Mountain King

"Now let us join our hero on his quest for the Temple of the Golden Crown....."

.....The intrepid explorer surveys his surroundings. All around him is the glimmer of gold as far as the eye can see. The underground passages he walks would be completely dark if not for this shining marvel. He turns on his flashlight to get a better view and notices hidden treasure chests revealed only by the light he shines upon them. He quickly picks up as much treasure as he can carry. Just when it seems he can carry no more; suddenly out in the distance a faint melody issues from the bowels of the mountain. Like a soothing voice to a lonely man it draws him. He becomes desperate to find its origins. Finally he finds the place he is sure it is loudest but sees nothing. Just as he starts to feel he can bear to hear it no longer he sees a flicker out of the corner of his eye. He switches on his trusty flashlight and shines it in the direction he's sure he noticed the flicker. Sure enough, the outline of a flame stares at him. Could it be the legendary Flame Spirit? He reaches down to touch it. In an instant he has it and it glows in his hand. It radiates no heat but shines with a preternatural life of its own. Suddenly, as if on cue, bats fly from every corner of the mountain. He feels he must hurry now as though he is trapped inside some feral beast that he has awakened and is becoming aware of his intrusion. Down, down he goes ever further into the depths.....

No, this is not the director's cut version of Indiana Jones and The Temple Of Doom. Actually it involves an anonymous explorer (played by you), sort of The Stick Figure With No Name, who can kneel, raise his arms, tip toe, leap and look momentarily stunned depending on the circumstances. When he falls it's shown in a slow motion sort of way which is accompanied by a string of notes going from very high to very low, especially during long drops. Though, fear not, he seems to be indestructible in this way as he never dies no matter how far he falls. Actually for those that can remember; this particular characteristic always reminded me of the Six Million Dollar Man.

Each unit of gold looks like five white dots clumped together and the floors of the mountain, which look like dark red lines, are littered with them. Against the dark background of the mountain the gold pieces do seem to be luminous. Though the ''tink, tink'' you hear as you pick each up isn't very inventive. The hidden treasure chests can be a quick and fun way to accumulate points while giving you a little challenge as you search them out.

The music you hear once you pick up enough treasure to equal a 1000 points is well-done. It's also somewhat remarkable as you only hear it when you approach the area near the Flame Spirit. It manages to be a complex melody and somewhat haunting which you would never expect from the music of an Atari 2600 game.

The Flame Spirit itself is just just as it sounds in the story as you might see a momentary flicker that just shows up as an outline of a flame when you shine your flashlight on it. The bats look like bats which might have been a first for their kind in an Atari game. There is also a tinkling sound effect that accompanies their presence which, in the quiet of the mountain, can only be described as eerie. And yes, the mountain is as enormous as it sounds.

And now back to our adventure.....
.....Finally he sees an ancient structure. As he approaches he sees it's a temple with an ornate crown hovering above it. He tries to get close enough to snatch it but some invisible force stops him and he suddenly feels incredibly weak. He must find the entrance. A few levels down, nearly at the bottom, he finds it. Again he uses his flashlight and suddenly a fearsome skull appears for an instant. Perhaps it is the Skull Spirit that he had learned guarded the temple in his research. He knows what he must do. He stands before the entrance and places the Flame Spirit on the threshold. Suddenly, as if in gratitude for his gift, the giant Skull Spirit appears and allows him to pass. The intrepid explorer dashes into the temple and scales the walls within. He stands upon the altar at the top and reaches out for the crown. As he touches it he quickly places it upon his head and races for the entrance. He hits the ground running. As he reaches one of the ladders to the next level he stumbles. He finds himself at the bottom feeling somewhat shaken. Out of the darkness comes a huge spider. Before he knows it he is encased in a web. He is weak but knows he must struggle to release himself before he is turned into a human snack food for the beast. As he thrashes back and forth he can hear the spider returning. He manages to release himself and sees the giant hairy arachnid coming for him. He runs and manages to jump up and grab a hold of the upper ladder just as the spider reaches out with its pincers for his legs. Quickly he climbs higher and higher but now the bats desperately try to attack him to retrieve the sacred crown from his head. He ducks and jumps while finally realizing that all along grand music has been playing throughout the mountain, urging him on. He must get to the top. Finally he sees the aura of the Perpetual Flame above that tells him that he is one level away from his quest being realized.

Out of the corner of his eye a bat suddenly appears and is almost upon him. Before the cave bat can thwart him he leaps with every ounce of strength left to reach the top floor. As he lands he is witness to the centuries old glow of the Perpetual Flame. He raises his hands in triumph as the mountain fills with iridescent light. He has done it! He is the Mountain King!

.....The temple looks like a large empty box with blue ladders on each side and is topped with what can best be described as an Atari version of the skull of a giant creature with horns protruding from it. Yes, there is an invisible force field around it and yes, it's guarded by a giant skull at the entrance that's at the bottom of the temple.

There is also a giant green spider that guards the bottom of the mountain that sounds like it shuffles when it moves. It's fast and will encase you in a web that looks like a drum-shaped set of horizontal lines. The only way to get loose is by moving the joystick left and right to make your character struggle free. If the spider, which looks like an awkward set of legs, finds you still ensnared you just see your character sitting stunned which means he's dead.

The score you hear upon acquiring the crown manages to sound nearly triumphant yet still convey the chaos and desperation of the moment as you try to get to the top while dodging the bats. Next to this the quick little notes you hear as you place the crown on your head and also when you reach the top where the Perpetual Flame burns sound almost incidental. The explosion of light you see upon reaching the top with the crown is exciting though and gives the proper closure to a level.

Better yet, with each success you achieve you'll face a harder test on the next level. On levels 2-8 the bats will try to snatch the Flame Spirit from you before you reach the temple. Time though can be as much an enemy. Shown on the bottom of the screen in minutes and seconds, just below your score; it's a constant obstacle. In level 1 you have most of 8 minutes to find the Flame Spirit while level 2 allows only 1 minute, 20 seconds. Level 3: 1 minute and 10 seconds, level 4: 1 minute, level 5: 50 seconds, levels 6 & 7: 44 seconds and level 8 only 40 seconds to find the Flame Spirit.

Harder still is reaching the mountaintop as level 1 allows only 1 minute and 30 seconds, level 2: 1 minute and 20 seconds while levels 3-8: 1 minute. Though, in retrospect, a few more enemies to deal with couldn't have hurt.

In the end this game, put out by CBS Electronics and programmed by E.F. Dreyer, makes use of expanded memory, which they called ram plus, to create a unique experience with better music and a larger field of play than you would normally see in an Atari 2600 game. If you're into Indiana Jones style adventure games then this oldie but a goodie from the classic era would be well worth buying and playing.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/02/02, Updated 05/19/03