It should have been between '87 and '93. It was a common practice for supermarket electronic isles to let you test home computers for hours without asking you to leave. At that time I didn't know it, but I was looking at a Builder Dash style game play with the most beautiful graphics I've ever seen. In fact it was the first time ever I saw such game style.
It had a peculiarity, the enemies were dragons... probably Chinese dragons that moved across the screen in an Atari's Centipede like manner. The player was digging, collecting items and blocking these dragons path pushing rocks, the usual. I remember the player was wearing a hat, but I can't remember if it was a jungle hunter, a spelunker or a conical.
And... that's it. My parents finished shopping and we had to leave. Up to this day I've been searching between builder dash clones without success. It doesn't help I can't identify the computer platform either. Could it have been an Amiga? I don't know.
Anyone recalls something like I'm describing? Any help is appreciated.
I remember a Boulder Dash clone for DOS in the '90s called Trug, but I've never seen it since. I know it's not the same one you're thinking of, just you got me thinking about boulder dash clones.
However if your memory is really fuzzy, you might either never find anything which really matches, even if it's the game you saw, or trying to decide which of the four Boulder Dash clones where the plaything wears a hat is your game.
There's an open source portable clone with a lot of maps from a lot of Boulder Dash games and clones, very cool. I have it somewhere, but I forgot the name.
Wound up, can't sleep, can't do anything right, little honey / Oh, since I set my eyes on you. / I tell you the truth. I can't get it right / Get it right / Since I met you...
> It had a peculiarity, the enemies were dragons... probably Chinese dragons that moved > across the screen in an Atari's Centipede like manner. The player was digging, > collecting items and blocking these dragons path pushing rocks, the usual. I remember > the player was wearing a hat, but I can't remember if it was a jungle hunter, a > spelunker or a conical.
I'm going to guess that the character was wearing a pith helmet, and the "dragons" were feathered serpents.... So, probably a South American Jungle, or Aztec/Mayan theme. But, since I'm not familiar with whatever game it is... These might be better descriptions of what you were referring to.
> Anyone recalls something like I'm describing? Any help is appreciated.
That's it! I've been browsing mobigames for quite a while looking for IBM Compatible old games and it never occurred to me to look for a category like that. It turns out the game is an unmamed cartridge for Arcadia Multi Select system with ports to different platforms. I could play at least the DOS version included on the softlist... not as pretty as the original though.
Looking in retrospective Amiga systems were rare and probably really expensive. The version I remember must be the Atari ST port.
> I remember a Boulder Dash clone for DOS in the '90s called Trug, but I've never seen > it since. I know it's not the same one you're thinking of, just you got me thinking > about boulder dash clones.
My first approach to Boulder Dash was a lot late with a DOS clone called Supaplex. Because of that I don't like Boulder Dash at all. I recommend that one.
> > I remember a Boulder Dash clone for DOS in the '90s called Trug, but I've never > seen > > it since. I know it's not the same one you're thinking of, just you got me thinking > > about boulder dash clones. > > My first approach to Boulder Dash was a lot late with a DOS clone called Supaplex. > Because of that I don't like Boulder Dash at all. I recommend that one.
Supaplex is great. I've tried twice to complete it but the later levels are so damn hard.
Wound up, can't sleep, can't do anything right, little honey / Oh, since I set my eyes on you. / I tell you the truth. I can't get it right / Get it right / Since I met you...
> I could play at least the DOS version included on the > softlist... not as pretty as the original though. > > Looking in retrospective Amiga systems were rare and probably really expensive. The > version I remember must be the Atari ST port.
Ah, if there were some kind of programs to EMULATE old platforms so the programs for them would run on modern hardware... Mmmmm emulate, I would call them emulators. That's a good idea. I'll patent it before someone thinks of it too.
Wound up, can't sleep, can't do anything right, little honey / Oh, since I set my eyes on you. / I tell you the truth. I can't get it right / Get it right / Since I met you...
> > I could play at least the DOS version included on the > > softlist... not as pretty as the original though. > > > > Looking in retrospective Amiga systems were rare and probably really expensive. The > > version I remember must be the Atari ST port. > > Ah, if there were some kind of programs to EMULATE old platforms so the programs for > them would run on modern hardware... Mmmmm emulate, I would call them emulators. > That's a good idea. I'll patent it before someone thinks of it too.
The technology for that sort of thing must be decades away. Great idea though!
> > I remember a Boulder Dash clone for DOS in the '90s called Trug, but I've never > seen > > it since. I know it's not the same one you're thinking of, just you got me thinking > > about boulder dash clones. > > My first approach to Boulder Dash was a lot late with a DOS clone called Supaplex. > Because of that I don't like Boulder Dash at all. I recommend that one.
Totally agree. Supaplex (on the PC, and called Infotron on the Mac) is a much better game than Boulder Dash - same basic idea, but much better execution and lots of extras. I finally found the game for sale a few years ago and snapped it up, even though it had been released as freeware for well over a decade.
Play it in DosBox, MAME/MESS, etc.
I have tried to complete Supaplex at least 3 times now since the mid-1990's .... the levels get hard, but are great fun. There are some tricks you have to use to get the "rocks" to fall just right on later levels. A great game.