ADVENTURE (Atari – Atari VCS)
You’ll periodically wish to convey two or more objects over a great distance.
Only one can be held at a time, but the other(s) can be pushed over the wall
that separates the current room from your destination (or destination
vicinity). Getting yourself to the other side might require a circuitous route,
but when you arrive, you’ll find everything that’s been forced over the
boundary. The occasional object will be held too closely, however; even from
the beginning of the game, it won’t vanish beyond certain walls. The reason is
that your cursor holds each object at a fixed distance, which varies according
to the direction it’s been taken from. Everything that you can pick up –
including the bat – has its own such alignment, which tentatively endures
throughout the game; but it will change in each of three events. First: If it’s
blinking when you take it (see below), it can wind up even closer to your
cursor than usual, which certainly won’t help you ram it through borders. You
can nullify this minor glitch by dropping and retrieving the object once or
twice in a blink-free room; but your cursor will then be unlikely to hold it
any differently than it did before the glitch. Second: The bat will usually
realign something in the act of seizing it. Keep in mind that he can be forced
to swap objects while you’re holding him, and trade them back after you’ve
waited for a few seconds. Third (and most useful): If an object is drawn to the
magnet across any distance, its relative screen position will shift. As a test,
push the object into the nearest border. If it still doesn’t disappear, move
the magnet slightly and try again. Granted, it’s possible to “juggle” multiple
objects, repeatedly dropping one by taking (colliding with) another as you
move; but this grows tedious if several direction-changes are involved. Knowing
which boundaries divide which rooms often comes in handy. Pictured here is an
applicable wall; the others are seen below. Shove the object out of bounds
until it vanishes; drop it while continuing to push your cursor against the
wall. In the game seen here, we’re hoping to get the chalice closer to the Gold
Castle. From this remote part of the Blue Labyrinth, it ends up just southeast
of the objective.
However, when this is attempted from the other direction, as we’re doing here
with the black key, in order to set it on a straight northward path to its
castle…
…the object might not make it over the wall on the other side. If you’ve
arrived here without encountering the bridge or magnet, one of them is likely
to be nearby. The magnet is the main adjunct to over-the-wall tactics; it
should be the one object that’s actually carried with you. If you haven’t found
that, the bridge will obviously work just as well; but unlike the magnet, it’s
usefully dropped in particular places. Be careful while crossing the bridge to
extract something; because of its size, it can disappear off the screen more
quickly than anything else. Simply ensure that it’s still visible before you
drop it. You can cross it over any northern or southern boundary, but usually
only far enough to glimpse the room on the other side. The rare bordering room
that can actually be reached is either beyond return or quickly accessed with
normal travel. Chances are, you’ll wind up trapped between castle parapets.
Unless you’re experimenting, creating an exit with the bridge is never
advantageous. Returning to the pictured game: Objects can also be pushed to
this Blue Labyrinth room over the northern periphery outside the Gold Castle,
mysteriously enough.
The Black Castle exterior allows for beneficial northward conveyance, this time
to the room just southwest of the Gold Castle. As in the last example, the
magnet or bridge is subsequently needed. Speaking of the magnet, bear in mind
that it won’t affect more than one object in view. If something with greater
magnetic properties is brought into the room, the prior object will no longer be
attracted (even if the new one isn’t dropped). Here are the objects’
susceptibilities to magnetism, from highest to lowest: the gold, white and
black keys; the sword; the bridge; and the chalice. Therefore, should you wish
to cross the bridge while carrying the magnet, the presence of the chalice
won’t help; but anything else will be lured instead of the bridge.
Over the wall in the other direction stands the White Castle. We’re
transporting the bridge there, so that the Red Dungeon within can be thoroughly
searched later. An object forced over the white northern edge, however, will be
moved just two rooms southward (and back to the White Castle exterior from
there). More helpfully, it will travel eastward or westward to the Black Castle
exterior from that southern room.
An object hoisted over this Blue Labyrinth wall will turn up reasonably close
to the White Castle: in the southern room east of the Catacombs.
Sending something in the other direction from that southern room transports it
to the Black Castle. Even small objects will occasionally be dropped within
reach; in the game seen here, the sword travels just far enough to be
reclaimed. If an object is heaved over the red eastern or western wall, it will
land behind the thin barrier in the room southwest or southeast of the Gold
Castle. Over the black eastern and western walls is the room pictured...
…to the right. An object that’s cast from the southernmost Catacombs pictured
at left will also be found here, just one room to their northeast. This isn’t
terribly practical; nor is pushing the object back over the purple northern
boundary, as it travels two rooms southward. If it’s dispatched over the purple
eastern or western wall, however, it will end up in the southern Blue
Labyrinth. No further borders provide useful object transference. (Castle
interiors lead back to their gates or themselves, and every other screen-wrap
is either obvious or very slight in span.)
The bat should be removed from the action as quickly as possible. Once you’ve
cleared a castle of objects, catch Knubberrub – the bat was named thus by the
programmer, even though this isn’t mentioned in the manual – and force him to
take something that you won’t be needing, such as a dragon (dead or alive) or
the key to an opened castle. Ensure that he picks it up from the south. Now
bring him into the selected castle and let him go. The Gold Castle is
recommended, as it’s the easiest to assuredly empty. As long as your captive
flies to the north, east or west (or in between), he’ll re-enter the castle
indefinitely. He can’t change course anywhere in the Kingdom unless he spots
something to steal; he’ll escape from the castle only if he turns southward
toward fresh plunder. If you’ve accidentally brought something inside, try to
catch him before he gets away, and hold him in place just south of his previous
cargo (if you’ve prevented him from reaching his target, make him grab it
anyway, as he won’t change his mind). After a few seconds, force him to trade
back. Remember that his imminent bearing can change even as you hold him; it’s
often helpful to leave an object in one of the northern spaces just outside the
chosen castle, even if you’ve no intention of letting him take it. This will be
valuable if you happen to seize him while he’s already clutching whatever you’d
like to imprison him with, or if you carry him through a room in which
something lies south of your exit point. His most recent desire determines his
trajectory upon being dropped, even if it’s no longer in view.
Grundle the Green moves faster than Yorgle the Yellow, but Rhindle the Red is
the swiftest. (Hansel and Gretel have gone astray.) Each dragon takes the
respective amount of time to swallow you after his mouth opens, assuming that
you don’t (or can’t) move before it closes. The bat can still fly off with the
dragon while you’re trapped in the latter’s stomach, taking you on quite the
tour. Be aware that a dragon in pursuit departs each room through the border
he’s most recently seen you exceed. If he winds up in a cursor-free room, he’ll
continue on his latest course; so you’ll shake him off by making an abrupt
ninety-degree turn before he catches up. If you lead him to an object that he
likes, he’ll stand guard over it, merely chasing you out of the room. All three
dragons are greedy about the chalice; Grundle’s fond of the magnet, bridge and
black key; and Rhindle prizes the white key. Conversely, Yorgle leaves any room
that contains the gold key. Two further dragon traits assist you. First: You
can travel westward through any dragon, even as he opens his mouth. (He’s
impassable from the other direction.) Second: If you continually push to the
south against any surface, you can’t be swallowed, even while you’re moving along
it.
To the left, the bridge is placed for access to the independent passage through
the Red Dungeon. Entering the symmetrical corridor works just as well; it’s the
other end of the passage. Pictured at right is the exit encountered along this
detached route; strangely, it’s blocked by the opposite boundary one room to
the north. The bridge can be crossed back and forth from the other side, but
there’s really no need for this.
Some interesting idiosyncrasies: Pushing the Game Select switch just after
you’ve delivered the chalice to the Gold Castle will slow down the victory
music, somehow making it even more peculiar. If you push the switch after
starting a game, the controller’s downward direction will summon your cursor.
You’ll be able to control it as usual, but the exit will be blocked.
(Incidentally, if you could leave, you’d arrive in the central room east of the
Catacombs.) Also, any key can be locked inside its castle; take care not to
drop it inside the entryway while the gate’s closing. Finally, if you’ve
explored the entire Kingdom in Game 3 without finding the gold key, push Game
Select and then Game Reset (to start afresh; a mere reset will resurrect you
and any slain dragons). In this random-arrangement Variation, the key’s been
placed inside its own castle.
If you’re accustomed to playing Game 2 or 3, remember the bridge-dependent
shortcut made conspicuous in Game 1; it creates an extremely convenient course
to and from the Black Castle.
To expose the game’s Easter egg, you require the magical dot. Start Game 2 or
3, each of which grants access to the entire Kingdom. Incarcerate the bat as
soon as possible; he won’t be able to see the dot, but he’ll be disruptive
nonetheless. (The dot also won’t be affected by the magnet.) Bring the bridge
inside the Black Castle.
Travel northward into the first darkened room. The dot’s hidden inside a wall
just one room to the west; this is most easily reached by way of the twisting
passage seen here. Simply bear westward before advancing to the north a second
time, and follow the passage until you find yourself in the northeastern corner
of the dot’s room. You’re in the right place if the bridge and your square of
light are flickering.
When any room contains three or more objects, they repeatedly blink. These
include dragons, castle gates (opened or closed), the bat and the illumined
space around your cursor in dark places. You can therefore determine if
something’s hidden within one of these unlit rooms (an object can be entirely
invisible when, for instance, the bat has dropped it onto one of the interior
walls). Just bring something along and watch for the flickering. Also be aware
that your cursor can slowly travel through a blinking dragon carcass that blocks
your progress – or a living dragon, for that matter, although you’ll be
swallowed if you’re still touching him when his mouth shuts. All collisions are
impaired by the flicker; a gate might fail to open, and dragons aren’t slain as
easily. At least we can easily distinguish the room with the magical dot. Drop
the bridge where it’s pictured at left: over the wall just southwest of center.
After crossing it, push against the southeastern corner of the small space
you’ve accessed, as seen to the right. You’ll hear the dot being picked up; the
blinking will briefly cease if you push it through the southern boundary. Be
careful not to drop it while it’s off-screen. Carry it carefully over the
bridge, and backtrack until you leave the castle.
Notice the dot as we depart from the darkened region. In this maze and the
Catacombs far to the south, the dot can been seen within your lit area; in any
other place, it’s only visible while it’s touching a wall.
Drop the dot inside the room southeast of the Gold Castle. If it’s left on top
of a wall, you’ll still be able to reach it if you want it later; simply
refrain from pushing against the wall as you press the fire button. When at
least two other objects are present, the flickering enables passage through the
thin eastern barrier. Certain object combinations won’t work; if you still
can’t breach the barrier, try replacing or adding something (or, if there are
already three objects here besides the dot, removing one). On very rare
occasions, one object will be enough. This tends to be the sword or a dragon.
You’re advised to drop two anyway, as you might not get through the barrier on
your way back.
On the other side of the barrier is the Easter egg that’s hatched thousands of
others.
©2009 Chris Federico