Nokia Snake Game History: From Blockade đến Your Browser

The Nokia Snake trò chơi that so many people remember từ trường học và long bus rides arrived on Nokia 6110 around end of 1997 (sources differ between late 1997 và early 1998), but idea là about twenty năm older. It started với Blockade, a 1976 arcade trò chơi, passed through home computers và DOS, và then reached millions of pockets on Nokia phones. Today same simple rules (eat, grow, don't hit anything) run in any browser, including our free Snake game, với no download và no phone đến charge.

1976: Blockade in arcades

The first trò chơi in Snake family là generally said đến be Blockade, released in arcades in 1976 by Gremlin Industries. It wasn't quite Snake people know. Two người chơi each steered a line that left a solid trail behind it, và aim was đến make other người chơi crash into a wall hoặc a trail first. There were no apples và no growing từ food; "snake" simply got longer as it moved.

Điều gì it did establish was core tension that still makes Snake work: thing bạn're building là also thing most likely đến kill bạn.

The 1980s và early 1990s: home computers và DOS

Through late 1970s và 1980s, idea spread đến home computers và other arcade machines, under many names. Programmers liked it because it was simple đến write: a grid, a list of squares cho body, và a rule that tail moves khi head moves.

Many PC users first met it in early 1990s as Nibbles, a sample trò chơi written in QBasic that came với MS-DOS. You steered a snake around a maze, eating numbers, và bạn could open source code và change rules yourself. For a generation of hobby programmers, it was one of first programs they ever edited.

1997: Nokia Snake trò chơi arrives

The version most people mean by "Snake" appeared on Nokia 6110, which went on sale around turn of 1997 đến 1998. It was adapted cho phone by Taneli Armanto, a Nokia software engineer working on user interface.

In interviews, Armanto has said team had looked at putting Tetris on phone first, và he even had a version working, but a licensing deal couldn't be agreed. Snake was alternative, và it suited a phone surprisingly well:

• It needed only four directions, which số keys (2, 4, 6 và 8) handled neatly.
• It worked on a tiny monochrome screen.
• A trò chơi could last thirty seconds hoặc thirty minutes, perfect cho a bus stop.

Nokia went on đến include Snake, và later versions such as Snake II, on many of its phones in late 1990s và early 2000s. Figures of 350 đến 400 million phones là often quoted (as per Nokia và later press reports; exact số isn't certain). Whatever it was, it's fair đến say Snake was one of first video games played by a huge số of people who never owned a games console.

Vì sao Snake stuck

Snake has lasted because its rules fit in one sentence, yet it gets harder all by itself. Every apple makes snake longer và board smaller. There's no story đến learn, no levels đến unlock và no buttons beyond steering. That simplicity là also why it became a first project cho so many people learning đến program.

A few habits từ Nokia ngày still help hôm nay: hugging walls while bạn're short, sweeping board in rows, và following của bạn tail khi bạn're unsure. We collected them in our Snake game tips.

Snake hôm nay: in browser

You no longer need an old phone đến play. Our version keeps classic rules và swaps keypad cho controls that suit keyboards và touch screens. It also remembers up đến two quick turns, so tight U-turns work:

Then (classic phone versions)	Now (our miễn phí Snake trò chơi)
Number keys 2, 4, 6, 8	Arrow keys hoặc WASD; swipe hoặc tap arrows on a phone
A speed hoặc level setting	Slow, Normal hoặc Fast, quickening every five apples
Walls, hoặc a mode without walls on some versions	Chọn Walls hoặc Wrap around
Best score on that one phone	Best score per speed và edge setting, saved in của bạn browser

The board là 17 squares by 15, snake starts three squares long, và trò chơi even has an ending most people never see: fill all 255 squares và it congratulates bạn cho filling board.

Other classics từ same era

Nếu Snake brings back memories, a few more games từ same năm run in browser too:

• Brick Breaker, in tradition of 1970s paddle-và-ball games. Our post on Breakout's history and tips tells that story.
• Minesweeper, logic trò chơi many people first played on a family PC. See our post on classic Windows games.

Play classic Snake now

No charger, no keypad, no download. Press Start in free Snake game và see nếu của bạn thumbs remember. It runs in của bạn browser on a phone, tablet hoặc computer.