Frogger

Frogger is an action arcade game with single-player and alternating two-player modes. The objective is to guide frogs safely from the bottom of the screen to the home slots at the top. Each attempt requires crossing a busy multi-lane road filled with cars, trucks, and other vehicles, then navigating a hazardous river filled with moving logs, turtles, alligators, and other obstacles. A successful run places a frog into one of the home slots, and once all five are occupied, the player advances to the next, more difficult level. The game has no conventional ending, instead continuing through increasingly difficult levels until the player runs out of lives.

Movement is tile-based, with each input moving the frog one space up, down, left, or right. This makes timing and positioning equally important, as the frog must avoid traffic, line up with moving platforms, and reach the home slots precisely. Vehicles move horizontally across the road at varying speeds, and contact with any of them costs the frog a life. After crossing the road, the frog reaches a median strip before entering the river section, where the water itself is deadly. To cross, the frog must ride on moving logs, turtles, and other floating objects. Some turtles periodically dive beneath the surface, forcing careful timing. Later levels introduce additional hazards such as snakes, otters, and alligators, whose open mouths are dangerous to touch.

The home slots at the top of the river present their own challenges. Only empty slots can be occupied, and some may be blocked by alligator heads. Reaching the top safely still requires accurate placement, as jumping into the bank or into an occupied or blocked home slot costs a life. Occasionally, a lady frog appears on a floating object; safely escorting her to a home awards bonus points. Flies sometimes appear inside home slots, also granting bonus points when collected. Each frog must reach a home before the timer runs out.

Scoring is based on movement, speed, and successful rescues. Points are awarded for each forward hop, for guiding a frog safely home, for bringing the lady frog to a home, for eating flies, and for completing a level by filling all five home slots. Remaining time also contributes to the score after a frog reaches safety.

Different releases of Frogger introduced various changes. The original arcade cabinet supported one or two players taking alternating turns, while early home ports for systems such as the Atari 2600, ColecoVision, and Intellivision recreated the core gameplay with graphical and audio compromises. Later console and computer versions sometimes altered level design, added new obstacles, or enhanced the presentation. Digital re-releases and compilations generally preserved the original arcade experience, while later remakes experimented with updated graphics, new stages, and additional modes while retaining the central premise of guiding frogs across dangerous roads and rivers.