Mole Whack Arcade Screensaver
The Mole Whack Arcade screensaver is a self-playing, attract-mode tribute to the classic whack-a-mole cabinet. It is free, runs in your browser, and ESC exits.
Live preview
Press ESC to leave fullscreen. Settings are saved in your browser only.
How the Mole Whack Arcade screensaver works
Moles pop up at random from a grid of holes, staying up briefly before ducking back down.
A self-timed hammer swings down to strike moles just after they surface, adding to the score.
The pace gradually quickens, exactly like the arcade original's escalating difficulty.
All art and names here are original, in the spirit of the genre rather than a copy of any one cabinet.
Whack-a-mole and the arcade redemption era
Whack-a-mole was created in 1975 by Kazuo Yamada of the Japanese company TOGO and released to Japanese arcades as Mogura Taiji, roughly “Mole Buster”. Bandai licensed it in 1977, and a North American version was later developed and sold. It is also known as Mogura Tataki, “Mole Smash”.
A cabinet at waist height has a panel of holes, from which five to eight moles pop up at random. The player strikes them with a large, soft mallet, faster hits scoring higher, and moles that are not struck sink back down. The game speeds up over time and ends when the time limit runs out. It is classed as a redemption game, where success earns tickets or prizes, as in skee-ball and other attractions.
The appeal lies in reflexes and simple feedback. The random choice of holes means a player cannot memorise a pattern, and the rising pace pushes reaction time to a limit. Many arcade cabinets run a demonstration loop, known as attract mode, when nobody is playing, which is the idea this screensaver borrows.
A worked example
A mole pops up in the corner just as the hammer catches it mid-rise, sending a satisfying scoring flash across the board.
Settings & tips
- Accent recolours the score flashes.
- Runs in self-playing attract mode, like a classic arcade cabinet's demo screen.
- Original art and names — an homage, not a copy.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I play this myself?
- It runs in self-playing attract mode, like a classic arcade cabinet between games.
- Is this an official cabinet?
- No — it is an original tribute inspired by the classic whack-a-mole genre.
- Is a key needed?
- No — it runs entirely locally.
- Is it free?
- Yes — free, no download, in your browser.
- Who invented whack-a-mole?
- Kazuo Yamada of the Japanese company TOGO created it in 1975, and it was released in Japan as Mogura Taiji.
- What is a redemption game?
- An arcade or carnival game where success earns tickets or prizes, which players can exchange for rewards.
- Why can't you memorise the mole pattern?
- The holes are chosen at random, so there is no fixed sequence to learn, and speed rather than memory decides the score.