How to play Paratrooper
Paratrooper is a remake of the classic PC arcade shooter. You control a lone gun turret, and helicopters keep crossing the sky to drop soldiers around your base.
Shoot down helicopters, jets, bombs and paratroopers, and survive as many waves as you can.
Rules
- Each wave starts with helicopters dropping paratroopers, followed by an air raid of jets that drop bombs on your turret.
- Shoot a trooper to kill him, or hit his parachute to send him plummeting — a falling trooper squashes anyone who has already landed below.
- If 4 troopers land on the same side of the base, they storm it and the game is over. A bomb hitting the turret also ends the game.
- Waves get faster and helicopters carry more troopers as you go.
- Helicopters and jets are worth 10, troopers 5 and shooting down a bomb 30. Every bullet costs 1 point, so accuracy matters.
Controls
- ← → / A D
- Swing the gun barrel
- Hold Space / ↑ / W
- Fire
- Mouse
- Aim with the pointer, hold the button to fire
- Touch
- Hold a finger where you want to shoot; on-screen pad on phones
- P / Esc
- Pause
- Enter / Space
- Start
Tips
- Take out helicopters early, before they can drop anyone.
- Shoot the canopy of a trooper above a landed one to get two kills for one bullet.
- Watch the "Landed" counter — once one side reaches 3, defend it first.
- Bombs are worth 30 points, and shooting one down saves your turret.
About Paratrooper
Paratrooper was written by Greg Kuperberg and published by Orion Software in 1982 for the IBM PC — one of the first action games to run on the machine, in CGA graphics with PC-speaker sound. The design is simple and has not aged: a turret, helicopters, troopers on parachutes, and a bullet that costs you a point every time you fire it.
This remake is an original version inspired by it, with the same wave structure, air raids and four-troopers-storm-the-base rule, plus mouse and touch aiming for anyone without a numeric keypad.
Questions
Is this the original Paratrooper?
No. It is an original browser remake inspired by Greg Kuperberg’s 1982 PC game, free and with nothing to install.
How do I play Paratrooper on a phone?
Hold a finger where you want to shoot and the turret aims and fires there; an on-screen pad appears on phones. On a desktop, aim with the mouse and hold the button, or use the arrows and Space.
How is the score calculated?
Helicopters and jets score 10, troopers 5 and bombs 30. Every bullet costs 1 point, so spraying is expensive.
How does the game end?
If 4 troopers land on the same side of the base they storm it. A bomb that hits the turret also ends the game. Watch the Landed counter and defend whichever side reaches 3 first.