“Alien,” a 1982 maze-based video game developed for the Atari 2600 and released by Fox Video Games, centers around navigating a human character through spaceship corridors. The primary objective is to obliterate all Alien eggs scattered throughout by engaging with them. Players accumulate points by collecting various items and must obliterate or evade adult Aliens roaming the hallways. Using a flame thrower, which is limited to one use per life, can temporarily stop the Aliens. Encountering pulsars on the map turns the Aliens blue for a brief period, allowing them to be eliminated upon interaction. If an Alien makes contact with the player, a life is lost, and the game concludes when all lives are expended. The game’s difficulty switches on the Atari 2600 modify gameplay elements, such as whether pulsars affect the Aliens and the pattern of their movement.
Completing the egg destruction leads to a bonus round, where the player aims to reach the top of the screen within eight seconds to seize a displayed prize. No life is lost in this bonus stage.