Here’s a rare instance of a home computer game becoming an arcade game. The original version of Brøderbund‘s Spelunker was coded by Tim Martin. The 1985 arcade version was created by a (largely unknown) Japanese team at Irem. And it is a very good conversion and a decent game in its own right.
The aim is simple: to open the door at the very bottom of each level, and collect as much loot as you can as you explore. At the beginning of each stage the game is kind enough to show you where the exit door is, before scrolling over to your starting position.
An elevator connects the floors in the first level. Simply pushing up or down while standing inside it will make it move. Coloured doors need the requisite colour keys to open, and some blockages can be cleared with bombs.
Arcade Spelunker is slightly more forgiving than the original, which does help make the game more enjoyable. Falling over a certain height doesn’t outright kill you, which is a relief as it’s easy to misstep and fall. It’s also easy to mis-jump and hit your head on something, which will also make you fall, but not to your death. Falling into small holes doesn’t outright kill you. And the ghost that comes for you after a certain amount of time is relatively easy to deal with in this.
Your guy can jump and shoot fire a short distance. He can also climb ropes and ladders. He’ll encounter various enemies in the caves that can be dealt with a certain way. Blue grubs, for example, will only freeze when burnt with your fire, but this is enough to allow you to jump over them safely. The aforementioned ghost, who is bright green in this, will chase you after a while. Shooting him with fire is enough to get rid of him, but he’ll be back again within a few minutes. He’s a constant source of pain.
Larger monsters, like Minotaur, will start appearing as you travel deeper, and dealing with those requires some precise jumping and pummelling.
The arcade version of Spelunker is still well worth playing today. And if you’re playing it in MAME you could easily complete the game in a couple of hours, because you can keep continuing. And when you continue the game remembers where you were in terms of items collected and your last position in the cave. And you re-start near where you last died, so you’re not simply sent back to the start.
Spelunker is another superb arcade ‘hidden gem‘ that should be added to your favourites list and enjoyed to the max.
More: Spelunker on Wikipedia
