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BAGMAN thread! Or SUPER BAGMAN!


retrorussell

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Damn, these games are insanely hard!  I'm not a great gamer but usually I'll be able to beat at least one level on a game on a semi-consistent basis with a little practice.  Not BAGMAN or SUPER BAGMAN.  Those guards will follow you even off-screen and they get faster and faster.  And you have SO many bags of gold to pick up and deposit in your wheelbarrow, ALONG WITH a timer that will kill you when it reads zero!  But I'll be damned if the games aren't fun as hell.

 

How To Play BAGMAN: 

As an escaped convict (in striped suit) you must pick up all the gold bags in 3 fixed yet connected maze screens, and deposit them in your wheelbarrow.  You can move the wheelbarrow but not take it down any floors, even on an elevator.  Your greatest obstacles are the timer which ticks down in 100 increments, and is restored by depositing the gold in your wheelbarrow (or dying), and the 2 guards (old white-haired guys dressed in blue).  You can also fall to your death off a ledge, get struck by the moving mine cart, and get squished by an elevator.  When (IF!) you manage to load all the gold bags in the wheelbarrow you will beat Act 1 and move on to Act 2, which has more gold bags on each screen.

 

Things to know that might help:

-The guards can be clumsy, especially early on.  They fall off cliffs like they're lemmings.  But the mine carts nor descending elevators will not hurt them.  And the more they get hurt (by your doing or their own clumsiness) the faster they will get when they arise again.

-You have weapons at your disposal: 1) a pickaxe, which will at the very least make the guards run the other way (and maybe off a cliff/offscreen) when you pick it up (you can also stun them if you touch them with it).  The pickaxe will not last long in your possession before it disappears.  There are a handful of pickaxes in each Act.  2) your wheelbarrow, if you park it over the top of a ladder a guard is climbing and if he strikes it with his head, he will fall and get stunned.

-You can grab a beam and drop into a minecart.  It will move back and forth along the floor and won't go off a ledge.  You can easily mess up the timing of dropping into the cart and die!  The guards can't touch you when you're in the minecart and you can pick up gold bags/pickaxes while riding the cart.

-The elevator only goes up one floor at a time, though it drops ALL THE WAY down once it reaches the top.  Guards can wait for the opportunity to ride it or get you when the elevator stops on their floor.

-Gold bags can weigh you down when you carry them and let the guards catch up to you, but the BLUE money bag (worth mucho points) is VERY heavy.  You need to awkwardly move the pickaxe back and forth at the wall in the way of this bag.

-You may be able to change the position/direction of the elevator or cops if you move back and forth between the edges of the screen.

 

SUPER BAGMAN:

This plays much the same as the first game but with some differences:

-An escalator on the first screen.

-Much better music soundtrack!

-Less minecarts to watch out for/worry about dropping into correctly.

-The ability to JUMP over gaps (the cops can do this too).

-Bombs and guns to use against the cops! (The cops can eventually use their guns on you.)

-FIVE screens instead of 3 (in the original)!

-A moving platform that allows you to bring the wheelbarrow down to lower floors!

-A second part on each Act that allows you to free a fellow prisoner when you find the key. (gives an extra life)

 

Feel free to discuss your history with these games, any other tips you can think of, post pics/vids/etc.

 

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^ Totally agreed; with me that timer, the guards waiting for me on the elevator, and the dangerous minecarts are all equally annoying!

 

 

A little more info (and pics):

BAGMAN and SUPER BAGMAN were created by a French company called Valadon Automation and licensed to Stern in the US.  That may explain the weird voice samples spoken by your character.

BAGMAN was released in 1982 and came in a yellow cabinet with cool pics of the convict explaining how to play in comic strip-style!

models+277.jpg

 

The 4-way joystick controlled your convict and the single ACTION button allowed you to grab/let go of the wheelbarrow/pickaxe/gold bag/beam.

Here's the screens:

image1.jpg

 

When you see a beam on the roof of a floor you'll know that a minecart will eventually come towards you.  Be aware that you either need to hang from a beam or get the hell out of the way!  I don't like the minecarts.

There's 18 total bags of gold to grab.  NOTE: If you get killed while carrying a bag of gold, it will be gone on your next life!  That's one less bag you need to worry about.  The main theme playing is "Turkey In The Straw" and an unknown theme on the 3rd screen.  "Shave and a Haircut" plays when you die.

SUPER BAGMAN pics forthcoming.

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Some other quick things I want to point out on BAGMAN and SUPER BAGMAN:

-The guards, when stunned, will fall on their backs and see stars.  The faster the stars move over their head, the sooner they will get up and the faster they will be when they do.

-From what I hear you DEFINITELY want to transport the wheelbarrow to lower floors on that moving platform on the last screen of SUPER BAGMAN.

-Scaring off a guard by picking up a pickaxe is often better than actually striking them with it.

-In SUPER BAGMAN, your pistol has 6 bullets.  The cops can also shoot when you are armed, though at first only after you fire the first shot.

-In SUPER BAGMAN, the bomb will detonate after a couple seconds.  You must pick it up (you can carry it with you up ladders, even!) and then drop it.  Then it will eventually detonate.  Guards hit by the explosion will be shot forward a few paces, and they'll kill you if they hit you (as will the explosion if you're caught in it).  

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I liked Bagman growing up and played it a lot. But I always wondered what would happen if you "cleared" the screen and got all the bags, which I was never able to do.

 

It wasn't until MAME that I was able to see it via cheats. To be honest, it was a little disappointing. :lol:

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1 hour ago, NE146 said:

I liked Bagman growing up and played it a lot. But I always wondered what would happen if you "cleared" the screen and got all the bags, which I was never able to do.

 

It wasn't until MAME that I was able to see it via cheats. To be honest, it was a little disappointing. :lol:

Yeah, clearing all the bags in SUPER BAGMAN is far more interesting.  You get to grab the key and rescue your convict buddy for an extra life.  Although, the way you carry him out is very suspect.. ?

Screens:

0000.png

0001.png

0002.png

0003.png

0004.png

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On the 2 screens with the big SLIDE, you must hit the ACTION button right after the slide or you'll plummet down the shaft and die.  The action button lets you jump across gaps in SUPER BAGMAN.  The cops can do this too but will fail here and there; clumsy dumbasses.

Further notes for each screen:

1. The escalator only goes one way-- left to right.  You can't move backwards on it.  If you're on it and a guard runs into you at the other end (it won't simply wait for you, I don't believe) you're effed.  You can jump forward simply by pressing the action button when you're walking without a bag, and if you do this at the bottom right as you leave the screen you can press down immediately and climb a ladder to maybe save you a step or two if a guard is hot on your trail.  

2. Not only use the action button to jump after the slide here, but also across the gaps on the 2nd to bottom floor.  You can lean your back over an edge with a gold bag and drop it down below.  Also, this is screen is where you take the key once you get all the gold; you can see your prisoner buddy inside the jail cell.

3. Here is another slide you have to press the action button after to jump the gap.  Also, note the GUNSMITH building where you can get the gun (just run over it to collect) and a bomb.  Also, the dreaded mine cart is here and spans the next room as well (thankfully, it's the only one in this game whereas there were multiple ones in BAGMAN).

4. The elevator here is the "go one floor at a time and plummet when it gets to the top" type.  You will need to drop a bag down below to pick up later.

5. The last screen has the moving platform that goes one floor at a time and doesn't plummet all the way down from the top.  This is the one you can bring the wheelbarrow on!  Also note that the heavy blue bag from the first game is here too-- but you don't break the wall with the pickaxe; you must use a bomb.  But you will want to use the wheelbarrow on the lower floors via this platform.

P.S.: If I didn't mention it yet, you can drop the bags on the guards' heads if they are closing in on you as you climb a ladder (on BAGMAN too)!  You can do the same with bombs and the key.

 

Music in SUPER BAGMAN: "Red River Valley", "You Are My Sunshine", "Jimmy Crack Corn" and "Auld Lang Syne" (when you lose your last life).

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One other thing I just read about on a FAQ:  

The guards get faster AS YOUR SCORE RISES.  So maybe it's best if you don't necessarily deposit all the gold on one screen at once.  Like, maybe bring a bunch of bags up at least close to the surface so when you do get to the point where the guards are crazy fast, you can quickly load the bags.  Of course, you will still need to dump a bag here and there to restore the timer.  I think at 40,000 points the guards are as fast as you without a bag in your hands.

I'll need to work on my game with this strategy and see what I come up with..

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BAGMAN SCORING:

10 points for each step you take-- yep, you can score just by walking!

100 points for dropping into a cart successfully.

Time remaining bonus for dropping a bag in the wheelbarrow.  Note: when you timer gets to just 400 (4 seconds from you dying), a little tune will play to alert you.

Time remaining bonus for dropping the blue bag in the wheelbarrow DOUBLED.

500 points for smacking a guard with the pickaxe/dropping a bag on him/hitting his head on the wheelbarrow.

30,000 and when you clear a level (without dying with the last bag in your possession) gives you an extra life.

 

This is a chart for how quickly the guard get with what scoring level:

0-10,000 points: You are MUCH faster than the guards, even with a money bag.

10,000-20,000 points: Still faster than the guards even with a bag, but less so.

20,000-30,000 points: Still a little faster than the guards without a bag, but a tad slower than the guards with one. 

30,000-40,000 points: Barely faster than the guards without a bag, and now much slower than them with one.

40,000+: The guards are as fast as you without a bag, and you are in big trouble if they're hot on your heels while carrying a bag.

 

A tiny bit more on the guards' AI:

They will always come after you if on the same floor as you.  If you come behind them when they are not looking they will turn right around and follow you.  Again, they will run off when you pick up the pickaxe.  They would rather drop off a cliff or run off the screen and not return for a while than get pickaxed.  Whether you just stand there holding the pickaxe or run around with it, it will disappear after awhile unless you drop it.  Smacking a guard with the pickaxe will use it up immediately.

Again, the guards may behave differently if you move backwards off the screen when entering, and then return (unless one is right on your heels).  This trick often makes the elevator work in your favor.

 

One more note about the minecart:

On the last screen in BAGMAN the minecart can move right through the elevator!  WTF??  This can kill you!

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  • 1 year later...

I'd love for the game to reward you for completing an act.  Like maybe, timer moves slower; guards require a higher score from you to get faster; infinite bullets for your gun (Super Bagman); Bagman himself is a little faster, bags don't weigh you down as much; or maybe CONTROL THE ELEVATORS! 

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I don't know if anyone else had seen this, but I remember a BAGMAN cabinet at Pietro's Pizza next to the (now defunct) Kellogg Bowl in Milwaukie, OR that let you control Bagman during the attract mode!  Did anyone else play a cabinet that had that happen?  Are there some versions that allow this?  Dipswitch activated?

 

You couldn't control him throughout the attract mode-- I think it was just for a short while.  He'd pick up a bag, drop it in the wheelbarrow, push it around a bit, pick-ax a guard, etc. and then I think he hung from a beam and you could control him from that point on until the game went back to the title screen.

 

Interesting clone called GILLIGAN'S GOLD:

 

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  • 1 month later...

I have the game. Have hit 6 levels and 426000!! After the 3rd act u have infinite ammo!! The key to the act 1 is moving your bags in the mine cart shaft then park wheel B. at bottom of latter drop the bags in the Wheel B from the mine cart as you go by.....Act 2 the key is getting bags over to the 2nd lower screen and the drop down in the wheel B to finish the act. the rest of the acts are the same as act 2 but move just a bit faster with infinite ammo. What a great game! 

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On 4/12/2021 at 3:33 PM, frankinbag said:

I have the game. Have hit 6 levels and 426000!! After the 3rd act u have infinite ammo!! The key to the act 1 is moving your bags in the mine cart shaft then park wheel B. at bottom of latter drop the bags in the Wheel B from the mine cart as you go by.....Act 2 the key is getting bags over to the 2nd lower screen and the drop down in the wheel B to finish the act. the rest of the acts are the same as act 2 but move just a bit faster with infinite ammo. What a great game! 

Can you make a video of this on YouTube, to share your tips/tricks/playthrough so I can see them in action and study them?

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 3/5/2021 at 9:04 PM, retrorussell said:

don't know if anyone else had seen this, but I remember a BAGMAN cabinet at Pietro's Pizza next to the (now defunct) Kellogg Bowl in Milwaukie, OR that let you control Bagman during the attract mode!  Did anyone else play a cabinet that had that happen?  Are there some versions that allow this?  Dipswitch activated?

 

You couldn't control him throughout the attract mode-- I think it was just for a short while.  He'd pick up a bag, drop it in the wheelbarrow, push it around a bit, pick-ax a guard, etc. and then I think he hung from a beam and you could control him from that point on until the game went back to the title screen.

This isn't something that I'd noticed before, but decided to give finding the bug a shot since I was re-reading the thread.

 

What I learned is this: in MAME, the bagmans3 (Bagman, Stern Electronics, Revision A3) set is the one with this behaviour.  Basically, let the attract mode play until your character hangs from a handle on the top of the mine tunnel at the bottom of the screen.  At that point you can take control of the player for about 10 seconds or so; the first thing you need to do is to let go of the handle so that you can move elsewhere.

 

One footnote about this: the bagmans3 set is marked in MAME as having imperfect protection emulation.  I don't know if this is a factor as to why this one has the bug and not the others, but thought I'd mention it as it could be relevant.

 

This was only checked against the three Stern sets (bagmans, bagmans3, and bagmans4) as well as the original Valadon Automation one (bagman).  The others (bootlegs, alternate licences, etc.) may also have this bug, but someone else can track those down :D

Edited by x=usr(1536)
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1 hour ago, x=usr(1536) said:

The sets that I'm taking the names from was current as of 0.230, so it's possible that names may have changed over time.

Yeah, where I get the roms at Planetemu they don't update terribly often.

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  • 7 months later...

I was addicted to Super Bagman in the early '80s with a few other guys at an arcade. Not many of these games around. My high score was 993,000 and always bummed I didn't hit a million. I bought one in the mid 90's but it never played well so I regrettably sold it. Still in my pursuit to hit that million I finally bought a MAME in restored Bagman cabinet. I've had it for a few moths and have gotten up to 660,000 but WILL hit the million mark soon. I would love to see others play to maybe learn something new but I'm always trying new stuff, especially to find a sure fire way to get both guards stuck in the last frame mine thing. I'm fine if they aren't, but would like a more sure fire way to increase my chances.

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On 12/17/2021 at 7:36 AM, Just Mike said:

I was addicted to Super Bagman in the early '80s with a few other guys at an arcade. Not many of these games around. My high score was 993,000 and always bummed I didn't hit a million. I bought one in the mid 90's but it never played well so I regrettably sold it. Still in my pursuit to hit that million I finally bought a MAME in restored Bagman cabinet. I've had it for a few moths and have gotten up to 660,000 but WILL hit the million mark soon. I would love to see others play to maybe learn something new but I'm always trying new stuff, especially to find a sure fire way to get both guards stuck in the last frame mine thing. I'm fine if they aren't, but would like a more sure fire way to increase my chances.

That's pretty damn impressive.

I wish that both games would have a radar screen telling you where the guards were, on which screen.

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