The game is over when the enemies destroy all of the player's ships.

If an adequate point threshold is reached, the player can earn a new ship. The player loses a ship when an enemy comes into contact with their ship, shoots it or otherwise destroys it, or if the ship hits a spike while warping. The player must avoid or shoot down any spikes left behind while warping. When all enemies in a level are destroyed or reach the near end of the playfield, the player 'warps' to the next level by traveling down the playfield. (A second use of the Superzapper in a level destroys one random enemy.)Įnemies swirl around at the far end of the playfield, then enter the playfield and move toward the player. This ship can rapid-fire shots down the tube, destroying any enemies within the same segment, and is also equipped with a Superzapper, which destroys all enemies currently on the playfield once per level. The player controls a claw-shaped spaceship that crawls along the near edge of the playfield, moving from segment to segment.

The game takes place in a closed tube or open field which is viewed from one end and is divided into a dozen or more segments. The object of Tempest is to survive as long as possible and score as many points as possible by clearing the screen of enemies that have landed on the playing field.

Tempest video game