Atari Brings Centipede Back 40 Years Later as a Card Game

Four decades after the arcade classic entertained thousands every day after school or at the weekend, Atari is bringing Centipede back. But this time, it’s a card game you can sit down and play with friends in quick sessions that allow you to relive the nostalgia of those arcade days, or enjoy something fresh and new with retro vibes.

Following its release in 1981, Centipede was one of the most popular arcade games of the decade. Thanks to community feedback and input from Club Made, Atari Club members have helped Atari settle on the design for Centipede Blast. This is a quick card game designed for short rounds between friends with gorgeous retro-inspired art, making for something that’s really had a passion for classic arcade games poured into it.

Those Retro Cards are Nice, But You’ve Got to Dump Them all to Win

Centipede Blast is a relatively simple card game. Whoever played Centipede on an arcade machine back in the day gets to go first, meaning it’s age before beauty, darling. From there, you place cards face up in a pile on the table.

Here’s the fun, although I know someone at Bonus Action this would stress out. When two cards match in number, everyone has to put their hands down on the pile. The last person to do so picks up the pile, and the game continues.

The game is far more complex than Snap, though. Blast cards trigger a blast, so everyone has to slam their hands down. Spider cards require you to shout spider and raise your hands, with the last player gaining the pile. Scorpion cards add +1 to every card for the rest of play, making every card you place more of a challenge to work out. Finally, there are Mushrooms. These reverse the direction of play, but two in a row trigger a Blast.

Still with me? Good. The head of this game is its inspiration, Centipede, so all the artwork is inspired by retro games of the 80s. There are 60 cards in a box, plus 10 special cards, all printed on premium card stock like Magic: the Gathering or Pokemon TCG.

The game has a Kickstarter campaign at the time of writing, and a fairly lengthy one. Even the top-tier pledge isn’t too expensive considering what you get, but you can get the base game for $15 if that’s all you want.

What I love about Centipede Blast is that it’s a fantastic translation of an arcade game from 40 years ago. Very few things were out before I was born these days, but this was. No one can afford to back a full arcade cabinet, but a card game like this is much more palatable.

I think Atari and its community nailed the design, gameplay, and general vibes for this one. It’s perfect for retro fans, even if you didn’t play the original game.

Before you go

Thank you for stopping by to check out what I think is pretty fantastic news about an old arcade title finding new life as a card game. If you’re into things with retro vibes, you might like Sea of Stars‘ concept book, and if tabletop is more your jam, then I highly recommend Loot.

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Laura Gray

Administrator

Laura Gray, known as Ezra when not putting pen to paper, is a D&D enthusiast with a love of all things written. They are a collector of fantasy and sci-fi novels, a lover of cooking weird food, and a player of farming sims and Pokémon games. When not engrossed in a re-read of Anne McCaffrey or a deep dive into the Adventure Zone: Balance, they can be found sniffing the cats and napping in half-finished crochet projects.

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