Cannonball Blitz is a game by Olaf Lubeck and released in the early 1980s by Sierra On-Line (then known as "On-Line Systems") for Apple II

Apple II

The Apple II is an 8-bit home computer, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products, designed primarily by Steve Wozniak, manufactured by Apple Computer and introduced in 1977...

, VIC-20, and TI-99/4A computers. The game is a Donkey Kong

Donkey Kong (video game)

is an arcade game released by Nintendo in 1981. It is an early example of the platform game genre, as the gameplay focuses on maneuvering the main character across a series of platforms while dodging and jumping over obstacles. In the game, Jumpman must rescue a damsel in distress, Lady, from a...

clone, although cannonballs and cannons replace barrels and a soldier replaces the large ape. On the first level, the player character catches a flag instead of rescuing a girl.

There were three different levels, the third of which is particularly challenging. After completing the third level, the player views a small celebration scene and then restarts at the first level. Repeated levels only differ from those of the first round in the harsher timing patterns of the game.

Cannonball Blitz achieved some notoriety in the Apple hacking community as being rather difficult to crack. Track 17, sector D of the game contained the message "YOU'LL NEVER CRACK IT".