Space Invaders
Space Invaders is an arcade game created by Tomohiro Nishikado and released in 1978. It was manufactured and sold by Taito in Japan, and licensed in the United States by the Midway division of Bally. Space Invaders is one of the earliest shooting games; the aim is to defeat waves of aliens with a laser to earn as many points as possible.
Designer Nishikado drew inspiration from games such as Breakout and Gun Fight and science fiction stories such as The War of the Worlds, Space Battleship Yamato, and Star Wars. To complete it, he designed custom hardware and development tools. Space Invaders was one of the forerunners of modern video games, and helped expand the video game industry from a novelty to a global industry (see Golden age of arcade video games).
Space Invaders was an immediate commercial success. By 1982, it had grossed $2 billion, with a net profit of $450 million, making it the best-selling video game and highest-grossing entertainment product of its time. Adjusted for inflation, all versions of Space Invaders are estimated to have grossed over $13 billion in total revenue, making it the highest-grossing video game of all time.
The game has been the inspiration for other video games, re-released on numerous platforms, and led to several sequels. The 1980 Atari 2600 version quadrupled the system's sales and became the first "killer app" for video game consoles. Space Invaders has been referenced and parodied in multiple television shows, and been a part of several video game and cultural exhibitions. The pixelated enemy alien has become a pop culture icon, often representing video games as a whole.
An urban legend states that Space Invaders' popularity led to a shortage of 100-yen coins in Japan. In actuality, 100-yen coin production was lower in 1978 and 1979 than in previous or subsequent years. Additionally, arcade operators would have emptied their machines and taken the money to the bank, thus keeping the coins in circulation. Reports from those living in Japan at the time indicate "nothing out of the ordinary ... during the height of the Space Invaders invasion".
