''Time Bandit'' is a

maze A maze is a path or collection of paths, typically from an entrance to a goal. The word is used to refer both to branching tour puzzles through which the solver must find a route, and to simpler non-branching ("unicursal") patterns that lead ...

shoot 'em up Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs) are a Video game genre, subgenre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain typ ...

written for the

TRS-80 The TRS-80 Micro Computer System (TRS-80, later renamed the Model I to distinguish it from successors) is a desktop microcomputer developed by American company Tandy Corporation and sold through their Radio Shack stores. Launched in 1977, it is ...

Model I by Bill Dunlevy and Harry Lafnear and published by MichTron in 1983. It was ported to the

TRS-80 Color Computer The RadioShack TRS-80 Color Computer, later marketed as the Tandy Color Computer, is a series of home computers developed and sold by Tandy Corporation. Despite sharing a name with the earlier TRS-80, the Color Computer is a completely different ...

and

Dragon 32 The Dragon 32 and Dragon 64 are 8-bit home computers that were built in the 1980s. The Dragons are very similar to the TRS-80 Color Computer, and were produced for the European market by Dragon Data, Ltd., initially in Swansea, Wales, before mo ...

, but enjoyed its greatest popularity several years later as an early release for the

Atari ST Atari ST is a line of personal computers from Atari Corporation and the successor to the company's Atari 8-bit computers, 8-bit computers. The initial model, the Atari 520ST, had limited release in April–June 1985, and was widely available i ...

. It was also released for the pseudo-PC-compatible Sanyo MBC-55x with 8-color display.

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers produced by Commodore International, Commodore from 1985 until the company's bankruptcy in 1994, with production by others afterward. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16-b ...

and

MS-DOS MS-DOS ( ; acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System, also known as Microsoft DOS) is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft. Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and a few op ...

versions were ported by Timothy Purves.

Gameplay

In each overhead-view level, the player must gather keys to open locks which allow access to the exit. Between levels, the player chooses the next level from one of 16 "Timegates", each leading to a different world. These worlds must be completed sixteen times, getting progressively more difficult than the last. The worlds vary in character and difficulty. Some worlds incorporate elements of

text adventure game Interactive fiction (IF) is software simulating environments in which players use text Command (computing), commands to control Player character, characters and influence the environment. Works in this form can be understood as literary narrati ...

s, and most contain gameplay references to other popular games of the time, such as ''

Pac-Man ''Pac-Man,'' originally called in Japan, is a 1980 maze video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. The pla ...

'' and ''

Centipede Centipedes (from Neo-Latin , "hundred", and Latin , "foot") are predatory arthropods belonging to the class Chilopoda (Ancient Greek , ''kheilos'', "lip", and Neo-Latin suffix , "foot", describing the forcipules) of the subphylum Myriapoda, ...

''. In addition to the primary objective of exiting each level, optional

side quest A quest, or mission, is a task within video games that a player-controlled character, party, or group of characters may complete in order to gain a reward. Quests are most commonly seen in role-playing games and massively multiplayer online ...

s become available in the later stages of some worlds, usually awarding the player with one of several "artifacts" upon completion. The game also features a "Duel Mode" for two players. In this mode, a split screen is used for simultaneous play in the same worlds, allowing direct cooperation or combat between players.

Development

According to Harry Lafnear, ''Time Bandit'' was based on

Konami , commonly known as Konami, , is a Japanese multinational entertainment company and video game developer and video game publisher, publisher headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo. The company also produces and distributes trading card ...

's 1982 arcade game ''

Tutankham is a 1982 arcade video game developed and released by Konami and released by Stern in North America. Named after the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun, the game combines a maze shoot 'em up with light puzzle-solving elements. It debuted at the Europ ...

'' and was originally called ''Pharaoh''. The Atari ST and Amiga versions have visual similarities to '' Gauntlet'', but ''Gauntlet'' was released in late 1985 after development of ''Time Bandit'' was complete. According to Lafnear, he found out about ''Gauntlet'' from friends who saw it at an arcade and called it "a ''Time Bandit'' clone". However, he believes neither game copied each other, but that the similarities stem from earlier "

shoot 'em ups Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs) are a subgenre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain types of character mo ...

" such as ''

''.

Reception

Lafnear estimates that 75,000 copies were sold, mostly for the

Jerry Pournelle Jerry Eugene Pournelle (; August 7, 1933 – September 8, 2017) was an American scientist in the area of operations research and ergonomics, human factors research, a science fiction writer, essayist, journalist, and one of the first bloggers. ...

of ''

BYTE The byte is a unit of digital information that most commonly consists of eight bits. Historically, the byte was the number of bits used to encode a single character of text in a computer and for this reason it is the smallest addressable un ...

'' named ''Time Bandit'' his game of the month for September 1986, stating that the ST version "is the best arcade-type computer game I have ever seen". The game was well received by reviewers in ''

Antic Alphanumeric Television Interface Controller (ANTIC) is an LSI ASIC dedicated to generating 2D computer graphics to be shown on a television screen or computer display. Under the direction of Jay Miner, the chip was designed in 1977–1978 b ...

'', ''

COMPUTE! ''Compute!'' (), often stylized as ''COMPUTE!'', is an American home computer magazine that was published from 1979 to 1994. Its origins can be traced to 1978 in Len Lindsay's ''PET Gazette'', one of the first magazines for the Commodore PET. ...

'', and ''

'' for its gameplay and graphics, though reviews also noted that the game includes no music and has minimal sound effects. The

version of the game was reviewed in 1990 in ''

Dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...

'' #158 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4½ out of 5 stars.

Reviews

* ''Génération 4'' (1987) * '' Zzap!'' (April 1988) * ''

The Games Machine ''The Games Machine'' was a video game magazine that was published from 1987 until 1990 in the United Kingdom by Newsfield, which also published '' CRASH'', ''Zzap!64'', '' Amtix!'' and other magazines. History ''The Games Machine'' ran head ...

'' (April 1988) * ''ATARImagazin'' (March 1987) * ''

ACE (Advanced Computer Entertainment) ''ACE'' (''Advanced Computer Entertainment'') is a discontinued multi-format computer and video game magazine, first published in the United Kingdom by Future Publishing and later acquired by EMAP. History ACE launched in October 1987, roughly ...

'' (April 1988) * ''Power Play'' (March 1988) * ''Power Play'' (March 1989) * ''

ASM (Aktueller Software Markt) ''Aktueller Software Markt'' (literally ''Current Software Market''), commonly known by its acronym, ''ASM'', was a German multi-platform Video game journalism, video game magazine that was published by Tronic-Verlag from 1986 until 1995. It was ...

'' (March 1988) * ''

Info Info is shorthand for "information Information is an Abstraction, abstract concept that refers to something which has the power Communication, to inform. At the most fundamental level, it pertains to the Interpretation (philosophy), interpr ...

'' (May 1988) * ''

Commodore User ''Commodore User'', (also referred to as ''CU'') later renamed to ''CU Amiga'', is a British magazine initially published by Paradox Group before being acquired by EMAP. Timeline ''Commodore User'' was launched in October 1983 with an initial pr ...

'' (March 1988) * ''

Amiga User International ''Amiga User International'' (or ''AUI'') was a monthly computer magazine published in its later years by AUI Limited, it was the first dedicated Amiga magazine in Europe and in comparison to other Amiga magazines, AUI had a more serious persp ...

'' (March 1988)

Legacy

''The Timelord's Handbook'', a clue book and companion manual for the game, was released in March 2010 by Harry Lafnear, one of the original authors of the game. In addition to game clues, the book includes background fiction and profiles on the game's history and creators.

References

{{reflist

External links

''Time Bandit''
at Atari Mania 1983 video games Amiga games Atari ST games DOS games Dragon 32 games Maze games Science fiction video games Shoot 'em ups Single-player video games TRS-80 Color Computer games TRS-80 games Video games about time travel Video games developed in the United States