Space Invaders is a 1978 fixed shooter arcade game released by Taito in Japan and Midway in the United States.
Quick Facts
| Title | Space Invaders |
| Year | 1978 |
| Manufacturer | Taito (Japan)/Midway (US) |
| Designer(s) | Tomohiro Nishikado |
| Genre | Fixed shooter |
| Hardware | Intel 8080 CPU, raster graphics CRT display with bitmapped framebuffer, monaural sound via SN76477 sound chip, custom arcade board |
| Ports | 4 ports, including Atari 2600, Atari 8-bit, and Atari 5200 — see Ports section |
History
Space Invaders was designed by Tomohiro Nishikado for Taito and released in Japan in 1978, running on custom hardware built around an Intel 8080 processor. Nishikado has said he drew on H.G. Wells’ novel The War of the Worlds for the idea of an alien assault, reworking early prototypes that used human soldiers or tanks into the rows of descending invaders that defined the finished game. The title is frequently cited as the first Japanese-developed video game to rely on a microprocessor rather than fixed logic circuitry, a technical leap that let Nishikado program more varied enemy behavior than earlier arcade hardware allowed. Midway licensed the game for distribution across North America, where operators installed it in bars, arcades, and other public venues.
Space Invaders broke from prior arcade titles by removing any winning end state, letting waves of aliens continue indefinitely as speed increased with each cleared row. That open-ended design, paired with a rolling high-score display, gave players a reason to keep feeding coins into the cabinet chasing a better result rather than a fixed finish line. The game’s popularity in Japan and the US pushed the arcade business into a period of rapid growth and encouraged more Japanese manufacturers to enter the video game market. When Atari released a home port for the 2600 in 1980, sales of the console reportedly quadrupled, establishing home ports of arcade hits as a viable business model in their own right.
Gameplay
Players control a laser cannon that slides left and right along the bottom of the screen, firing straight upward at rows of alien invaders advancing in a slow, synchronized formation above. Each time the formation reaches either edge of the screen, it drops a row closer to the cannon and speeds up, building tension as fewer aliens remain and the survivors move faster across a shrinking board. Four defensive bunkers sit between the cannon and the aliens, absorbing incoming fire from both sides but eroding into rubble the longer a match continues, forcing players to reposition rather than rely on cover indefinitely. A UFO occasionally crosses the top of the screen for bonus points, rewarding well-timed shots on top of the core wave-clearing objective. The controls are limited to horizontal movement and a single fire button, and a new, faster wave begins once every invader on screen is destroyed, continuing until the invaders reach the bottom of the screen.
- Horizontal cannon movement paired with a single fire button
- Descending alien formation that speeds up as it thins out
- Degradable bunkers that provide temporary cover
- Bonus UFO passes for extra points
Cabinet & Hardware
Space Invaders ran on a custom Taito arcade board built around an Intel 8080 CPU, driving a raster CRT display with a bitmapped framebuffer rather than the vector or hardwired-logic displays common in earlier arcade machines. Sound came from a monaural SN76477 sound chip, producing the game’s steadily accelerating four-note bassline as the alien formation closed in, a detail that became one of the title’s most recognizable audio signatures.
Ports & Re-releases
| Platform | Year |
|---|---|
| Atari 2600 | 1980 |
| Atari 8-bit | 1980 |
| Atari 5200 | 1982 |
| Nintendo Famicom | 1985 |
The 1980 Atari 2600 conversion is the best known of these ports, credited with driving a major jump in console sales and becoming an early example of a home system selling on the strength of a single licensed arcade title. Space Invaders has since reappeared in numerous official compilations, including Taito’s own anniversary re-releases and various console and mobile collections, keeping the original arcade version legally available well beyond its original cabinets. See the NES/Famicom platform page for details on that later port.
Where to Play Legally Today
- Official Taito compilation releases and digital re-releases on modern consoles, PC, and mobile platforms
- MAME, run only with legally owned ROM dumps from a cabinet or licensed source you own
- Arcade museums and retro arcade venues that keep a working Space Invaders cabinet on their floor
Collector Value
Original Space Invaders upright and cocktail-table cabinets are prized by collectors as one of the foundational cabinets of the golden age of arcade games, with well-preserved units featuring original marquees and side art commanding significant premiums over worn or heavily modified machines. Standalone PCBs also trade separately from cabinets, appealing to owners of compatible arcade enclosures who want to swap in original hardware. Early home ports, particularly the 1980 Atari 2600 cartridge, remain widely available and inexpensive, making them an accessible entry point for collectors not ready to take on a full-size cabinet.
FAQs
Who made Space Invaders?
Space Invaders was designed by Tomohiro Nishikado and manufactured by Taito in Japan, with Midway handling manufacturing and distribution in the United States.
What year did Space Invaders come out?
Space Invaders came out in 1978, first released to arcades in Japan before reaching the United States through Midway.
What genre is Space Invaders?
Space Invaders is a fixed shooter, a genre it is widely credited with pioneering and establishing as a template for later arcade shooters.
What hardware did Space Invaders run on?
Space Invaders ran on a custom arcade board built around an Intel 8080 CPU, with a raster CRT display, bitmapped framebuffer, and monaural sound from an SN76477 sound chip.
Was Space Invaders ported to home consoles?
Yes, Space Invaders was ported to the Atari 2600 and Atari 8-bit computers in 1980, the Atari 5200 in 1982, and the Nintendo Famicom in 1985.
See also the related Galaxian and Galaga arcade pages, and browse the Golden Age of Arcade Games hub for more classic fixed shooters from the era.
Sources
Facts on this page last verified 2026-07-15.