Grabber - split screen Pacman

[Mr SQL]

I want to make a port of Grabber for the Atari VCS - for anyone who doesn't know what Grabber is:

Grabber is an incredible game by Mike Huey that takes the PACMAN genre to the next level like Ed Averett did with KC Munchkin. 

 

Imagine a split screen pacman, one screen blue and one screen red, both mazes stacked on top of one other.

Next imagine jumping back and forth between both to clear the mazes but the Monsters keep taking the dots and bringing them back to the center - oh year, you collect the dots and bring them to the boxes in the center of the mazes.

 

Interesting note for programmers: This game was programmed like an Atari game with critical timing loops so the programmer could render the inspiring multi-voice music not otherwise possible simultaneously during gameplay on the Color Computer!

 

 

Conversion notes:

I want to make this Atari port scroll side to side with double wide mazes, two different ones.

No scrolling up and down though because it would obfuscate Mike concept creation of the double playable maze.

 

I plan to get rid of the rectangle placeholder, the game grids are small enough you can tell where you'll get transported to.

 

Custom controller for Grabber:
This custom controller will (obviously) be required for optimum Grabber gameplay:

The Grabber controller was introduced when Grabber was released as a generic advertisment for Pacman as an add-on to existing Atari Joysticks with precision to handle mazes.

This concept is based on the idea that a Joystick can control maze turning better than a gamepad; I agree and in the past I have disallowed Sega gamepads, but I will allow those to be used as well since some players, simply prefer the pads.

 

Thoughts and ideas are welcome! 

 

 

[TwentySixHundred]

Interesting concept, i don't see why it wouldn't be possible and adds that challenge with having to switch control between screens.

[KevKelley]

This looks cool. I would definitely play.

[+Karl G]

It looks potentially fun! I somehow missed this game BITD when I had a CoCo.  🙂 

[Arenafoot]

41 minutes ago, Karl G said:

It looks potentially fun! I somehow missed this game BITD when I had a CoCo.  🙂 

Me too!

Sounds like a great game idea Mr SQL!

[AtariLeaf]

It was a fun one. I'd love see a 2600 version of Outhouse

 

 

[Mr SQL]

1 hour ago, AtariLeaf said:

It was a fun one. I'd love see a 2600 version of Outhouse

 

Yes I had alot of fun playing this game with my cousin and KC on his O2, making it to the second chiptune took awhile and felt like reaching the green screen in Mrs Pacman. 

 

Outhouse was awesome and a hillarious concept, the gameplay really gets intense at the end when the characters start running away with the rolls trailing!