Cannonball Blitz

Last updated: January 10, 2026

Overview

Cannonball Blitz is a 1982 action platformer developed by Olaf Lubeck and published by On-Line Systems, the company that would later become Sierra On-Line.¹ The game stands as one of the most acclaimed Donkey Kong clones released for the Apple II platform during the early 1980s, with legendary game developer John Romero calling it “the closest Donkey Kong clone (other than Atarisoft’s) you’ll ever see on the Apple II.”² Set during what appears to be the American Revolutionary War, the game replaces the arcade original’s iconic barrel-rolling gorilla with a soldier stationed atop Cannonball Castle, raining cannonballs down upon the player.³

The game was released during Sierra’s prolific period of creating arcade-style action games, following their successful clones Crossfire (a Targ clone) and Jawbreaker (a Pac-Man clone).² Players control a rebel soldier attempting to scale Nutcracker Hill to reach and destroy Cannonball Castle, facing rough terrain, enemy troops, and the titular constant rain of cannonballs.⁴ The game featured three distinct screens that mirrored the structure of Donkey Kong while introducing unique mechanics like balloon rides to reach higher platforms.²

Cannonball Blitz achieved notoriety in the Apple II software community not only for its gameplay but also for its particularly robust copy protection, which proved challenging for software crackers of the era.³ The game ran on any Apple II with 48K of memory and was subsequently ported to the VIC-20 and TI-99/4A platforms.¹

Game Info

Developer: On-Line Systems (Sierra On-Line)¹ Designer: Olaf Lubeck¹ Publisher: On-Line Systems (Sierra On-Line)¹ Engine: Machine Language⁴ Platforms: Apple II, VIC-20, TI-99/4A⁵ Release Year: 1982 Series: N/A Protagonist: Rebel Soldier Sierra Lineage: Core Sierra

Story Summary

Cannonball Castle, fortress of the enemy redcoats, sits high atop Nutcracker Hill.⁴ The player assumes the role of a rebel soldier whose mission is to climb Nutcracker Hill and destroy the castle. The journey is fraught with danger, as the castle’s defenders have set numerous traps and obstacles designed solely for the elimination of would-be attackers.⁴

The narrative framework provides a Revolutionary War-era spin on the classic Donkey Kong formula.³ Rather than rescuing a kidnapped woman, the player’s ultimate objective on the first level is to capture a flag at the top of the screen.⁶ A soldier stands in place of the large ape, manning cannons that send a continuous barrage of cannonballs rolling down toward the player.⁶

The game’s promotional materials emphasized the dire odds facing the player: “Rough terrain and enemy troops are bent on your destruction, and a constant rain of cannonballs could cause a fatally large headache. Many men before you have tried and failed, so it’s all up to you…”⁴ Upon successfully completing all three levels, players are treated to a small celebration scene before the game restarts at the first level with increased difficulty.³

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

Cannonball Blitz is controlled entirely via keyboard, which was typical for Apple II games of the era.⁵ The input method presented some challenges, as John Romero noted the “keyboard control problems typical of Apple II” could affect gameplay.² The single-player game required precise timing to navigate obstacles and jump over or avoid the rolling cannonballs descending from the castle above.⁵

Structure and Progression

The game features three distinct screens that players must complete sequentially, similar to the original Donkey Kong’s multi-screen structure.² After completing all three levels, players view a brief celebration animation before the game cycles back to the first level with modified timing to increase difficulty.³

• Level 1: Features seesaws instead of traditional ladders, requiring players to use timing and momentum to ascend. The objective is to reach a flag at the top of the screen, accomplished by grabbing onto a balloon that carries the player to the goal platform.²⁶

• Level 2: Continues the assault on Cannonball Castle with additional hazards and obstacles.

• Level 3: Described as “particularly challenging” and by some accounts “nearly impossible,” this final screen pushes player skills to their limits.³²

Puzzles and Mechanics

The core gameplay loop involves navigating platforms while evading cannonballs rolling down from the soldier manning the cannons above.⁷ Unlike simple avoidance, the game introduces innovative mechanics including the balloon system, which players can catch to ride up to higher platforms.⁵ This balloon mechanic was highlighted by reviewers as one of the game’s notable innovations within the Donkey Kong clone formula.⁵

Players must time their movements carefully, as the cannonballs follow predictable but challenging paths down the castle walls.⁷ The game’s difficulty was noted as exceptional even among Sierra’s catalog: “Out of all Sierra’s games, CannonBall Blitz is the most difficult.”²

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

Cannonball Blitz received positive attention from gaming publications of its era. Ron Brinkmann of Computer Gaming World gave the game an enthusiastic endorsement, writing: “In the final analysis, Cannonball Blitz is a game every bit as challenging and fun as the arcade original. It will give you hours (days, months, years) of enjoyment.”³

Ahoy! magazine reviewed the VIC-20 version in January 1984, with E. C. Meade memorably declaring: “Cannonball Blitz, make no mistake about it, is Donkey Kong in dress blues. Not a bloody thing new here. However, you’re going to find it a barrel of fun.”³ The magazine described the game’s graphics as “unbelievable” and called it “a very good version of a fine game.”⁸

Modern Assessment

The game has received retrospective analysis from notable industry figures. John Romero, who would go on to co-create DOOM and Quake, wrote extensively about Cannonball Blitz on MobyGames in 2005, praising it as “the best Donkey Kong clone on the Apple II when it debuted.”² He noted that “the sounds were charming and the animation was decent” for its time.²

However, not all modern assessments have been as favorable. Some reviewers found the game fell short of its potential, with one critic writing: “A good idea for a game in theory, but CannonBall Blitz fell much too far short of the mark.”²

Aggregate Scores:

• MobyGames: 7.1 Moby Score, 66% Critics (2 reviews), 3.6/5 Players (10 ratings)⁵
• VideoGameGeek: 5.33/10⁶
• Glitchwave: 1.06/5.0⁹
• My Abandonware: 3.33/5 (6 votes)¹⁰

Development

Origins

Cannonball Blitz emerged from On-Line Systems’ strategy of creating home computer versions of popular arcade games.² Designer Olaf Lubeck, who had previously created Jawbreaker (a Pac-Man clone) for Sierra, applied his experience to crafting a Donkey Kong-style platformer with a unique thematic twist.² The Revolutionary War setting distinguished the game from other Donkey Kong clones flooding the market in 1982.³

The game was developed at Sierra’s offices, which at the time were located in Oakhurst, California.¹¹ Sierra (then On-Line Systems) was rapidly establishing itself as a major publisher for Apple II software, with Cannonball Blitz representing their entry into the platformer genre.

Production

The game was written entirely in machine language for optimal performance on the Apple II platform.⁴ Development took place during 1981-1982, with some sources indicating a 1981 completion date and others listing the commercial release as 1982.¹²¹

Development Credits:⁵

• Written by: Olaf Lubeck
• Cover Art: Michael Carroll

Technical Achievements

The game reproduced the three-screen structure of Donkey Kong while implementing unique mechanical twists appropriate for home computer hardware.² The balloon mechanic, allowing players to catch and ride balloons to higher platforms, represented an original gameplay innovation not found in the arcade source material.⁵

The loading sequence featured a notable animation of a soldier shooting a cannonball at the castle, demonstrating the developers’ attention to presentation.² The animation quality and charming sound design were highlighted by contemporary observers despite the Apple II’s technical limitations.²

Technical Specifications

Apple II Version:¹¹³

• Memory Required: 48K RAM minimum
• Media: 5.25” Floppy Disk
• Disk Format: DOS 3.3
• Disk Size: 140 KB
• Input: Keyboard
• Players: 1 Player

File Sizes:¹⁰

• Apple II version: 25 KB
• VIC-20 version: 24 KB

Cut Content

No documented cut content has been identified in the available research materials.

Version History

Version	Date	Platform	Notes
Original	1982	Apple II	Initial release by On-Line Systems1
VIC-20 Port	1982-1983	VIC-20	Home computer port510
TI-99/4A Port	1982-1984	TI-99/4A	Texas Instruments version35

Platform Notes: The VIC-20 version was also catalogued under the alternate name “Balloon Blitz” according to TOSEC databases.¹⁴

Technical Issues

The Apple II version’s keyboard controls were cited as a source of gameplay friction, a common limitation shared by many games on the platform during this era.² The third level’s extreme difficulty was mentioned by multiple reviewers, though this may have been intentional design rather than a technical issue.²³

Easter Eggs and Trivia

Cannonball Blitz achieved significant notoriety in the Apple II software cracking community for its robust copy protection scheme.³ The game contained a hidden message embedded on track 17, sector D of the disk that taunted would-be crackers:

• Copy Protection Message: “YOU’LL NEVER BREAK IT (TRY IT ON ANOTHER MACHINE)” – This hidden text challenged the hacking community directly, though the game was eventually cracked.¹⁵³

The game was among the first to employ such provocative anti-piracy messaging, making it a notable example in the history of software copy protection on home computers.

Additional Trivia:

• The game was cracked by the preservation group “4am” as crack number 735, demonstrating its continued relevance to the software preservation community decades after release.¹²
• Despite being labeled a “Donkey Kong clone,” the VIC-20 version reviewer noted gameplay element changes from the source material.¹⁶

Legacy

Sales and Commercial Impact

While specific sales figures are not available in the research materials, Cannonball Blitz was successful enough to warrant ports to multiple platforms including the VIC-20 and TI-99/4A.⁵ The game appeared on GOG.com’s community “Dreamlist” for potential re-release, indicating continued collector interest.⁷

Collections

Cannonball Blitz appeared in various Apple II software compilations preserved in the Internet Archive:

• Compilation disk with Choplifter and Zenith¹⁷
• Compilation with Mario Bros and Montezuma’s Revenge¹⁸
• Compilation with Sneakers, Asteroids, and Centipede¹⁹
• Compilation with Night Crawler, Snack Attack, Sn0ggle, and Tranquility Base¹³

Fan Projects

No significant fan remake or mod projects have been documented in the available research materials.

Related Publications

Original Documentation:

• The game’s retail package included back cover promotional copy describing the Revolutionary War setting and gameplay challenges.⁴
• The promotional text described the game as “an exciting new arcade game that will have you climbing the walls (the walls of Cannonball Castle) over and over again.”⁴

Critical Perspective

Cannonball Blitz occupies an interesting position in early gaming history as one of the more creative Donkey Kong clones of its era. While the 1982 gaming landscape was flooded with derivative titles attempting to capitalize on Nintendo’s arcade hit, Cannonball Blitz distinguished itself through its thematic approach—transforming the jungle setting and damsel-in-distress narrative into a Revolutionary War military assault scenario.³

The game represents a snapshot of Sierra On-Line’s evolution from action game publisher to adventure game pioneer. Before the King’s Quest series would establish Sierra as the dominant force in graphic adventures, the company built its reputation on well-executed arcade ports and clones like Cannonball Blitz, Crossfire, and Jawbreaker.² That John Romero—who would himself become one of gaming’s most influential designers—singled out Cannonball Blitz as the best Donkey Kong clone on Apple II speaks to the quality of Olaf Lubeck’s work within the constraints of the platform and genre.²

The game’s aggressive copy protection and its taunting hidden message to crackers also make it historically significant as an early example of the cat-and-mouse game between software publishers and pirates that would define much of the 1980s software industry.¹⁵

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

• GOG Dreamlist Request - Community wishlist entry

Download / Preservation

• Internet Archive – WOZ Format
• Internet Archive – 4am Crack Preservation
• Internet Archive – Physical Preservation
• My Abandonware

Technical Documentation

• The Cutting Room Floor - Hidden content documentation

References

Footnotes

1. Internet Archive – Wozaday Cannonball Blitz – developer, publisher, release date, system requirements ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

2. MobyGames – Cannonball Blitz Reviews – John Romero review, development history, contemporary analysis ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰

3. Wikipedia – Cannonball Blitz – gameplay description, reviews, copy protection notoriety ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴

4. Sierra Chest – Cannonball Blitz – original promotional text, engine details, platform list ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

5. MobyGames – Cannonball Blitz Main Page – credits, technical specs, ratings, platform releases ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹

6. LaunchBox Games Database – Cannonball Blitz – gameplay mechanics, platform information ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

7. GOG Dreamlist – Cannonball Blitz – gameplay description, platforms ↩ ↩² ↩³

8. HandWiki – Software: Cannonball Blitz – Ahoy! magazine review quotes ↩

9. Glitchwave – Cannonball Blitz – aggregate rating ↩

10. My Abandonware – Cannonball Blitz – file sizes, user ratings, release dates ↩ ↩² ↩³

11. Sierra Gamers Forum – Sierra product catalog, development location ↩

12. Internet Archive – 4am Crack Collection – crack number, preservation details ↩ ↩²

13. Internet Archive – Apple II Compilation – disk format specifications ↩ ↩²

14. Games Database – VIC-20 Version – alternate naming, platform availability ↩

15. The Cutting Room Floor – Cannonball Blitz – hidden copy protection message ↩ ↩²

16. Alizta – Cannonball Blitz VIC-20 – VIC-20 gameplay changes ↩

17. Internet Archive – Choplifter Compilation – compilation appearance ↩

18. Internet Archive – Mario Bros Compilation – compilation appearance ↩

19. Internet Archive – Games Collection – compilation appearance ↩