Roach Hotel
Name: Roach Hotel
Programmer(s): Mike Livesay
Publisher: Microlab
Year: 1981
Description:
- Roach Hotel** was released in 1981 by Micro Lab for the Apple II computer. Players control an exterminator trying to clear a hotel of roaches while avoiding getting caught by them. The game became popular for its simple but addictive gameplay during the early days of home computing.
In Roach Hotel, you move through a maze-like hotel using the keyboard arrow keys. Your goal is to spray all the roaches in each room before they touch you. The roaches move in predictable patterns at first, but they speed up as you progress through levels. Each room has different layouts with walls and obstacles that block your movement and spray. You have limited bug spray, shown by a meter at the top of the screen. Running out of spray before clearing all roaches means you lose that level.
The game starts easy with just a few slow roaches in simple rooms. Later levels pack in dozens of fast-moving bugs in complex mazes. Some roaches move straight while others zigzag or follow you around the screen. Power-ups appear randomly, giving you extra spray or temporary invincibility. The challenge comes from planning your route through each room to spray all roaches efficiently without wasting spray or getting cornered.
Roach Hotel used the Apple II's limited graphics well. The roaches were simple black shapes that scurried smoothly across the green screen. Sound effects included beeps when you sprayed roaches and a descending tone when you got caught. The game fit entirely in the Apple II's 48K memory, which was impressive for the time. Programmer David Krenz wrote efficient code that allowed dozens of moving sprites on screen at once without slowdown.
The game succeeded because it turned a simple concept into engaging gameplay. Unlike text adventures or slow strategy games common on early computers, Roach Hotel offered fast action that anyone could understand immediately. It competed with other arcade-style Apple II games like Sneakers and Pest Patrol. While those games had better graphics, Roach Hotel's tight controls and level variety kept players coming back.
Roach Hotel helped establish the template for maze-chase games on home computers. Its success showed that Apple II owners wanted arcade-style action games, not just educational software. The game remained popular through the mid-1980s and influenced later pest-control themed games. Though simple by today's standards, Roach Hotel demonstrated how creative programmers could make fun games within the Apple II's technical limits.