Miner 2049er
Miner 2049er | |
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Platform |
Miner 2049er is a
The game was Hogue's first for the Atari 8-bit line, and his first in color, following a string of games for the black-and-white TRS-80. It shipped on a custom 16 kilobyte ROM cartridge compared to the standard 8 kilobyte Atari computer cartridges. The game was ported to the TI-99/4A, IBM PC compatibles, Apple II, Commodore 64, and VIC-20 computers as well the Atari 2600, Atari 5200, ColecoVision, and Super Cassette Vision consoles. The Atari 2600 version was split into two separate releases, each containing three levels.
Miner 2049er received positive press throughout 1983, appearing on best-of lists, with critics complimenting its colors, game design, and originality. The game influenced other
Gameplay
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/1/1b/Miner2049er-Atari800-gameplay.gif/220px-Miner2049er-Atari800-gameplay.gif)
Miner 2049er features Bounty Bob, who has chased an evil miner into a series of uranium mines. To complete a stage, Bob must survey the mine by moving left and right across every part of the floor of each level. The levels are full of hazards, including gaps in platforms, slides, radioactive waste, and mutants. The mutants can kill Bob by touching him, but they can be defeated if Bob collects prospecting gear, such as candles and drills, and then touches the mutants.[2] Other game elements include lifts, cannons, and transporters, which can rapidly move Bob to different parts of the screen.[1]
The original and Atari 5200 versions of the game have ten levels, but this varies in the ports. The Atari 2600 version has three (and there is a Volume II cartridge with three more), ColecoVision has eleven, and the TI-99/4A has eight.[4][5][6]
Development
Miner 2049er was programmed by Bill Hogue of Big Five Software of Van Nuys, California.[7][8] The game was Hogue's first for Atari computers, following games he developed for
Mike Livesay designed the adaptations of the game for the Apple II computer and for
Release
Miner 2049er was released for Atari computers in December 1982. This version of the game sold well, with one review stating that it sold in similar quantities to the highly publicized
Joaquin Boaz said in
In 2001,[a] Hogue released the game and its sequel, Bounty Bob Strikes Back!, for free online with an embedded Atari 8-bit computer emulator.[25][26] Hogue said that he released it this way, as opposed to releasing the games' ROMs, as "I'd spent so much time back in the Eighties tweaking those color registers to achieve perfection and I wanted to see the game that way again."[25] Magmic released the game for mobile devices in 2007.[2] The mobile version of the game featured a new, contemporary version of the game as well as the original, which was coded from scratch.[25] Both the Atari 800 and Atari 2600 versions of Miner2049er were included as part of the Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration (2022) compilation for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Steam, and Xbox One.[27]
Reception
Publication | Score |
---|---|
AllGame | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
IGN | 8/10 (Mobile)[2] |
Computer and Video Games | 82% (Colecovision)[29] |
Tom Hudson in ANALOG Computing had trouble believing that the game fit on a 16K cartridge and said that it was "one of those rare games which looks as if it were designed, not just thrown together." He noted that the mine and Bob weren't "just one-color graphics, but detailed multicolor objects" and that "the game itself was not abandoned in favor of graphics".[12] Boaz declared the game to be a "gourmet's delight that offers many, many levels of challenge" and applied "skillful use of colors" with its randomly generated palettes that broke up the monotony.[7] A reviewer credited as "MTY" in the magazine Softline found that despite being similar to Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, and Apple Panic, the game was original and that "unlike many arcade games, Miner doesn't require you to get faster as the pace picks up in order to attain the next level. It requires you to develop the different skills needed to survive."[16]
Computer Entertainer declared Bill Hogue the designer of the year in their 1983 awards listing.
Reviewing the VIC-20 version, The Video Game Update found the game "addictive" with graphics that were "less than outstanding", but said that "there are enough challenges in this game to keep the player busy for many, many hours of frustration and triumph."[31] The magazine also reviewed the Atari 2600 version, noting that the limitations of the Atari 2600 system meant that the graphics were "sacrificed somewhat" and the game was "considerably slower and less fluid than in the original computer game, but this version is still a very good game in its own right."[32] The publisher declared the Intellivision version to be the "best climbing game yet" for the system.[4]
In retrospective reviews, Computer and Video Games gave the Colecovision version an 82% rating in 1989, recommending it for fans of traditional platform games as one of the best on the system.[29] Brett Alan Weiss reviewed the Atari 5200 version, declaring it "one of the best games of the early 1980s", noting that it was fast-paced, intricately designed, and a very long and diverse game. He said that unlike those in Donkey Kong, pathways were not immediately obvious, and this made the game fun and more challenging.[28] Levi Buchanan of IGN declared the mobile version to be "a pixel-perfect recreation of the original", finding the controls responsive for a mobile game.[2] He found that the game was fun in 1984 and was also fun in 2007, and that the game merited a new audience. He recommended it for fans of games like Donkey Kong and BurgerTime.[2] The mobile version was later released for iOS.[33]
Legacy
Wonder if kids today think of Miner like we do. Miner returns us to a simpler time and perhaps that's why people like to play it again.
— Miner 2049er programmer Bill Hogue in 2007[15]
Multiple games were directly influenced by Miner 2049er, such as Manic Miner, with its underground setting and oxygen levels measured with a timer.[34] Matthew Smith, the creator of Manic Miner said that Miner 2049er was a major influence on his games and that Big Five Software made the best games on the Tandy. [35] A follow-up titled Scraper Caper was announced in 1983 but never released.[36] Hogue later claimed to have thrown away the disks and tapes containing Scraper Caper.[15]
Livesay was working on a game for Micro Fun titled Miner 2049er II, a title unrelated to Scraper Caper. It was set to be released for the Apple II, Commodore 64, Colecovision, and IBM PC.[37] It was released for the Apple II in the fourth quarter of 1984.[38]
The next game in the series was Bounty Bob Strikes Back!, released in 1985.[36][39] Hogue stated that following the video game crash of 1983 and the release of Bounty Bob Strikes Back!, Big Five Software started scaling back their company operations until it was run out of Hogue's home; he eventually closed the company.[40]
Richard Stanton, in his book A Brief History of Video Games (2015), stated that Miner 2049er contributed to the popularity of
Notes
References
- ^ a b c Big Five Software.
- ^ a b c d e f Buchanan 2007.
- ^ a b c Kunkel & Katz 1984.
- ^ a b c d "Critically Speaking..Atari 4/8/1200". The Video Game Update. Vol. 2, no. 2. June 1983. p. 62.
- ^ "Critically Speaking..Apple-Compatible". The Video Game Update includes Computer Entertainer. Vol. 2, no. 10. January 1984. p. 155.
- ^ a b c "Critically Speaking..Atari 5200-Compatible". The Video Game Update. Vol. 2, no. 2. June 1983. p. 39.
- ^ a b c Boaz 1983, p. 20.
- ^ Digital Eclipse (November 11, 2022). Atari 50 (Nintendo Switch). Atari.
The Dawn of PCs: Miner 2049er: Another breakout hit for the 400/800 computers, Miner 2049er was a platform game created by Bill Hogue, which he published through his company Big Five Software. The recipient of Game of the Year in the 1984 Arkie Awards, Miner 2049er was one of the best-selling computer games of the era.
- ISSN 0194-357X.
- ^ a b c d e "Miner 2049er History". Big Five Software. Archived from the original on February 2, 2004. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
- ^ "Miner 2049er Technical Information". Big Five Software. Archived from the original on February 23, 2004. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
- ^ a b Hudson 1982, p. 14.
- ^ a b c Grannell 2007, p. 37.
- ^ "Update on Scraper Caper". The Video Game Update includes Computer Entertainer. Vol. 2, no. 11. February 1984. p. 172.
- ^ a b c d Weiss 2014, p. 139.
- ^ a b MTY 1983, p. 36.
- ^ "Availability Update". The Video Game Update. Vol. 2, no. 2. June 1983. p. 48.
- ^ "Availability Update". The Video Game Update includes Computer Entertainer. Vol. 2, no. 5. August 1983. p. 80.
- ^ "Availability Update". The Video Game Update includes Computer Entertainer. Vol. 2, no. 6. September 1983. p. 96.
- ^ "In Brief...". The Video Game Update includes Computer Entertainer. Vol. 2, no. 8. November 1983. p. 119.
- ^ "Availability Guide". The Video Game Update includes Computer Entertainer. Vol. 2, no. 8. November 1983. p. 128.
- ^ "Miner 2049er Packages". Archived from the original on February 23, 2004. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
- ^ a b "Computer Entertainer – Master Index/Awards". Computer Entertainer/The Video Game Update. 1989. p. 14.
- ^ Hogue, Bill. "Big Five Software - Emulator". Big Five Software. Archived from the original on September 9, 2001.
- ^ a b c Grannell 2007, p. 39.
- ^ Hogue, Bill (January 18, 2007) [First published in 2001]. "Big Five Software - Emulator". Big Five Software. Archived from the original on September 14, 2019.
- ^ Machkovech 2022.
- ^ a b Weiss.
- ^ a b "Complete Games Guide" (PDF). Computer and Video Games. No. Complete Guide to Consoles. United Kingdom. October 16, 1989. p. 61. Retrieved June 10, 2023.
- ^ Mace 1983, p. 55.
- ^ "Critically Speaking. . . VIC 20". The Video Game Update. Vol. 2, no. 2. May 1983.
- ^ "Critically Speaking..Atari 2600-Compatible". The Video Game Update. Vol. 2, no. 2. June 1983. p. 34.
- ^ Patterson 2011.
- ^ McAlpine 2019, p. 50.
- ^ Jones 2008, p. 56.
- ^ a b Digital Eclipse (November 11, 2022). Atari 50 (Nintendo Switch). Atari.
The Dawn of PCs: Miner 2049er: Although it was touted in this November 1983 two-page advertisement spread, Bill Hogue's planned follow-up to Miner 2049er, called Scraper Caper, never actually came out. (Bounty Bob would make his return in a different game, called Bounty Bob Strikes Back!, in 1985.
- ^ "Lotsa Fun at Micro Fun". Computer Entertainer. Vol. 3, no. 3. June 1984. p. 36.
- ^ "Availability Update". Computer Entertainer. Vol. 3, no. 10. January 1985. p. 36.
- ^ Digital Eclipse (November 11, 2022). Atari 50 (Nintendo Switch). Atari.
The Dawn of PCs: Bounty Bob Strikes Back!: Bill Hogue followed up Miner 2049er with Bounty Bob Strikes Back! While the gameplay was similar to the original, the graphics now had an appealing pseudo-3D look.
- ^ Weiss 2014, p. 35.
- ^ a b Stanton 2015, p. 73.
Sources
- Miner 2049er for Atari 400/800/1200. Big Five Software.
- Boaz, Joaquin (September 26, 1983). "Miners' Actions From the Core of New Atari Games". ISSN 0199-6649.
- Buchanan, Levi (June 5, 2007). "Miner 2049er Review". IGN. Archived from the original on August 27, 2007. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
- Grannell, Craig (2007). "The Making of...Miner 2049er". ISSN 1742-3155.
- Hudson, Tom (1982). "Software Review: Miner 2049er". ISSN 0744-9917.
- Jones, Darran, ed. (2008). "In the Chair with...Matthew Smith". Retro Gamer. No. 48.
- ISSN 0147-8907.
- Mace, Scott (December 26, 1983). "Electronic Antics". InfoWorld. Vol. 6, no. 1. InfoWorld Media Group, Inc. p. 55. ISSN 0199-6649.
- Machkovech, Sam (September 12, 2022). "The 103 Classic Games That Did, and Didn't, Make the Atari 50 Anniversary Cut — Retailer Leak Suggests Games from Arcade to Jaguar; Surprises Apparently Still Await". Ars Technica. Condé Nast. Archived from the original on September 14, 2022. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
- McAlpine, Kenneth B. (2019). Bits and Pieces: A History of Chiptunes. ISBN 9780190496104.
- MTY (March 1983). "Gameline". Softline.
- Patterson, Blake (October 18, 2011). "Bounty Bob Tunnels Into the App Store in 'Miner 2049er'". TouchArcade. Archived from the original on October 20, 2011. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
- Stanton, Richard (2015). A Brief History of Video Games. United Kingdom: ISBN 978-1-47211-880-6.
- Weiss, Brett Alan. "Miner 2049er". AllGame. Archived from the originalon November 15, 2014. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
- Weiss, Brett (2014). The 100 Greatest Console Video Games 1977-1987. ISBN 978-0-7643-4618-7.