It was developed by Bruce Artwick for the Apple II, then ported to the Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, and IBM PC (as a self-booting disk).

[6] In a PC Magazine review, Corey Sandler called it "a strange combination of game and graduate physics lesson" that could have appeal to tinkerers and those who wish to learn how physics impacts game design.

[1] Softline highlighted the Apple version's tweakability as having "a modest educational purpose" and making it "a programmer's tour de force".

John J. Anderson of Video & Arcade Games called the Atari version's realism "obsessive" and praised its configurability, even though one can not design one's own pinball machine, as in the Pinball Construction Set.

[8] Comparing it to Raster Blaster and David's Midnight Magic, Computer Gaming World's reviewers determined that Night Mission had the best ball physics and fastest balls, making it the best choice.