Game of the Week: Frogger

Ribbit!

This week I'm taking a look back at the 1980s arcade video game Frogger.

The early 1980s was an awesome time for arcade fans, with new games coming out all the time and the arcades themselves filled to capacity, people waiting in lines to play Pac-Man or Space Invaders or whatever. Then, in 1981 Sega/Gremlin released the game Frogger onto the market.

Frogger instantly became a fan favorite, but it was a bit unusual in that it didn't quite have the splash, the pizazz!, that many other games seemed to have. Frogger had quality colors, but it didn't seem to scream to the players, "Play me!"

Perhaps it was the simplistic controls, or very fact the player was controlling an onscreen frog instead of a space ship or monster or something.

Maybe it was the seemingly simple gameplay. The player controlled a frog that had to make its way across a busy highway without being run over by a vehicle, then the frog had to jump across the backs of turtles and onto logs before hopping into their "home" to end that round. As the game progressed, it became more and more difficult with more and more challenges thrown at the player. The cars on the freeway sped up. The turtles began to dive under water. Eventually crocodiles, snakes and even otters would show up to attack the frog.

It sounds kind of silly when you think about it, but it was a fun game. For me personally, Frogger brings me fond memories because it was the only video game my dad ever liked, to the point he and I used to play the home version on my Atari 2600.

And that's another thing. Frogger has been so popular over the years, it was ported to just about every home video game system and computer system one can think of. Frogger has also had tons of sequel arcade and home games, and every so often now a new game based upon Frogger will appear.