Spelunker/Gameplay

Controls

Atari & Commodore

• Joystick: Use the joystick to make your Spelunker run left or right, and climb up or down ropes and ladders.
• Fire button: Press the fire button to make your Spelunker jump in the air. You can jump straight up, or you can perform a running jump. You can also direct the Spelunker to jump off of a ladder or rope that he is currently climbing on to the left or to the right.
•  Space : Press the space bar to fire your ghost-dispatching gun.
•  F : Press the F key to release a flare into the air.
•  D : Press the D key to ignite and deposit a bomb on the ground.

NES & MSX

• : Use the direction pad to make your Spelunker run left or right, and climb up or down ropes and ladders.
• : Press the A button to make your Spelunker jump in the air. You can jump straight up, or you can perform a running jump. You can also direct the Spelunker to jump off of a ladder or rope that he is currently climbing on to the left or to the right, but the timing is extremely sensitive.
• : Press the B button to fire your ghost-dispatching gun. If you hold while firing, you will release a flare in the air. If you hold , you will ignite and deposit a bomb on the ground.
• : Pause the game.
• : Not used.

Characters

Player

This is the heroic Spelunker. The Spelunker may be brave, but he's far from invulnerable. Quite a number of things can kill him. If he falls more than a certain height (the height of his body in the Atari and Commodore versions, and the height from the floor to his knee in the NES and MSX versions), he will die. (However, he can fall indefinitely in the arcade version.) If he touches any enemy, ghost or bat, he loses a life. (There are many more enemies found in the arcade version as well, all of which must be avoided.) And if he is too close to a bomb or dynamite that he detonated, he will also perish. The Spelunker can climb up or down any of the ropes and ladders that he finds, and he can even shimmy across them to the left or to the right if he wishes. He can jump from them to reach other ledges. However, the timing of the NES and MSX versions is much stricter. Your best chances for survival are obtained when you immediately tap a direction and jump together, and let go of the controller. If the player doesn't jump, at least he won't continue to slide off of the rope or ladder and fall to his death.

Ghost

The ghosts appear on the screen infrequently, and their arrival is always heralded by a spooky change in music. Once they appear, they will slowly track the player down, inching closer and closer. Rock wall is no obstacle to these apparitions. They can be sent back to the nether world with a special ghost dispelling gun that the player carries, but the ghost must be within range of the gun (about a third of the screen width away) before using the gun is effective. Be careful when using the gun. Even while the ghost is dissolving, it can still take your life if it touches you before it completely disappears.

Bat

Bats stake out a certain territory in the cave, and can always be found in those location every play-through. Bats hover over their designated locations and experience continuous digestive problems. They release endless amounts of guano to the ground, all of which is lethal to the player. While you can attempt to guide the player safely through a break in the droppings, it is far better to utilize your flare gun and chase the bat away temporarily. The bat will return as soon as the flare dissipates, so make sure you have made it safely to the opposite side of the bat's position while the flare is in the air.

• There are more enemies found in the arcade version. Some can be destroyed for bonus points, while others like the worm and the rock monsters can only be temporarily stunned.

Items

Bombs

Destroys the large piles of rubble that occasionally get in your way.

Blue Key

Opens the blue doors in the game.

Red Key

Opens the red doors in the game.

Scrolls

I'm not sure what these do. I'll look into it though.

Energy Tank

Restores your energy to MAX.

Gold Nugget

Gives you points

Money Bag

Gives you points.

Crystal

It does one of four things: restores your energy to MAX, adds a bomb to your inventory, adds a scroll to your inventory, or gives you points.

Obstacles

Geyser

There are two types of geysers, ones that shoot out steam and ones that don't. The steam will kill you so you should wait a second or so when you approach one to see if it does or not.

Pit

There are two types of pits too, open ones and concealed ones. Open pits you can easily see since it's an open hole. Concealed pits often have a narrow stretch of ground covering it that will collapse when you step on it.

Screen Info

All information that you need can be found along the top of the screen when you're playing the game.

BOMBS #   SCROLL #
LIVES #           MIN--------------------------------MAX
                               SCORE #####

Everything should be self explanatory but I'd like to mention your energy, which is the long bar to the right of the SCROLL. You start with full energy meaning that the arrow is next to the MAX on the right. As you play the game, that arrow will gradually move to the left and when it reaches the MIN, you'll die and have to start again. You have to collect energy tanks to make the arrow move to the MAX again.

File:Example.jpg