Dig Dug
Developer(s)	Namco
Publisher(s)	Atari
Release date(s)	1982
Genre(s)	Maze
Mode(s)	Up to 2 players, alternating turns
Platform(s)	Arcade, Commodore 64, Xbox Live Arcade, Famicom, Atari 2600, Atari 7800
Input	4-way Joystick; 1 button
Arcade cabinet	Upright, cabaret, and cocktail
Arcade system(s)	Namco Galaga
Arcade display	Vertical orientation, Raster, 224 x 288 resolution

Dig Dug is an arcade game released by Namco in 1982 to run on Namco Galaga hardware. A popular game based on a simple concept, it was also available as a home video game available on many consoles. Dig Dug screenshot from http://www. ... A video game developer is a software developer (a business or an individual) that creates video games. ... Namco Ltd ) is a amusement company based in Japan, best known overseas for video games development. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This article is about a corporate game company. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Video games are categorized into genres based on their gameplay. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... Centipede by Atari is a typical example of a 1980s era arcade game. ... The Commodore 64 is the best-selling single personal computer model of all time. ... Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA) is an online service operated by Microsoft that is used to distribute video games to Xbox and Xbox 360 owners and from late 2007 to Games for Windows - Live users [1]. The service was first launched in late 2004 and offers games from about US$5... The Nintendo Entertainment System (U.S., Europe, and Australia) NES redirects here. ... The Atari 2600, released in October 1977, is the video game console credited with popularizing the use of microprocessor based hardware and cartridges containing game code, instead of having non-microprocessor dedicated hardware with all games built in. ... The Atari 7800 is a video game console released by Atari in June 1986 (a test market release occurred two years earlier). ... Joystick elements: 1. ... This arcade cabinet, containing Centipede, is an upright. ... An arcade system board is a standardized printed circuit board or group of printed circuit boards that are used as the basis for multiple arcade games with very similar hardware requirements. ... The Namco 8-bit Galaga arcade system board was first used by Namco in 1981. ... A computer display monitor, usually called simply a monitor, is a piece of electrical equipment which displays viewable images generated by a computer without producing a permanent record. ... Suppose the smiley face in the top left corner is an RGB bitmap image. ... Centipede by Atari is a typical example of a 1980s era arcade game. ... Namco Ltd ) is a amusement company based in Japan, best known overseas for video games development. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... The Namco 8-bit Galaga arcade system board was first used by Namco in 1981. ... “Computer and video games” redirects here. ... A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or electronic device that manipulates the video display signal of a display device (a television, monitor, etc. ...

Objective

The objective of Dig Dug is to eliminate underground-dwelling monsters. This can be done by inflating them until they pop or by dropping rocks on them. There are two kinds of enemies in the game: Pookas are round red monsters (said to be modeled after tomatoes) who wear yellow goggles, and Fygars; green dragons who can breathe fire. The player's character is Dig Dug, dressed in white and blue who can make tunnels. Dig Dug is killed if he is caught by a monster, burned by a Fygar's fire, or crushed by a rock.

It takes four 'pumps' with the player's action button to inflate a monster to popping. If left partially inflated, the monster will deflate and recover after a few seconds, but half-inflating is a useful way to stun an enemy, especially to make sure it remains in the path of a falling rock. You can also pass through the enemy while he is deflating.

The monsters normally crawl through the tunnels in the dirt but they can turn into ghosty-eyes and travel slowly through the dirt.

More points are awarded for eliminating an enemy further down in the dirt, and the Fygar is worth more points if it is inflated horizontally rather than vertically (because it only breathes fire horizontally). More points are also awarded for dropping rocks on enemies in order to eliminate them rather than inflating them. If one enemy is killed by the rock, it is worth 1000 points. The next two add 1500 points each and any after that they add 2000. After the player drops two rocks, vegetables (and other edible bonus items, such as Galaxian flagships) appear in the center of the playfield, and can be collected for points if the player is able to reach them before they disappear. These edible bonus items will appear even if the rocks fail to hit any enemies. The act of digging is itself worth points, giving ten points for each block dug, so some players do as much of it as possible in situations where the threat from the remaining monsters is minimal. Galaxian is a 1979 fixed shooter arcade game by Namco. ...

If the player drops a rock on a foe at the same time he pumps it to death, the game will be tricked into thinking that all enemies have been destroyed, but that the level has not been defeated. Thus, all enemies will promptly disappear, and the player will be free to dig through all dirt. Until another rock is dropped, going to the next level will remain impossible.

The last enemy on a level will try to escape off the top left of the screen. Level numbers are represented by flowers in the top right of the screen. In successive levels, more monsters appear on each screen and they move more quickly. A level is completed successfully when the last monster is dispatched or succeeds in fleeing.

In the coin-operated version the game ends on round 256 (round 0) since this board is unplayable. At the start of the level, a Pooka is placed directly ontop of where the player starts, with no way to kill it (this is an example of a kill screen). This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Dig Dug Arrangement

In 1996, Namco packaged both this game and a remake of sorts and re-released it into the arcades. The remake was called Dig Dug Arrangement, which offered one or two-player mode as in the original. Out of the three created Arrangement games, this version has the least amount of changes. The graphics are updated and the levels are different. There are also new features such as giant rocks (that can crush multiple enemies at a time) and special power-up items. The overall feel of Dig Dug remains. Year 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar). ...

Dig Dug Arrangement was re-released alongside this game and ten others in the 128-bit Namco Museum version. Namco Museum refers to the series of compilations released by Namco for various 32-bit and above consoles, containing releases of their games from the 1980s. ...

Mobile game

In 2005, Namco Networks released a version of Dig Dug for cell phones and Palm OS/Windows Mobile devices that is authentic to the arcade original in terms of graphics and controls, even though the levels are as they are in the NES version of Dig Dug. Also unlike the arcade version, there is no "kill screen" at level 256. Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Palm OS is a compact operating system developed and licensed by PalmSource, Inc. ... Windows Mobile is a compact operating system combined with a suite of basic applications for mobile devices based on the Microsoft Win32 API. Devices which run Windows Mobile include Pocket PCs, Smartphones, and Portable Media Centers. ...

• Gamespot's Preview of the Dig Dug Mobile Game
• Official site with listing of phones the game is available on

Legacy

Taizo Hori as depicted in the Mr. Driller series and Dig Dug: Digging Strike

Taizo Hori as depicted in Namco X Capcom

A sequel to this game, the overhead-view oriented Dig Dug II, was much less common and met with less success in the arcades. Another sequel, Dig Dug: Digging Strike, was released in 2005 for the Nintendo DS. This combined the side-view play of the original with the overhead play of the sequel and added a narrative link to the Mr. Driller series. A 3D remake of the original, entitled Dig Dug Deeper, was released for PC in 2001 by Infogrames. The original Dig Dug was released for the Xbox 360 console via Xbox Live Arcade on October 11, 2006. The original Dig Dug is also available for play via the Gametap subscription gaming service, and was shown in one of the television commercials for the Gametap website in 2005. [1] Image File history File links TaizoHori_MrDriller. ... Image File history File links TaizoHori_MrDriller. ... Image File history File links Taizo_Hori. ... Image File history File links Taizo_Hori. ... Dig Dug II, the sequel to Dig Dug, was an arcade game, released by Namco in 1985. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... “NDS” redirects here. ... The Dig Dug Deeper Box Dig Dug Deeper Screenshot Dig Dug Deeper is a 3D remake of the original Dig Dug. ... It has been suggested that Xbox 360 Elite be merged into this article or section. ... Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA) is an online service operated by Microsoft that is used to distribute video games to Xbox and Xbox 360 owners and from late 2007 to Games for Windows - Live users [1]. The service was first launched in late 2004 and offers games from about US$5... is the 284th day of the year (285th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... GameTap is a subscription-based video game service by Turner Broadcasting System (TBS). ... GameTap is a subscription-based video game service by Turner Broadcasting System (TBS). ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Dig Dug was rated as the sixth most popular coin-operated video game of all time by the Killer List of Video Games website^[1]. The Killer List of Videogames (or simply KLOV) is a web site devoted to cataloging arcade games past and present. ...

The Dig Dug universe and some of its characters appear also in the Mr. Driller games, starred by Taizo Hori's son, Susumu. Screenshot of Mr. ...

The Dig Dug game archetype has been reincarnated in such games as XGen Studios' Motherload.

Trivia

• Although Namco has officially given the character of the original Dig Dug the name "Dig Dug," the actual name of the protagonist is Taizo Hori, and is the father of Susumu Hori, the main character in the Mr. Driller series. Many American gamers learned of his real name via the (Japan-only) PlayStation 2 game Namco x Capcom and the Nintendo DS game Mr. Driller Drill Spirits, where he is also a playable character. He is additionally featured in an unlockable gallery of Mr. Driller items in Mr. Driller 2. In the Mr. Driller series, Hori is known as the "Hero of the Dig Dug Incident" (in Japan, he is also the "Hero of the South Island incident," A.K.A Dig Dug II), and is the honorary chairman of the Driller Council whom most of the characters answer to. This contrasts greatly with the PC remake Dig Dug Deeper, where the hero is simply named Dig Dug, and is likely an American; as this game was made by Infogrames and not Namco, however, it is not considered canon. His name is a pun on the Japanese phrase "Horitai zo" or "I want to dig!"
• Pooka has had many cameos in Namco games, often as an enemy in games such as the Pac-Man World series. The creature was playable for the first time in the game, Pac-Man World Rally, as well as Fygar.
• It has been said that the music for the game show Starcade was inspired from the music for Dig Dug^[2].
• In the video for the song "We Are All Made of Stars" from electronic musician Moby, a scene is depicted where a sprite of Moby himself, dressed as an astronaut, is in the middle of a Dig Dug session.
• In R4: Ridge Racer Type 4, there is an American racing team with Dig Dug artwork on its hauler and is named the "Dug Racing Team," run by manager Robert Chrisman. It is the "expert" team of the game. Also in R4, the track "Phantomile" has a giant statue of Pooka alongside Pac-Man on the left hand side of the finishing straight. The "Pooka Line" track, which is the first in the game, has a giant screen with a Pooka and Fygar chasing Dig Dug's protagonist in arcade-style graphics, which changes to him inflating a Pooka when the player takes the lead.
• Some bootleg arcade versions had also appeared, under then name Zig Zag. One version looked like the regular Dig Dug [2], and the other changed both the sounds and colors. [3]
• The Digg corporate office has a table top version of Dig Dug, which is referred to internally as "Digg Dugg".

Screenshot of Mr. ... Namco x Capcom (ナムコ クロス カプコン) is a turn-based strategy game featuring characters from games produced by video game companies Namco and Capcom, and developed by Monolith Soft. ... Mr Driller Drill Spirits is a game developed by Namco for the Nintendo DS. The game is part of the Mr Driller series of games. ... Dig Dug II, the sequel to Dig Dug, was an arcade game, released by Namco in 1985. ... Pac-Man World was released on the 20th anniversary of the creation of Pac-Man. ... Pac-Man World Rally is a kart racer with Pac-Man and many others from Namcos catalog of classic characters. ... This page is about the television game show. ... Not to be confused with Mooby. ... Digg is a community-based popularity website with an emphasis on technology and science articles, recently expanding to a broader range of categories such as politics and entertainment. ...

References

The Killer List of Videogames (otherwise known simply as KLOV, pronounced Kay-El-Oh-Vee) is a website devoted to cataloging arcade games past and present. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 198th day of the year (199th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Dig Dug at AtariMania
• Dig Dug at the Killer List of Videogames
• Dig Dug at MobyGames
• Dig Dug guide at StrategyWiki
• Dig Dug: Tips and History
• Category at Open Directory Project
• Xbox.com | Dig Dug - Xbox Live Arcade

The Killer List of Videogames (otherwise known simply as KLOV, pronounced Kay-El-Oh-Vee) is a website devoted to cataloging arcade games past and present. ... MobyGames is a website devoted to cataloging computer and video games, both past and present. ...