ZX Spectrum (1985)
[US] Commodore C64 [EU] (1985)
BBC B [EU] (1985)
[EU] Amstrad CPC (1986)
[EU] Commodore C64 (1992) "Classic Arcadia 3"
[EU] Sinclair ZX Spectrum (1992) "Classic Arcadia 3"
[JP] Sharp X68000 (nov.20, 1992) "Moon Cresta + Terra Cresta [Model DP-3205023]"
- SOURCES -
Game's ROM.
Game's picture.
F.A.Q. by Kevin Butler A.K.A. War Doc
Accepted [+] [X] Missile Command Update submitted by vecchiom
Missile Command (c) 1980 Atari.
Missile Command is a one or two-player game depicting the outbreak of a nuclear war. Players must defend six cities from waves of incoming nuclear missiles by launching their own anti-ballistic missiles (ABMs) from one of three missile batteries.
The game is played by moving a cross-hair across the sky and pressing one of three buttons to launch an ABM from the corresponding battery (either Alpha Base, Delta Base or Omega Base). Upon reaching the cross-hair the player's ABM explodes, creating a fireball that lasts for several seconds and destroys any enemy missiles that enter it. Each battery is initially armed with ten anti-ballistic missiles and becomes useless when either all of its missiles have been fired or it's been destroyed by enemy missiles.
New enemy weapons are introduced in later levels that increase the level of difficulty; smart bombs that can evade a less than perfectly targeted missile, and bomber planes and satellites that fly across the screen and launch missiles of their own. Missiles from the player's central battery fly to their targets at much greater speed and are the most effective way of destroying smart bombs from a distance.
Enemy weapons are only able to destroy a maximum of three cities per level. A level ends once all enemy missiles have either been destroyed or have reached their target. At the conclusion of a level, players receive bonus points for any remaining cities and unused missiles. Between levels, missile batteries are rebuilt and replenished, while destroyed cities are only rebuilt at set point thresholds (determined by the game's dip switch settings).
The game ends once all cities have been destroyed.
- CAST OF ELEMENTS -
Anti-Ballistic Missiles (ABM) : The defensive missiles you launch to protect your cities. Each missile base contains 10 ABMs per wave. If any missile base is struck by an attack missile or smart bomb, the remaining stock of ABMs for that wave are destroyed, and the missile base is rendered useless until the next wave. You receive bonus points for every ABM you have remaining at the end of each wave.
Targeting crosshair : Aim your ABMs quickly but carefully. Use the trackball to move the targeting crosshair to where you want the next ABM to go, then press any Launch Control button to fire the ABM. The ABM will explode where the crosshair was positioned when the Launch Control button was pressed.
Cities : There are six cities in total on the screen at one time, three on either side of the Delta Base. If one enemy missile or smart bomb manages to strike a city, that city will be wiped out. When all cities are destroyed, the game is over.
Alpha Base : The missile base on the bottom left corner of the screen. Press the leftmost Launch Control button to launch an ABM from the Alpha base.
Delta Base : The missile base in the bottom center of the screen. Press the middle Launch Control button to launch an ABM from the Delta base.
Omega Base : The missile base on the bottom right corner of the screen. Press the rightmost Launch Control button to launch an ABM from the Omega base.
NOTE: The Alpha and Omega bases launch ABMs at a slower speed than the Delta base, so you must plan further ahead when launching ABMs from those bases.
Attack Missiles : Their only aim is to destroy your cities and missile bases. Every missile wave starts off with a hailstorm of attack missiles. They never deviate from their path. They may, however, turn into MIRVs.
Multiple Independently-targeted Re-entry Vehicles (MIRV) : Surprise! There is no warning when an attack missile turns into an MIRV (with multiple warheads). Think fast. Each new missile that the MIRV unleashes is carefully targeted.
Killer Satellite : A mean-looking satellite that travels across the sky at a mid-level altitude and fires attack missiles. First appears in Wave 2.
Bomber : A big slow-moving target that flies across the sky at a mid-level altitude, but watch out! It fires attack missiles. First appears in Wave 2.
WARNING: If you destroy a bomber or killer satellite before they deploy their attack missiles, you may see their attack missiles added to the downpour. An existing attack missile may also turn into an MIRV.
Smart Bomb : Smart enough to avoid most explosion clouds from your ABMs. Your ABM must explode next to one in order to destroy it. You can also squeen it between two explosions to destroy it. First appears in Wave 5.
'LOW' Warning : As soon as there are only three ABMs left in a missile base, the game displays the word 'LOW' underneath that base, and a warning signal sounds. Heed the warning.
- TECHNICAL -
Missile Command is available in four different cabinet models: upright, cabaret, cocktail, and cockpit. The cockpit model only supports 1 player, while all others support up to 2 players.
After every two attack waves, the color scheme changes. There are ten different color schemes in all. After Waves 19 and 20, the game returns to the first color scheme. Notice that the sky remains black for the first four color schemes, and starts changing its color with the fifth scheme.
Game ID : 035820-035825
Main CPU : MOS Technology M6502 (@ 1.25 Mhz)
Sound Chips : POKEY (@ 1.25 Mhz)
(Cockpit model)
Players : 1
(Upright, Cabaret, and Cocktail models)
Players : 2
Control : Trackball ('TARGET CONTROL' for moving and aiming the targeting crosshair)
(Upright and Cockpit models)
Diameter of trackball : 4.5 inches (11.43cm)
(Cabaret and Cocktail models)
Diameter of trackball : 2.5 inches (6.35cm)
Buttons : 3 ('LAUNCH CONTROL') - for firing the ABMs from each base
= > [A] (leftmost button) - fires ABMs from Alpha Base
= > [B] (middle button) - fires ABMs from Delta Base
= > [C] (rightmost button) - fires ABMs from Omega Base
- TRIVIA -
Missile Command was released in the USA on June 15, 1980.
Licensed to Sega & Taito for the Japanese market.
The Upright and Cockpit versions of Missile Command were the last games to use the large 4.5-inch aluminum trackball that was also used by "Atari Football", "Atari Basketball", "Atari Baseball" and "Atari Soccer". The Cabaret and Cocktail versions used the smaller 2.5-inch trackball that would be used by later Atari titles, especially "Centipede".
Missile Command was an immensely popular arcade game that combined great game play with a rather chilling message about the dangers of war. Approximately 20,000 units were produced.
Originally called 'Armaggedon', Missile Command was designed at a time that the United States and Russia were locked in a fierce 'cold war'. Missile Command was originally going to have a large status panel as part of its marquee which indicated the status of the bases and cities but it was eliminated when the designers learned that players lost track of on-screen gameplay when they looked up at the panel. There is a picture of a prototype cabinet with the status panel on page 60 of the book 'High Score : The Illustrated History of Electronics Games, 2nd Edition'.
* The Creation of Missile Command : The idea for Missile Command began with a magazine story about satellites that captured the attention of Atari's president, who passed the clipping to Lyle Rains. Rains asked Dave Theurer to lead the effort in creating the classic, action-packed arcade game.
* Remembrances from the Video Game Masters : Recalling the birth of Missile Command, Dave Theurer said : "The request was for a game where there are missiles attacking the California coast and the player is defending the coast. They said, take it from here and write up a game proposal. In the first proposal it was the California coast."
Part of creating a great game is knowing what to strip away. Some of the first baggage the developers dropped was geographic identifications because of the frightful scenario of the game. And then they stripped away more.
Dave Theurer : "The original suggestion was for there to be a scanning radar, but I immediately said, no way! It would be just too hard for the player because he wouldn't be able to see what was going on. We chucked that idea. And when we first developed the game, we added railroads to transport missiles from the cities to the missile bases. That got to be too complicated and people got confused... if you get too complicated, people won't play. We also had submarines for a while but that didn't work out so we ripped them out, too."
The smart bombs presented the most difficult challenge in writing the code for Missile Command.
Dave Theurer : "These little diamond-shape guys can evade your explosions. The only way you can kill them is if the explosion starts out right on top of them. Programming that was the hardest part. They had to be intelligent because the little guy had to look around on the screen to see what he had to avoid and he had to figure out the best path to go around what there was to avoid. Of course, if I made it too smart, then the player couldn't kill it and they'd be guaranteed instant death. So it had to be a fine line between smarter than the dumb missiles, yet not totally unkillable."
Nerves of steel is the way Rich Adam, one of the Missile Command team members, described his co-worker : "Dave Theurer was extremely detail oriented, very thorough, and very disciplined. He had nerves of steel, would never get rattled, and worked tirelessly. You need nerves of steel because if your code doesn't work it's your fault, something inside that code is not correct. There's really nowhere to hide. The real Achilles' heel with a lot of software people, I believe, is that they spin their wheels and they go through this denial phase : 'It can't be my code! How could anything possibly be wrong with it? My code is so straightforward!' Well, it's so straightforward you might not have thought of a nuance. So, that's why it takes nerves of steel, I think. The work requires sort of a cold, methodical approach to the software."
* Popular from the Start : Even before it shipped, Missile Command had intense fans.
Speaking of the play, the game got just within the labs of Atari. Ed Rotberg said : "There were guys there that would literally have to worship that game for hours at a time. Their hands were sweating, and it was a definite adrenaline rush."
Describing some of the dedicated players at Atari, Dave Theurer said : "We were in the same building as the consumer division and there were a couple of guys from that division who would come down and spend all day playing Missile Command. I don't know what they did upstairs, but they would spend the entire day playing the game."
* The Great 25-Cent Escape : The escape from reality could sometimes have frightful consequences. The horrifying subject matter of Missile Command had an impact on the developers.
Dave Theurer : "It was pretty scary. During the project and for 6 months after the project, I'd wake up in a cold sweat because I'd have these dreams where I'd see the missile streak coming in and I'd see the impact. I would be up on top of a mountain and I'd see the missiles coming in, and I'd know it would be about 30 seconds until the blast hit and fried me to a crisp."
Steve Calfee : "Everybody I know who really got into the game had nightmares about nuclear war."
The game was nearly shipped with a name that carried the message of the end of the world... Armageddon.
Steve Calfee : "We had this big thing about the name of the game. From the beginning, it was called Armageddon. The management, themselves, didn't know what the word meant and they thought none of the kids would. Then we went through this big thing of naming it. Engineering loved the name Armageddon, and we always wanted to call it that. From the very top came the message, 'We can't use that name, nobody'll know what it means, and nobody can spell it.'"
Placing the game in the context of the previous decade, Ed Rotberg said : "The thing about Missile Command is that the world was not nearly as stable politically as it is now. There is a little bit of a spooky message in that whole game when you have that final cloud at the end."
Victor Ali holds the official record for this game on 'Marathon' settings with 80,364,995 points.
Roy Shildt holds the official record for this game on 'Tournament' settings with 1,695,265 points.
Hacks of this game are known as "Super Missile Attack" and "Missile Combat".
A Missile Command unit appears in the 1982 movie 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High', in the 1991 movie 'Terminator 2 - Judgment Day' and in the 1995 movie 'Species'.
A Missile Command upright cabinet appears in the Judas Priest music video 'Freewheel Burning'. The game's THE END screen appears at the end of the video.
In 1982, a multi-player sequel was planned but never released. This game would have have been identical to the first except with twice as many cities and batteries and the players cooperating to save each other cities from the onslaught.
In 1982, Atari released a set of 12 collector pins including : "Missile Command", "Battle Zone", "Tempest", "Asteroids Deluxe", "Space Duel", "Centipede", "Gravitar", "Dig Dug", "Kangaroo", "Xevious", "Millipede" and "Food Fight".
- SCORING -
Points are awarded for destroying attack missiles, ships and planes :
Attack Missile : 25 points
Killer Satellite : 100 points
Bomber : 100 points
Smart Bomb : 125 points
Bonus points are awarded at the end of each missile wave for any cities and ABMs remaining :
Unused ABMs : 5 points each
Saved Cities : 100 points each
A scoring multiplier based on the missile wave being played is displayed at the start of each wave :
Waves 1 and 2 have 1x scoring.
Waves 3 and 4 have 2x scoring.
Waves 5 and 6 have 3x scoring.
Waves 7 and 8 have 4x scoring.
Waves 9 and 10 have 5x scoring.
Waves 11 and above have 6x scoring.
- TIPS AND TRICKS -
* Anticipate. Place the targeting crosshair ahead of attack missiles so the explosion cloud expands toward the enemy's shots. If the leading edge of an attack missile touches any part of the explosion cloud, it is destroyed.
* A well-placed ABM can destroy two or more attack missiles converging into the same explosion cloud.
* Aim just in front of attack missiles, satellites, and bombers, and let them travel into your explosion clouds. As soon as you've launced an ABM and marked the target for destination, move the crosshair to another target. Don't wait for the explosion.
* Hit bombers and killer satellites before they can drop attack missiles. Also, the sooner you destroy them, the sooner they'll reappear and the more points you can score. You may want to launch "insurance" ABM's at the left and right sides of the screen even before a bomber or killer satellite appears, in the chance that one will travel into the explosion cloud.
* A sound tactic used by many expert players is the spread. Fire a sweeping barrage of ABMs across the screen just below the attack missiles at the start of a wave, creating a solid line of explosion clouds to trap and destory as many of the first shots fired by the enemy as possible. If possible, create the spread in the path of a bomber or killer satellite.
* When creating a spread, fire all your ABMs from the same base. Once all 10 ABMs are launched (or the base has been destroyed by the enemy), you no longer need to worry about defending it.
* When creating a spread, don't use the Delta Base. It is in a strategic position and its missiles fly faster than ABMs from the side bases. Save the Delta Base's ABMs for more precise shots.
* Destroy attack missiles while they are high on the screen. You don't want them to turn into MIRVs. If you notice that an attack missile has become an MIRV, try to destroy as many of the split missiles with a single explosion cloud as possible.
* Hit targets before they cross the radar line. The radar line is an invisible line marking the crosshair's lower limit. Since you can't position the crosshair below this line, any attack missile that crosses it is beyond range of your ABMs.
* There are usually two main attack waves per stage. Just when it looks like things have calmed down, another assault commences. Repeating the strategy above is a good idea.
* Smart bombs are usually fooled by a couple of quick ABMs being fired on opposite sides of the bomb, but overlapping. Then the smart bomb cannot escape.
* Don't let smart bombs distract you. Sometimes you can try so hard to hit smart bombs you forget to defend your planet. Remember that a smart bomb can only hit one target.
* Don't defend depleted missile bases or destroyed cities. Concentrate your efforts defending cities and missile bases that still show signs of life. If all your cities are destroyed or you are on the verge of earning a bonus city, then it is good strategy to go for the high-score targets like smart bombs, even if they are heading for dirt.
* As waves become more difficult, you may be forced to sacrifice some cities. Choose the left or the right, and give up the cities on the other side. When waves become really tough, you may want to defend only one city and go for as many high score targets as possible.
- SERIES -
1. Missile Command (1980)
2. Missile Command 3D (1995, Atari Jaguar)
3. Missile Command (1999, PlayStation/PC CD-ROM)
- STAFF -
Designed and programmed by : Dave Theurer (DFT)
Lead hardware engineer by : Dave Sherman (DLS)
Chief engineer of software engineering by : Steve Calfee (SRC)
Junior programmer and sound routines by : Rich Adam (RDA)
Electrical engineering by : Mary Pepper (MJP)
Hardware design, head of special projects in engineering and power supply by : Jed Margolin (JED)
Technician : Dave Webienson (DEW)
Track ball designed by : Gerry Lichac (GJL)
- PORTS -
* CONSOLES:
[US] Atari 2600 (1981) "Missile Command [Model CX2638]"
[EU] Atari 2600 (1981) "Missile Command [Model CX2638P]"
[US] Atari 5200 (1982) "Missile Command [Model CX5202]"
[US] Emerson Arcadia (1982) "Missile War [Model 1010]"
Atari XEGS
[JP] Atari 2600 (1983)
DynaVision [BR] (198?)
[EU] Sega Master System (1992) "Arcade Smash Hits [Model MK-27032-50]"
[US] Sega Genesis (1996) "Arcade Classics [Model MK-1715]"
[EU] Sega Mega Drive (1996) "Arcade Classics [Model 1715-50]"
[US] Sony PlayStation (dec.31, 1996) "Arcade's Greatest Hits - The Atari Collection 1 [Model SLUS-00339]"
[EU] Sega Saturn (1997) "Arcade's Greatest Hits - The Atari Collection 1 [Model T-25413H-50]"
[US] Sega Saturn (june.30, 1997) "Arcade's Greatest Hits - The Atari Collection 1 [Model T-9706H]"
[US] Nintendo SNES (aug.1997) "Arcade's Greatest Hits - The Atari Collection 1 [Model SNS-AW7E-USA]"
[EU] Sony PlayStation (dec.1997) "Arcade's Greatest Hits - The Atari Collection 1 [Model SLES-00466]"
[EU] Nintendo SNES (feb.26, 1998) "Arcade's Greatest Hits - The Atari Collection 1 [Model SNSP-AW7P-EUR]"
[US] Sony PlayStation (2001) "Atari Anniversary Edition Redux [Model SLUS-01427]"
[US] Sega Dreamcast (jul.2, 2001) "Atari Anniversary Edition [Model T-15130N]"
[EU] Sony PlayStation (mar.1, 2002) "Atari Anniversary Edition Redux [Model SLES-03808]"
[US] Microsoft XBOX (nov.16, 2004) "Atari Anthology [Model 26084]"
[US] Sony PS2 (nov.22, 2004) "Atari Anthology [Model SLUS-21076]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (nov.26, 2004) "Atari Anthology"
[EU] Sony PS2 (feb.18, 2005) "Atari Anthology [Model SLES-53061]"
[JP] Microsoft XBOX (aug.4, 2005) "Atari Anthology [Model B7X-00001]"
Microsoft XBOX 360 [XBLA] [US] [EU] (jul.4, 2007)
[US] [EU] Microsoft XBOX One (nov.1, 2016) "Atari Flashback Classics Vol.2"
[US] Sony PlayStation 4 (nov.1, 2016) "Atari Flashback Classics Vol.2"
* HANDHELDS:
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy (1992)
[US] Nintendo Game Boy (mar.1992) "Missile Command [Model DMG-MW-USA]"
[US] Atari Lynx (1994) "Super Asteroids & Missile Command [Model PA2093]"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy (1995) "Arcade Classic No. 1 - Asteroids & Missile Command [Model DMG-AMCP-NOE]"
[US] Nintendo Game Boy (jul.1995) "Arcade Classic No. 1 - Asteroids & Missile Command [Model DMG-AMCE-USA]"
[UK] Nintendo Game Boy (1995) "Arcade Classic No. 1 - Asteroids & Missile Command [Model DMG-AMCP-UKV]"
[US] Sega Game Gear (1996) "Arcade Classics"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy Color (1999) "Missile Command [Model CGB-ALCP-EUR]"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy Color (sept.1999) "Missile Command [Model CGB-VLCE-USA]"
[US] Nintendo GBA (mar.25, 2002) "Atari Anniversary Advance [Model AGB-AAVE-USA]"
[EU] Nintendo GBA (feb.14, 2003) "Atari Anniversary Advance [Model AGB-AAVP-EUR]"
[UK] Nintendo DS (mar.11, 2005) "Retro Atari Classics [Model NTR-ATAE-UKV]"
[EU] Nintendo DS (mar.11, 2005) "Retro Atari Classics [Model NTR-ATAE-EUR]"
[US] Nintendo DS (mar.16, 2005) "Retro Atari Classics [Model NTR-ATAE-USA]"
[JP] Nintendo DS (june.30, 2005) "Atarimix Happy 10 Games [Model NTR-ATAJ-JPN]"
[AU] Nintendo DS (nov.2007) "Retro Atari Classics [Model NTR-ATAE-AUS]"
[US] Sony PSP (dec.19, 2007) "Atari Classics Evolved [Model ULUS-10325]"
[AU] Sony PSP (mar.7, 2008) "Atari Classics Evolved"
[US] Nintendo DS (nov.2, 2010) "Atari Greatest Hits Vol.1 [Model NTR-BR6E-USA]"
[EU] Nintendo DS (feb.24, 2011) "Atari Greatest Hits Vol.1 [Model NTR-BR6P-EUR]"
* COMPUTERS:
[US] Atari 800 (1981) [Model CXL4012]
[US] Tandy Color Computer (1981) "Polaris"
[US] Tandy Color Computer (1982) "Defense"
[US] Tandy Color Computer (1982) "Missile Attack"
[US] [EU] Commodore C64 (1983)
[EU] Sinclair ZX-Spectrum (1983) "Missile Defence" - Anirog Software
[EU] Acorn Electron (1983) "Missile Control" - Gemini
[EU] BBC B (1983) "Missile Control" - Gemini
[EU] Sinclair ZX-Spectrum (1983) "Missile Command" - Anirog Software
[AU] VTech Laser-VZ "Missile Attack"
[EU] BBC B "Missile Strike" - Superior
[EU] Atari ST (1986)
[EU] MSX (1988)
[JP] Sharp X68000 (1988)
[US] PC [MS Windows 3.1x, 3.5"] (1993) "Microsoft Arcade"
[US] PC [MS Windows 95, CD-ROM] (1995) "Patriot Command", part of "Windows Arcade Pack"
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (1999) "Atari Arcade Hits 1"
[US] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (jul.13, 1999) "Atari Arcade Hits 1"
[US] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (jul.9, 2001) "Atari Anniversary Edition"
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (dec.14, 2001) "Atari Anniversary Edition"
[US] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (nov.11, 2003) "Atari - 80 Classic Games in One! [Model 25069J]"
[EU] PC [MS Windows, CD-ROM] (june.10, 2005) "Atari - 80 Classic Games in One! [Replay]"
[US] Steam (mar.24, 2016) "Atari Vault [Model 400020]"
* OTHERS:
[US] Mobile phone [Motorola T720] (june.13, 2003)
[US] Nokia N-Gage (2005) "Atari Masterpieces Vol. I"
[EU] Nokia N-Gage (oct.13, 2005) "Atari Masterpieces Vol. I"
[US] Apple iPhone/iPod (sept.16, 2008) [Model 291286162]
[US] Apple Store (2011) "Atari Greatest Hits"
[US] Google Play (2011) "Atari Greatest Hits"
- SOURCES -
Game's ROM.
game's picture.
Missile Command Help file from Microsoft Arcade.
Arcade Retro Lounge; http//tips.retrogames.com/
Accepted [+] [X] Galaxian [Model 869] Update submitted by vecchiom
Galaxian (c) 1979 Midway Mfg. Co.
Under license from Namco. For more information about the game itself, please see the original Namco entry.
- TECHNICAL -
[Cocktail Table model] [No. 869]
Control : 2-way control knob
Buttons : 1 (FIRE)
- TRIVIA -
Galaxian [Cocktail Table model] [No. 869] was released in April 1980 in the USA.
- SOURCES -
Machine's picture.
Accepted [+] [X] Space Invaders [Model 739] Update submitted by vecchiom
Space Invaders (c) 1978 Midway Mfg. Co.
Export version manufactured by Midway under license from Taito. For more information about the game itself, please see the original Taito upright model entry; "Space Invaders".
- TECHNICAL -
Game ID : 739
[Upright model]
Buttons : 3 (LEFT, RIGHT, FIRE)
(The US upright model had no joystick)
- TRIVIA -
Space Invaders was released by Midway Manufacturing, under license by Taito, in the USA on October 1, 1978.
The Space Invaders phenomenon stunned many conservative adults of the time who were convinced that video-games soured the minds of their youngsters. Residents of Mesquite, Texas, pushed the issue all the way to the Supreme Court in their efforts to ban the illicit machines from their Bible-belt community. A number of reported incidents of juvenile crime began to surface shortly after the game's release, adding to its 'controversy'. A girl was caught stealing $5,000 from her parents and gangs of youths were reported to have robbed grocery stores just so they would have money to play the game.
Of the reported 350,000 units produced world wide, about 65,000 units were produced in the U.S. alone.
Technology journalist Jason Whittaker credited the game's success to ending the video game crash of 1977, which had earlier been caused by Pong clones flooding the market, and beginning the golden age of video arcade games. According to The Observer, the home console versions were popular and encouraged users to learn programming; many who later became industry leaders.
Space Invaders inspired a catchy hit song by 'Uncle Vic' called 'Space Invaders' released over the spring to summer-time period of 1980. The Pretenders also released an instrumental song called 'Space Invaders' on their debut album in 1980.
A Space Invaders unit appears in the 1980 movie 'Midnight Madness', in the 1982 movie 'Jekyll & Hyde... Together Again', in the 1982 movie 'Fast Times at Ridgemont High', in the 1983 movie 'Joysticks', in the 1984 movie 'The Iceman', in the 1991 movie 'Terminator 2 - Judgment Day', and in the 1998 sitcom 'That 70's Show'; Season 4, Episode 8 (Donna's Story).
An upright unit of the Midway release of Space Invaders appears in the ZZ Top music video, 'Legs'.
- SERIES -
1. Space Invaders (1978, ARC)
2. Space Invaders Deluxe (1979, ARC)
3. Space Invaders II (1980, ARC)
4. Return of the Invaders (1985, ARC)
5. Super Space Invaders '91 (1990, ARC)
6. Space Invaders DX (1994, ARC)
7. Space Invaders '95 - Attack of the Lunar Loonies (1995, ARC)
8. Space Invaders (1999, PS)
9. Space Invaders 25th Silver Anniversary (2003, ARC)
10. Space Invaders Revolution (2005, DS)
11. Space Invaders Evolution (2005, PSP)
12. Space Invaders Extreme (2008, DS/PSP)
13. Space Invaders Extreme 2 (2009, DS)
14. Space Invaders Frenzy (2017, ARC)
- PORTS -
NOTE: For ports released in Japan, please see the Taito upright model entry.
* CONSOLES:
[US] Atari 2600 (1980) "Space Invaders [Model CX2632]"
[US] Atari 5200 (1982) "Space Invaders [Model CX5204]"
Atari XEGS
DynaVision [BR] (198?)
ColecoVision [US] (aug.9, 2003) "Space Invaders Collection"
[EU] Sony PS2 (oct.14, 2005) "Taito Legends [Model SLES-53438]"
[EU] Microsoft XBOX (oct.14, 2005) "Taito Legends"
[US] Sony PS2 (oct.25, 2005) "Taito Legends [Model SLUS-21122]"
[US] Microsoft XBOX (oct.25, 2005) "Taito Legends"
[KO] Sony PS2 (jul.18, 2006) "Taito Legends [Model SLKA-15056]"
* HANDHELDS:
Nintendo Game Boy [AU] (1994) "Space Invaders [Model DMG-SP-AUS]"
[EU] Nintendo Game Boy (1994) "Space Invaders [Model DMG-SP-NOE]"
Nintendo Game Boy [UK] (1994) "Space Invaders [Model DMG-SP-UKV]"
[US] Nintendo Game Boy (oct.1994) "Space Invaders [Model DMG-SP-USA]"
[EU] Sony PSP (oct.6, 2006) "Taito Legends Power-Up [Model ULES-00473]"
[US] Sony PSP (may.17, 2007) "Taito Legends Power-Up [Model ULUS-10208]"
* COMPUTERS:
Exidy Sorcerer [EU] (1978) "Invaders"
Microtan 65 [EU] (1980) "Space Invasion"
TI99/4a [US] (1981) "TI Invaders [Model PHM 3053]" by Texas Instruments
Tandy Color Computer [US] (1981) "Space Assault"
Tandy Color Computer [US] (1981) "Color Space Invaders"
Commodore Vic 20 [US] "Avenger"
[US] Commodore C64 (1982) "Avenger [Model C-64 621]"
[EU] Commodore C64 (1982) "Avenger"
BBC B [EU] (1982) "Super Invaders" by Acornsoft
Sinclair ZX-Spectrum [EU] (1982) "Spectral Invaders" by Bug-Byte
Sinclair ZX-Spectrum [EU] (1982) "Space Raiders" by Sinclair Research
Sinclair ZX-Spectrum [EU] (1982) "Invaders" by Artic Computing (UK)
Oric [EU] (1983) "Oric Invaders" by Arcadia Software
Tandy Color Computer [US] (1985) "Super Vaders"
[EU] [US] Commodore C64 (1987) "Arcade Classics"
Tandy Color Computer 3 [US] (1988) "Space Intruders" : wave 9 is similar to wave 5 of "Phoenix".
[EU] Commodore Amiga (1988) "Amoeba Invaders" : included in the cover disk that came with the ST/Amiga Format Magazine (nov.1988, Issue number 5).
[EU] Atari ST (1989)
Sinclair ZX-Spectrum [EU] (1993) "Invaders" by Design Design Software (UK) : published exclusively on magazine covertape, appeared on side A of covertape "Your Sinclair issue 85: Christmas Collection 2".
PC [MS-DOS] (1997) "Champ Invaders" - CHAMProgramming
VTech Laser-VZ [AU] "Vz Invaders"
[US] Apple II "Apple Invader"
PC [MS Windows] [EU] (oct.14, 2005) "Taito Legends"
PC [MS Windows] [US] (nov.10, 2005) "Taito Legends"
* OTHERS:
LED handheld game [US] (1980) black version by Entex
LED handheld game [US] (1981) grey version by Entex
LCD handheld game [US] (1982) by Tiger Electronics
LCD handheld game with calculator [US] (1982) by Tiger Electronics
LCD handheld game [US] (larger LCD) (1984) by Tiger Electronics
LCD handheld game [EU] (1999) by Systema
Arcade Legends : Space Invaders TV Game [US] (2004) by Radica Games
Mobile Phones [US] (2007) "3D Space Invaders"
Mobile Phones [US] (2007) "Space Invaders Trilogy"
[US] "Atari Flashback 4" (nov.13, 2012) by AtGames
[US] "Atari Flashback 5" (oct.1, 2014) by AtGames
[US] "Atari Flashback 6" (sept.15, 2015) by AtGames
[US] "Atari Flashback 7" (oct.1, 2016) by AtGames
[US] "Atari Flashback 8" (sept.22, 2017) by AtGames
[US] "Atari Flashback 8 Gold Edition" (sept.22, 2017) by AtGames
- SOURCES -
Game's picture.