Bigfoot Manual
Milton Bradley
Manual


 
 

Bigfoot                                Bigfoot Cartridge

                                                                                Bigfoot Icon
Whoaaaaaa! Put me down you silly bird!  


I'm coming for you Bigfoot!


Ha! Now I've got you!


  MANUFACTURER:  MILTON BRADLEY (Distributed by Texas Instruments)

     PRODUCT NUMBER:  PHM 3151

.RELEASED:  4Q/1983

  PROGRAMMER:  WARREN AMERMAN

 ORIGINAL RETAIL PRICE:  $49.95
 

SOUND CLIPS:

Red Speaker "I'll Get You Bigfoot"  

Purple Speaker Bigfoot Hurling A Boulder

*Sound Clips Submitted by Joachim Wöllner


REVIEW:  Grade A+: Now here stands a game that is literally at the pinnacle (or one of the pinnacles) of TI-99/4A gaming. As with Blasto and Hustle from last months article, Bigfoot is another one of those Milton Bradley masterpieces. Considering how well Milton Bradley programmed their games, one has to wonder why they never came out with their own video game system as it sure would have been a great machine. But enough of my rambling, on to the Bigfoot review!
   
The game pits you, a mountain climber, against the dreaded Bigfoot who stands at the top of the mountain. The goal of the game is to reach the summit and lower a cage to capture the beast. As with any video game it wouldn't be a challenge if all you had to do was simply get to the top of the mountain, so there are a number of obstacles that stand in your way of getting there. The biggest obstacles are the boulders that Bigfoot himself rolls down the mountain at you. These big rocks will roll along the ledges of the mountain until they fall off at the bottom of the screen. The only way to avoid them is by clinging to the ropes that you can throw to each ledge (as seen in the screen shot to the right). This can prove to be very tricky since you have to keep a sharp eye out for the boulders and make sure you throw a rope out before they get too close or otherwise you'll be knocked off the ledge and plummet to your death.
 
In addition to the ropes helping you avoid boulders being rolled down the mountain, they also are your only device to get to the summit or travel from ledge to ledge. This is perhaps the most interesting aspect of the game since there is no predefined path like in a game such as Donkey Kong. Many games from this time period would have had ladders on the mountain that you would have had to climb, but not here! You must seek out your own path to the top, which not only makes this game more difficult but also much more unique. It's mostly because of this twist that the game has been considered one of the top TI-99/4A games. Now in addition to just climbing the ropes and avoiding boulders, there are actually crows that will fly past at random that can snatch the rope you are on and leave your climber yelling "Put me Down!" (if you have the speech synthesizer or MBX system). Well the crow does indeed put you down, he drops the rope right in mid-air! Needless to say this leads to the loss of one of your lives.
   
The final aspect of the game that needs to be mentioned is that you cannot just climb to the top of the mountain, but actually need to pick up the gold and climbing supplies which are strewn about on various ledges. However, you must collect these items in a certain order (one of the climbing supplies must be gathered before you can pick up one of the gold piles) and only after all these things are collected can you reach the top and cage Bigfoot.
   
Overall, this game really shines not just in terms of its gameplay but also because of the beautiful graphics and the speech synthesis. From the realistic sound of a metal hook latching on to a ledge to the sound of your climber yelling "Put me down...Ahhhhh!!!!!" (as he falls his voice slowly fades away) this game really demonstrates how well Milton Bradley knew the TI-99/4A! In addition, if you happen to have an MBX system then the player can take advantage of the comfortable 360º Analog Joystick that Milton Bradley made for the device. All in all, this game is a MUST HAVE and is in my TOP 10 games for the TI-99/4A. I've seen this game pop up on eBay every now and then and it is highly recommended for anyone interested in collecting/playing on the TI-99/4A system, so be sure to grab it.


                                                                                                    Appeared in Retrogaming Times Monthly Issue #8

                                                                -Bryan Roppolo (Writes "The TI-99/4A Arcade" for Retrogaming Times)



TOUCAN'S TRIVIA: According to programmer Warren Amerman the development name for this game was Yeti

TOUCAN'S TRIVIA: This game can be used with Milton Bradley's MBX System (an add-on for the TI-99/4A). The MBX allowed for the use of Voice Recognition, improved Speech Synthesis, a 360° Analog Joystick, and an Action-Input Keypad for video games designed for it.


ADDITIONAL ITEMS:
MBX Cartridge Catalog   MBX Cartridge Catalog



BIGFOOT COMMENTS:


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