''Bagman'' is a
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 ...
released in
arcades by Valadon Automation in 1982.
It was licensed to
Stern for U.S. distribution in 1983 and to
Taito
is a Japanese company that specializes in video games, toys, arcade cabinets and game centers, based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The company was founded by Michael Kogan in 1953 as the importing vodka, vending machines and jukeboxes into Japan. I ...
in Japan the same year. In
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
, the game is titled ''Le Bagnard'' (
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
: ''The Convict''). ''Bagman'' was followed-up with ''Super Bagman'' in 1984.
Gameplay
The objective of the game is to maneuver the bagman through various
mine shaft
Shaft mining or shaft sinking is the action of excavating a mine shaft from the top down, where there is initially no access to the bottom. Shallow shafts, typically sunk for civil engineering projects, differ greatly in execution method from ...
s, picking up
money bag
A money bag (or money sack) is a bag normally used to hold and transport coins and banknotes, often closed with a drawstring.[wheelbarrow
A wheelbarrow is a small hand-propelled vehicle, usually with just one wheel, designed to be pushed and guided by a single person using two handles at the rear, or by a sail to push the ancient wheelbarrow by wind. The term "wheelbarrow" is ma ...]
at the surface of the mine. The player must avoid pursuing
guards, moving
ore carts, and descending
elevator
An elevator or lift is a cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or decks of a building, vessel, or other structure. They a ...
s. The player may temporarily
stun the guards by striking them with a
pickaxe
A pickaxe, pick-axe, or pick is a generally T-shaped hand tool used for prying. Its head is typically metal, attached perpendicularly to a longer handle, traditionally made of wood, occasionally metal, and increasingly fiberglass.
A stand ...
or by dropping money bags on them when they are below the player on the same
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 ...
. The player may move between the three screens which make up the
level via shafts and on the surface.
''Bagman'' is played using one 4-way
joystick and one action button. The joystick is also used to jump out of the ore cart. The action button is used to perform the following tasks:
#Pick up and drop money bags
#Pick up and drop pickaxe
#Grab and release the ceiling beam to avoid the ore cart (this can be done while carrying a money bag)
#Placing a money bag in the wheelbarrow
#Pick up and drop the wheelbarrow
Points are scored for each horizontal step the player takes, for each money bag placed in the wheelbarrow, and for each guard stunned.
Reception
In Japan, ''Game Machine'' listed the game on their June 15, 1983 issue as the third most-successful new table arcade unit of the month. In the United States, it was among the thirteen highest-grossing
arcade games of 1983.
Legacy
Aardvark Action Software published clones for the
Commodore 64 and
TRS-80 Color Computer
The RadioShack TRS-80 Color Computer, later marketed as the Tandy Color Computer and sometimes nicknamed the CoCo, is a line of home computers developed and sold by Tandy Corporation. Despite sharing a name with the earlier TRS-80, the Color Com ...
as ''Bagitman''.
Ocean Software
Ocean Software Ltd was a British software development company that became one of the biggest European video game developers and publishers of the 1980s and 1990s.
The company was founded by David Ward and Jon Woods and was based in Manchester. ...
released a clone for the
Amstrad CPC
The Amstrad CPC (short for ''Colour Personal Computer'') is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Si ...
,
Commodore 64, and
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit home computer that was developed by Sinclair Research. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and became Britain's best-selling microcomputer.
Referred to during development as the ''ZX81 Colou ...
in 1984 titled ''Gilligan's Gold''.
In 2010 a French programmer
reconstructed source code
In computing, source code, or simply code, is any collection of code, with or without comments, written using a human-readable programming language, usually as plain text. The source code of a program is specially designed to facilitate the w ...
from the game to
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...
it to modern platforms.
bagman
on jotd.pagesperso-orange.fr
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bagman (Video Game)
1982 video games
Arcade video games
Arcade-only video games
Platform games
Stern video games
Video games developed in France