Montezuma's Revenge

Getting the chance to review Montezuma's Revenge is putting a huge smile on my face. This is a game from the early 80s and a game I would play all the time with my dad on our ZX Spectrum computer. It was a far cry from the console version I am looking at today, but it was a fun time none the less.

You Got To Run… Not “The Runs”

Ok so bad poop joke aside, Montezuma's Revenge was one of the early games that tried really hard to make it big with a mascot. In the case of this game, it is a fellow by the name of Panama Joe an adventurer. You need to find treasure and survive the horrors of this Aztec temple, tomb, or whatever it is.

What, Indiana Jones Was Taken?

The game has a very Indiana Jones kind of look to it and given the overall style. If I were a betting man I would put some money on the people making this game wishing they had the rights to use Indiana Jones. In a way I am glad this did not happen as awesome as Indiana Jones is, I do not think Montezuma's Revenge would have had the charm it has had it been a licensed game.

Of course, the version of the game you play will depend on the visuals. The version I played as a kid was not a patch on the Atari game or the later released version for the Sega Master System. No matter the version, this is a game that has a fun style to it.

More Than You Would Think

The gameplay on offer here is way more complex than many of the other games of the era. It is very impressive what they were able to do here. While the game has set levels (or floors of the temple) the game has a kind of Castlevania Symphony of the Night feel in terms of the gameplay.

I say this because while you have a lot of platforming to do, you also have to collect and manage items so that you can progress through the game. It makes for a fun and challenging experience and one that holds up very well. The later levels are fun, but the game keeps you in the dark until you can find a torch. The idea here is very clever, but it can be frustrating.

Pros:

• The game has a great sense of style
• The visuals no matter the version look good
• The gameplay is nice and tight
• It is way more challenging than you would think
• The game is just a lot of fun to play

Cons:

• Once beaten, you can run through the game really quickly
• The dark areas of the temple can be frustrating

Parker Brothers, long known for board games such as Monopoly, is now producing video-games for the Sega Master System. Their first title, an excellent conversion of the Broderbund computer game Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, is already in the stores and doing well. Their second title is a conversion of one of their Colecovision and Atari 5200 titles from the early 1980s: Montezuma's Revenge.

The main character in Montezuma's Revenge is Panama Joe, a soldier of fortune. He's been in Central America for a couple of years searching for treasure, and now he has stumbled onto the find of the century — the ancient tomb of Montezuma himself. More interested in treasure than in the archaeological value of the discovery, Panama Joe starts to explore the catacombs inside the tomb.

Joe quickly gets lost in the huge maze of corridors and chambers. Worst yet, the tomb is alive with vampire bats, tarantulas the size of dogs, poisonous snakes, ghostly skulls, and perpetual fires fueled by the center of the Earth. Joe decides it isn't worth the risk, and he turns to leave. But then, in the wall, he finds a baseball-sized diamond. Now it's worth it, he thinks, and continues on.

Soon he comes to a locked door. He remembers seeing a key in a previous room, and he doubles back to get it. But the key is blue and the door is red; the key doesn't work. Backtracking again, he finds the correct key and unlocks the door. Behind it are more jewels and a sword. After unlocking a few more such doors, Panama Joe becomes so laden with heavy treasure that he can't go on. Despite his greed, he drops some of the treasure and continues exploring the depths of the tomb, moving closer and closer to Montezuma himself.

Montezuma's Revenge is an engrossing maze game — something that, until now, has been lacking in Sega's lineup. The graphics are bright and bold, the maze is very long and difficult, and if you don't time your moves just right, you're history. Fortunately, Panama Joe is very easy to control, and the final showdown with Montezuma is worth the quest.