Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(N.Z.) the video/computer game Space Invaders; thus used generically for other electronic games.

1985		Dominion (Wellington) 26 Feb. 6: My main entertainment [at Opunake] with my friends is Friday nights. We all gather at the fish shop where lots of kids play spacies [DNZE].
1992		Dominion (Wellington) 5 Dec. 14: If parents and elders had said this to their children they would not have ended up sniffing glue, playing ‘spacies’, and having no self-esteem [DNZE].