Time Pilot
1982 · Shooter · Arcade
Overview
Konami's 1982 shooter of aerial dogfights across the ages: your fighter flies through endlessly scrolling skies, and each stage moves forward in time to a new era of aircraft.
Deep Dive
Time Pilot was developed and published by Konami for arcades in 1982, distributed in the United States by Centuri and in PAL regions by Atari. It was designed by Yoshiki Okamoto. The player's jet stays at the centre of the screen while open sky scrolls in every direction around it, and enemy aircraft attack from all sides. Each level is set in a different period, from early biplanes through to more modern aircraft, giving the game its time-travel theme. Konami and Coleco released home versions for the Atari 2600, MSX and ColecoVision in 1983.
Developer Story
Time Pilot was designed by Yoshiki Okamoto at Konami in 1982. The game was Okamoto's first — he had been assigned to design a mahjong game but instead secretly built Time Pilot. Konami was initially furious but released the game when they saw its quality. Okamoto moved to Capcom soon afterwards, where he designed 1942 and later produced Street Fighter II.
Did You Know?
- Okamoto designed Time Pilot against his employer's explicit instructions — he was supposed to be making a mahjong game.
- The time travel mechanic — fighting enemies from WWI biplanes to UFOs across five historical eras — was a completely original concept.
- Konami released the game despite their initial anger, and it became a hit that justified Okamoto's defiance.
- The scrolling in all eight directions simultaneously was technically demanding for 1982 hardware.
Sources & further reading
- Time Pilot — Wikipedia
