''Space Zap'' is a space-themed

fixed shooter Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs) are a Video game genre, subgenre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain typ ...

arcade video game An arcade video game is an arcade game that takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. All arcade video games are coin-oper ...

developed by Game-A-Tron and licensed to

Midway Manufacturing Midway Games Inc. (formerly Midway Manufacturing and Bally Midway, and commonly known simply as Midway) was an American video game company that existed from 1958 to 2010. Midway's franchises included ''Mortal Kombat'', '' Rampage'', ''Spy Hunte ...

in 1980.The Arcade Flyer Archive. - Video Game Flyers: 005, Sega-Gremlin. The Arcade Flyer Archive, 07 Mar. 2002. Web. 10 Nov. 2012. 3. The player controls the defenses of an immobile base in the center of the screen which is attacked from the top, bottom, left, and right. Pressing one of four oversized buttons moves the gun in the corresponding direction. A fifth button fires. ''Space Zap'' shipped in three form factors: standard upright,

cocktail A cocktail is a mixed drink, usually alcoholic beverage, alcoholic. Most commonly, a cocktail is a combination of one or more liquor, spirits mixed with other ingredients, such as juices, flavored syrups, tonic water, Shrub (drink), shrubs, and ...

, and Bally's Mini-Myte reduced size cabinet. An official port of ''Space Zap'' for the

Bally Astrocade The Bally Astrocade (also known as Bally Arcade and initially as Bally ABA-1000) is a second-generation home video game console A home video game console is a video game console that is designed to be connected to a display device, such as ...

was released in 1981 as ''Space Fortress''.

Gameplay

The goal is to defend a base anchored in the center of the screen from alien attackers that come from the four cardinal directions. Four buttons are arranged in a diamond, corresponding to ''up'', ''down'', ''left'', and ''right''. If a projectile comes from the left, the player presses the left button to aim the gun in that direction, then a separate button to fire. If the player fails to fire in time, the base explodes. Each attack wave is punctuated by a

satellite A satellite or an artificial satellite is an object, typically a spacecraft, placed into orbit around a celestial body. They have a variety of uses, including communication relay, weather forecasting, navigation ( GPS), broadcasting, scient ...

which circles the screen until it is shot or crashes into the base. After the first few levels, ''Space Zap'' becomes a high-speed reflex game. The player starts out with three lives. The game allows up to two players, taking turns. The cocktail table version has two sets of controls, one on either side of the machine. 250 points are awarded for destroying an alien projectile, 500 for the alien ship, and 2,000 for the end of level

. The player receives an extra life at the scores of 150,000, and 300,000.

Legacy

Cosmic Ark ''Cosmic Ark'' is an Atari 2600 game designed by Rob Fulop and published by Imagic in 1982. The objective is to gather specimens from different planets in a spaceship which contains the survivors from the city of Atlantis. There are two versions ...

'', published by

Imagic Imagic ( ) was an American video game developer and publisher that created games initially for the Atari 2600. Founded in 1981 by corporate alumni of Atari, Inc. and Mattel, its best-selling titles were ''Atlantis'', '' Cosmic Ark'', and '' De ...

in 1982 for the

Atari 2600 The Atari 2600 is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977 as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS), it popularized microprocessor-based hardware and games stored on swappable ROM cartridg ...

, started out as a clone of ''Space Zap''. In the final game, the first part of each level is ''Space Zap'' and a second sequence was added to keep it from being repetitive. ''Space Zap'' clones are numerous and include '' Outpost'' (1981) for the

Apple II Apple II ("apple Roman numerals, two", stylized as Apple ][) is a series of microcomputers manufactured by Apple Computer, Inc. from 1977 to 1993. The Apple II (original), original Apple II model, which gave the series its name, was designed ...

, ''Colorzap'' (1982) for the TRS-80 Color Computer, ''Cyclon'' (1983) for the VIC-20, and ''Starship Pegasus'' (1984) for the TI-99/4A. In some clones a single joystick movement or key press shoots immediately—such as in ''Cosmic Ark''—instead of separate controls for moving the weapon and firing it.

Broderbund Broderbund Software, Inc. (stylized as Brøderbund) was an American maker of video games, educational software, and productivity tools. Broderbund is best known for the 8-bit video game hits '' Choplifter'', '' Lode Runner'', '' Karateka'', and ...

's ''Master Type'' (1981) teaches keyboard familiarity by having to press to correct letter or punctuation key to fire the weapon.

References

{{Reflist 1980 video games Arcade video games Fixed shooters Midway video games Video games developed in the United States