Donald Hayes
Donald Hayes, a programmer from New Hampshire, Beats Billy Mitchell's (Six) Classic High Score Legacy Video Game Titles with a (Seventh Title), Millipede now under Donald Hayes Belt, done on December 26,2004
Donald Hayes is the world record holder on Millipede, Super Cobra, Domino Man, Tron, Centipede, Super Zaxxon, and Dig Dug.
Twin Galaxies High Scores
Millipede
Variation: Factory Settings
Platform: Arcade
Rules: Starting lives is 3. The three dip switches controlling the side feed
(switch 1), the beetle (switch2), and the spider (switch 7), are all set to 'off'
(or 'easy'). The starting men is 3 (switches 3 and 4), and bonus life's are every 15,000
(switches 5 and 6). There is a dip switch (#8) that controls whether the player is able
to select a starting score. Players cannot start from higher than the 30K score.
Millipede World Records:
Rank % Score Score Player Date Verified
1 100.00 % 10,627,331 Donald Hayes 02/07/2005
2 65.83 % 6,995,962 James Schneider 11/21/1983
3 44.25 % 4,702,733 Steve Winter 06/11/2004
4 40.50 % 4,304,549 Ben Gold 06/11/2004
5 22.17 % 2,355,721 Eric Ginner 06/11/2004
6 15.81 % 1,679,865 Kyle ChollyLong 06/11/2004
7 13.48 % 1,432,943 Mark Bersabe 06/16/1983
8 7.83 % 832,337 Alt Carigo 11/11/1983
9 7.51 % 798,359 Nick Gargano 06/11/2004
10 7.29 % 774,242 Angel Espiritu 03/18/1983
Millipede:
Millipede Overview
US release date:
December 1982
Manufacturer: Atari,
Inc.
Type: Fighting game
Theme: You are the Archer
Shooting multiplying millipedes
Along with spiders, bees,
Dragonflies, beetles, mosquito's,
Inchworms, and earwigs while trying to
Keep mushrooms at bay.
Centipede World Records: 
Donald Hayes Plays Mappy in 2004 Funspot Tournament
and Walter Day, Twin Galaxies Editor and Referee, watches Donald Hayes in Action.
DH: During the classics tournament, I noticed that the trackball on their machine
had a small, occasional, annoying "skip." It would sometimes delay moving for a
split second, or even hop in the opposite direction that I was intending to move.
When I made my first record attempt in September, Funspot had the trackball serviced,
and it seemed to be okay at first, but the problem returned and actually seemed to get
worse by the end of the weekend. Walter Day suggested afterwards that I try using
the control panel from my machine. I switched the panel myself, with supervision
from Gary Vincent at Funspot.
Were there any unusual moments during your marathon game?
DH: There was one point where I lost three men in the space of about 15 seconds,
and shortly after that I was down to my last man. I barely made it to the next free
man, but almost immediately lost that one. I thought that I was going to lose the
game at that point, but I was fortunate to make it far enough past the next free man
to get myself out of danger and continue on.
Twin Galaxies says you "willingly" ended the game after almost nine hours. Does
that mean you could have kept going? How high do you think you could have
ultimately gone?
DH: Yes, I could have played longer... perhaps another hour or two, which would
be between 8 and 9 million. Looking back, I really started the game a bit too late
in the day, around 12:30 PM, and by the time I finished around 9:30 PM I was feeling
quite fatigued and tired. I chose to stop my score at 7,111,111 because it is easy to
remember.
What kind of fame has your accomplishment brought?
DH: Well, my friends and family are suitably impressed :-) There's been mention of the
record on several web sites and newsgroups. And, Twin Galaxies has arranged for me to
receive a certificate from the mayor of my hometown.
List of Games: 
Donald Hayes (Millipede World Record on December 26, 2004)
BREAKING NEWS - NEW WORLD RECORD ON "MILLIPEDE" (ARCADE)
As reported on February 11th, 2005: Donald Hayes Accomplishment on December 26, 2004!!
Press Releases
2/12/2005 Donald Hayes Captures 7th Classic Title
He Breaks the Golden Standard of Six Titles Set by Billy Mitchell in 1983
by Robert Mruczek
Robert Mruczek - Twin Galaxies Chief Referee
Special Report on Donald Hayes' New World Record on Millipede
As Reported on February 11th, 2005 by Robert Mruczek, Twin Galaxies' Chief Referee
Donald Hayes shown above, after breaking the world record on Dig Dug
To discuss any details about this accomplishment, go to this 
Donald holds the current world record, at 7,111,111 points (no side-feed trapping).
"Millipede" is one of the fastest-paced arcade games of all time. For those familiar with
it, this sequel to the classic title "Centipede" offers almost no room for a player to
breathe or take a break. The action is non-stop, and at the highest levels of intensity,
when the score is close to the next roll-over mark and when the "Millipede" is broken up
into individual segments, few players even have a hope at survival even with the maximum
of six shooters in reserve. And like it's predecessor, "Centipede", and another arcade
classic from the era, "Star Wars", that maximum cannot be exceeded at any time during
gameplay. In other words, a performance can be over in the space of less than a minute
if a player gets tired, or has to leave the game for any reason, of if they simply have
a bad run.
Easily one of the most unforgiving titles of all time, Donald at one point lost three
shooters inside of 8 seconds, which I will go into details on later in this article.
That's how intense the game play can be, and how quickly even a master player's performance
can come to a conclusion.
What follows is a recap of Donald's performance, and then an interview that I conducted
with Donald the other week. Squeezing in the eight hours to watch his tape through the end
and writing this article wasn't easy for me during the month of January as I work in an
accounting department and was closing out the previous year, so my apologies to Donald for
this unavoidable delay.
"Millipede" players in particular will want to read the contents of the interview, which
consisted of both questions that Donald replied to electronically and those that were
handled verbally. A lot of killer tactics were revealed that maybe, just maybe, even the
finest "Millipede" players may not yet have contemplated. After all, when the world
champion offers some tips, it pays to listen up.
Enjoy the recap !! The interview follows.
**********************************
THE PATH TO VICTORY
THE FIRST MILLION (0 to 1,000,000)
74K - 1st loss of a shooter. Inevitable, and hardly indicative of a game's outcome at
these settings, yet for all marathon attempts, I make it a policy to list the first five
(5) losses as a matter of record and tradition. You may be wondering why I am not using
precise numbers. The answer is simple. In a 10 million point game, they are not
relevant...not until the game is over and it's time to log the score.
82k - 2nd loss
138K - 3rd loss
171-176K - 4th loss...I found it hard to determine what the score was for this one, but
it's in this range. Keep in mind that the camera is far away so as not to interfere with
the gamer, but is just close enough to capture the action and score. The problem is the
small numbers of the score. I can tell, depending on the proximity and when the next free
is awarded at what approximate point the gamer is at, but sometimes I have to approximate.
180K - 5th loss
205K - the game starts to get intense, and Donald's performance becomes more enjoyable
to watch. Here, he can be seen one-shooting a train of four separated "Millipede" parts,
each spaced one away from each other and moving in the same direction, via one-shot firing,
in the space of about a second. These are the kinds of moves that the average player
one day hopes to pull off.
202-275K - no loss of shooter. Donald also doesn't lose a shooter from 368-425K and from
475-542K.
547K - Donald is at 3 shooters in reserve for the first time this game. Inevitable, and not
indicative of the game's final outcome.
675K - Back to 6 shooters in reserve.
852K - Donald hits 2 in reserve, but is back to 3 by 855K, and up to 6 by 900K.
958K - Hits 2 shooters in reserve again, but up to 3 by 960K
966K - Down to 1 shooter in reserve for first time this game as things get hairy. "Millipede"
is actually at its nastiest when the visible score is over 900K. The game rolls over each
million and the actions subsides a bit, but quickly picks up pace, and every 900K mark is a
nightmare for players, because the next 100,000 points that follows is sure to be ultra hard.
993K - Donald has survived to this point and reached a "swarm" wave where multiple enemies
come streaming down from the top. This is one of the nastiest as all three enemy types come
at once, each with its own drop pattern. Coupled with the spiders down below, It's quite
hectic. Donald finishes this swarm wave with 1.030M, meaning he made 37K in a single wave.
An awesome way to pass the first million point barrier.
THE SECOND MILLION (1,000,001 to 2,000,000)
As Donald enters his second million, now with a few shooters in reserve, he has a brief
respite due to the general slowdown of intensity, and must use this time to replenish back
to 6 shooters. As a matter of fact, even thinking back to Donald's 6.8M score and his earlier
efforts, once he passes each million point barrier, he pretty much cruises for the next few
hundred thousand until the intensity starts to peak again.
However, slowdown or not, he does not have a chance to relax or take a break as the action
is continuous.
From this point on, I will be recapping only critical moments within the performance.
1.824M - the first time Donald is at 3 shooters in reserve since entering the wave. He
has played this second million exceptionally well, thus far.
1.927M - down to 5 shooters in reserve. Briefly goes down to 3, but finishes the second
million with 5 in reserve. At no time during the second million did he reach only 2 shooters
in reserve.
THE THIRD MILLION (2,000,001 to 3,000,000)
2.620M - first time down to 3 shooters in reserve since passing the 2M mark
2.620-2.655M - Donald is stuck in the same wave on the same shooter valiantly fighting off
the replicating "Millipede" segments from the side-feed.
2.668M - down to 2 shooters, but bounces back to a full compliment of 6 by 2.760M
Donald never goes below 3 shooters again this million, and clears the 3M barrier with 6
shooters in reserve.
THE FOURTH MILLION (3,000,001 to 4,000,000)
3.082-3.162M - no loss of shooter
3.553M - down to 3 shooters in reserve
3.660M - back to 6 shooters in reserve
3.990-3.999M - never goes below 3 in reserve for the final 100K. Reaches 4M at 2:58 mark
(2 hours 58 minutes).
THE FIFTH MILLION (4,000,001 to 5,000,000)
4.668M - Donald maintained between 4 to 6 shooters in reserve at all times up to this point,
but the next 57,000 points was the toughest part of this million point leg of his performance.
In the space of 12,000 points he went from 6 shooters in storage down to 2 by 4.680M, and
hovered at 2 up to 4.725M, the first time he picked it back up to 3 and held it, until he
had 4 in reserve at 4.740M. By 4.785M he was back in action at 6 in reserve.
4.856M - dipped down to 3 in reserve
4.890M - back to 6 !!
4.925M - this was the first time I saw Donald in a situation he had no control over. One (1)
segment was left heading towards the bottom from left to right, one level above the bottom,
when a beetle just happened to come out right underneath it. There was no chance at all for
Donald to get this segment before it reached bottom. As it turned out, Donald lost the battle
with the side-feed swarm that followed. But he finishes this million point leg strong with
full compliment of 6 shooters in reserve.
THE SIXTH MILLION (5,000,001 to 6,000,000)
There were three moments in Donald's performance when he was faced with the most dire of
circumstances, and through a combination of his skills and a never-say-die attitude, he
overcame adversity and kept going towards an even higher goal. This million point leg includes
one of those moments.
5.020-5.127M - no loss of shooter
5.760M - the time on Donald's camcorder clock is 4:19pm and he has 6 shooters in reserve.
Little does he know that the next 12 minutes will be the toughest test he has faced this
performance thus far. It is moments like these that separate the wannabees from the champions.
5.764M - down to 5 shooters in reserve
5.766M - down to 4
5.767M - down to 3
5.772M - down to 2
5.774M - down to 1
Millipede Spider
Everything that possibly could have gone wrong here did. Spiders coming out at the worst
possible moment and position. Fleas dropping inconveniently placed shrooms accelerating a
millipede's path to the bottom. Beetles being in annoying spots at the worst possible times.
Lesser players would have been completely unraveled by now. Not Donald.
5.784M - still at 1 shooter in reserve
5.788M - down to zero in reserve. This was a do-or-die moment for Donald. Fortunately the
next bonus shooter was mercifully close, and so Donald kept going...possibly momentarily
stunned by seeing his reserves dip to zero for the first time this performance, but if so,
clearly not showing it. The mark of a true champion.
5.820M - battles his way back to 3 in reserve !!
5.827M - down to 2
5.865M - up to 5 in reserve, but there's a lot of action between now and the next million mark
5.878M - after several more difficult moments, he's down to 1 shooter in reserve again.
5.916-5.947M - I referred to this segment of his game as "The Big Battle" in the notes I
took during verification. Donald started the wave with either 1 or 2 shooters in reserve
and by the time the "millipede" reached the bottom and the side-feed kicked in, he just
couldn't catch a break, though he kept on fighting. On the same shooter he lasted 31,000
points during this swarm of segments. Anyone that knows this game realizes how tough it is
to last so long during a swarm phase. Towards the end he made a totally awesome move that,
during my interview with Donald, he remembered well.
Faced with a wall of pieces moving from left to right, and coming into a mess of shrooms on
the right side, Donald waited until the top of the millipede wall passed under a shroom and
went up, over and down behind the wall. What made thus move so remarkable is how close the
nest shroom above was. The spacing was extremely tight, leaving no margin for error. This
time, Donald finishes the swarm off on this shooter. Believe it or not, this was not his
toughest swarm...that was yet to come, But for now, back to this one.
The coup de grace is that he clears the 6 million point barrier with 5 shooters in reserve,
and at the 4:31 mark (4 hours, 31 minutes). Now, with the action slowing down a bit, Donald
can breathe again in his final leg to passing the existing world record.
THE SEVENTH MILLION (6,000,001 to 7,000,000)
And so begins Donald's second attempt at going from the 6M barrier through 7M. His last
attempt ended a mere 100,000 points or so away from the existing world record back on October
20th, 2004.
During my recap of his sixth million point climb, I said that there were three moments that
were his toughest challenges this performance. The following chronicles his toughest moments.
And like I said before, it is moments like these that separate the wannabees from the
champions.
6.352M - This is the earliest moment after a million point barrier that Donald feels the
pressure, I think, as he is down to 3 shooters in reserve. And pressure is an appropriate
term, as the next few spiders are seemingly making a beeline for him. That, plus the fact
that after about 5 hours of game play, and so close to the world mark, Donald has to be
considering the deja-vu factor, thinking back to his last attempt that ended at 6.8M points,
100K shy of the world mark.
6.386M - down to 2 shooters in reserve
6.389M - down to 1 in reserve...momentarily throws his hands up in frustration, based on
what I see in the reflection. Quite understandable.
6.394M - down to 1 in reserve again. And remember...there is 600K to go, and it only will
get worse as the game approaches the next million point barrier.
6.40xM - I could not tell for sure when this exactly happened, but Donald loses his last
reserve shooter and is far off from the next one. What happens next is without a doubt his
finest moment this performance.
Like I said, he lost his last shooter and was a long way from the next bonus. Then the
side-feed swarm came, as the current "millipede" was all segments and quickly traveled
downward to the bottom.
With his game-face on, Donald starts the epic battle with a swarm. A worm came. Shooting
it would have meant temporarily slowing down the wave, but Donald could not afford to do
so (I'll explain more on this in the interview segment). Three more worms passed. He
eventually had a chance to take out the problem shroom in the bottom right that was
accelerating millipede parts hitting the bottom. AT 6.420M he was back to 2 shooters in
reserve, and still within the swarm !!
Two more worms were passed by, and Donald finally looked like he had the board under
control as 3 segments remained, but the vicious side-feed kept alternating sides and
between that and the fleas, and those spiders which seemed to home in on him, he couldn't
wrap it up. By 6.35M he was at 3 in reserve, and the swarm was still coming at him,
unrelenting and without mercy.
The shrooms down below were getting severely congested again by the time the seventh worm
passed by, and then the eighth. Donald finally succumbed to an unavoidable hit at 6.442M,
lasting about 40,000 points in the same swarm. I don't think I've ever seen a player last
that long in a swarm before on a single shooter. I was mightily impressed.
6.448M - Donald is quickly down to 1 shooter in reserve again, but bounces back to 2 at
6.450M
6.495M - things are starting to calm down a bit...he's up to 4 in reserve.
6.525M - for the first time in 8 harrowing minutes, Donald can breathe. He has battled
back to 6 shooters in reserve. A great weight was lifted from him, and now he could
concentrate better on the immediate task of 6.9M and a new world mark.
6.525-6.885M - Donald keeps his reserves hovering between 4 and 6 at all times, personally
aware of how difficult it will be to deal with being down to a low reserve again, and with
the game difficulty now at maximum being so close to the next million point barrier.
6.894M - a brief sequence of events leads to his going down to 3 shooters again. He's now
past the previous 6.8M personal best and well under 100K away from the world record. But
Donald has a steely resolve about him, and nothing is going to stop him now.
6.941M - still at 3 in reserve
6.960M - battles back to 5 in reserve
6.975M - at 6 in reserve, Donald sees the 7 million point barrier about to be smashed.
6.977M - down to 5 shooters, Donald then finishes the wave and begins with a new "millipede",
a sure-fire way to break through the next million point barrier, as new "millipedes" are easier
to handle.
6.984M - down to 4 shooters in reserve now, Donald enters the bonus wave, and soars past
the 7 million point barrier, finishing this shooter at 7.050M and clearly the new world
champion !! Time to break 7M was 5:19 (5 hours, 19 minutes)
What I failed to mention above, as it would have meant a break in the action, is that Donald
, when he passed the world mark at approx 5:17 into the game, gave a brief pump-of-the-fist
into the air, his first real show of emotion this game. Considering the heart-wrenching end
to the 6.8M attempt, that silent but significant action spoke volumes !!
THE EIGHTH MILLION (7,000,001 to 8,000,000)
Considering how unpredictable this game can be, even Donald did not know how long he could
keep the game going for as he was now in uncharted territory. But like a man on a mission,
he stayed focused, alert, and kept on going.
7.235M - in the space of 8 seconds (I counted), Donald went from 6 shooters in reserve to
just 3. After losing the first of the 3, then the spiders homed in on him near the screen
edges for the next 2. He had no chance on either as a new "millipede" rack began and a lot
of spiders were coming out.
7.305M - back to 6 shooters in reserve
7.595M - during an epic side-feed battle, the bottom half of the screen becomes littered
with shrooms, an absolute mess to clean up, so Donald makes this his next focus and does
so brilliantly while maintaining control of the "millipede"
7.603M - a brief cough at 5:45pm is about the only sound that Donald has made since breaking
the world record. This serves to remind me that as I'm watching all this action, there's a
guy responsible for it who was playing his heart out to make this happen.
7.621M - down to 3 in reserve
7.633M - down to 2 in reserve for the first time since passing 7 million
7.665M - battles back to 5 in reserve
7.680M - at 6 again, but by 7.695M the bottom of the screen is a disaster from another
side-feed battle. Down to 5 again.
7.965M - after maintaining a good supply of reserves, Donald is looking forward to passing
the 8M mark, and enjoying a brief respite as the action temporarily slows down. With 6 shooters
in reserve this is inevitable. Ultimately, he passes the 8 million point barrier with 5 shooters
in reserve at the 5:59 mark (nearly 6 hours into his performance)
THE NINTH MILLION - (8,000,001 to 9,000,000)
The early part of this million point leg was fairly routine...for Donald, that is. He never
dipped below 4 shooters in reserve. And by 8.746M he still was at 6 in reserve, but, as he
has experienced throughout this game, anything can happen.
8.753M - down to 4 in reserve
8.760M - back to 5
8.774M - down to 4
8.775M - down to 5
8.782M - down to 4 again...no matter how hard he tried to get back to 6, he could not. And
now it became even harder.
8.787-8.820M - Donald hits 3 shooters in reserve, and then 2, and at this point is finding
it tough to get back to 4 again. He manages to do so at 8.835M, but by 8.847M he's back at
3 again.
Fortunately, by 8.865M, he has battled back to 5 shooters in reserve, and for the rest of
this million point range, he hovers between 4 and 6 in reserve, finishing strongly at 9.030M
with 6 in reserve after 6:41 (6 hours and 41 minutes) of cumulative game play.
THE TENTH MILLION (9,000,001 to 10,000,000)
More impressive than the fact that what Donald has done up to this point hasn't already been
done before (it hasn't...passing 7M), but thus far breaching the 10 million point barrier
has been kind of unfathomable. No one has ever talked about or announced a plan to do so.
It's sort of like someone announcing that they are planning on getting a score of 20 million
on "Tron"...most players will tell them "Sure, but let's see you get 10 million first...THEN
you can talk about hitting 20 !!"
At Donald's current pace he was a good 40-45 minutes away from this mark. He surely had a
good start (6 shooters in reserve), but from experience, he knew that anything could happen.
So at this point, the best he could hope for was to try and see what would happen as the
performance unfolded.
9.005-9.078M - no loss of shooter
9.485M - 7 hours later...Donald is still at 6 shooters in reserve. Wow !!
9.500M - according to my notes, Donald has yet to dip below the 4 shooter reserve mark for
this leg of his performance.
9.728M - Don reaches 3 shooters in reserve.
Remember earlier when I mentioned that there where three (3) moments in his game when Donald
faced the most dire of circumstances ? Here comes the last of them...just as the 10 million
point barrier is less than 15 minutes away.
9.733M - down to 2 in reserve
9.742 - down to 1 in reserve. Picks it up to 2 in reserve at 9.750M but a lower right shroom
is causing him major hassles with the side-feed swarm, so he's back down to 1 again by 9.751M
9.763M - down to zero in reserve, it's do-or-die, put-your-game-face-on time for Donald !!
9.765M - back to 1 in reserve as he was very close to the next bonus shooter
9.780M - back to 2 again, but too early to breathe just yet
9.783M - down to 1 in reserve, with the next one a long while off
9.787M - down to zero shooters again...8,000 points away from the next bonus shooter. This
was a dire moment, to say the very least. The millipede quickly reaches bottom and a side-feed
swarm begins.
9.795M - Donald survives the swarm to earn 1 shooter in reserve, but he dies in the next
bonus screen. Back to zero.
9.810M - earns another bonus shooter...at 1 in reserve again.
9.821M - down to zero again, 4,000 points from the next bonus shooter
9.825M - back to 1 in reserve
9.840M - up to 2...the pressure still not off, but MUCH better than at zero in reserve !!
9.855M - back to 3 in reserve !! Donald, as it turns out, would not drop past 3 in reserve
again for this leg of his quest. The resolve was there.
9.915M - up to 5 in reserve. Definitely breathing time again.
9.926M - dips down to 4, then by 9.928M he's at 3 again.
9.930M - back to 4 shooters...and minutes away from history !!
9.945M - back to 5 again
9.960M - reaches 6 in reserve for the first time since late 9.6 million. This was one major
battle, but Donald survived. Definitely 8-9 minutes of very hard work. Less experienced
players might have folded. Donald held it together. His reward was minutes away.
9.999M - here at last, his personal goal (which he later told me that he had in mind once the
6.9M world record was passed) was now a reality. Donald passes the 10 million point mark at
7:21:31 (7 hours 21 minutes 31 seconds) with a perfect 6 shooters in reserve...way to go,
If Donald was feeling anything at this point, his reaction was very subdued and personal.
He just kept on playing.
BEYOND TEN MILLION (10,000,001 to ???)
As with all roll-overs thus far, a definite temporary slowdown occurs, giving Donald some
breathing time again.
10.327M - first time he hits 3 shooters in reserve after passing 10M
10.380M - raises it back to 6 shooters.
10.485M - still maintaining his reserves at 6 shooters, but at this early stage in his 11th
million, little does he know that this will be the last time he's at 6 shooters in reserve.
Whether the game is starting to get exceptionally nasty, or Donald is starting to show some
fatigue, or a little bit of bother, that is irrelevant.
"Millipede" is a title that Twin Galaxies refers to as "potentially marathonable". Like I said
earlier in this recap, you cannot stockpile extra shooters in reserve beyond 6, just like
"Centipede" and "Star Wars", so the game's duration depends on fatigue, the controller holding
up, the game getting a little nasty at the worst possible times, or something even more
basic...the electrical connection holding up. With no time to rest...well, you CAN for a
little while with "Centipede", if you know how to set it up...these games are not the
easiest to consider as "marathonable".
10.520M - down to 5...and that's the last time he will be at 5 in reserve, as well
10.525M - down to 4 shooters.
10.526M - Donald hits 3 again, and between 10.526M and 10.593M he hovers back and forth
between 3 and 4 shooters in reserve, finishing at 3 by 10.593M. He will not hit 4 again
this game.
10.601M - down to 2 in reserve. Donald manages to pick it back up to 3 again by 10.605M but
drops back to 2 by 10.617M. He will not see 3 again.
10.619M - hits 1 shooter in reserve. After close to 8 hours of game play, my own gamer's
instinct tells me that Donald might be privately wondering if this is, in fact, where his
game is about to come to an end. Sometimes you get that feeling...it's hard to explain how
during some dire moments, you just know you will survive, while others, it's like a
premonition. But that's just my opinion.
10.620M - brings it back to 2...and then everything that can happen does.
10.624M - a "routine loss" brings him down to 1 again with 11,000 points to go. This does
not bode well.
10.626M - a "beetle trap" gets him...loses his last reserve shooter.
10.627M - one final hit and that's all she wrote. A brief clap from Donald signals the end
to the world's greatest performance on "Millipede" ever. 7 hours and 50 minutes. Incredible.
He punctuates this with a quick spin on the trackball before entering the initials.
"Finals score...10,627,331 (points)"
Donald's shadow on the machine's glass is a quiet testament to what had just transpired.
He was standing for the first time in nearly 8 hours.
He adjusts the video camera to better zoom in on the score.
"Tape's about to run out anyway, Robert..." he says, as it is an 8 hour tape and the camera
clock shows more than 7:51.
And with that, the camera recording stops, and although all I see is a snowy screen, I can
envision Donald with a deep sense of satisfaction as his personal goal had become a reality.
He had not just beaten the world record, he took it into the stratosphere.
A lot of local arcades across the globe have "Millipede" machines with "999,999" as the high
score. Fine. Let those players try topping this !!
**********************************
A Millipede Archer (Artist Viewpoint)
THE INTERVIEW
Donald graciously allowed me to conduct a written as well as verbal interview with him. Here
are the results. I hope you will find his answers both informative and enjoyable.
I'll start with the bulk of the interview which was the written questions.
Question (1) - "Millipede" has been a title that I know you wanted the record on for some
time now, having come close on a few occasions, most recently missing the mark my about 5
more minutes of game play, maybe less. And now, a few months later, you obliterated the
previous world record. What was going through your mind as you finally passed the world
record mark ? At that game speed it's almost kind of hard to watch the score and keep your
eyes on the action at the same time, so I'm wondering if you even saw yourself pass the
world record, or if you just knew that you did and kept on playing, to retain the focus.
Answer (1) - I was actually very conscious of where I was in terms of score all during the
game, especially having come so close to the record on multiple previous attempts. When I
actually did pass the old record you can see a quick "fist-pump" action from me which was
probably the most emotional response during the entire game, unlike the previous attempt
where you noted that I was more vocal than usual and somewhat annoyed with my game play.
It was certainly a relief once the record was passed and I then turned my attention to the
personal goal I had for myself of passing 10 million.
Question (2) - There were two (2) occasions before the world mark where you went down to zero
lives in reserve, one of which came during the last millipede when all the pasts were separate,
so to me this was your finest moment as you battled back and kept your cool. This was the most
nail-biting moment of your game, for me as a spectator. How did it feel actually playing the
game during this moment of enormous pressure ? You had a few thousand to go before the next
free, and it was highly likely that the millipede would reach the bottom of the screen, so
surviving an end-wave swarm at this speed was inevitable. I've got to hand it to you, I don't
know if even Billy could have pulled this one off as successfully.
Answer (2) - I remember pretty clearly one of the times that I was down to my last man, and I
think it's the one you reference above. I think it occurred around 5.8M or so. My initial
thoughts as the men dwindled was "NO!!! NOT AGAIN!!!!" I remember taking a quick peak at the
score in between losing men, so I concentrated on trying to keep the bottom relatively clear
of mushrooms since I was expecting to have the side feed kick in. Sometimes it is more dangerous
to try and prevent the side feed than it is to actually prepare for and handle it.
Question (3) - I realize from watching your previous tapes, and this one, that every 1M points
the difficulty ramps down a bit, giving you somewhat of a breather and chance to replenish
your lives, so every time the score reaches the 700K+ range things get tough, especially when
you're coming close to rolling the score. Do you have any special strategy at this point, such
as using the bonus wave to soar passed the next rollover and start the next wave at a lower
speed, or is the game so fast such that a strategy like this is not even feasible to apply
mid-game ?
Answer (3) - Your observation about the behavior after a rollover is correct. Almost all
facets of the game are based on the current displayed score so when the rollover occurs, most
things slow down to the way they were at the beginning of the game. As the score progresses,
certain enemies start moving faster or coming out more often. The primary exception to this
rule is the side feed which progresses to a certain level of difficulty and then stays pretty
much at that level for the rest of the game. This is in contrast to Centipede where the side
feed gets harder and harder to finally being basically impossible, but then turns over and
goes back to extremely easy and continues to cycle this way.
As far as using any special strategies, the answer for my style of play is "no".
Question (4) - One of the best tactics that I've seen you display is during one of the bonus
waves…I'm sure you know which I am referring to. Am I correct that doing the exact opposite
would be devastating for the waves that follow ? I envision missed shots sailing upwards and
valuable time lost as a result, for starters. Am I on the right track, here ?
Answer (4) - Yes, I know exactly which tactic you're referring to. Jason Cram also noticed
this a few weeks ago when we played a doubles game of "Millipede". I found that my survival
rate increased using this tactic because it gives me better control of the entire screen. My
style of play depends on having a shot when I need it (since that is the same way I play
Centipede, and I learned that first).
Question (5) - Seven+ hours of game-play on the same credit…I think that this is the longest
single gaming performance in your personal gaming history, yes ? What was the second longest…
your previous 6.8M on "Millipede", or was it the 4.5M on "Tron" ?
Answer (5) - Well, this game was closer to 8 hours, but I believe that only ranks third for
my personal longest game. My Centipede record took 9 hours but even that is only second. My
personal long was back in the 80's when I played "Gauntlet" for 10 hours. My 4.6M "Tron" score
took 6.5 hours, but I think a couple of my other "Centipede" scores were just a little bit
longer.
Question (6) - Based on what you have just seen, would you now say that "Millipede" is
marathonable, potentially marathonable, or is the game still too difficult and unpredictable
to make such an assessment ? Like "Star Wars" and "Centipede" (both of which you excel at),
this game awards extra lives but you can only maintain a limited number (6) in reserve at any
given time, so you realistically can't take a break from the game.
Answer (6) - I think I would classify it as "potentially marathonable".
Question (7) - So…maybe this game is only marathonable to the point that either (A) the
trackball gives out from the excess oils, or (B) until "nature calls". Agree ?
Answer (7) - I'd pretty much have to agree with that. In the back of my mind, I do have an
idea of how to possibly take a short "nature break" (perhaps 2-3 minutes). A similar strategy
would probably also work on "Centipede".
Question (8) - Wow, you claimed the world record on "Super Cobra" (over 225K) and "Millipede"
(10.6M) within the same month. Add that to the other titles you hold world records on and I
think you now possess 7 or is it 8 world records on arcade titles at the same time ? This is
unprecedented.
Answer (8) - The "Super Cobra" record makes 7 total arcade records.
Question (9) - Which begs the question…what title is next ? I'm guessing "Berzerk" is on your
short list. (Donald recently hit 106K on his 1st life on fast-bullets "Berzerk" as part of
the 2004 Advanced MAME decathlon...the world arcade record is about 230K for an entire game
of 5 lives which includes the two bonus lives)
Answer (9) - I have several ideas in the back of my head, but for now I'm keeping that to
myself.
Question (10) - You have mastered titles with joysticks, flight controllers and track balls.
Do you ever see yourself picking up interest in a driving or shooting game, or do you prefer
the aforementioned three controller-types ?
Answer (10) - I never cared for driving games in general (I drive enough in real life as it
is!). It's not so much that I prefer one controller type over another, it's more a matter of
whether I personally enjoy the gameplay as a whole.
Question (11) - I know from personal experience, including competing with you in various
gaming events, that some titles you pick up right away whereas others, and every gamer has
a few, you just don't enjoy playing. Which titles do you absolutely can't stand playing,
either by genre or specific titles ? For instance, I've already accepted the fact that I
can't play precision-shooting titles like "Cheyenne" even if my life depended on it, but I
cannot stand playing a game which requires too much pre-memorization of fixed movement
sequences, like most modern fighting-game titles.
Answer (11) - Well, I've publicly stated that I never want to play "Ghosts & Goblins" again.
"Motorace USA" also comes to mind. I also don't care for the modern fighting style games.
A Millipede Archer (Artist Viewpoint)
Thanks, Donald, for answering all the written questions that I requested of you.
We later discussed the finer points of his performance, and most specifically the three
moments when he reached zero shooters.
I noticed one common denominator in how Donald handled the side-feed swarms, and was wondering
why, during the swarms, was he missing so many worms. He explained this to me as only an expert
could.
According to Donald, hitting the worms during the swarms, a tactic most players would employ
to perhaps give them an "edge", is something Donald pointedly avoids. "They throw off my timing
with the side-feed", he explains. As a world class player, Donald does not like to have the
tempo of his game rapidly changing like that. Once he's accustomed to the speed, the slow-down
is more of an annoyance than a helpful tool.
He said that the key to dealing with the side-feed swarm is predicting where the next piece
will come from. They come out so quickly that the only way to close out the swarm is to take
out several pieces within a second...assuming you whittle the swarm down that far. It is, he
said, the toughest aspect of the game. You either know how to deal with the side-feed swarm,
or you can't get past a certain point in the game.
I asked him about those "DDT" capsules which have the power to take out several enemies at
once, and whether they were an integral part of the game. Not absolutely necessary, he said,
but they help under the right circumstances.
We also discussed his mindset during the three moments when he hit zero shooters in reserve,
one of which was close to the existing world mark, the other of which was close to ten million.
In both cases, Donald was concerned, but overcame that with focus and determination. As a
fellow gamer, I get the distinct impression that he was thinking "I could always try again,
but it would be nice if I didn't have to !!".
The last thing I asked him was about the 10 million point goal. He said his intent was to
hopefully put up a score which would be much more difficult to beat than 7 million, or even
8 million. Considering how difficult each million point barrier was for him, surviving ten
such difficult situations were hard enough...now, to beat Donald, someone would have to find
a way to survive through eleven.
Any takers ?
**********************************
AFTERTHOUGHTS
Donald accepts the mantle of a seventh simultaneous classic arcade world record with stoic
professionalism. Defending so many titles at once will not be easy, but he has set such a
high bar that few can hope to take down some of his scores, especially not a near-8 hour,
10.6 million performance on "Millipede".
One thing is certain...there is no slowing this player down. Donald also holds quite a few
MAME records, which is the platform that emulates the inner-workings of the arcade classics,
allowing you to play the titles' ROMsets on your at-home PC in lieu of the presence of the
stand-up or sit-down arcade original. And he also holds the highest scores on the tournament
setting variations of a few of the arcade titles he holds the records on. For the moment,
Donald is among the top players in the globe, easily, when it comes to arcade titles. Who is
number one ? It doesn't really matter, not when you reach that caliber of competition. But
when it comes to "Millipede", "Tron", "Dig Dug", "Super Zaxxon" and the rest, there is no
denying who the number one player in the world is...Donald Hayes.
The staff of Twin Galaxies congratulates Donald on his historic and inspirational 10 million
point world record performance on the classic arcade title "Millipede". We wish him all the
best on his next title(s) to conquer, and look forward to his progress in the weeks and months
Will he set another world title this year, and add an unprecedented 8th to his belt ? Only
time will tell. Will he successfully defend the seven titles that he now calls his own ? The
same can be said. Will he find a new title that he can master and try for the world record
on...that, fellow gamers, is a guarantee !!
Robert
_________________
Robert T Mruczek
Twin Galaxies - Editor and Chief referee
Star Wars classic arcade marathon champion
rmruczek@doremus.com (work E-MAIL)
******************************
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Millipede
Manufacturer: Atari 
Millipede Archer with Bow
Armed only with a bow and arrows, you, as the "Archer", must fire through
a garden of enormous mushrooms to hit the giant millipede who steadily crawls right
toward you. Single heads shoot out from the sides of the play field!
Spiders, earwigs, inchworms and beetles appear to wreak their own special havoc
and then suddenly the screen is filled with waves of bombing bees, dragonflies
and mosquitoes! Your only chance is to explode one of the DDT bombs!
Game Play
Although this game utilizes the same format and controls as Centipede, Millipede
offers many extra elements that test your skill limits. You still shoot from the
bottom of the screen at a field of mushrooms, but instead of battling the original
four insects, you now face a deadlier variety of enemy bugs: millipedes, spiders,
bees, beetles, earwigs, inchworms, dragonflies, and mosquitoes. Naturally, each of
these insects has unique characteristics that must be studied.
Fortunately, there is a new feature that can be used to the player's advantage:
DDT bombs. Four of them can appear on the playfield at any given time. Shooting one
of them unleashes a cloud of deadly gas that destroys any insects, flowers or mushrooms
in the area. After every few levels a swarm of insects appears, the point value for
each insect shot during the swarm increases by 100 points up to 1000 points. Another
feature is the option to start at a higher level of difficulty, which progresses as
the player scores more points (similar to Tempest).
Millipede Mushrooms (close-up)
Miscellaneous
The game's original (or working) title was "Centipede Deluxe".
Technical
The game uses a 6502 microprocessor and two Atari Pokey sound chips.
Legacy
Centipede
Millipede
Millipede
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bernard
Location: Derry, NH
Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2005 9:17 pm Post subject: nice job Donald
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(cut and paste from another message board announcement)
WOW! Damn nice job Donald! Another incredible record to add to your list. What's next?
_________________
-David Nelson : captain Video Warriors (NH's Pro Video Game Team)
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permafrostrick
Referee
Location: Baltimore, MD
Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2005 9:41 pm Post subject:
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Nice...I liked the interview...which is most of what I read.
Donald, that's just plain sick man. The game play of Millipede is among the most intense
of any game around. To sustain that for nearly 8 hours is just plain sick.
I like how you say it's "potentially marathonable"...as it seems unlikely anyone would be
able to keep their wits about them for a 24 hour type run. Wow...at your scoring rate that
would be a 30+ million game.
You should let us know what you have plans for next...so we can avoid going for scores on
those games...cuz little point trying to compete against you on games you truly target...
although we might have some Q*bert and FHMC-Q*Bert action soon. Game on! hehe
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MKM
TG Advisor
Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2005 11:40 pm Post subject:
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___________
Please send me a Private Message to get my email for TG/game questions.
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MrXanthis
Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2005 1:03 am Post subject: omg, that's incredible...
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That is by far the most amazing thing I've ever "read". 7 titles. "wow" can't even
begin to express what an accomplishment that is.
Grats dude. Well earned.
John Drake
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LucidFaia
Location: Columbus, OH, USA
Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2005 1:28 am Post subject: Re: NEW World Record on
"Millipede" (arcade) !!
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RMRUCZEK wrote:
His new world mark, after 7 hours and 50 minutes of continuous lightning-fast
game play, is 10,627,331 points.
O_O
Holy crap!
_________________
Adam "Lucid Faia" Sweeney
Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream
by night.
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Zotmeister
Location: Tiverton, RI
Posted: Mon Feb 14, 2005 10:18 am Post subject:
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[bows respectfully] - ZM
_________________
Darkness lessons learned/Avenging golden tresses/Yellow flower blooms
- "(dedicated to Millia Rage)", original haiku
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Millipede Flyer
Millipede Bezel
Donald Hayes Ping Pong US Open (1997, Ft. Lauderdale) 
Donald Hayes, Awarded Second Place USA Table Tennis 2100 Division
Under 2100 was won by Florida's Yamil Rivera, whose rating of 2099 made him the
top seed. He defeated Donald Hayes in the final, 8,5,4.
Yamil Rivera beats Donald Hayes, Photo Below:
US Olympic Committee with Ping Pong Champions Scott Preiss (Left Side) and
Yami Rivera on (Right Side)
Scott Preiss with Juan Antonio Samaranch (center), former President of the
International Olympic Committee. Also in the picture is Former President of
the US Olympic Committee Robert Helmick, Mr. Vasqua Rana, President of the
Pan American Olympic Committee, and Yamil Rivera, Former Puerto Rican Junior
Champion. Photo was taken after an exhibition for Mr. Samaranch at the Olympic
Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO.
Bay State Games
