Space Spartans
Space Spartans — frequently asked questions
- Is Space Spartans on Steam?
- No. Space Spartans 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 Spartans on?
- Space Spartans is available on Intellivision.
- When did Space Spartans release?
- Space Spartans was first released on December 31, 1982.
About Space Spartans
In 480 B.C. a small Spartan force held off Xerxes and the entire Persian army, in the famous Battle of Thermopylae. The Spartans chose to die defending the pass into Greece, to give their allies time to prepare for attack. SPACE SPARTANS reenacts this battle in space, in a heroic adventure that pits you against overwhelming alien odds. You are the elite force. Stop the first alien onslaught and a new alien force appears. Hold the aliens back as long as you can and give your home galaxy time to repare for attack! Score as many points as possible by shooting down alien ships, before your ship is destroyed or you run out of energy. Repair damaged ship systems and re-energize at your 3 starbases. Destroy all aliens on the Sector Grid and a new round starts with more aliens. YOU HAVE ONE SHIP AGAINST A CONTINUOUS ONSLAUGHT OF ALIEN ATTACKERS.
Summary via IGDB.
Game details
- Platforms
- Intellivision
- Developer
- Mattel Electronics
- Publisher
- Mattel Electronics
- Game modes
- Single player
- Themes
- Action, Science fiction
Details via IGDB.
Collector value & authenticity
Intellivision · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-20
How often it sells
- Loose: about once a month
- Complete: about 2 times a month
- Sealed: about once a month
Sales frequency from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, as of 2026-10-20.
Price over time
- Loose
- Complete
A loose copy sold for about $3.62 in Apr 2009, $8.73 five years ago, and $5.48 as of Oct 2026.
Show as table
| Month | Loose | Complete |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2010 | $2.94 | — |
| Jan 2011 | $1.60 | — |
| Jan 2012 | $1.03 | — |
| Jan 2013 | $5.29 | — |
| Jan 2014 | $4.99 | $2.80 |
| Jan 2015 | $6.99 | $9.15 |
| Jan 2016 | $1.95 | $0.99 |
| Jan 2017 | $3.00 | $5.95 |
| Jan 2018 | $2.30 | $5.55 |
| Jan 2019 | $2.24 | $6.18 |
| Jan 2020 | $3.06 | $8.14 |
| Jan 2021 | $5.30 | $7.97 |
| Jan 2022 | $6.28 | $9.25 |
| Jan 2023 | $6.00 | $10.98 |
| Jan 2024 | $3.75 | $11.80 |
| Jan 2025 | $3.80 | $10.38 |
| Jan 2026 | $5.28 | $9.91 |
| Oct 2026 | $5.48 | $14.20 |
Monthly price estimates from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, sampled quarterly, through Oct 2026.
Documented sales
300,000 cartridges shipped by June 1983
The same figure as the Intellivoice module itself and the other first voice games, B-17 Bomber and Bomb Squad, per the Blue Sky Rangers, Mattel's former programmers.
Source: Mattel Electronics' figures, as quoted by the Blue Sky Rangers
Release record
| Territory | Product # |
|---|---|
| North America Mattel Electronics | 3416 |
- North America: Product number confirmed by Mattel's own catalogue.
- Region
- NA
- Released
- 1982
- Controller
- Intellivoice (needed in practice: the game loads without it, but the speech carries game information)
- Authenticity
- Low
Mattel's first voice cart, a Star Raiders-style space fight that is better with the Intellivoice than without.
Mattel Electronics released Space Spartans in June 1982 for the Intellivoice line. Arcade Express described it as a reworking of Space Battle, with crisp, easy-to-understand speech that sometimes switches between male and female voices at random. Joystik, in January 1983, called it an exciting Star Raiders copy with male, female and robot voices reporting your ship's status, but doubted the twist justified the cost of the voice unit.
The game was also sold under Sears' Super Video Arcade label.
What the press said at the time
| Computer Entertainer Vol. 1 No. 7 | October 1982 | Graphics ★★★★ · Play-Action ★★★½ |
| Arcade Express Vol. 1 No. 5 | October 1982 | Rating: 8 |
| Electronic Fun with Computers & Games Vol. 1 No. 3 | January 1983 | 2½ joysticks (of 4) |
| JoyStik Vol. 1 No. 4 | January 1983 | ★★★★/+ |
“The voice module is not just a gimmick, which is very much to Mattel's credit--it's an integral part of game play. Recommended.”
“The voice plays an authentic role in the play of the game, and it is crisp and easy to understand. The only hitch with the Intellivoice is that the sound changes from male to female and back again at random during the course of a game.”
“What distinguishes Space Spartans from other space games is the multiplicity of functions and that great gang of voices. It’s a complex game, but once you get the hang of it, it’s as easy as falling off a Trojan horse.”
“Space Spartans is a long way from being a revolutionary videogame, in terms of concept, design or execution. It does what it does quite adequately, though, offering Intellivisionaries a classic strategy and tactics space-battle scenario.”
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. Arcade Express rated games out of 10.
How the Intellivision version differs
Space Spartans was the first game to support the Intellivoice voice synthesis module.
The spoken Intellivoice alerts carry information the screen never shows, so the voice module is needed to play it properly.
Before you buy
The Intellivoice module is optional, and the cartridge runs without it, but the speech is a large part of the point. A complete Mattel copy has two keypad overlays. Space Spartans plays with different sound effects on the Intellivision II. Sears also sold it, and Sears bundles paired the module with this game.
Space Spartans screenshots
Watch on YouTube
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