Space Panic

"Space Panic" is a 1980 arcade game designed by Universal. Chris Crawford calls it the first ever platform game; [cite book
title=Chris Crawford on Game Design
id=ISBN 0-88134-117-7
last=Crawford
first=Chris
authorlink=Chris Crawford
year=2003
publisher=New Riders] as it pre-dates Nintendo's "Donkey Kong" (from 1981) which is often cited as the original platform game. The main character digs holes in the platforms that he must lure the aliens into. He must then hit them to knock them out of the hole and off the screen. In later levels, two holes must be lined up vertically in order to dispose of the aliens. There is also a limited supply of oxygen.

While it may have indirectly influenced all subsequent platform games, it certainly directly influenced some very similar games at the time. These included some almost identical clones such as Acornsoft's "Monsters" (for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron) and the Apple II's "Apple Panic" as well as the popular "Lode Runner", which looked very similar and used the basic premise of digging holes to trap enemies. "Universal" revisited the genre again in 1983 with the release of "Mr. Do's Castle" which incorporated and expanded upon many of the play styles explored in this seminal game.

Ports and clones

References

External links

*moby game|id=/space-panic|name="Space Panic"
* [http://www.thedoteaters.com/p2_stage3.php Article on The Dot Eaters] featuring Space Panic