Working in a school has its benefits - namely an
increased chance of having a "snow day" after a small shower of the
white stuff. This has meant that I have
had a day off work, which has given me plenty of time to play some retro games whilst the
children are out in the back garden, throwing snowballs at Mum...
Anyway, one game I have been playing today is a classic
that I am sure you all know.
Ask anyone my age to name the first level of this game,
and I'm sure the majority will immediately answer "Central Cavern"!
I suspect that anyone who had an 8-bit computer in the 1980's
probably had (or heard of) Manic Miner.
Released in 1983 and originally programmed by the very talented Matthew
Smith, it was the first game to feature Miner Willy. Willy of course would re-appear in several
sequels, namely the Jet Set Willy series of games.
The game is your simple platform affair. You control Miner Willy, and must negotiate
each of the twenty caverns, collecting all of the flashing objects before
Willy's oxygen runs out. Once all
objects have been collected, a flashing portal appears which then allows Willy
to move on to the next level.
Numerous enemies stand in your way, namely Poisonous
Pansies, Spiders, Slime and Manic Mining Robots! Willy can also die if he falls too far,
meaning that many jumps need to be done with perfect precision.
Many afternoons after school were spent playing this gem
of a game, and it's still great to play today, although I still find some of
the later levels near impossible!
The cover
Instructions
The tape
The map (Click to enlarge)
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