Classic video games become classic by defying time. They remain entertaining years and years after their initial release. Pac-Man, Galaga, and Street Fighter II are still fun to this day, despite each of them being older than many kids who currently play them.
In no way unheard of but often overlooked when discussing “classics”, Dig Dug is a classic game I truly have a soft spot for in my heart.
The game is simple: you start in the middle of the screen, in the middle of the earth, surrounded by a bunch of dangerous monsters and perilous pits and rocks. Equipped with a vacuum pack capable of inflating and, in a shockingly cute way, exploding baddies, you need to clear each screen to move on to the next. The gameplay is simple and addictive, two necessary qualities to go down in history as one of the best ever.
Dig Dug is special to me for being one of the very first PC games I ever played. I can’t recall the year, perhaps 1996’ish, but I remember waiting in the living room as my dad built the brand new computer desk and installed our family’s very first PC. My bedroom was a central location in the house, so I was fortunate enough to have the PC in my own room.
After it was built, I remember playing around on it and seeing there were some pre-installed games. Mainstays like solitaire and freecell were there, but so were legit “video games”, including Dig Dug. I remember trying to beat the computers high scores, then my brothers’ high scores, and lastly my own. Back then and even today, when I see Dig Dug available, it’s always a fun time.
*Played at Galloping Ghost Arcade in Brookfield, IL 2019
