# Help me with this arcade game name **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 19, 2000, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929 "2000-08-19T01:40:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/1 "2000-08-19T01:40:36Z")
I remember playing a video game in the early 80’s that came in two versions: It was a left-to-right forced scrolling (you had to move or get blown up) game where you flew either a helicopter gunship or spaceship through underground caverns whilst blowing away gun turrets, opposing choppers/ships, bombing fuel depots (you needed these to continue), etc. As you got deeper in the cavern-maze, the manuevering got very tight. Any guesses? ---
**Author:** ![Demo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demo/32/8472_2.png) [@Demo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Demo)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/2 "2000-08-19T01:53:57Z")
It reminds me of defender or chopper command, but that’s probably not it. ---
**Author:** ![pricciar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@pricciar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pricciar)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/3 "2000-08-19T02:14:27Z")
Just a guess. Although, I wasn’t sure from your message, did you mean there was two versions one that had a helicopter and one a space ship? If that is the case, it wasn’t Zaxxon. Here is a website with Zaxxon screenshots. [http://www.kinetic-arts.demon.co.uk/jamma/zaxxon/zaxxon.htm](http://www.kinetic-arts.demon.co.uk/jamma/zaxxon/zaxxon.htm) pat ---
**Author:** ![Chef\_Troy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Chef\_Troy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chef_Troy)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/4 "2000-08-19T02:36:39Z")
Cobra Command. Cool Game. ---
**Author:** ![Holy\_Avenger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dec6dc/32.png) [@Holy\_Avenger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Holy_Avenger)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/5 "2000-08-19T02:58:44Z")
Was it Vanguard? Here’s some info on the game (and a screenshot, albeit an awful one). [http://www.mame.dk/gameinfo/vangrdce/](http://www.mame.dk/gameinfo/vangrdce/) ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Zero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@Saint\_Zero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Zero)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/6 "2000-08-19T04:19:00Z")
Vanguard sounds close. ---
**Author:** ![Tzel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Tzel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tzel)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/7 "2000-08-19T06:44:29Z")
Geez, I’ve played this one. It was on the old Vectrex machine. Can’t come up with the name though. ---
**Author:** ![Tzel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Tzel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tzel)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/8 "2000-08-19T07:57:25Z")
Hmmm, ok, the game I’m thinking of from the Vectrex is called Scramble. I’ve seen a similar, perhaps identical game at the arcade, but I have a feeling it was called something different. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/9 "2000-08-19T08:03:47Z")
Scramble! Yes, that was it! Wasn’t it? I dunno, I didn’t ask the OP, but that’s definitely the name I remember. ---
**Author:** ![THespos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@THespos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/THespos)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/10 "2000-08-19T08:34:05Z")
Was this a console game, computer game or stand-up arcade game? There were only two early-80s games I can remember that involved helicopters: Chopper Command (an Activision game on my Atari 2600) and Choplifter (TRS-80, C-64, stand-up arcade). ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 9:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/11 "2000-08-19T09:23:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tzel \* > \*\*Hmmm, ok, the game I’m thinking of from the Vectrex is called Scramble. From the description it is Scramble . There were variations which I can’t remember the name of. One you were in a sub. and the other a helicopter. ---
**Author:** ![Chef\_Troy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Chef\_Troy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chef_Troy)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/12 "2000-08-19T15:02:25Z")
Scramble was the one with the spaceship. The version with the helicopter was called (see above) **Cobra Command.** As I’ve told you. _grin_ ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-with-this-arcade-game-name/29929/13 "2000-08-19T21:41:12Z")
Vanguard looks like it might the one. The chopper version was almost exactly the same except you flew a chopper as opposed to a spaceship and shot at war-related stuff as opposed to space-stuff. Thanks to all.