Missile Command was so popular, that some variation of the game made its way onto nearly every available platform in the early 80s and beyond whether it was an official conversion or not. This control method predated the point and click method of computer interface by a number of years. Every missile was targeted by an on-screen cursor that was directed by a trackball. Each silo had 10 missiles, and the player had to decide with silo to deploy the next missile from. Missile Command gave the player control over three different missile silos that protected six "cities" on the ground below. Rains asked Dave Theurer to lead the effort in creating the classic, action-packed arcade game. 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. 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. Originally called 'Armageddon', Missile Command was designed at a time that the United States and Russia were locked in a fierce 'cold war'. It was an immensely popular game that combined great game play with a rather chilling message about the dangers of war. Generally most people who played Tempest were provided with the following level selection upon starting a new game.Missile Command is a 1980 arcade game by Atari that was also licensed to Sega for European release. One tip is to avoid firing at missiles, as they are dangerous and won’t provide additional points shooting them down. The help file description sounds more exciting. “Tempest transports you into an out-of-control region of space where deadly aliens from a parallel universe are attempting to pour through a series of cosmic tubes.” This is how the game is described in the help file, although to me you’re playing on a 3D surface of different shapes, and zapping anything that moves before it can reach the end. The final game, Tempest, dates back to 1981. Well placed shots can destroy multiple missiles amongst the explosion cloud. Considering its time, the Cold War and Soviet Union were deeply entrenched in people’s minds potentially giving influence to the game. The cities were originally named from locations around California where Atari had offices but were removed during development. Each base has 10 defensive missiles in order to protect the cities. The game is set with having six cities, and three missile launch bases. They can either jump long or several short jumps at once.Īlongside Battlezone came Missile Command in 1980. The spiders have a rather unpredictable behaviour making them more difficult to aim. Ultimately to complete a round the centipede needs to be eliminated in full. Set in a garden patch of mushrooms, the use of your bug zapper is to fight against the tide of centipedes, spiders, fleas, and scorpions. The cube and pyramid objects can be used for brief protection.įlying saucers won’t attack your tank, but will be a cause of distraction. A vector based 3D combat game, the aim is to defend your tank against enemy tanks, missiles, and flying saucers. The US Army even received a modified version known as The Bradley Trainer. One tip is that you earn more points shooting down the flying saucers.Ī year later from Asteriods, Battlezone was released, rated only behind Pac-Man as the best arcade game in 1982 (Third Annual Arkie Awards). From time to time, flying saucers will show up, attempting to shoot you down. Shooting larger asteroids will split them up creating more obstacles, and it’s only when they have become small enough they can be disintegrated. Controlling a spaceship, your aim is to dodge and shoot your way around through an asteroid belt. Here’s a rundown of the included titles – Asteroids, Battlezone, Centipede, Missile Command, and Tempest which actually contains a little secret.Ītari released this space-themed shooter in November 1979, the oldest in the group. However on occasion the disk was tossed in with some models of Microsoft Mouse, as had been the case with my copy. Dima Pavlovsky had been the sole developer.įitting onto a single floppy disk, Arcade was typically sold in its own retail package. The following year, it also was made available on the Macintosh. Inspired by Atari, it was a small collection of games that had been played in the heyday of coin-operated arcade machines over a decade prior. In 1993 Microsoft released Arcade for Windows 3.1, as part of their Microsoft Home product line.
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