A 1976 offshoot of the earlier 70s arcade hit, Pong, Breakout added rows of bricks that needed breaking.

Though later versions on future consoles tried to tack a story and characters onto the simple paddle/ball/bricks scenario, it has always been assumed (at least by those writing this entry) that there was more to the original game’s story that what was on the screen.

Why not just call the game Bricks? Or Paddle Balling? Or Brick Break?”

The name Breakout implied that the goal was escape. Who would want to escape? Paddle, of course. Paddle wanted to use the ball to break out of this multi-colored work camp, to join its flat-line-shaped Paddle brethren on some far-off Paddle Paradise. Maybe he’d meet a Paddle with a few bumps in its line and take her home to meet Ma and Pa Paddle. Eventually, the pitter paddle of little Paddle Jr.

No one ever got that far, of course. Paddle remains forever trapped in a rectangular prison, forever bouncing that ball against bricks, dreaming of a better Paddle place.