Overview
Centipede is a fixed-screen shooter in which the player controls a Bug Blaster defending the lower portion of a mushroom-filled playfield from waves of giant insects. In the arcade version, a trackball moves the Bug Blaster freely within its restricted area, while the fire button launches darts and can be held for rapid fire. The objective is to survive for as long as possible and earn points by destroying the centipede and the other creatures that enter the screen.
The centipede begins at the top and travels horizontally until it reaches a mushroom or the edge of the playfield, causing it to descend one row and reverse direction. Shooting one of its segments converts that segment into a mushroom. If a middle segment is destroyed, the centipede separates into two independently moving sections, with the rear section developing a new head. Destroying every segment completes the wave; later waves shorten the main centipede and add more detached heads until the attackers consist entirely of individual heads.
