How to play Millipede online
- Move: arrow keys
- Shoot arrows: Space bar
- Choose a starting score: F11 (the consoleās Select switch), then up and down arrows to raise or lower it
- Start a new game: F12 (the consoleās Reset switch)
- Save and load: Ctrl + 0ā9 saves, Alt + 0ā9 loads
Gameplay
Millipede is a one-player game. The millipede enters at the top of the garden and marches from side to side, turning back whenever it hits a mushroom, until it reaches the bottom. If any part of the millipede or another bug touches you, you lose a life. You start with three lives and earn another every 15,000 points.
The other insects each have their own habits. Spiders jump in from the sides. Earwigs poison the mushrooms they cross, and a millipede that touches a poisoned mushroom charges straight down at you. Hitting an inchworm slows every bug on screen for about four seconds. Every so often, mosquitoes, bees or dragonflies arrive in a swarm, and each one you hit in a row is worth more than the last. Each bug also has its own sound, so you can often hear what is coming before you see it.
| Target | Points |
|---|---|
| Mushroom | 1 |
| Millipede segment / head | 10 / 100 |
| Inchworm | 100 |
| Bee | 200 |
| Beetle | 300 |
| Spider | 300 to 1,200, more when it is close |
| Mosquito | 400 |
| Dragonfly | 500 |
| DDT bomb | 800 |
| Earwig | 1,000 |
A DDT explosion destroys any bug caught in the cloud, and each of those is worth triple points. When you lose a life, you get bonus points for the mushrooms and flowers still on screen.
Choosing a starting score
Instead of numbered variations, Millipede lets you pick where to start. In the first game of a session you can begin at 0, 15,000 or 30,000 points. After that you can start up to 15,000 points below your previous best, in steps of 15,000, up to 300,000. So if you scored 107,000, your next game can start at 90,000.
Tips
- Keep one eye on the millipede. It is easy to chase a bee or spider while the millipede creeps down on you.
- Shoot earwigs quickly. Every poisoned mushroom is a chance for the millipede to dive straight at you.
- Wait before setting off DDT. Let bugs gather near a bomb, then hit it for triple points on everything in the cloud.
- Use inchworms as a breather. Hit one when the screen gets busy to slow everything down for a few seconds.
- Keep shooting during swarms. The bonus climbs with each bug, up to 1,000 extra points each.
History
The arcade Millipede was designed by Ed Logg, who also co-created Centipede, and programmed by Logg and Mark Cerny. It was one of the highest-earning arcade games in America in 1983. According to AtariProtos, two separate 2600 versions were made: Atariās own, and one by the outside company GCC. Atariās version was the one released; the GCC version never came out. Sound was by Andrew Fuchs and Robert Vieira, and the finished game used a 16K cartridge, large for the 2600. Staugas also hid a personal message inside the code. The cartridge stayed on sale for years, with new label printings in 1987 and 1988.
Millipede was also released for the Atari 8-bit computers, the Atari ST, the NES and the Game Boy.
