Hi Res Adventure #0: Mission Asteroid

Last updated: January 9, 2026

Overview

Hi Res Adventure #0: Mission Asteroid is a graphic adventure game that was part of Sierra On-Line’s pioneering Hi-Res Adventure series¹. Originally released in 1980 for the Apple II, the game was designed by Ken and Roberta Williams and represented one of the earliest graphic adventure games for home computers²³. Despite being numbered as “#0,” Mission Asteroid was actually the third Hi-Res Adventure released by Sierra, but was retroactively assigned the zero designation because it was intended as an easier introductory game aimed at younger players⁴.

The Hi-Res Adventures series was designed by Roberta Williams and represented a significant evolution from pure text adventure games by incorporating static graphics to enhance the gaming experience⁵. Mission Asteroid was published after Mystery House (#1) and The Wizard and the Princess (#2), but Sierra retro-assigned it to number zero to position it as an entry-level game for newcomers to adventure gaming⁴. The game utilized the Apple II’s color palette to demonstrate each scene and featured Sierra’s early text parser system for player input⁶⁷.

Game Info

Developer: Ken Williams² Designer: Ken Williams, Roberta Williams² Publisher: On-Line Systems⁸ Platforms: Apple II, Atari 8-bit, Commodore 64, FM-7, PC-88, PC-98⁸ Release Year: 1980 Series: Hi-Res Adventure Sierra Lineage: Core Sierra

Story Summary

In Mission Asteroid, the player takes on the role of an astronaut who receives a critical mission from Mission Control⁹¹⁰. The core objective is to launch a rocket to intercept and destroy a large asteroid that is on a collision course with Earth before it can cause catastrophic damage⁹¹⁰. The game’s science fiction premise was designed to be accessible to younger players while still providing the challenge of an adventure game puzzle structure⁴.

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

Mission Asteroid utilized Sierra’s Hi-Res Adventure graphics engine, which combined static, monochrome line drawings with a text-based command parser¹¹. Players interact with the game by typing text commands using the keyboard, following the traditional adventure game format of verb-noun combinations¹¹⁵. The game featured crude but functional graphics that made full use of the Apple II’s color capabilities to enhance the visual presentation of each scene⁶.

Structure and Progression

The game is designed as a single-player experience with fixed screen presentation⁷. Players must navigate through various locations and solve puzzles to ultimately complete their mission of destroying the incoming asteroid⁹. The game includes a save system that supports up to 15 save slots, though it requires a separate save disk for storage¹¹.

Puzzles and Mechanics

Mission Asteroid features adventure game puzzles focused on the central mission of launching a rocket to destroy an asteroid⁹. The game was specifically designed to be simpler than other entries in the Hi-Res Adventure series, making it more accessible to younger players and newcomers to the adventure game genre⁴. However, one reviewer noted a scientific inaccuracy in the game’s premise, pointing out that “blowing up an asteroid doesn’t make the matter disappear. It just breaks it into smaller pieces and starts them moving away from each other”¹².

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

Publication	Score	Notes
MobyGames	7.4/10	User rating highlighting color graphics6
MobyGames	7.1/10	Alternative user rating12
MyAbandonware	4/5	Modern preservation site rating11
Glitchwave	1.75/5.0	Lower contemporary assessment13

Modern Assessment

Modern retrospective reviews have been mixed, with the game receiving recognition primarily for its historical significance rather than its gameplay merits¹³. The game is acknowledged as an important early example of graphic adventure gaming, representing Sierra’s transition from pure text adventures to the graphical adventures that would later make the company famous².

Development

Origins

Mission Asteroid emerged from Ken and Roberta Williams’ efforts to enhance traditional text adventure games with graphics². The game was inspired by existing text adventure games but was designed specifically to demonstrate the potential of combining visual elements with interactive fiction¹⁴. As one of Sierra’s earliest graphic adventure games, it was developed before the company became famous for their King’s Quest series⁵.

Production

The game was developed by Ken Williams, who created the early graphics using a graphics tablet¹⁴. Roberta Williams contributed to the design, continuing her role in pioneering graphic adventure games⁵. The Atari 8-bit version was later ported by Yosemite Software Products, Inc., expanding the game’s platform availability¹¹.

Technical Achievements

Mission Asteroid was one of the earliest Sierra games to feature color graphics, utilizing the Hi-Res Adventure series text parser and graphics engine⁵⁵. The game demonstrated Sierra’s early technical capabilities in combining static graphics with interactive gameplay, though the visuals were described as “crude, static, monochrome line drawings”¹¹. The game was distributed on 5.25” floppy disks and had relatively small file sizes ranging from 54-88 KB depending on the platform⁷.

Legacy

Mission Asteroid holds historical significance as part of the seven graphic adventure games Sierra released before their landmark King’s Quest series⁵. The game was included in the 1997 Roberta Williams Anthology, cementing its place in Sierra’s historical catalog⁵. While it retired early from Sierra’s active catalog, it represents an important step in the evolution of graphic adventure gaming and Sierra’s development as a major adventure game publisher⁵¹⁵.

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

• Currently not available on major digital distribution platforms
• GOG Dreamlist - Community wishlist

Download / Preservation

• MyAbandonware
• Lutris

Series Continuity

• Previous: None (numbered as #0 for introductory purposes)
• Next: 1: Mystery House

References

Footnotes

1. Sierra Fandom Wiki – - Hi-Res Adventure series information ↩

2. Old Games Download – - Development and platform details ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

3. Wikipedia – - Historical context and early graphic adventure games ↩

4. Gaming After 40 Blog – - Game numbering and target audience explanation ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

5. Sierra Fandom Wiki – - Roberta Williams design credit ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹

6. MobyGames – - Graphics description and user rating ↩ ↩² ↩³

7. Pixelated Arcade – - Text parser system details ↩ ↩² ↩³

8. MobyGames Releases – - Publisher and platform information ↩ ↩²

9. Lutris – - Game plot description ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

10. Retro Game Strove – - Mission Control and asteroid plot ↩ ↩²

11. MyAbandonware – - Technical specifications and save system ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

12. MobyGames – - Carl Muckenhoupt review and scientific critique ↩ ↩²

13. Glitchwave – - Modern assessment and rating ↩ ↩²

14. SierraGamers – - Development details and graphics tablet information ↩ ↩²

15. Wikipedia – - Sierra Entertainment history and adventure game development ↩