| Bananaman | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | MRM Software |
| Publisher(s) | MRM Software |
| Year released | 1983 |
| System(s) | BBC Micro |
| Genre(s) | Action |
|---|---|
| Players | 1 |
| Modes | Single player |
Bananaman is an action game that was released by MRM Software on the BBC Micro in 1983; it has no connection with D. C. Thomson and Co.'s comic character of that same name (who first appeared in The Nutty in 1980, but later defected to The Dandy after its demise in 1985). The player must take control of the eponymous "Bananaman", whose objective is to eat 40 banana sandwiches in under a minute - and he will also receive randomly-generated amounts of bonus points, for eating the peeled bananas, and eliminating "Ethel the Cat" when she appears. However, if he stands on a spider, runs out of time or gets completely surrounded by blue blocks, he'll lose a life (and the amount of banana sandwiches eaten on the current level shall get reset); if he runs out of lives, the game shall be over.
Controls
- , , and : Use these four keys to direct Bananaman left, right, up and down the 9 x 7 grid; if you are using BeebEm to play, you will have to press and together to move up.
- : When the grid's outline disappears (for four seconds), you can press this key to shuffle the positions of the blue blocks around; if you are lucky you can stop them from surrounding you.
Walkthrough
Bananaman starts each level in the centre of that 9 x 7 grid, as banana sandwiches, peeled bananas, spiders and blue blocks start appearing around him right away; your job is to guide him to the banana sandwiches (and peeled bananas), and you will receive 200 points for every banana sandwich eaten. If "Ethel the Cat" should appear on any given square Bananaman can eliminate her by moving onto it - however, as soon as he moves off it, another spider will appear on it, which means there will be one more square to avoid moving onto, every time she appears or reappears and you eliminate her. After you have eaten 40 banana sandwiches and cleared the level, you will receive a bonus of the number of remaining seconds x the number of the finished level x 10; Bananaman shall also receive an extra life at 50,000 points. The game shall continue until you either run out of lives or turn off the console - and if you ever get completely surrounded by spiders, you will not die but suicide is the only way out.