Grandstand Invader From Space
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| Epoch's own Invader From Space, made in Japan. Grandstand sold the same game in the UK under the same name with Grandstand branding; no freely licensed photograph of a Grandstand-branded unit has been found (Joe Haupt, CC BY-SA 2.0) | |
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Epoch Co. (made in Japan) for Grandstand (Adam Imports Ltd, Harrogate) |
| Type | Tabletop electronic game |
| Released | 1980 (sources differ; see History)[1][2] |
| CPU | NEC uCOM-44 4-bit microcontroller, marked D552C 054[2] |
| Memory | — |
| Storage | — |
| Display | NEC FIP9AM18T vacuum fluorescent display, cyan, under a colour overlay[2] |
| Sound | 1-bit, from the microcontroller[2] |
| ROM | Inside the microcontroller (MAME's dump is 1 KB)[2] |
| Input | Intercept control lever (left and right), FIRE, LEVEL and START buttons, POWER switch[3] |
| Power | Four AA cells, or a mains adaptor[1][3] |
| OS / Firmware | — |
| Model no. | Epoch model 8020 (Epoch's own release)[4] |
The Grandstand Invader From Space is a battery-powered tabletop game of the Space Invaders type, made in Japan by Epoch and sold in the UK by Grandstand from about 1980. Epoch sold the same game under the same name in the USA.[2] An NEC uCOM-44 4-bit microcontroller runs the game and drives a single-colour vacuum fluorescent display (VFD); the blue, yellow and red bands the player sees come from a coloured overlay in front of the tube.[2] It was one of Grandstand's first tabletop games.[5] Grandstand went on to sell more Epoch games, among them Grandstand Astro Wars, Grandstand The Big Game Soccer and Grandstand Crazy Monster.
History
[edit | edit source]Grandstand was the name that Adam Imports of Harrogate put on the electronic games it imported into the UK.[6] MAME lists two releases of Epoch's Invader From Space: Epoch's own in the USA and Grandstand's in the UK.[2] The Handheld Museum describes the Grandstand version as licensed from Epoch and photographs a Grandstand-branded unit with its box, printed "GRANDSTAND INVADER FROM SPACE", and a Grandstand leaflet headed "The Game of Cosmic Combat".[7] No scan of that Grandstand leaflet has been found; Epoch's own leaflet, which uses the same subtitle, is hosted here.[3]
Most sources date the game to 1980: Epoch's leaflet carries a 1980 copyright, MAME's chip list dates the D552C 054 to 1980, and the Victoria and Albert Museum's record of a boxed Grandstand example gives 1980 as its production date.[3][2][1] The same V&A record's brief description, however, says the console, box and lining were made by Epoch for Grandstand "about 1985" and dates the parts "1982-84". The two dates in that record conflict, and no other source puts the game later than 1980.[1]
The Handheld Museum's page for Epoch's version calls the display LED. MAME, the V&A record ("blue fluorescent display") and the museum's own Grandstand page all describe a fluorescent display, and MAME names the tube.[4][2][1][7]
Hardware
[edit | edit source]| Part | Detail |
|---|---|
| Main board | Marked 36010 (A/B); made in Japan |
| Microcontroller | NEC uCOM-44, marked D552C 054 |
| Program | Mask ROM inside the microcontroller; MAME's dump is 1 KB |
| Display | NEC FIP9AM18T VFD, tube no. 0D, cyan |
| Overlay | Alien rows 1 and 2 blue, rows 3 and 4 yellow, row 5 red |
| Sound | 1-bit output from the microcontroller |
| Controls | Intercept control lever (left and right), FIRE, LEVEL and START buttons, POWER switch |
| Power | Four AA cells; 6 V DC 200 mA adaptor (Epoch); Grandstand Universal Mains Adaptor (Grandstand) |
Board, microcontroller, display and overlay from MAME's driver notes;[2] controls and power from Epoch's leaflet and the text of the Grandstand box recorded by the V&A.[3][1]
MAME's notes explain NEC's display names: FIP stands for fluorescent indicator panel and the number after it is the number of grids, so the FIP9AM18T has nine grids. The tube itself glows cyan only; the blue, yellow and red zones described in the leaflet are the overlay.[2][3]
The game program is mask-programmed into the D552C 054 itself, which is the chip MAME's dump was read from.[2] A failed microcontroller can therefore only be replaced from another Invader From Space, Epoch's or Grandstand's.
Owners' photographs of opened Grandstand units show a brown main board with the Epoch logo, the display tube lying along it, and the converter that powers the display: an NEC D882 power transistor at S02 and a round TDK transformer at I01, with electrolytic capacitors beside it. The battery holder runs down one side of the rear case, the adaptor socket sits at the top, and a small control board printed 36010-B, carrying two pushbuttons, is joined to the main board by a four-wire link. The speaker is a piezo disc.[8][9] The clock is a 400 kHz ceramic resonator, a TDK FCR 400.[10]
The game
[edit | edit source]The player defends missile bases on Earth against invaders descending through four zones of the display: the UFO zone at the top, then blue, yellow and red. There are five missile bases and so five chances to counterattack. The intercept control lever moves the missile launcher left and right and the FIRE button launches a missile; the next missile can be fired once the last has hit an invader or left the display. No more than 16 invaders are on the display at once.[3]
The LEVEL button chooses one of three speeds before play; the game starts at level 1 and the digital score readout shows the level. START begins each counterattack, and the readout shows the number of chances left. The game ends when all five bases have been hit, when an invader reaches the last position of the red zone (even with chances left), or when the score reaches 1,000, shown as three bars.[3]
Invaders score 5 points in the blue zone, 10 in the yellow and 15 in the red; a UFO scores 30, 40 or 50 at random.[3] A dealer's museum page gives a perfect game as 99 points;[5] Epoch's leaflet gives 1,000.[3]
Batteries and power
[edit | edit source]Epoch's leaflet asks for four AA cells and allows an AC adaptor of 6 V DC, 200 mA. It does not show the adaptor's polarity.[3] The Grandstand box, as transcribed by the V&A, also asks for four AA cells, strongly recommends alkaline cells, and says the game can be run from the mains with a Grandstand Universal Mains Adaptor, sold separately.[1] See Grandstand Universal Mains Adaptor.
The Grandstand label on the base gives the polarity: "For mains operation use a GRANDSTAND Universal Mains Adaptor. Negative Polarity."[9][11] The socket on the top of the case is wired with the negative lead to its centre terminal,[11] the same setting Grandstand's leaflets for its later Epoch games, such as Crazy Monster, ask for.[12] Neither the label nor Epoch's leaflet gives a polarity for Epoch's own adaptor, so measure any supply before connecting it.
The leaflet warns that the game will not operate properly on weak batteries and that erratic play or an erratic display means the batteries should be checked or replaced. Turn the game off after use and take the batteries out for long storage.[3] Old cells left in the box leak; see Battery Explosion, Capacitor or Corrosion Damage.
Repair
[edit | edit source]Invader From Space has its own repair guides:
- Grandstand Invader From Space General Maintenance: opening the case, the battery holder and adaptor socket, the controls, the speaker and the display tube.
- Grandstand Invader From Space Troubleshooting Guide: what should happen at power-on, measurements, a symptom table, the known faults, and the display.
What owners have found:
- No service manual or schematic has been found. Only one capacitor value has been published: C07, a 330 µF 10 V electrolytic beside the transformer, found bulging and leaking on a dead unit.[9]
- The fault found most often is the adaptor socket: its internal contact, which connects the cells when no plug is inserted, fails, leaving the game dead on batteries but working on an adaptor.[13][11][14]
- Two dead units were revived by replacing the D882 power transistor at S02.[9][14]
- A missing battery cover can be replaced with a 3D-printed one. Mike Underwood published a design for "the Grandstand Invaders From Space" in 2021 under CC BY 4.0; a copy is kept on the Internet Archive.[15]
- Replacement microcontrollers can only come from another copy of this game (see Hardware); one owner whose game showed only an "8" on its display traced the fault that far and could not find a donor chip.[10]
- Like Grandstand Cosmic Invader and Grandstand The Big Game Soccer, it runs on four AA cells.[7] Crazy Monster, a later Epoch game, takes four C cells.[12]
Documentation
[edit | edit source]- Epoch Invader From Space instructions (Epoch, 1980; six pages). Epoch's US leaflet for the same game: controls, display zones, scoring, batteries and adaptor rating. Grandstand's own leaflet has not been found.
Related pages
[edit | edit source]- Grandstand Invader From Space General Maintenance
- Grandstand Invader From Space Troubleshooting Guide
- Grandstand Universal Mains Adaptor
- Grandstand Astro Wars: Epoch's next game for Grandstand, on an NEC uCOM-43 microcontroller
- Grandstand The Big Game Soccer and Grandstand Crazy Monster: the other Epoch tabletops in this batch
- Grandstand Cosmic Invader: VTech's invader game, also sold by Grandstand
- Category:Grandstand
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Victoria and Albert Museum, object O27497, "invader from space" / "grandstand electronic game", accession B.154:1-1997, given by Glenn Benson (retrieved through the V&A API 2026-10-18). Production date 1980, published in Japan; "moulded plastic battery operated, hand held; with blue fluorescent display". Brief description: console, box, lining and battery cover "made in Japan by Epoch Co. Ltd. for Grandstand about 1985", parts dated "1982-84". Object history transcribes the box: 4 x AA/penlight batteries, alkaline strongly recommended, can be operated from the mains with a Grandstand Universal Mains Adaptor (optional extra).
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 MAME source, hh_ucom4.cpp (retrieved 2026-10-18). Driver notes for Epoch Invader From Space: made in Japan; PCB labels 36010(A/B); NEC uCOM-44 microcontroller labelled D552C 054, 1-bit sound; cyan VFD NEC FIP9AM18T tube no. 0D; colour overlay alien rows 1-2 blue, 3-4 yellow, 5 red; known releases Epoch (USA) and Grandstand (UK). Chip list dates the D552C 054 to 1980. ROM dump of 0x400 bytes taken from the D552C 054. File header explains NEC VFD names (FIP = fluorescent indicator panel, first number = number of grids).
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 Epoch Company Ltd, Epoch's Invader From Space: The Game of Cosmic Combat, instruction leaflet, copyright 1980, made in Japan (Epoch Corporation, Englewood, New Jersey). Hosted here as File:Epoch Invader From Space Instructions.pdf: p. 2 (object of the game, five missile bases, power switch, three levels, start button, intercept control lever), p. 3 (fire button, the four display zones, score readout, four AA batteries, weak-battery warning, A/C-D/C adapter 6 V DC 200 mA with no polarity marked), p. 4 (directions for play), p. 5 (game ending at 1,000 points, no more than 16 invaders, scoring).
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Handheld Museum, "Epoch Invader From Space" (retrieved 2026-10-18): 1980, four AA batteries, model 8020; describes the display as LED.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Retro Games, "Grandstand" museum page (dealer's collection page, retrieved 2026-10-18): "Invader from Space - 1980", one of Grandstand's first tabletop games, "Perfect game 99 points on 3 skill levels".
- ↑ Play It Again project, "Grandstand" (retrieved 2026-10-18): Leslie Kenyon "had previously used the Grandstand name to sell electronic games in the U.K. through his Adam Imports business".
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Handheld Museum, "Grandstand Invader From Space" (retrieved 2026-10-18): 1980, VFD, four AA batteries, licensed from Epoch; photographs of the Grandstand-branded game, its box and its leaflet.
- ↑ Icky, "Grandstand Invader From Space - Hand Held Game", exxos forum, 26 March 2024 (retrieved 2026-10-18): photograph of an opened Grandstand unit (IMG_3640), examined at full size: brown main board with the Epoch logo and the display tube lying along it; TDK transformer marked TZ-91 at I01 with electrolytic C07 beside it, and C08 and C10; transistor S02; piezo speaker disc; battery holder along the right-hand side of the rear case; DC socket at the top right; control board printed 36010-B with two pushbuttons, joined to the main board by the four-wire link L05.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Balders, "Grandstand Invaders from space game", Foxes Den (repair blog), 15 March 2025 (retrieved 2026-10-18). A dead Grandstand unit: C07, "a 330uf 10v electrolytic capacitor", bulging and leaking; all four electrolytics replaced without effect; the NEC D882 power transistor at S02 replaced, after which the game worked. Photographs examined at full size, including the base label ("For mains operation use a GRANDSTAND Universal Mains Adaptor. Negative Polarity. Made in Japan.") and the opened game.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Handheld Museum forum, "Invaders from Space repair", December 2019 (retrieved 2026-10-18): a Grandstand unit whose bright display showed only an "8" and made no sound after its capacitors and transistors were replaced; the 400 kHz ceramic oscillator is a TDK FCR 400; a substitute resonator made no difference and the owner concluded the D552C 054 had failed, but could not find a replacement chip.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Kip Hakes, "Repairing a Grandstand Invader from Space from eBay! - Fix it Friday", YouTube, 18 August 2023 (watched through its transcript, retrieved 2026-10-18): reads the base label ("for mains operation use a Grandstand Universal Mains Adaptor, negative polarity"); dead on batteries because of the DC socket, which he bypassed; the socket has the negative wires on its centre terminal and the positive wires on its outer terminal.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Adam Imports Ltd, Grandstand Crazy Monster: Electronic Mini Arcade Game directions, copyright 1983. Hosted here as File:Grandstand Crazy Monster Instructions.pdf: p. 1, four Duracell MN 1400 (C) batteries; Grandstand Universal Mains Adaptor, "Set polarity switch to negative-polarity".
- ↑ Retro Tech Repair, "Grandstand Invader From Space Game Repair and Restore - Retro Games", YouTube, 15 January 2019 (watched through its transcript, retrieved 2026-10-18): a unit that worked only on an adaptor; the DC socket's contact that should connect the batteries with no plug inserted was open; replacing the socket cured it.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 StezStix Fix, "A VIEWER sent me this Broken INVADER FROM SPACE Game | Can I FIX It?", YouTube, 30 September 2023 (watched through its transcript, retrieved 2026-10-18): a dead unit with a dirty DC socket contact, a poor battery-spring joint and a faulty D882 power transistor; working after all three were dealt with.
- ↑ Mike Underwood (saint_mikie), "Grandstand Invaders From Space Battery Cover", Thingiverse 4888078, 17 June 2021, CC BY 4.0; mirrored on the Internet Archive as thingiverse-4888078 (retrieved 2026-10-18): "Replacement Battery Cover for the Grandstand Invaders From Space, 1980 hand held video game".