Space Panic is a 1980 arcade game designed by Universal. Chris Crawford calls it the first ever platform game, as it pre-dates Nintendo's Donkey Kong from 1981, which is often cited as the original platform game. Space Panic lacks Donkey Kong's jump mechanic, disqualifying it as a platformer for some. The main character digs holes in the platforms that he must lure the aliens into. He must then hit them to knock them out of the hole and off the screen. In later levels, two holes must be lined up vertically in order to dispose of the aliens. There is also a limited supply of oxygen.
Source: Wikipedia, "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Panic," available under the CC-BY-SA License.