Syfo-Dyas Posted October 27, 2010 Share Posted October 27, 2010 (edited) One game I don't really hear many people talking about is Pitfall II. I always hear about Pitfall I, but never II. As far as I was concerned Pitfall II was the cat's meow. Sizing up to or even perhaps surpassing Montezuma's Revenge and Bruce Lee in replay value and quality. Unlike the first game, part II actually had an end goal, and a series of vertical and horizontal paths you had to trek in order to reach it. Your character would not only collect Gold for points, but would also make use of items such as the Balloon to reach higher places. My only complaint is that they did not make another sequel for the Atari before moving onto the Nintendo Classic, which as far as I'm concerned marks the end of the series, as the rest of the sequels, while fun, do not feel at all the same as the old Atari classics. So now I'm wondering if the Atari has any other Metroid/Castlevania type games of this nature? Ones that play out more like an item collecting adventure in a large world, rather than a game based upon levels and a point system? Edited October 27, 2010 by Syfo-Dyas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaybird3rd Posted October 27, 2010 Share Posted October 27, 2010 I like Pitfall II. As I've said elsewhere, I think that more random elements would have given the game more replay value, and I get annoyed sometimes running into the flying enemies. Nevertheless, it's a great title for the 400/800 computer series. David Crane told an interesting story about an experiment that was conducted at Activision during the development of the Atari 400/800 and Commodore 64 versions of Pitfall II. The two programmers tasked with the conversions, working in parallel, took two different approaches: the C64 version was coded from scratch, using the original 2600 version as a model, while the Atari version took the original 2600 source code and modified it for the 400/800 hardware. Crane was curious to see which approach would work the best, and as it happens, the two programmers finished their work at the same time. But, while the C64 version needed a full debugging cycle, Mike Lorenzen (the Atari programmer) only had to fix the bugs related to the 400/800 modifications, because the original 2600 code he started with was "bug-free." This gave him some extra time during the debugging phase, which he used to add a whole new level to the game. This is the reason why the Atari 400/800 version has an extra level, while the C64 version does not. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syfo-Dyas Posted October 27, 2010 Author Share Posted October 27, 2010 I didn't realize the Atari version had more than the C64 and 2600 one. I wonder if the Arcade version was any different than the home ports? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irgendwer Posted October 27, 2010 Share Posted October 27, 2010 (edited) So now I'm wondering if the Atari has any other Metroid/Castlevania type games of this nature? Ones that play out more like an item collecting adventure in a large world, rather than a game based upon levels and a point system? Not really a Metroid/Castlevania match, but IMHO highly underestimated: "Spindizzy". The game is (esp. for a 64k machine) great. Ok, it is too hard with the time limit, but without (cheat version), I still find it challenging in regard to the 'riddles' and skill: A long time entertainer. 9.5 out of 10! Edited October 27, 2010 by Irgendwer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcokitt2000 Posted October 27, 2010 Share Posted October 27, 2010 Thats was a nice game and i play it on the 800xl 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syfo-Dyas Posted October 27, 2010 Author Share Posted October 27, 2010 Very hard, yet very awesome Marble Madness type game! Indeed a gem! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+CharlieChaplin Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 (edited) hmmm, I never played Castlevania, but maybe KE`s simple Castlemania is similar to it (or it has only a similar name)... Or how about the type-in listing "the Adventurer": http://www.atari.fandal.cz/detail.php?files_id=5594 (available as single XEX file from Homesoft) -Andreas Koch. castlemania.zip Edited October 28, 2010 by CharlieChaplin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syfo-Dyas Posted October 28, 2010 Author Share Posted October 28, 2010 From the screen shots I looked at, it kind of looks Castevania-esque. Will check it out, thankx! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaybird3rd Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 Another similar title to Pitfall II that I can think of is Pharaoh's Curse by Synapse Software, which is also a treasure hunt in a large multi-screen world. There is also Spelunker, but that might be more level-based than what you're looking for. It also suffers from the unfortunate "fall one pixel and you die" syndrome that has ruined so many other potentially great games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 Both Spelunker and Pharaohs curse were terrific games, loved curse, spent ages on that and yes I agree spelunker could be a joy stick thrower at times, I always had issues with ropes..grrr, but such a nice game, any one who liked it should play the NES version, very nice indeed as are Tim Martins arcade versions (although I think he was just the designer on them). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+therealbountybob Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 I liked Pitfall II a lot, but it takes ages to play through! Has anyone (or can anyone) create a cracked version where you can start on the second stage - I remember this being extremely hard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 I liked Pitfall II a lot, but it takes ages to play through! Has anyone (or can anyone) create a cracked version where you can start on the second stage - I remember this being extremely hard I watched someone do it on one of those Long Play things, wwwow, long play wasn't wrong..It seemed to go on for ever... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syfo-Dyas Posted October 28, 2010 Author Share Posted October 28, 2010 (edited) Really?! I thought Pitfall 2 seemed a little short, though I also remember wishing it had a game save feature. Spelunker....CRINGE! Ya I've played it on my Atari and NES... ...threw the joystick, never came back. Might give it another go though. Edited October 28, 2010 by Syfo-Dyas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+CharlieChaplin Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 Hmm, how about the german type-in listing "Die Mission" (the mission) by Carsten Reitz: http://www.atari.fandal.cz/detail.php?files_id=5365 which is also available as a single/stand-alone *.XEX file from Homesoft (on disk 326)... -Andreas Koch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grant74 Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 Pitfall II was a great game - as you say - underrated too! although back in the day I was partial to a go on "Jet set Willy" - although I now dont play it anymore as I've heard its not actually finishable - therefore almost pointless! But did enjoy it back then tho. Also - "Whirlinurd" - a game I did used to enjoy playing - good graphics too - but for some reason, my copy seemed prone to crashing - hence losing where I'd gotten to in the game! Arrgghh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+therealbountybob Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 Pitfall II was a great game - as you say - underrated too! although back in the day I was partial to a go on "Jet set Willy" - although I now dont play it anymore as I've heard its not actually finishable - therefore almost pointless! But did enjoy it back then tho. Also - "Whirlinurd" - a game I did used to enjoy playing - good graphics too - but for some reason, my copy seemed prone to crashing - hence losing where I'd gotten to in the game! Arrgghh! Did you mean JSW for the atari, if so there was a remake in 2007 much better so I hear I liked Whirlinurd but it was a tough game, never beat any of the blocks of 10 stages - must have another play Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syfo-Dyas Posted October 29, 2010 Author Share Posted October 29, 2010 Ya looks fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tin_Lunchbox Posted October 29, 2010 Share Posted October 29, 2010 I was also an avid 8bit Pitfall II player. The musical soundtrack and good graphics set up the experience and then there was solid gameplay and doing different things (swimming, falling, balloon flight) in the large subterranean maze. It did take a long time to play and I think I only ever rescued Harry's coyote friend, which is accomplished by completing the first stage. Yeah, it would have been nice to be able to start on second and third stages, perhaps by being rewarded with a pass-code on completion of the prior stage. As far as I know, to get to the third stage you've got to grind through the first two and it makes for a marathon gaming experience. It's interesting to read here that the code was adapted from the 2600 version. That's one of the most technologically-advanced 2600 carts. I have a couple but neither works leading me to wonder if their circuitry is prone to failure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littleman jack Posted November 1, 2010 Share Posted November 1, 2010 Montezuma's Revenge is another in the same vein as Pharaoh's Curse and Pitfall II. All very good games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chilly Willy Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 Really?! I thought Pitfall 2 seemed a little short, though I also remember wishing it had a game save feature. Yes, a game save was sorely needed... so I made one! Have you seen a 24KB version of Pitfall II on the net? That's one I made many years ago; it was the first "true" hack, allowing you to get beyond the balloon stage without crashing or "odd" problems. I took the opportunity to also add a game save - just press OPTION during the game to get the menu. You can format a floppy (single-side/single density only), save a game to floppy, and load a game from floppy). It was the only way to get that damn golden rope... jump - die - reload, jump - die - reload, jump - die - reload, jump - MADE IT! - save, jump - die - reload, jump - die - reload, jump - die - reload... The game was heavily protected - the entire rom was checksummed, and the protection code used in places as data to keep you from just nop'ing them out. My solution was simple - leave the rom only; I just pulled out all the game code, rewrote it to skip any checks, changed where it ran, and added the save game features. So you had an untouched version of the rom at the normal place, then the actual running code under it. It worked like a charm, and runs on any Atari with 48KB of ram. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kjmann Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 I'd like a copy of that. do you still have it. I can't seem to find it anywhere. =) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chilly Willy Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 I'd like a copy of that. do you still have it. I can't seem to find it anywhere. =) I posted it to the hacks forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budburns Posted May 24, 2019 Share Posted May 24, 2019 Just got done playing this classic game again with the awesome storage edition. I've re-posted the image just in case you haven't tried it before. Big props and all credit to Chilly Willy for this of course. (Hit "A" on the menu to load the game. Use OPTION to access the storage menu once loaded.) I've also included my SAVE game disk. If you load save game 0, you just need to walk right and touch the guy playing the flute to see the end of the second Easter egg level. Maps can be found here: http://pitfallharry.tripod.com/MapRoom/PitfallMapWarning.html Pitfall 2 (SaveEdition).ATR Pitfall2 (Saves).ATR 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Philsan Posted May 25, 2019 Share Posted May 25, 2019 There's a version without the need to press A to start. Pitfall II - Lost Caverns - Adventurer's Edition (1984) (Activision) (save with option key).atr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted May 25, 2019 Share Posted May 25, 2019 (edited) Thanks people, may have these but I need to revisit PF II after rereading this thread......I remember finding its mega hard and with age, that won't have got better Edited May 25, 2019 by Mclaneinc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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