If you have ever used the term "guide game" in something other than a derogatory fashion, Gingerbread Man is probably not the game for you. It's difficult, very difficult. In about three dedicated hours of playing I only managed to make it to level 7, and only then by exploiting the CONTINUE feature. This is platforming at its most challenging. You must be precise with your jumps, you must give enemies a wide berth, and your timing must be impeccable. There is no way to slop your way through this game. That means you are going to be playing the first three levels many, many times. With enough practice you will get good at Gingerbread Man, but no one is going to hold your hand along the way. The game's strength lies in its varied level design and gameplay. While each level is based on the "collect and avoid" game mechanic, that device is never used the same way twice. This makes for a fun play and helps you overcome the frustration that can result from the heightened difficulty.

If you like games where everything involves secret moves and timing, knowing where to go and where not to go and where you will need to play it over and over again to get the moves down, then this is the game for you! This is a fun game. It has a lot of different characters and levels. The graphics are very old school 4k but done well in this spirit with lots of different colors. If you go in the wrong place you are doomed without recourse and on to the next life and try. Continue option to keep your progress.

Ok, straight up: this game looks bad, that's all there is to it. There is quite a bit of flicker and the graphics are pretty blocky. Two exceptions to this are 1)the cats look pretty great and 2) there is something pretty pleasing about the way Gingerbread runs.

That said:

This game is really, really good. I don't remember having this much fun with a homebrew platformer since Hunchy II. In some ways it reminds me of Hunchy; really puzzling stages where precise control is a factor.

Thank God for the continue option! Where some reviewers felt that the stages were too difficult, I found that the difficulty combined with the continue option made the game more addictive somehow. You just KNOW that you'll beat the level in ONE MORE TRY!

The increasing difficulty of the levels (as opposed to stages) actually added to the overall experience. Usually when I see levels start to repeat I get turned off. Remember Donkey Kong, anyone? The added elements in progressive stages really do make the game different here and I am dying to break the second level. I will probably get back to it when I finish this review.

My rating of 4 was pretty much due to the superficial stuff; graphics, sound, etc. I'm reading here in other reviews that this was coded in something called Batari Basic (which maybe explains the look of the game?) but I don't think that's gonna matter to the casual player. Overall though, my advice to you is:

GET THIS GAME.

"One Tough Cookie' indeed! Gingerbread man is an excellent platformer for the VCS but it's also very tough in spots.

You control the Gingerbread Man through 5 different screens, each with a different task to complete. Along the way you'll encounter roaming fireballs, cats, dogs and birds all set on taking a chomp out of your delicious icing covered ass. The screens are really well designed so that there's a puzzle element to these levels. You have to figure out the right path to take or how to reach certain platforms, etc. The screen design is where this game really shines and they progress in difficulty nicely. The only problem is that if anything I think this game gets too hard too soon. You will find yourself hitting 'Continue" very often.

The opening music is very well done. Sounds within the game are adequate, perhaps a little sparse. The graphics are decent but nothing spectacular. Like all of the other bB games I have played, it really resembles an early VCS effort in the looks department although it is better than the early VCS graphics. The gameplay is so good thought that the bland graphics and so-so sound doesn't really matter that much.

I'm giving GM 4 stars. The game is actually good enough for 5 but the difficulty is just a tad high, making it a little too frustrating in spots. if it didn't have a continue feature, it would only get a 3. That ability makes up a lot for the difficulty frustration.

All in all this is a very good platformer for VCS games and in a smaller sense, it's the absolute star of bB games. This is the one people will point to shut the mouth of anybody who says, "All bB games suck."

After just killing two hours playing this game after I got it, I have to say it is a very fun, creative, and addicting game. It has the look of an authentic early 80's Atari 3rd party game, too! It reminds me a little of Porky's, but much better. That being said, the only thing keeping me from giving this game 5 stars is the difficulty level. I think the first round should have been made a little easier to get you hooked into the game and get the hang of it. It can get very aggravating and somewhat annoying at times, reminiscent of the notorious pits of Atari's E.T. game, such as when you work real hard to grab a block to throw, only to accidentally throw it the wrong way by moving up when you didn't mean to, or fall off a ledge right onto a creature, or you can't seem to line up the right angle to throw the block and hit the cat, etc. After a couple hours, I finally got through the first round and was too spent to want to continue to the next round. I can't see myself as that much of a glutton for punishment to want to try and make all 19 rounds! Other than the initial difficulty level, I like this game, and would recommend it.

In the Gingerbread Man you take on the title role of the classic children's tale and must make your way through 20 levels to earn your freedom.

The game consists of 5 distinct levels, with well varied goals for each. In level 1 you find yourself in the oven and must pick up pieces of other baked goods and use them to extinguish the fire that's relentlessly chasing you. In level 2 you must collect balloons scattered around the dining room in order to float up through the chimney, but beware the cat & dog as you look pretty tasty to them. In level 3 you've made it up to the roof and must collect tiles to build a bridge while avoiding the hungry cats and bird. For level 4 you've made it to the forest and must find a way to acquire a worm to feed a baby bird in order to gain the mother bird's gratitude and help. In level 5 you discover the mother bird is fickle and has decided to eat you instead of help you - in your struggle to escape you've fallen into a cave and must contend with the bird and another hungry cat.

Once level 5 is finished you're back to level 1, but with more enemies to deal with. It's very challenging and I've not yet been able to complete the first 5 levels without using a continue.

The graphics are adequate, on par with the earlier Atari releases, but this is a 2600 game where game play is more important than graphics, and Gingerbread Man has the game play down in spades. Music and sound effects are well done.

The label graphics and manual were done by Nathan Strum, and quite frankly they're awesome!

Even though it's based on a children's tale, Gingerbread Man is is anything but child's play. It's a worthy addition to your homebrew collection.

While not relevant to the review, one thing that's really impressed me is that Gingerbread Man was written in batariBasic. This really goes to show how capable batariBasic has become.

Run, run as fast as you can, they can't catch you - you're the Gingerbread Man! In Gingerbread Man, you control a cookie come-to-life, and must escape from different settings and enemies based on the classic children's tale. You start out trapped in an oven, and must put out all of the fire creatures trying to cook you to a crisp. Next, you must escape from the dining room while avoiding a patrolling dog and prowling cat. From there, you have to build a bridge to get off the roof of the house, then escape from a forest, and finally find your way out of a cave, all the while avoiding other hungry critters including a relentless bird that's determined to make a snack out of you. But just getting through the levels once doesn't mean the game is over - the levels repeat at increasing difficulties with more enemies and greater challenges until the final showdown with one really crafty foe.

Gingerbread Man is an excellent game, with plenty of variety, and very well-designed levels. Some levels require you to throw objects, others to collect them, and each has its own unique challenges. The controls are precise and responsive, which is a very good thing because you have to make some extremely accurate jumps at times. The graphics are nicely done, although the light backgrounds make the occasional flickering more noticeable than it might have otherwise been. The sound effects are very good, and there's a nice rendition of the song "Popcorn" at startup, but some in-game music would have been a welcomed addition.

There's plenty of challenge to be found in Gingerbread Man, and if anything, the game becomes almost frustratingly difficult at the higher levels. But some continuing is allowed, and there are enough game variations for players of all skill levels. Still, it will require a lot of patience to get through the entire game, which is a good thing, since this is one treat you won't be able to finish off in a single bite.