''Bug Off!'' is a single screen
fixed shooter
Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs
) are a sub-genre 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 types of charact ...
for the
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 ...
written by Sparky Starks
[ and published by ]Adventure International
Adventure International was an American video game publishing company that existed from 1979 until 1986. It was started by Scott and Alexis Adams. Their games were notable for being the first implementation of the adventure genre to run on a m ...
in 1982.
Gameplay
The object of ''Bug Off!'' is to control a variety of bugs that swarm out of a Florida sinkhole and endanger the player's garden.
The player controls a chemical sprayer, which can be moved on all four outer edges of the gameplay window. The sprayer will always point towards the center of the screen, where the garden resides. Only the wasps and spiders are dangerous to the player. They eat all the player's DDT supplies and thus end the game. The player tries to hold out until nightfall, when the butterflies appear, which reward the player bonus points for every corner that has remained free and also the army will drop in a new supply of the DDT.
When the player is hit, he will lose his current can of DDT from his sprayer, and a second can will be thrown to the center of the garden, destroying all bugs on the map. When all lives are lost, it's game over.
Reception
''The Addison-Wesley
Addison-Wesley is an American publisher of textbooks and computer literature. It is an imprint of Pearson PLC, a global publishing and education company. In addition to publishing books, Addison-Wesley also distributes its technical titles throug ...
Book of Atari Software 1984'' concluded: "The sound and graphics are poor in ''Bug Off!''; then again, it isn't the type of game that needed better graphics. Game play is instinctively reflex rather than strategy oriented. It is a lightening fast repetitive game, but that doesn't mean it leaves you with a feeling of accomplishment". Overall ''Bug Off!'' received a D+ review.[
]
References
External links
''Bug Off!''
at Atari Mania
* {{Internet Archive game, id=a8b_Bug_Off_1982_Adventure_International_US
1982 video games
Atari 8-bit family games
Atari 8-bit family-only games
Fixed shooters
Video games about insects
Video games about plants
Video games developed in the United States
Video games set in Florida
Single-player video games