Manic Miner (Game)

Manic Miner

GAME » on 1983

Amiga (Platform)Amstrad CPC (Platform)BBC Micro (Platform)Commodore 16 (Platform)Commodore 64 (Platform)Dragon 32/64 (Platform)Game Boy Advance (Platform)iPad (Platform)iPhone (Platform)Memotech MTX (Platform)MSX (Platform)Oric (Platform)PC (Platform)SAM Coupé (Platform)Windows Phone (Platform)Xbox 360 Games Store (Platform)ZX Spectrum (Platform)

Miner Willy is trying to escape a 20 room cavern, with the player collecting keys by avoiding all kinds of deadly creatures and making it to the exit of each cavern before his oxygen runs out.

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Overview

Manic Miner was a hectic and popular game that's remembered as much for its music as it was its gameplay. The game saw the player controlling miner Willy with the objective to collect all flashing objects within each screen before heading to the flashing exit before your air supply ran out. Each level was all contained within one screen with no scrolling. Miner Willy would have to avoid some truly strange monsters such as telephones, penguins and flowers while negotiating moving platforms and timing difficult jumps. All the while the background music of the familiar part of "In the Hall of the Mountain King" would loop endlessly.

Interestingly, including background music was a big innovation of Manic Miner and was thought to be impossible at the time due to memory constraints. Matthew Smith achieved this by alternating the processor/memory from playing the game to playing the music. This is why Manic Miner has a characteristic, instantly recognisable 'juddery' effect to the music. It aslo explains the subtle juddery movements of Miner Willy and the monsters inhabiting the mine he has to avoid.

The ZX Spectrum version of the game is the most well-known version of the game and was released in 1983. It is regarded as one of the most popular games ever for the ZX Spectrum but enjoyed a comeback on the Gameboy Advance (developed by Jester Interactive at the time) and as a mobile phone game.

The game's success not only made Matthew Smith quite, quite wealthy, but also spawned a quick sequel also staring Miner Willy in 1984 - Jet Set Willy (Game).

Reviews

Magazine	Issue	Page	System	Rating	%	Reviewer	Language
Popular Computing Weekly	09/22/1983	16,17	ZX Spectrum	10 out of 10	100 \|\|John Scriven\|\|English
Popular Computing Weekly	01/10/1985	25	Amstrad CPC	5 out of 5	100 \|\|Tony Kendle\|\|English
Computer Gamer	05/1985	62,63	Amstrad CPC	5 out of 5	100 \|\|PG\|\|English
Home Computing Weekly	09/20/1983	31	ZX Spectrum	96 out of 100	96 \|\|NB\|\|English
Home Computing Weekly	02/12/1985	22	Amstrad CPC	95 out of 100	95 \|\|DH\|\|English
Zzap	06/1989	57	C64	95 out of 100	95 \|\|Maff Evans, Paul Rand\|\|English
Crash	05/1989	30	ZX Spectrum	92 out of 100	92 \|\|-\|\|English
Home Computing Weekly	02/21/1984	27	C64	91 out of 100	91 \|\|BJ\|\|English
Computer + Video Games	09/1983	131	ZX Spectrum	9 out of 10	90 \|\|-\|\|English
Commodore User	06/1986	54,55	C16	9 out of 10	90 \|\|James Pickering\|\|English
Consoles+	09/2002	138	Game Boy Advance	89 out of 100	89 \|\|-\|\|French
Crash	04/1992	77	Sam Coupe	88 out of 100	88 \|\|-\|\|English
ACE (Advanced Computer Entertainment)	05/1990	51	Amiga	870 out of 1000	87	Laurence Scotford	English
Computer + Video Games	04/1984	29	C64	8.5 out of 10	85 \|\|-\|\|English
Commodore Force	05/1993	16,17	C64	85 out of 100	85 \|\|-\|\|English
Amiga Power	12/1991	102	Amiga	84 out of 100	84 \|\|Stuart Campbell\|\|English
Your Sinclair	04/1992	26	ZX Spectrum	84 out of 100	84 \|\|Jon Pillar\|\|English
Commodore User	05/1989	65	C64	81 out of 100	81	-	English
Commodore User	07/1984	75	C64	4 out of 5	80 \|\|-\|\|English
Amiga Power	05/1991	107	Amiga	4 out of 5	80 \|\|-\|\|English
The One	02/1992	73	Amiga	4 out of 5	80 \|\|Jools Watsham\|\|English
Zero	03/1992	72	Amiga	80 out of 100	80 \|\|David Wilson\|\|English
Tilt	03/1984	38	ZX Spectrum	4.7 out of 6	78 \|\|-\|\|French
Amiga Mania	04/1992	26	Amiga	78 out of 100	78 \|\|-\|\|English
Telematch	01/1985	75	Amstrad CPC	Note: 2.8	72 \|\|Harald Uenzelmann\|\|German
Personal Computer Games	04/1984	57	C64	7 out of 100	70 \|\|CA\|\|English
Games-X	11/1991	49	Amiga	3.5 out of 5	70 \|\|-\|\|English
Zzap	05/1990	48	Amiga	61 out of 100	61 \|\|-\|\|English
Datormagazin	06/1990	18	Amiga	6 out of 10	60 \|\|Pekka Hedqvist\|\|Swedish
Amiga Power	03/1992	82,83,85,86	Amiga	3 out of 5	60 \|\|-\|\|English
Amiga Action	06/1990	82,83	Amiga	52 out of 100	52 \|\|Steve Marrett, Doug Johns, Alex Simmons\|\|English
ASM (Aktueller Software Markt)	5/1990	14	Amiga	4.4 out of 12	37 \|\|Torsten Oppermann\|\|German
Amiga Format	05/1990	40	Amiga	25 out of 100	25 \|\|Maff Evans\|\|English
Amiga Joker	05/1990	82,83	Amiga	5 out of 100	5 \|\|Max Magenauer\|\|German
Popular Computing Weekly	07/28/1983	46	ZX Spectrum	-	- \|\|-\|\|English
Sinclair User	12/1983	49	ZX Spectrum	-	- \|\|-\|\|English
Happy Computer	01/1984	118,119	ZX Spectrum	-	- \|\|Thomas Stögmüller\|\|German
ZX Computing	04+05/1984	50,51	ZX Spectrum	-	- \|\|-\|\|English
Sinclair Answers	09/1984	38	ZX Spectrum	-	- \|\|-\|\|English
Micro Hobby	11/1984	14	ZX Spectrum	-	- \|\|-\|\|Spanish
Commodore Force	Autumn/1993	21	C64	-	- \|\|-\|\|English

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