An classic maze/digging game influencing many later digging games.
The screen shows a cutaway view of the land, most of which is below ground. The player controls the Dig Dug character who travels through and digs tunnels in the dirt. The object is for Dig Dug to destroy monsters by pumping them up or dropping rocks on them and to capture vegetables.
Game play takes place on a cutaway section of the land. The characters are Dig Dug and 2 monsters - one is a round, orange monster with goggles called Pooka, the other is a green, fire-breathing dragon named Fygar. The underground area is divided into 4 different colored layers of dirt. Rocks are scattered in the dirt. The sky is at the top of the screen.
The player controls Dig Dug, the hero of the garden, clad in white. He moves through horizontal and vertical tunnels. When Dig Dug digs new tunnels he moves slowly. When he is on the surface or in an existing tunnel, he moves faster. The object of the game is for Dig Dug to destroy all the monsters and go to the next round.
Monsters are trapped in caves. A monster may get out of a cave two ways. Dig Dug may dig him out. Then, the monster chases Dig Dug. The monster may also get out of the cave by turning into a ghost. As a ghost, he cannot be destroyed. The ghost does not travel in the tunnels. He travels through the dirt, and can travel diagonally. However, he reappears as the monster when he goes into a tunnel.
The monsters move faster than Dig Dug in vertical tunnels and slower on the surface. They destroy Dig Dug by catching him. In addition, Fygar can destroy Dig Dug by breathing fire on him. Fygar can only breathe fire horizontally. The fire can penetrate the dirt.
Dig Dug destroys the monsters by pumping them up until they burst, or by causing rocks to drop on them. To pump up and destroy a monster, the player presses and holds down the pump button. It is possible to stun a monster for a few seconds by pressing the pump button once or twice. While a monster is stunned, Dig Dug may pass over him without being destroyed. If 2 monsters are very close together, only one may be stunned. The other will catch and destroy Dig Dug.
Dig Dug must dig tunnels under the rocks to get them to drop. A rock may fall in a vertical or horizontal tunnel. A rock also goes through a thin layer of dirt from one tunnel to the next. In a vertical tunnel, Dig Dug may stay directly under a rock and it will not drop. However, in a horizontal tunnel, Dig Dug must move out from under a rock right away, or he will be crushed.
After two rocks are dropped, a vegetable (worth extra points, see Scoring below) appears in a tunnel in the center of the screen. Dig Dug has 10 seconds to capture (touch) the vegetable or it will disappear. There is only one vegetable per round.
The game progresses by rounds. Round 1 starts with four monsters (one Fygar and three Pookas) and three rocks. The vegetable is a carrot. One flower on the surface (top right of the screen) represents Round 1. Two flowers represent Round 2, etc. As the rounds progress, the monsters move a little faster, and are better at avoiding falling rocks. In each round, the last monster tries to escape. If he is not caught by Dig Dug, he exits on the surface (top left).
The game ends when all of Dig Dug's lives are used up. A player may continue to play at the beginning of the same round (level) by following instructions on the screen. He has 16 seconds to insert a coin(s). Then he must push and hold the pump and start buttons at the same time.
Note: Invincibility Cheat was used only had 1 life left. The game has 100 levels and it's endless. I killed myself afterwards.