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Super Cobra
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About Super Cobra
Arcade Video game published 45 years ago:
Super Cobra (c) 1981 Konami.
The object of the game is to invade ten SUPER COBRA defense systems of increasing difficulty and safely pick up the BOOTY.
Use the joystick to move up, down, accelerate and decelerate. Use the Laser and Bombs to destroy defenders. Hitting tanks scores Mystery Value worth 100, 200, or 300 points. Rockets, Tanks, Missiles, and UFO's may all fire at invader. Hit fuel tanks for extra fuel for CHOPPER. The Chopper uses up fuel as it flies, except in between defense levels.
At 10000 points, the player is awarded a BONUS CHOPPER.
At the end of the game, the player can continue at the defense level he left off on by depositing extra coins and pressing the discharge button on the left-hand side of the panel.
If the Booty is destroyed on the BASE level, the player may try again. When the Booty is safely recovered, a Bonus Chopper is awarded and play resumes at defense level Number 1 where the fuel is used up faster and the defenders fire more often.
Player layout in our catalog: 2P alt.
If you are exploring by feel rather than by title, jump from the tags above into the matching genre rooms, or return to the Arcade hall for the full wall.
Open Play on this page to start Super Cobra. Keyboard, USB/Bluetooth pads, and the on-screen touch gamepad all work inside the emulator bar. Save states and fullscreen live on that same bar so you can pause mid-session and resume later.
Super Cobra — play guide
What Super Cobra wants from you
Super Cobra (Konami / Stern) is a side-scrolling helicopter raid: fly through caverns and bases, bomb ground targets, and respect ceilings that punish greed climbs. Full-throttle tourism into every fuel pickup empties the tank mid-tunnel. Your job is altitude honesty—skim threats, bomb when the lane is clear, and stop treating the chopper like an invincible rail. Continues buy route memory; the exam is still stages with fuel and lives left under Konami cave paint.
First minutes in Super Cobra
Stage one: practice short climbs under roofs before inventing no-brake bomb runs through every nest. Grab fuel when the path is honest; diving into flak for one more can is a crash. Early stages are altitude labs under Super Cobra dressing. One clean stretch with fuel left beats three ceiling deaths that looked aggressive until a gun you ignored finished the chopper.
Core systems in Super Cobra
Throttle, altitude, bombs/shots, fuel, ground guns, and cavern geometry define Super Cobra. Fuel is the scarce timer—sightseeing without cans is a soft fail even if the art sparkled. Bombs are commitments under flak; freeze-aim into a nest and the ceiling still waits. Later stages tighten roofs; the same full-climb religion fails. Cave art sells war fantasy; the stick still wants Scramble-family discipline with denser hazards.
Score, continues, and resources in Super Cobra
Stages cleared with fuel and lives left beat bomb tourism that empties the tank mid-tunnel. Continues while ceiling deaths repeat; cut them once skim routes are automatic. Farming stage one for vanity nests teaches the wrong muscle. Extends follow score when awarded—claim them after altitude peeks feel honest under denser flak, not after no-brake runs that still kiss the roof.
Mistakes that burn credits in Super Cobra
Roof climbs for vanity, ignoring fuel, and bomb greed into flak burn Super Cobra credits. Players also chase every ground sparkle while the tank hits empty mid-tunnel. Holding a vanity bomb dump through a packed flak nest ends the life early. Freezing mid-tunnel for looks while fuel dies is classic tilt. Next run: skim low when the roof allows, bomb when clear, watch the gauge—leave flashier roof tours for full tanks.
Next steps after Super Cobra
Scramble is Konami’s parent raid if Super Cobra’s denser roofs still feel opaque—re-learn fuel and skim timing there first under clearer early rules before returning to the sequel’s flak. Fantasy Zone is Sega when you want shop-and-strafe vertical literacy instead of side caverns. Xevious is Namco once altitude honesty sticks and you prefer bomb-ground peeks over chopper tunnels. Stay in side-raid shooters until fuel panic stops causing roof deaths; then Super Cobra’s routes read as homework instead of coin sinks.
Sources cited below under Further reading.
Cabinet dossier
Super Cobra is filed in our catalog as a 1981 release.
Player layout on this cabinet: 2P alt.
Genre tags on Classic Arcade Games: Shooter.
Credit line lists Konami as developer.
Screenshots
Next cabinets
Nearby cabinets you may also open from this hall (each on its own play page):Scramble, Scramble (Tomy), Gyruss, Juno First, Pooyan, Space King 2, Strategy X, The End, Time Pilot, Ajax, Bells & Whistles (World, version L), Bucky O'Hare (ver EAB)
Explore more on this site
Same series
Same genre
Scramble · Scramble (Tomy) · Gyruss · Juno First · Pooyan · Space King 2 · Strategy X · The End · Time Pilot · Ajax · Bells & Whistles (World, version L) · Bucky O'Hare (ver EAB)
Same studio
Scramble · Scramble (Tomy) · Gyruss · Juno First · Pooyan · Space King 2 · Strategy X · The End · Time Pilot · Ajax · Bells & Whistles (World, version L) · Bucky O'Hare (ver EAB)
How to play Super Cobra online
- Arcade stick feel: Arrow keys for the joystick, X/Z (and nearby keys) for buttons, Enter=Start.
- USB / Bluetooth pads map cleanly; six-button fighters use the face-button cluster.
- On phones, open the on-screen pad from the emulator bar; rotate sits next to fullscreen.
- Save states, load, volume, and fullscreen stay on the emulator bar between credits.
Studio notes — Konami
Konami appears on this cabinet’s credit line. Browse more titles from the same studio on the developer shelf, or stay on this page and try the next cabinets in the same hall.
Scramble · Scramble (Tomy) · Gyruss · Juno First · Pooyan · Space King 2 · Strategy X · The End
Questions about Super Cobra
Can I play Super Cobra free in a browser?
Yes. Classic Arcade Games hosts Super Cobra as a Arcade cabinet you can start on this page. The emulator loads in the browser; you do not need to install a separate app.
What controls does Super Cobra support?
Arcade stick feel: Arrow keys for the joystick, X/Z (and nearby keys) for buttons, Enter=Start. USB / Bluetooth pads map cleanly; six-button fighters use the face-button cluster.
Are there other games in the same series as Super Cobra?
Yes — related series cabinets on this site include Scramble, Scramble (Tomy). Each has its own play page with the same browser emulator path.
Further reading
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