Space Panic
Space Panic — frequently asked questions
- Is Space Panic on Steam?
- No. Space Panic is not distributed on Steam, so there is no Steam Charts or SteamDB player count for it. Its live popularity is tracked here via Twitch viewership instead.
- What platforms is Space Panic on?
- Space Panic is available on ColecoVision, Arcade, PV-1000.
- When did Space Panic release?
- Space Panic was first released on December 31, 1980.
About Space Panic
A game remarkably similar to Lode Runner, you play an astronaut with limited oxygen (time) chased around by various space aliens. Your only method of dealing with these multicolored threats from space is to dig a hole, lure it into a hole and then manually fill up the hole with the alien in it. Dropping aliens on top of other aliens earns you extra points and eliminates both. Levels get progressively harder and enemies grow faster.
Summary via IGDB.
Space Panic on Wikipedia
Space Panic is a 1980 arcade video game developed by Universal. Presented in a side view, the player digs holes in horizontal platforms to trap pursuing aliens, then eliminates them by hitting them with a shovel. A port to the PV-1000 by Casio and a ColecoVision version by CBS Electronics were both released in 1983.
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA 4.0).
Game details
- Platforms
- ColecoVision, Arcade, PV-1000
- Developer
- Universal Co., Ltd.
- Publisher
- Universal Co., Ltd.
- Game modes
- Single player, Multiplayer
- Themes
- Action, Science fiction
Details via IGDB.
Every version compared
Prices, contemporary reception and the studio credited for each release
| Platform | Year | Loose | Complete | Sealed | Period reviews | Built by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ColecoVision | 1983 | $10 | $18 | $35 | 3 reviews | CBS Electronics |
Also released on: Arcade · PV-1000. We haven’t priced or authenticated those versions yet.
Collector value & authenticity
ColecoVision · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-19
How often it sells
- Loose: about once a month
- Complete: about once a month
- Sealed: about 2 times a year
Sales frequency from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, as of 2026-10-19.
Price over time
- Loose
- Complete
A loose copy sold for about $2.99 in Jul 2009, $6.85 five years ago, and $9.50 as of Oct 2026.
Show as table
| Month | Loose | Complete |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2010 | $2.99 | — |
| Jan 2011 | $1.37 | — |
| Jan 2012 | $9.99 | — |
| Jan 2013 | $4.99 | — |
| Jan 2014 | $3.99 | $19.99 |
| Jan 2015 | $12.00 | $19.99 |
| Jan 2016 | $4.99 | $12.99 |
| Jan 2017 | $7.28 | $35 |
| Jan 2018 | $4.37 | $13.51 |
| Jan 2019 | $5.88 | $15.08 |
| Jan 2020 | $7.05 | $16.60 |
| Jan 2021 | $6.33 | $15.22 |
| Jan 2022 | $7.50 | $18.09 |
| Jan 2023 | $9.32 | $31 |
| Jan 2024 | $6.01 | $35 |
| Jan 2025 | $9.04 | $19.99 |
| Jan 2026 | $10.39 | $19.95 |
| Oct 2026 | $9.50 | $18.43 |
Monthly price estimates from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, sampled quarterly, through Oct 2026.
Release record
| Territory | Label | Model # | Barcode |
|---|---|---|---|
| North America Coleco | End label: for ColecoVision | 2447 | 076930024478 |
| Europe CBS Electronics | — | — | — |
- North America: Model number confirmed by the UPC barcode, which encodes it.
- Europe: Sold in Europe by CBS Electronics; the ColecoVision FAQ lists its model number as 4L1952. CBS carts have black labels and a differently shaped top end.
- Region
- NA
- Released
- 1983
- Authenticity
- Low
A hard, handsome climbing game from Universal that Coleco brought to the ColecoVision in 1983, and a cheap way to play the idea that preceded Donkey Kong.
Space Panic was a 1980 Universal arcade game, and Wikipedia calls it the first game built around climbing ladders between platforms. Coleco released the ColecoVision version in April 1983. Electronic Fun's July 1983 review called it one of the lesser-known titles in the Coleco library but one of the best looking and most challenging Coleco had offered so far.
Joystik (September 1983) described four levels of girders joined by randomly placed ladders, a spaceman with a declining oxygen supply, and a shovel with one side button to dig holes and the other to bury the monsters that fall in. It called the game difficult but a whole lot of fun, and Computer Entertainer (issue 2-2) noted how closely it relates to the computer game Apple Panic. A later retrospective at Digital Press Online was less kind and argued the game should have been left to rest.
How it was made
Published by Coleco; no separate developer is credited. Wikipedia credits CBS Electronics with a ColecoVision version in 1983.
What the press said at the time
| Computer Entertainer Vol. 2 No. 2 | May 1983 | Graphics ★★★ · Play-Action ★★½ |
| Electronic Fun with Computers & Games Vol. 1 No. 9 | July 1983 | 3 of 4 joysticks |
| JoyStik September 1983 | September 1983 | ★★★★★ (5 of 5) |
“The game is fun to play at first, but boredom can set in after repeated play. … SPACE PANIC just doesn't measure up to most of their previous games.”
“Although Space Panic is one of the lesser known titles in the Coleco library, it stands out as one of the best looking and most challenging games Coleco has offered to date.”
“Space Panic? It's "cute," I was told by two women who played it with me, and it wasn't meant as the kiss of death.”
“The game is difficult, but a whole lot of fun. … Sound, or rather music, on this cartridge is superb, with the tinkling diminuendo of the tune between waves especially appealing. You'll like this one.”
Computer Entertainer rated graphics first and play action second, from four symbols (excellent) to one (poor) — diamonds through early 1987, stars after — comparing each game only with other games for the same system. Electronic Fun rated games out of four joysticks. JoyStik’s capsule ratings run from one star to five.
Also on other platforms
PV-1000
| PV-1000 | Casio |
| ColecoVision | CBS Electronics |
- PV-1000. Casio ported Space Panic to its PV-1000 console in 1983, the same year as the ColecoVision version.
Worth knowing
- From the ColecoVision manual. You race a Spaceman along the floors of a giant girder structure, climbing ladders or leaping through holes for a quick descent, to eliminate Space Monsters before time runs out.
Before you buy
Plays with the standard controller, no overlay. A Coleco-published cartridge with no documented authenticity problems. The price row shows a low loose price, a modest boxed premium and a sealed price well above both.
Space Panic screenshots
Watch on YouTube
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