b*nQ - Atari 7800

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$35.00

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If you've ever played the 1982 arcade game Q*bert&#44 then you're already familiar with b*nQ. Ken Siders has created a faithful reproduction of the popular arcade game for the Atari 7800 ProSystem. This is Ken Siders' second Atari 7800 homebrew written from the ground up. His first was Beef Drop&#44 which is one of the most accurate ports of the arcade game Burgertime to any classic gaming system.

The object of b*nQ is to score as many points as possible by jumping on cubes&#44 jumping on green objects&#44 and luring the Snake to his death. When all of the cubes have been changed to the “change to” color&#44 you will advance to the next round. After every four rounds you will advance to the next level. Later levels require jumping on cubes multiple times and the cubes will change in different color sequences&#44 increasing the challenge of advancing to the next round.

b*nQ supports one or two players&#44 so you can play alone or with a friend. You can select from one of four difficulty levels: Easy&#44 Normal&#44 Adept&#44 and Expert&#44 for greater challenges as you become better at the game. You can also choose whether your joystick operates in "rotated" mode (where you rotate the joystick 45 degrees) or operate it in "normal" mode where you use your joystick's diagonals to move b*nQ around the pyramid.

The label design for b*nQ was created by Darrin Rose&#44 who won the b*nQ Label Contest held on AtariAge in November 2007. Not only does Darrin's winning design grace the label&#44 but Darrin also created the b*nQ manual&#44 which features more original artwork created just for the game.

AtariVox Support

If you have an AtariVox, AtariVox+, or SaveKey, your high scores will be saved and then reloaded when you power your Atari 7800 back on.

Additional Information

Includes cartridge and four-page&#44 full-color manual. Supports both NTSC and PAL television standards.

Author Ken Siders
Number of Players 1 - 2
Controllers Joysticks
Cartridge Size 48K
Label and Manual Darrin Rose
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Walter Interrante on 08/30/2022 01:10am
This is a great classic game of Q*bert. It is allot of fun and it can be very addictive.
Dan Wolak on 02/17/2021 04:26pm
If you love Q*Bert, you're in for a treat! This 7800 port that was done in 2007 by the late Ken Siders (who also did an excellent version of Burger time called Beef Drop), is spot-on like the arcade version. All the bad guys are there, such as the two purple dudes that chase you sideways up the pyramid. There are 4 skill levels, you can play one or two players, and you can switch between either diagonal or normal stick control (I don't think any of the classic ports had this option). This game has all the Parker bros ports and the nes port beat!
Mark Lechman on 12/29/2019 04:22pm
Fantastic game! Until now, the best way for me to play the 8-bit version at home was the C-64 version. This port definitely improves on that version, which was very nearly perfect already. I've just been playing it for the last 20 minutes or so and had to stop and tip my hat to the creators for this cart. Love it!!
Edladdin on 09/30/2019 01:04am
Instant Hall of Fame game on the 7800 for me, a fantastic port of the original - my favorite among retro consoles. Every time my 7800 is in rotation, this game gets played over and over. Love it!
PJ on 06/30/2018 08:22pm
This is the first game I bought from Atari Age, and it's a great one. Best port of QBert that I've played. Definitely worth picking up.
tkarner on 12/29/2017 07:33pm
I've been perfectly content playing Q*bert on my XEGS for years. It's an excellent home version. But I just received b*nQ as a gift and it is even better. It's superior to 8-bit Q*bert in every way, except in the sound department. That's to be expected in a non-pokey 7800 game versus an 8-bit game. But it's not nearly the downgrade you might expect.
Joel Ressler on 10/28/2017 08:27pm
I loved Q-bert as a kid, and other reviewers are all saying this is a very faithful port, but sometimes your childhood pleasures don't seem so great after 35 years of absence. Fortunately, this game is as much a joy to play today as it was in the early 80's. Of the games on sale here, this would be in my top three. On a side note, I'm really glad I have an arcade joystick. I actually like the Pro-Line controllers, but they aren't ideal for this game.
Derek El on 08/28/2017 04:09pm
I turn my controller at an angle to simulate the arcade experience, and once you do that, there isn't much difference between this game and the arcade (except the sound). I have gotten a lot of enjoyment out of this game. Q-Bert was one of my favorite arcade games growing up & I played the 2600 version to death, but that version missed the sideways guys.

I hope Ken Siders left us with the thought of bringing joy to many of us who still play our old Atari systems.
8th lutz on 08/17/2017 04:16pm
Q*bert was one of my favorite arcade games I played in the 1980s.

This version is not a disappoint. The graphics and sound are spot on. The sound is limited by hardware, but is very good.
Funkmaster V on 07/17/2017 07:11pm
If you like Q*bert, buy this jive. This is the best version of the game I have ever played. Love-Love-Love it. One of the best titles on the system.
BenjaminR on 03/20/2014 11:48am
A better version of Q*Bert than the NES version, great graphics and addicting gameplay. Nothing negative to mention, controls just like it should, features several difficulty options, looks great! Perfect Q*Bert! 5-Joysticks.
YANDMAN on 07/27/2013 05:42am
I am a huge huge Q*bert fan and i have the arcade in my lounge, After a long time browsing the games in the store i decided i would pick up two new titles and B*nq simply had to be one of them.

When i got the game and switched it on i immediately though wow....The select screen and hi-score table making it feel instantly like the arcade version, When i began to play it i was a little disappointed due to the lack of initial pace, I don't know if this is due to me playing on a pal machine or not but by area 4 of the first level its absolutely fine and zips along at the pace im used to ( I assume this is intentional as my 2600 version is quick from the beginning) Anyways this is a minor detail, the game is basically awesome ken Siders is a very talented man and i will be picking up Beef drop soon, The only very small critique i could make is to say B*nq nose appears a little too long but again this is so minor it really doesn't matter, Aside from these things this is a brilliant version that outshines all other 8 bit platforms and had this been out in 86' people would of been amazed.......If you don't own it then you should!
Nathan Strum on 07/11/2009 04:14am
b*nQ is an excellent port of the arcade classic Q*bert. You hop the familiar orange character around a stack of cubes, changing their colors, while avoiding various bad guys. Change all of the cubes to the correct colors, and you move onto the next round. Floating near the cubes are several spinning disks, which you can jump on to float to safety, or use to lure enemies into jumping to their doom. But be careful - if you fall off the edge, you'll plummet to your doom, too.

The graphics in b*nQ are first-rate. All of the arcade game's characters are there, as are the instruction screen, high score list, and between-level demos that show you how to change the colors. The sounds are decent, although the 7800 just can't mimic those distinct Gottlieb sound effects very well, and I really miss having some sort of "clunk" sound whenever something falls off of the cubes. (While the arcade game used a solenoid from a pinball machine to achieve that, at least some sound effect there would have been welcomed.) Also missing are the arcade game's weird-sounding voices - perhaps AtariVox support could have remedied that.

Still, those are relatively minor gripes. All of the gameplay is intact, with varying difficulty levels (although there is no description of what the differences are), and a particularly nice option where you can choose which direction you want to orient the joystick - normal or at 45°. If you're a fan of Q*bert, b*nQ is a must-have.
Raul Torres on 02/28/2008 08:12pm
I love it, I love it, I love it... and much of that love goes to Ken Siders. The man does not dissappoint.

Great graphics, excellent game play, the sounds are only limited by the hardware and even that is well done. I do have one question for Ken...

What's your next masterpiece, brother?!
William Boblitt on 02/23/2008 08:41pm
This review is tough, because there isn't much to say. Aside from the expectedly wonky 7800 sound effects, this is 99% arcade game perfect in every detail! (even being able to jump through the purple dudes with a well timed jump seems to be present) If you like Q-Bert, you must have this in your collection!

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