Exidy’s utterly bizarre coin-op video game Pepper II arrives in arcades, and players are given the task of guiding an angelic being on his mission to zip up a maze made of zippers while pursued by little devils. While trying to figure out if any of it makes sense, the industry spends far too much time coining phrases like “wouldn’t you like to be a Pepper II?” 
The Game: You’re a little angel (of sorts). You run around a maze consisting of zippers which close or open, depending upon whether or not you’ve already gone over that section of the maze. Zipping up one square of the maze scores points for you, but it gets trickier. Little devils chase you around the maze, trying to kill you before you can zip up the entire screen. If you zip up enough of the maze and grab a power-pellet-like object, you can dispatch some of your pursuers. Clear the screen and the fun begins anew. (Exidy, 1982)
Memories: Once again, the gang at Exidy tries a new twist on the maze game. Sometimes they rock (as with the adventure game Venture – starring Winky! TM, pat. pend.), and sometimes they reek (Mouse Trap, anyone?). This one…this one’s just weird. It’s Amidar weird, and truthfully, the two games are exceedingly similar. There’s not much rationale for the whole thing – angels and devils trying to zip or unzip a maze made out of zippers? Ooooooookay!
Believe it or not, Coleco made a home version of Pepper II for its ColecoVision console, and the cartridge perfectly preserved the confusion and bewilderment of its quarter-gobbling inspiration.
A Phosphor Dot Fossil examined by Earl Green