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Cosmos
宇宙
Cosmos is an action arcade game released in 1981 by Century Electronics. Players control a spacecraft and must defend against waves of alien enemies attacking from above, similar in concept to fixed-screen space shooters popular in that era. The game supports two players, allowing alternating play. Players move their ship horizontally along the bottom of the screen and fire upward at descending enemy formations. Enemies follow set movement patterns and increase in speed as stages progress. The cabinet used standard arcade controls with a joystick for lateral movement and a button for shooting. Like many arcade games of its period, Cosmos operates on a looping stage structure where difficulty escalates continuously as players advance.
- Developer
- Century Electronics
- Released
- 1981
- Platform
- Arcade
- Genre
- Action
- Players
- 2P
- Rating
- 4.5 / 5 (4.9K)
- Last updated
Cosmos Controls — Arcade Keyboard Keys
Default keyboard bindings for Cosmos on our in-browser Arcade emulator. Plug in a USB or Bluetooth gamepad to auto-detect mappings, or rebind any key from the emulator settings menu.
| Keyboard | Console button | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| ↑ | Joystick Up | Move up |
| ↓ | Joystick Down | Move down |
| ← | Joystick Left | Move left |
| → | Joystick Right | Move right |
| X | Button 1 | Primary action (jump / confirm) |
| Z | Button 2 | Secondary action (attack / cancel) |
| S | Button 3 | Tertiary action |
| A | Button 4 | Quaternary action |
| Q | Button 5 | Fifth button |
| W | Button 6 | Sixth button |
| 5 | Insert Coin | Insert coin |
| 1 | 1P Start | Start / Pause |
Coin and Start are convention "Insert Coin: 5" and "1P Start: 1". Some arcade boards expect specific button mappings — check the in-game prompts on coin-up.
Rebind any key from the EmulatorJS in-game settings menu (gear icon → Controls). A connected gamepad auto-maps to the same buttons.
Cosmos Longplay & Gameplay Videos
Watch a full playthrough of Cosmos on Arcade before you dive in — recommended for getting a feel for the game's pacing, story beats, and difficulty curve.
Watch longplay on YouTube
"Cosmos" Arcade longplay 1981
External references
Frequently Asked Questions
When was Cosmos released?
Cosmos was released in 1981 for the Arcade.
Who developed Cosmos?
Cosmos was developed by Century Electronics, available to play in your browser on RetroGameSpace.
How many players does Cosmos support?
Cosmos supports up to 2 players, ideal for couch co-op or competitive sessions on the Arcade.
What type of game is Cosmos?
Cosmos is a Action game for the Arcade, playable instantly in your browser — no downloads, no installs.
How can I play Cosmos for free?
Open this page and click "Play Now" — Cosmos runs free in your browser via WebAssembly emulation. No account, no payment, no installer.
Do I need to download anything to play Cosmos in the browser?
No. Cosmos streams from a public archive into a browser-side Arcade emulator. Nothing is installed on your computer.
Can I save my progress in Cosmos?
Yes. Save states are stored in your browser (IndexedDB) per game, and you can also use any in-game save the original Arcade cartridge supported.
Does Cosmos work on mobile devices?
Yes — the Arcade emulator runs on iOS Safari and Android Chrome. Touch controls overlay the game; landscape mode is recommended.
Is it legal to play Cosmos this way?
RetroGameSpace is a transient caching reverse-proxy and does not host first-party copies of Cosmos. Game files are fetched on demand from publicly-accessible archives. You are responsible for compliance with your local laws and the bring-your-own-ROM principle.
