is a 1981 arcade

action game An action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes a large variety of sub-genres, such as fighting games, beat 'em ups, shooter games, and platform g ...

developed by

Konami , is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machines, slot machines, and arcade cabinets. Konami has ca ...

and manufactured by

Sega is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, respectively. Its division ...

. In North America, it was released by Sega/Gremlin. The object of the game is to direct a series of

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...

s to their homes by crossing a busy road and a hazardous river. ''Frogger'' was positively received as one of the greatest video games ever made and followed by several clones and sequels. By 2005, 20 million copies of its various home video game incarnations had been sold worldwide. It entered popular culture, including television and music.

Gameplay

The objective of the game is to guide a frog to each of the empty homes at the top of the screen. The game starts with three, five, or seven frogs, depending on the machine's settings. Losing all frogs is game over. The player uses the 4-direction

joystick A joystick, sometimes called a flight stick, is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. A joystick, also known as the control column, is the principal cont ...

to hop the frog once. ''Frogger'' is either single-player or two players alternating. The frog starts at the bottom of the screen, which contains a horizontal road occupied by speeding cars, trucks, and bulldozers. The player must guide the frog between opposing lanes of traffic to avoid becoming roadkill and losing a life. After the road, a

median strip The median strip, central reservation, roadway median, or traffic median is the reserved area that separates opposing lanes of traffic on divided roadways such as divided highways, dual carriageways, freeways, and motorways. The term also a ...

separates the two major parts of the screen. The upper part consists of a river with logs, alligators, and turtles, all moving horizontally across the screen. By jumping on swiftly moving logs and the backs of turtles and alligators, the player can guide the frog to safety. The player must avoid snakes, otters, and the open mouths of alligators. A brightly colored female frog is sometimes on a log and may be carried for bonus points. The top of the screen contains five "frog homes". These sometimes contain bonus insects or deadly alligators. The opening tune is the first verse of a Japanese children's song called "Inu No Omawarisan" ("The Dog Policeman"). Other Japanese tunes include the themes to the

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

series ''

Hana no Ko Lunlun , translated to English as ''The Flower Child Lunlun'' and ''Lulu, The Flower Angel'', is a magical girl anime by Toei Animation, focusing on a theme of flowers in its stories. It was directed by Hiroshi Shidara and written by Shiro Jinbo. ...

'' and '' Rascal the Raccoon''. The American release has the same opening song plus " Yankee Doodle". In 1982, '' Softline'' stated that "''Frogger'' has earned the ominous distinction of being 'the arcade game with the most ways to die'." There are many different ways to lose a life (illustrated by a skull and crossbones symbol where the frog was), including being hit by a road vehicle; jumping into the river; running into snakes, otters, or an alligator's jaws; staying on top of a diving turtle; riding a log, alligator, or turtle off the side of the screen; jumping into a home already occupied by a frog; jumping into the side of a home or the bush; or running out of time. When all five frogs are in their homes, the game progresses to the next level with increased difficulty. After five levels, the difficulty briefly eases and yet again progressively increases after each level. The timer gives 30 seconds to guide each frog into one of the homes, and resets whenever a life is lost or a frog reaches home safely.

Scoring

Every forward step scores 10 points, and every frog arriving safely home scores 50 points. 10 points are also awarded per each unused ½ second of time. Guiding a lady frog home or eating a fly scores 200 points each, and when all 5 frogs reach home to end the level the player earns 1,000 points. A single bonus frog is 20,000 points. 99,990 points is the maximum high score that can be achieved on an original

arcade cabinet An arcade cabinet, also known as an arcade machine or a coin-op cabinet or coin-op machine, is the housing within which an arcade game's electronic hardware resides. Most cabinets designed since the mid-1980s conform to the Japanese Amusement Mac ...

. Players may exceed this score, but the game only keeps the last 5 digits.

Release

The game was developed by

. On July 22, 1981,

gained the exclusive rights to manufacture the game worldwide.

North America

Sega/Gremlin was skeptical about ''Frogger''s earning potential in North America. This was because no other company licensed the game. Also, an earlier game called '' Frogs'' that was developed there had flopped. It was believed that '' Eliminator'' would be the company's next big hit. Elizabeth Falconer, a market researcher at Sega/Gremlin, was tasked by Gremlin founder Frank Fogleman to check Gremlin's library of video presentations to see if there was anything worth licensing, and she stumbled across ''Frogger''. Thinking the game deserved a chance though being "cute", she requested a licensing window for playtesting. She reminded executives who denigrated ''Frogger'' as a "women and kids game" by reminding them of ''

Pac-Man originally called ''Puck Man'' in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. Th ...

''. Sega/Gremlin agreed to pay Konami $3,500 per day for a 60-day licensing window. A prototype was playtested in a San Diego bar and was so successful that distributors agreed to resell the game based on the test alone. Wanting to broaden the player base demographics, Jack Gordon, the director of video game sales at Sega/Gremlin, noted that women shied away from the "shoot em' ups" on the market and that games like ''Frogger'' "filled the void".

Ports

''Frogger'' was ported to many contemporary home systems. Several platforms such as the

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in the Guinness W ...

support both

ROM cartridge A ROM cartridge, usually referred to in context simply as a cartridge, cart, or card, is a replaceable part designed to be connected to a consumer electronics device such as a home computer, video game console or, to a lesser extent, elect ...

s and

magnetic media Magnetic storage or magnetic recording is the storage of data on a magnetized medium. Magnetic storage uses different patterns of magnetisation in a magnetizable material to store data and is a form of non-volatile memory. The information is ac ...

, so they received multiple versions of the game.

Sierra On-Line Sierra Entertainment, Inc. (formerly On-Line Systems and Sierra On-Line, Inc.) was an American video game developer and publisher founded in 1979 by Ken and Roberta Williams. The company is known for pioneering the graphic adventure game genr ...

gained the magnetic media rights and sublicensed them to developers who published for systems not normally supported by Sierra. Cornsoft published the official

TRS-80 The TRS-80 Micro Computer System (TRS-80, later renamed the Model I to distinguish it from successors) is a desktop microcomputer launched in 1977 and sold by Tandy Corporation through their Radio Shack stores. The name is an abbreviation of ' ...

Dragon 32 The Dragon 32 and Dragon 64 are home computers that were built in the 1980s. The Dragons are very similar to the TRS-80 Color Computer, and were produced for the European market by Dragon Data, Ltd., initially in Swansea, Wales before ...

, Timex Sinclair 1000, and

Timex Sinclair 2068 The Timex Sinclair 2068 (T/S 2068), released in November 1983, was Timex Sinclair's third and last home computer for the United States market. It was also marketed in Canada, Argentina, Portugal and Poland, as Timex Computer 2068 (TC 2068). ...

ports. Because of that, even the

Atari 2600 The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) from its release until November 1982, is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocesso ...

received multiple releases: a standard cartridge and a cassette for the

Starpath Supercharger The Starpath Supercharger (originally called the Arcadia Supercharger) is an expansion peripheral cartridge created by Starpath, for playing cassette-based proprietary games on the Atari 2600 video game console. The device consists of a long cart ...

. Sierra released disk or tape versions for the Commodore 64, Apple II, original Macintosh, IBM PC, and Supercharger-equipped 2600, and cartridge versions for the TRS-80 Color Computer

Parker Brothers Parker Brothers (known by Parker outside of North America) was an American toy and game manufacturer which in 1991 became a brand of Hasbro. More than 1,800 games were published under the Parker Brothers name since 1883. Among its products we ...

received the license from Sega for cartridge versions which it released for the Atari 2600,

Intellivision The Intellivision is a home video game console released by Mattel Electronics in 1979. The name is a portmanteau of "intelligent television". Development began in 1977, the same year as the launch of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. In 198 ...

, Atari 5200, ColecoVision,

Atari 8-bit family The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers introduced by Atari, Inc. in 1979 as the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The series was successively upgraded to Atari 1200XL , Atari 600XL, Atari 800XL, Atari 65XE, Atari 130XE, Atari 800XE, ...

, TI-99/4A,

VIC-20 The VIC-20 (known as the VC-20 in Germany and the VIC-1001 in Japan) is an 8-bit home computer that was sold by Commodore Business Machines. The VIC-20 was announced in 1980, roughly three years after Commodore's first personal computer, the ...

, and

. Parker Brothers spent $10 million on advertising ''Frogger''. The Atari 2600 version was programmed by Ed English.

Coleco Coleco Industries, Inc. was an American company founded in 1932 by Maurice Greenberg as The Connecticut Leather Company. It was a successful toy company in the 1980s, mass-producing versions of Cabbage Patch Kids dolls and its video game consol ...

released stand-alone Mini-Arcade tabletop versions of ''Frogger'', which, along with ''

'', ''

Galaxian is a 1979 fixed shooter arcade video game developed and published by Namco. The player assumes control of the Galaxip starfighter in its mission to protect Earth from waves of aliens. Gameplay involves destroying each formation of aliens, wh ...

'', and '' Donkey Kong'', had three million sales combined. The game was ported to systems such as the

PC-6001 The NEC PC-6000 series is a series of 8-bit home computers introduced in November 1981 by NEC Home Electronics. There are several models in this series, such as the PC-6001, the PC-6001 MK2 and the PC-6001 MK2 SR. There is also an American versio ...

and

Game Boy The is an 8-bit fourth generation handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on April 21, 1989, in North America later the same year, and in Europe in late 1990. It was designed by the same t ...

. ''Frogger'' is one of the 6 launch games for the 1983

Gakken Compact Vision TV Boy The is a second generation home video game console developed by Gakken and released in Japan in 1983 for a price of ¥8,800. The system was made to compete with the Epoch Cassette Vision, which had a market dominance of 70% in Japan. The co ...

Reception

''Frogger''s appeal was seen to lack barriers of age or gender. Its success increased production, becoming one of the top-grossing arcade games in North America during 1981. The arcade game earned over (equivalent to $ in ) for Sega/Gremlin in US cabinet sales, becoming the most successful Sega/Gremlin release. In Japan, ''Frogger'' was the 12th highest-grossing arcade game of 1981. Home versions of ''Frogger'' had high sales. The 1982 Atari 2600 version earned its publisher

in orders upon launch. By the end of the year, Atari 2600 cartridges were sold with in

wholesale Wholesaling or distributing is the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers; to industrial, commercial, institutional or other professional business users; or to other wholesalers (wholesale businesses) and related subordinated services. I ...

revenue. It became the company's most successful first-year product, beating the sales and revenues of its previous best-seller, ''

Merlin Merlin ( cy, Myrddin, kw, Marzhin, br, Merzhin) is a mythical figure prominently featured in the legend of King Arthur and best known as a mage, with several other main roles. His usual depiction, based on an amalgamation of historic and leg ...

''. By 2005, copies of the various home versions had been sold worldwide, including in the United States. In 1981, ''

Computer and Video Games ''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website w ...

'' reviewed the arcade game as "one of the popular new generation of arcade games which are getting way from space themes". In his 1982 book ''Video Invaders'', Steve Bloom described ''Frogger'' as a " climbing game" along with '' Space Panic'' (1980) and

Nintendo is a Japanese multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produced handmade playing cards ...

's '' Donkey Kong'' (1981). He said it was one of the "most exciting variations" on ''

''s maze theme along with ''Donkey Kong'' due to how players need to "scale from the bottom of the screen to the top" which make them "more like obstacle courses than mazes" since "you always know where you're going — up." Brett Alan Weiss of ''

AllGame RhythmOne , previously known as Blinkx, and also known as RhythmOne Group, is an American digital advertising technology company that owns and operates the web properties AllMusic, AllMovie, and SideReel. Blinkx was founded in 2004, went publ ...

'' later reviewed the arcade game, calling it one of "the most beloved videogames ever created" and "pure, undiluted gaming at its finest". He said the "graphics are cute and detailed, the sound effects are crisp and clear, and the controls are sharp and responsive". ''Arcade Express'' reviewed the Atari VCS version in 1982, calling it "a highly authentic translation of the coin-op hit" that combines "great graphics with sophisticated play action". Ed Driscoll reviewed the Atari VCS version in ''

The Space Gamer ''The Space Gamer'' was a magazine dedicated to the subject of science fiction and fantasy board games and tabletop role-playing games. It quickly grew in importance and was an important and influential magazine in its subject matter from the ...

'', commenting that, "All in all, if you liked the arcade version, this should save you a lot of quarters. The price is in line with most cartridges. It also proves that Atari isn't the only one making home versions of the major arcade games for the VCS."

Danny Goodman Danny Goodman is a computer programmer, technology consultant, and an author of over three dozen books and hundreds of magazine articles on computer-related topics. He is best known as the author of ''The Complete HyperCard Handbook'' (1987, Banta ...

of '' Creative Computing Video & Arcade Games'' wrote in 1983 that the Atari 2600 version "is one of the most detailed translations I have seen", noting the addition of the wraparound screen. In 2013, ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...

'' named ''Frogger'' one of the top ten games for the Atari 2600.

Legacy

Remakes and sequels

In 1997, Hasbro Interactive released '' Frogger'', a vastly expanded remake of the original for

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for se ...

and the

PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a di ...

. Unlike the original, it consists of multiple different levels. It was a commercial success, with Windows sales alone at nearly one million units in less than four months. In 1998, Hasbro released a series of versions of the original game for the

Sega Genesis The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master Syst ...

Super NES The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in ...

, Game com,

, and

Game Boy Color The (commonly abbreviated as GBC) is a handheld game console, manufactured by Nintendo, which was released in Japan on October 21, 1998 and to international markets that November. It is the successor to the Game Boy and is part of the Game ...

. Each version has different graphics, with the Genesis version having the same as the original arcade game. The Genesis and SNES versions are the last games released for those consoles in North America. Though using the same box art, they are otherwise unrelated to the 1997 remake. In 2005, InfoSpace worked with Konami Digital Entertainment to create the mobile game ''Frogger for Prizes'',Video Game News – Konami Digital Entertainment and InfoSpace Partner to Create Mobile Game Frogger for Prizes
in which players across the U.S. competed in multiplayer tournaments to win daily and weekly prizes. In 2006, the

mobile game A mobile game, or smartphone game, is a video game that is typically played on a mobile phone. The term also refers to all games that are played on any portable device, including from mobile phone ( feature phone or smartphone), tablet, PDA to ...

version of ''Frogger'' grossed over $10 million in the United States. A

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mo ...

version was released for compatible

mobile phone A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whi ...

s. ''Frogger'' was released on the Xbox Live Arcade for the

Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generati ...

on July 12, 2006. It was developed by

Digital Eclipse Digital Eclipse is an American video game developer based in Emeryville, California. Founded by Andrew Ayre in 1992, the company found success developing commercial emulations of arcade games for Game Boy Color. In 2003, the company merged w ...

and published by

. It has two new gameplay modes: versus speed mode and co-op play. Some of the music was replaced, including the familiar ''Frogger'' theme. This version is in the compilation '' Konami Classics Vol. 1''. The original 1981 arcade version joined the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 ''

Arcade Archives is a series of emulated arcade games from the late 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, and Nintendo Switch, published by Hamster Corporation. A sub-series called is focused on rereleasing Neo Ge ...

'' on December 12, 2019. A remake of the game has been announced for release exclusively for the Intellivision Amico. The home versions of ''Frogger'' had numerous sequels, remakes, and spin-offs: *'' Frogger II: ThreeeDeep!'' (1984) *'' Frogger'' (

) (1997) *''Frogger (Tiger Electronic)'' (1998, LCD Game) *'' Frogger 2: Swampy's Revenge'' (

, Dreamcast,

) (2000) *'' Frogger: The Great Quest'' (

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on ...

) (2001) *'' Frogger's Adventures: Temple of the Frog'' ( Game Boy Advance) (2001) *'' Frogger Advance: The Great Quest'' ( Game Boy Advance) (2002) *''

Frogger Beyond is a 2002 video game from Konami, released for GameCube and Xbox in December 2002, for Microsoft Windows in March 2003 in North America, and for PlayStation 2 in June 2003. It is a sequel in the Frogger series of games. Plot The time has come ...

'' (

Xbox Xbox is a video gaming brand created and owned by Microsoft. The brand consists of five video game consoles, as well as applications (games), streaming services, an online service by the name of Xbox network, and the development arm by the ...

GameCube The is a home video game console developed and released by Nintendo in Japan on September 14, 2001, in North America on November 18, 2001, and in PAL territories in 2002. It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 (1996), and predecessor of the ...

) (2002) *''Frogger's Adventures 2: The Lost Wand'' ( Game Boy Advance) (2002) *'' Frogger's Journey: The Forgotten Relic'' ( Game Boy Advance) (2003) *'' Frogger's Adventures: The Rescue'' (

) (2003) *''Frogger'' (mobile) (2003) *'' Frogger: Ancient Shadow'' (

) (2005) *'' Frogger: Helmet Chaos'' (

Nintendo DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in t ...

PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 200 ...

) (2005) *''Frogger Puzzle'' (mobile game) (2005) *''Frogger's 25 Anniversary'' (

) (2006) *''Frogger Evolution'' (

J2ME Java Platform, Micro Edition or Java ME is a computing platform for development and deployment of portable code for embedded and mobile devices (micro-controllers, sensors, gateways, mobile phones, personal digital assistants, TV set-to ...

) (2006) *'' My Frogger Toy Trials'' (

) (2006) *''Konami Kids Playground: Frogger Hop, Skip & Jumpin' Fun'' (

) (2007) *''Frogger Launch'' (

Windows Mobile Windows Mobile is a discontinued family of mobile operating systems developed by Microsoft for smartphones and personal digital assistants. Its origin dated back to Windows CE in 1996, though Windows Mobile itself first appeared in 2000 as Pock ...

) (2007) *''Frogger Hop Trivia'' (arcade) (2007) *'' Frogger 2'' (

) (2008) *'' Frogger Returns'' (

Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major home game console, ...

PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...

) (2009) *''Frogger Beats 'n' Bounces'' (

) (2008) *''Frogger Inferno'' (iOS) (2010) *''Frogger'' (Windows Phone) (2010) *'' Frogger 3D'' (

Nintendo 3DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo. It was announced in March 2010 and unveiled at E3 2010 as the successor to the Nintendo DS. The system features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS video games. As an eighth-generati ...

) (2011) *''Frogger Free'' ( iOS) (2011) *''Frogger: Hyper Arcade Edition'' (

, iOS, Android) (2012) *''Frogger Free'' ( iPhone, Android) (2012) *''Frogger's Crackout'' (Windows Store) (September 11, 2013) *''Frogger: Get Hoppin'' (casino game) (2017) *''Frogger In Toy Town'' (Apple Arcade) (2019) *''Frogger and the Rumbling Ruins '' (Apple Arcade) (2022) *''Frogger'' ( Intellivision Amico) (TBA)

Clones

Unofficial clones include ''Ribbit'' for the

Apple II The Apple II (stylized as ) is an 8-bit home computer and one of the world's first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products. It was designed primarily by Steve Wozniak; Jerry Manock developed the design of Apple II's foam-m ...

(1981),

Acornsoft Acornsoft was the software arm of Acorn Computers, and a major publisher of software for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron. As well as games, it also produced a large number of educational titles, extra computer languages and business and u ...

's ''Hopper'' (1983) for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron, A&F Software's ''Frogger'' (1983) for BBC Micro and

ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit home computer that was developed by Sinclair Research. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and became Britain's best-selling microcomputer. Referred to during development as the ''ZX81 Colou ...

, PSS's (Personal Software Services) ''Hopper'' for the

ORIC 1 Oric was the name used by UK-based Tangerine Computer Systems for a series of 6502-based home computers sold in the 1980s, primarily in Europe. With the success of the ZX Spectrum from Sinclair Research, Tangerine's backers suggested a hom ...

in the UK (1983) and a later release for the ORIC Atmos, ''Froggy'' for the ZX Spectrum released by DJL Software (1984), Solo Software's ''Frogger'' for the Sharp MZ-700 (1984) in the UK, and ''Leap Frog'' for the NewBrain. Several clones retain the basic gameplay of ''Frogger'' and change the style or plot. '' Pacific Coast Highway'' (1982), for the

, splits the gameplay into two alternating screens: one for the highway, one for the water. '' Preppie!'' (1982), for the Atari 8-bit family, changes the frog to a

preppy Preppy (also spelled preppie) or prep (all abbreviations of the word ''preparatory'') is a subculture in the United States associated with the alumni of old private Northeastern college preparatory schools. The terms are used to denote a pers ...

retrieving golf balls at a country club. ''

Frostbite Frostbite is a skin injury that occurs when exposed to extreme low temperatures, causing the freezing of the skin or other tissues, commonly affecting the fingers, toes, nose, ears, cheeks and chin areas. Most often, frostbite occurs in t ...

'' (1983), for the Atari 2600, uses the ''Frogger'' river gameplay with an arctic theme. ''

Crossy Road ''Crossy Road'' is an arcade video game released on 20 November 2014. It was developed and published by Australian video game developer Hipster Whale, with the name and concept of the game playing on the age-old joke "Why did the chicken cross t ...

'' (2014), for iOS, Android and Windows Phone, has a randomly generated series of road and river sections in one endless level, with only one life and a single point given for each forward hop.

In popular culture

*In 1983, ''Frogger'' made its animated television debut as a segment on CBS's ''

Saturday Supercade ''Saturday Supercade'' is an American animated television series produced for Saturday mornings by Ruby-Spears Productions. It ran for two seasons on CBS. Premise Each episode is composed of several shorter segments featuring video game characte ...

'' cartoon lineup. Frogger, voiced by

Bob Sarlatte Bob Sarlatte is an American actor, comedian and sports announcer known for such films and television series as '' Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home'', ''EDtv'' and ''Late Show with David Letterman''. Sarlatte was also the on-field stadium announcer ...

, worked as an investigative reporter. *On the 1984 Bad Religion album "

Back to the Known ''Back to the Known'' is the second EP released by American punk rock band Bad Religion. The name of the EP is a reference to the band abandoning the progressive rock influences of its previous album, 1983's '' Into the Unknown'', and returning ...

", the song "Frogger" describes Los Angeles traffic as "playing ''Frogger'' with my life". The song uses a sample from the game as its intro. *In the 1998 ''Seinfeld'' episode "

The Frogger "The Frogger" is the 174th episode of the NBC sitcom ''Seinfeld''. It is the 18th episode for the ninth and final season. It first aired on April 23, 1998. In this episode, Elaine eats a vintage cake from King Edward VIII's wedding, Jerry mainta ...

", Jerry and George visit a soon-to-be-closed pizzeria they frequented as teenagers and discover the ''Frogger'' machine still in place, with George's decade-old high score still recorded. *Frogger appears in the films ''

Wreck-It Ralph ''Wreck-It Ralph'' is a 2012 American Computer-animated film, computer-animated comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The List of Walt Disney Animation Studios films, 52nd Disney animated f ...

'', ''

Pixels In digital imaging, a pixel (abbreviated px), pel, or picture element is the smallest addressable element in a raster image, or the smallest point in an all points addressable display device. In most digital display devices, pixels are the sm ...

'', and ''

Ralph Breaks the Internet ''Ralph Breaks the Internet'' is a 2018 American computer-animated comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The 57th animated film produced by the studio and the sequel t ...

''. *A scene in the ''Teen Titans'' episode "Cyborg the Barbarian" parodies the game. *In 2006, a group in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

, used a modified

Roomba Roomba is a series of autonomous robotic vacuum cleaners made by the company iRobot. Introduced in September 2002, they have a set of sensors that enable them to navigate the floor area of a home. These sensors can detect the presence of ob ...

dressed as ''Frogger'' to play a real-life version of the game. *In science, Frogger is the name given to a transposon ("jumping gene") family in the fruit fly ''

Drosophila melanogaster ''Drosophila melanogaster'' is a species of fly (the taxonomic order Diptera) in the family Drosophilidae. The species is often referred to as the fruit fly or lesser fruit fly, or less commonly the " vinegar fly" or "pomace fly". Starting with ...

''. *In 2008, the City of Melbourne created a spin-off called ''Grogger'' as part of a public service campaign to encourage people to take safe transportation home after a night of drinking.

Game show

Konami announced that a ''Frogger'' game show was in production for

Peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are r ...

, produced by Konami Cross Media NY and Eureka Productions. It debuted on September 9, 2021.

Competition

On November 26, 1999, Rickey's World Famous Sauce offered $10,000 to the first person who could score 1,000,000 points on ''Frogger'' or $1,000 for a new world record prior to January 1, 2000. On March 25, 2005, Robert Mruczek offered $1,000 for beating the fictitious world record of 860,630 as set by George Costanza in an episode of ''Seinfeld'' or $250 for a new world record by the end of that year. On December 1, 2006, John Cunningham offered $250 for exceeding the same fictitious world record of 860,630 points by February 28, 2007. These scores were surpassed only after the bounties had all expired. The first score to have been verified as having beaten George Costanza's fictional score of 860,630 points was set by Pat Laffaye on December 22, 2009, with 896,980 points. This was surpassed by Michael Smith of Springfield, Virginia, with a score of 970,440 points on July 15, 2012. On August 15, 2017 Pat Laffaye reclaimed the record, scoring 1,029,990 points, becoming the first person to break one million points on an original arcade machine. The current ''Frogger''

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

holder is Michael Smith, now of

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County and Wake County. With a population of 283,506 in the 2020 Census, Durham is the 4th- ...

, after scoring 1,356,520 on February 27, 2022.

Notes

References

External links

*
''Frogger''
at the Arcade History database *
Frogger
' at

MobyGames MobyGames is a commercial website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes nearly 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms. The site is supported by banner ads and a small ...

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