''Apple Cider Spider'' is a three-screen

platform game A platform game (often simplified as platformer and sometimes called a jump 'n' run game) is a sub-genre of action video games in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are charac ...

written for the

Apple II The Apple II (stylized as ) is an 8-bit home computer and one of the world's first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products. It was designed primarily by Steve Wozniak; Jerry Manock developed the design of Apple II's foam-m ...

by Ivan Strand and published by

Sierra On-Line Sierra Entertainment, Inc. (formerly On-Line Systems and Sierra On-Line, Inc.) was an American video game developer and publisher founded in 1979 by Ken and Roberta Williams. The company is known for pioneering the graphic adventure game genre, ...

in 1983. A

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in the Guinness ...

port followed. The player takes the role of a

spider Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...

in an

apple cider Apple cider (also called sweet cider, soft cider, or simply cider) is the name used in the United States and Canada for an unfiltered, unsweetened, non-alcoholic beverage made from apples. Though typically referred to simply as "cider" in the Un ...

factory. The goal is to progress through three screens to reach the top of the factory, to join the company of other spiders.

Gameplay

The structure of the three screens follows the production cycle of apple cider in a reverse order, starting from the bottling and sealing of cider and ending at the delivery of fresh whole apples. The first screen mainly concerns extracting the apple

juice Juice is a drink made from the extraction or Cold-pressed juice, pressing of the natural liquid contained in fruit and vegetables. It can also refer to liquids that are flavored with concentrate or other biological food sources, such as meat ...

to be made into cider, the second screen concerns splitting the apples in two and crushing the halves, and the third screen concerns the actual import of the apples. Each screen is situated on top of the previous one, so the spider progresses upward while the apples are carried downward. The challenge in the game comes almost completely in the form of natural obstacles in the cider factory. Contact with cider, apples, or cider-making instruments kills the spider instantly. All three screens feature a complex system of

conveyor belt A conveyor belt is the carrying medium of a belt conveyor system (often shortened to belt conveyor). A belt conveyor system is one of many types of conveyor systems. A belt conveyor system consists of two or more pulleys (sometimes referred to ...

s that the spider must travel along, in the opposite direction to the cider and the apples. Various cider-making instruments operate periodically to make the apples into cider. The factory is oblivious to the presence of the spider. When the three screens have been completed, the game starts again, but with added dangers. These include various

animal Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms in the Kingdom (biology), biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals Heterotroph, consume organic material, Cellular respiration#Aerobic respiration, breathe oxygen, are Motilit ...

s that hop along the platform as well as blocker bars on the

ladder A ladder is a vertical or inclined set of rungs or steps used for climbing or descending. There are two types: rigid ladders that are self-supporting or that may be leaned against a vertical surface such as a wall, and rollable ladders, such a ...

s that the spider uses to move upwards.

References

{{reflist 1983 video games Platformers Sierra Entertainment games Apple II games Commodore 64 games Video games developed in the United States Video games about spiders Single-player video games

Gameplay

See also

References