Wikipedia

Bounty Bob Strikes Back!

Bounty Bob Strikes Back! is the sequel to Miner 2049er published in 1985 [1] for Atari 8-bit computers. The game adds a pseudo-3D look to the platforms and increases the level count from 10 to 25. As with the original, the Atari 8-bit version was released on ROM cartridge.[2] A port for the Atari 5200 was released the same year, followed by versions for the Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, and ZX Spectrum also in 1985.

Bounty Bob Strikes Back!
Developer(s)Big Five Software
Publisher(s)
Programmer(s)Bill Hogue
Artist(s)Curtis Mikolyski
Bill Hogue
Platform(s)Atari 8-bit, Atari 5200, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, BBC Micro
Release1985: Atari 8-bit,[1] 5200, C64, CPC, Spectrum
Genre(s)Platform
Mode(s)Single-player

In 2001,[a] Bill Hogue, the game's developer, released the game and its prequel, Miner 2049er, for free online with an embedded Atari 8-bit computer emulator.[4]

Gameplay

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Atari 8-bit gameplay

Gameplay is similar to Miner 2049er in that the player must inspect every section of 25 mines while avoiding mutants within a set time. One difference from the original game is that after losing a life, sections on platforms remain covered and destroyed enemies do not reappear, thus making it easier to complete a level.

Development

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Following the critical and financial success of his game Miner 2049er, programmer Bill Hogue began work on a game titled Scraper Caper which would have Bounty Bob become a fire fighter. Following a lot of advertising, the game was never released. Hogue would work on his next game Bounty Bob Strikes Back.[5]

The game featured enhancements from the first game, such as a slight 3D effect on the platforms to add depth and that when the player loses a life, they did not lose all the progress in their gameplay.[5] The game also expanded on the amount of levels, having 25 over the originals 10.[6]

On Atari systems, it is a bank-switched cartridge of 40KB total program and data mapped onto 16KB of address space.[7][1]

The game was shown at the January 1985 CES and then in April 1985 ads began appearing in magazines.[1]

Reception

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The game reached number nine on Billboard's list of top-selling entertainment computer software in June 1985,[8] despite clocking in at a hefty $49.95 (equivalent to $142 in 2023).[1]

In Steve Panak's column for ANALOG Computing, he found the large number of screens and the different elements in them to be a strong point: "It is this variety which saves Bob from mediocrity."[9] He didn't like the unskippable animations when a new entry is added to the high score table, especially as the scores only persist until the computer is turned off.

In the final issue of Your Sinclair, the ZX Spectrum version was ranked number 56 on "The Your Sinclair Official Top 100 Games of All Time."[10] In 2004, the ZX Spectrum version was voted the 19th best game of all time by Retro Gamer readers in an article originally intended for a special issue of Your Sinclair bundled with Retro Gamer.[11]

Legacy

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On reflecting on the sequel, Hogue said he thought it was a great follow-up to the original game, but "perhaps not the groundbreaking game we wanted it to be and I guess that still disappoints me."[5]

Notes

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  1. ^ The first version of the emulator, published in 2001, contains the "20010720" timestamp on its "Help/About..." window.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Leyenberger, Arthur (1985-04-01). "Winter CES: Part 2". ANALOG Computing. Retrieved 2023-06-11.
  2. ^ Friedland, Nat, ed. (May 1985). "New Products". Antic. Vol. 4, no. 1. San Francisco, CA: Antic Publishing. p. 90. ISSN 0745-2527 – via Internet Archive.
  3. ^ Hogue, Bill. "Big Five Software - Emulator". Big Five Software. Archived from the original on 9 September 2001.
  4. ^ Hogue, Bill (18 January 2007) [2001]. "Big Five Software - Emulator". Big Five Software. Archived from the original on 14 September 2019.
  5. ^ a b c Hawken & Jones, p. 37.
  6. ^ Hawken & Jones, p. 38.
  7. ^ Stehlik, Petr (2023-04-29). "Atari800 emulator supported cartridge images". GitHub. Retrieved 2023-06-11.
  8. ^ Billboard Publications (2 June 1985). Borg, Donald G (ed.). "Software best sellers". The Record. Vol. 90, no. 305. Hackensack, NJ: John Borg. p. O-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Panak, Steve (June 1985). "Panak Strikes". ANALOG Computing. No. 31. p. 68.
  10. ^ Nash, Dennis, ed. (September 1993). "Let the People Decide! The Results". Your Sinclair. Vol. 1, no. 93. Future Publishing. pp. 11–12 – via Internet Archive.
  11. ^ Whitehead, Dan (25 June 2009). "The 50 Best Speccy Games Ever!". The YS Rock'n'Roll Years. Nick Humphries. Archived from the original on 13 July 2009.

Sources

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