[8] Initially named Torpedo Launcher,[6] the game is called Periscope in the April 1967 issue of Cashbox, where Nakamura offers direct import assistance to distributors.

[7] According to former Sega CEO David Rosen, poor conditions in the US coin-operated manufacturing market prompted the company's development of electromechanical games.

[12] At the time, Periscope's large cabinet was cost-prohibitive for international export, but its popularity among distributors flying in to see the game prompted Sega to develop a smaller model for the worldwide market.

[6] Sega's prototype location testing of a new, smaller, single-player version of Periscope occurred in Asia and Europe, and distributors were still enthusiastic about its performance, according to Rosen.

[3][6] Enthusiastic distributors complained of the expensive but popular machine's overall low profit, so Sega suggested charging a premium price of 25 cents per play (equivalent to $2 in 2023).

[3][6] British documentary production company Pathé News recorded film footage of the game in London arcades during 1968 and 1969.

[3][6] A 1970 print ad for Jet Rocket said that Sega had "developed the most profitable games of the decade" while mentioning Periscope, Missile, Combat, and Grand Prix.

[24] Sega upgraded its subsequent game development to the latest technology, as Rosen explained: "We were doing lots of things that hadn't been done before, like adding sound and special effects.

[25] Its periscope viewer cabinet design was later adopted by several arcade video games, including Midway's Sea Wolf (1976) and Atari's Battlezone (1980).

[29] Retrospectively, Ken Horowitz praised Periscope's impressive features: "Large, bulky, and loud, it was an amazing sight to behold for the first time.

Periscope attracted a great deal of attention from customers, but it also made waves with distributors, and it was incredibly successful for Sega.