''Bagman'' is a

platform game A platformer (also called a platform game, and sometimes a jump 'n' run game) is a subgenre of action game in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are characterized by levels wi ...

released as an

arcade video game An arcade video game is an arcade game that takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. All arcade video games are coin-oper ...

by Valadon Automation in 1982. It was licensed to

Stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. O ...

for U.S. distribution in 1983 and to

Taito is a Japanese company that specializes in video games, Toy, toys, arcade cabinets, and game centers, based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The company was founded by Michael Kogan in 1953 as the importing vodka, Vending machine, vending machines, and Juk ...

in Japan the same year. In

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, the game is titled ''Le Bagnard'' (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

: ''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.

s and placing them in a

wheelbarrow A wheelbarrow is a small hand-propelled load-bearing vehicle, usually with just one wheel, designed to be pushed and guided by a single person using two handles at the rear. The term "wheelbarrow" is made of two words: "wheel" and "barrow." " Ba ...

at the surface of the mine. The player must avoid pursuing guards, moving ore carts, and descending

elevator An elevator (American English) or lift (Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive traction cables and counterweight systems suc ...

s. The player may temporarily

stun STUN (Session Traversal Utilities for NAT; originally Simple Traversal of User Datagram Protocol (UDP) through Network Address Translators) is a standardized set of methods, including a network protocol, for traversal of network address transl ...

the guards by striking them with a

pickaxe A pickaxe, pick-axe, or pick is a generally T-shaped hand tool used for Leverage (mechanics), prying. Its head is typically metal, attached perpendicularly to a longer handle, traditionally made of wood, occasionally metal, and increasingly ...

or by dropping money bags on them when they are below the player on the same ladder. The player may move between the three screens which make up the

level Level or levels may refer to: Engineering *Level (optical instrument), a device used to measure true horizontal or relative heights * Spirit level or bubble level, an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal or vertical *C ...

via shafts and on the surface. ''Bagman'' is played using one 4-way

joystick A joystick, sometimes called a flight stick, is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Also known as the control column, it is the principal control devic ...

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 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit computing, 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 ...

and

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 ...

as ''Bagitman''.

Ocean Software Ocean Software Limited 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 Manchest ...

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 ZX Spec ...

, and

ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer developed and marketed by Sinclair Research. One of the most influential computers ever made and one of the all-time bestselling British computers, over five million units were sold. ...

in 1984 titled ''Gilligan's Gold''. In 2010 a French programmer reconstructed

source code In computing, source code, or simply code or source, is a plain text computer program written in a programming language. A programmer writes the human readable source code to control the behavior of a computer. Since a computer, at base, only ...

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 Hamburg, Manch ...

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 Multiplayer and single-player video games Multiplayer hotseat games Platformers Stern video games Taito arcade games Video games developed in France