Retro Gaming: Missile Command

When it comes to retro gaming, you cannot forget Missile Command. This arcade game from Atari, Inc was released in 1980. It was also licensed to Sega for the European release. It is one of the most notable games from what is considered the "Golden Age of Video Arcade Games".

The game has a simple but compelling plot. Your 6 cities are being attacked by ballistic missiles. Some will split like MIRVs (Multiple Independently Re-entry Vehicle) and in some later levels there are smart bombs that can evade a targeted missile. You are the regional commander of three anti-missile batteries and your job will be to defend the six cities in your zone and keep them from being destroyed. What sounds simple actually makes for hours on end of fun.

You played the game by moving a crosshair across the background of the sky using a trackball and then pressing one of three different buttons to launch the counter-missile from the appropriate battery. The counter-missiles will explode on the cross hair, leaving a fireball and destroying any missiles that cross over it or through it.

There are a total of three batteries and each one has 10 missiles. A missile battery will be deemed useless once all of the missiles have been shot from it. It is also deemed useless if it is destroyed by enemy fire. So you need to work in combination of protecting your batteries while destroying the enemy fire.

Just like many games of this type, Missile Command is set to increase difficulty at higher levels. As you continue to progress in the game, it will get harder and faster. You will need to be right on with your targeting so as to complete each level and continue playing. This was part of the addictive nature of the game. Players wanted to beat their last high score or get one more level higher than they have ever reached before.

A level ends when all of the cities are destroyed or when all enemy weaponry is destroyed. At the end of each level, you can also receive points for unused weaponry and remaining cities. This means the game rewards you for the better you do on each level. As you can see, it’s easy to get caught up in the numbers aspect of this game and it can easily become addicting.

Just like many other arcade games, especially of the times, there was no real way to win the game. It just keeps going and going until all six cities are wiped out and it ends. It gets harder and faster with each level until it becomes nearly impossible to complete the stages. Destroyed cities will not be reset but at certain intervals in the game, a bonus city will be awarded.

Some interesting facts about the game include the one that while programming the game, Dave Theurer, programmer, experienced nightmares. The original six cities of the game were also meant to represent six cities in California, United States. These included Eureka, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles and San Diego.

The game has had many clones, been mentioned in popular culture and much more. A new treat for Missile Command fans is the multiplayer version that you can now find online. This allows you to play the same fun game with different people and from any computer with an internet connection.

Play Missile Command now!