Missile Command is a classic arcade video game released by Atari in 1980 that places the player in charge of defending six cities from relentless waves of incoming enemy missiles. Using three missile bases positioned across the screen, the player launches defensive missiles to intercept the threats before they reach the ground, carefully managing a limited supply of ammunition while trying to protect as many cities as possible. The explosions from defensive missiles can destroy multiple enemy missiles at once, rewarding precise timing and strategic aiming. As the game continues, the difficulty steadily increases, with faster and more numerous attacks, along with additional threats such as smart missiles that evade explosions, bombers that drop multiple warheads, and satellites that add to the chaos. The game ends only when all cities are destroyed, emphasizing the sense of inevitability and pressure that defines the experience. Missile Command is widely remembered not only for its intense, fast-paced gameplay and innovative trackball controls, but also for its underlying theme of defense and survival, which reflected Cold War–era anxieties about nuclear conflict and the fragility of civilization.