A History of Frogger

Frogger is a video game I think of every time I cross my street on a busy day to get to my mailbox and an undeniable arcade classic. Frogger was released worldwide in 1981. In Japan and Europe, the game was released by Konami/Sega, and in North America, Frogger was released under Sega/Gremlin industries.

Hmm…I wonder if it's those Gremlins. Is it those Gremlins? If so, it is probably another reason not to feed them after midnight. They had their own industries and were trying to go for world domination. Or maybe it's another reason to support the Gremlins. Hey, it takes work and vision to start your own industry.

Game Premise

So in the game, you play as Frogger. You are a little frog that has to make it to the other side of the screen. You can move front, back, left, or right to dodge traffic, swim on the tops of logs and turtles, dodge alligators, and reach the other side. On the other side of the screen, you have to put Frogger in an open space that you have not yet occupied. There are five open spaces, and Frogger must get over to the other side five times to progress through the levels. Sometimes an alligator is in one of the open spaces, so be careful. Ultimately it is up to you to prevent Frogger from becoming roadkill, drowning, or becoming an Alligator’s dinner.

There are some ways of scoring bonus points. If you see a bright pink female frog, you can lift her to the other side. Also, sometimes in the open space is a fly. Get the fly.

Buy Frogger

Frogger was an arcade hit. Because Frogger was so popular, they were ported to many home consoles. If you have a vintage game store or like shopping on eBay, you can likely find a version for your vintage hardware.

If you like Frogger and want to play a similar game look for Freeway. Freeway was released by Activision in 1981. In it you play as a chicken. Your chicken has to cross the road. You can only move your chicken up or down. It is a little more difficult. Besides the Atari cartridge look for it on Activision Classics for PS1

There has also been some fun Frogger upgrades and sequels over the years. While I haven’t played all of them, I recommend Frogger 2 Swampy’s Revenge from 2000. It came out on (PlayStation, Windows, Dreamcast, Game Boy Color).

If vintage game systems aren’t your thing, try:

  • Ports for mobile phones and tablets
  • RetroPie solutions
  • Or play it here online with your keyboard