Space Invaers (スペースインベーダー, Supēsu Inbēdā?) is an arcade video game designed by Tomohiro Nishikado in 1978. It was originally manufactured by Taito and licensed for production in the United States by the Midway division of Bally. Space Invaders was one of the earliest shooting games and featured two-dimensional graphics. The aim is to defeat waves of aliens with a laser cannon. In designing the game, Nishikado drew inspiration from popular media; Breakout, The War of the Worlds, and Star Wars. Though simplistic by today's standards, it was one of the forerunners of modern video gaming.