2010: The Text Adventure Game

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1985

2010: The Text Adventure Game is the second game based on the 1984 science fiction film 2010: The Year We Make Contact after the console game 2010: The Graphic Action Game. The player takes the role of a major in the United States Space Corps, a member of the expedition sent to investigate the fate of the Discovery space ship. The problem is that Discovery is close to crashing into Jupiter's moon Io and the player has to travel to it in a Russian exploration vessel called the Leonov. The task up ahead is to board the Discovery and repair it before the gravitational forces of Io pull it away. Unlike most text adventure games, 2010 is not controlled by typing in verb-noun commands. Instead the player uses the keyboard's six function keys (or smart keys as they are called on the Adam) to interact with the world. The commands that are shown are context sensitive and depend on the situation, where the player is and what previous actions have been made. Moving around is done by the directional key, and by pressing return the examine menu appears. It consists of four options; to examine the area, its equipment, its items and any pods that are present. By pressing the home key the player is able to camp. Camping allows the player to organize items (picking up, dropping, examining them etc.), check life support (status of food, water, rest, power and medical supplies), recharging power and supplies, performing medical treatment and removing the spacesuit. By successfully performing various activities the player earns points. The current score is shown every time the player ends camping.

Adam Links Golf

Coleco ADAM

Addictus

Coleco ADAM

Alcazar: The Forgotten Fortress

Coleco ADAM - 1985

Alcazar: The Forgotten Fortress is a dungeon action-adventure game, similar to Dungeon Master and The Legend of Zelda. It was released in 1985 for the Coleco Adam computer and accessory. A downgraded ColecoVision-only version later the same year. It was created by Tom Loughry from Activision, graphics by Keri (Janssen) Longaway. The game was also ported to the Commodore 64 later.

B.C. II: Grog's Revenge

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1984

Thor has completed his Quest for Tires. Now he must discover the Meaning of Life. But it won't be easy. The Meaning of Life is hidden away; somewhere in a long maze of mountains. Each mountain is covered with clams and Thor needs to gather 100 clams in order to pay the tolls and advance through each mountain. The only way to Peter and the toll bridge is through the "real scary caves". There are lots of clams in the caves but watch out for stalagmites. Keep Thor's headlight sweeping back and forth for maximum clams. Out of the cave, watch out for Grog, who saves clams from Thor. Thor also has contend with rocks, potholes and pterodactyls (they'll eat his wheel) in his Quest for Clams and the Meaning of Life.

Bounty Hunter

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1983

A text adventure where you are a bounty hunter, who must track down and capture all 5 members of the notorious Oil Gang, and return their stolen gold bullion to the 1st National Bank of Dodge. All commands are via VERB NOUN entry, and there is no save or restore feature.

Brainstorm

Coleco ADAM - Homebrew - 1990

Brainstorm is a falling blocks puzzle game that mixes traditional Tetris gameplay with the word guessing of Hangman. Like in Tetris the player has to arrange blocks that fall from the top of the screen so that lines are created and removed. What's different is that some of the blocks have letters on them and when these are cleared from the playing field they get added to the phrase that is represented with a row of dashes at the top of the screen. Every time new letters are added to the phrase the game pauses and the player gets the chance to enter the full phrase. A ten seconds timer will then start count down and when time's out the block puzzling continues. The game ends when blocks reaches the top of the screen or if the player enters the wrong phrase. The game consists of 25 stages and four skill levels. To complete a stage, two phrases have to be completed. There are four categories of phrases to choose from: Normal, TV and Movie and Adam related. In addition to the normal mode (Game A) there is also a Game B mode which lacks the word guessing an plays like traditional Tetris.

Buck Rogers: Planet of Zoom

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1983

The Buck Rogers - Planet Of Zoom coin-operated Videogame by Sega (circa 1982) You're Buck Rogers, and you're on a mission to stop a wandering "warrior-world" called the Planet of Zoom before it reaches Earth. Like a certain moon-sized space station, the Planet of Zoom devastates everything in its path. The Planet of Zoom is controlled by a source ship. Destroying the ship liberates the Planet of Zoom, saving Earth in the process. The game has only eight stages ("sectors"), with the mothership as the final (and only) boss. Clearing the game puts you on the next loop, with the message "NICE PLAY, GO ON." The arcade actually displays how many loops you've run (labeled as "rounds") as well. At the start of the game (and at each loop), the source ship you fight at the end zooms past, and leaves a missile in its wake. It's flying higher than you can shoot so you can't damage it at all.

Chess Champ

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1988

Dambusters

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1981

Dam Busters is an early flight simulation, set in World War II. It focuses on Dam Busters who historically were used to heavily bombard strategic objectives, in this case dams. This task is not easy, as en route you will face heavy opposition forces. Fortunately, you won't be a sitting bomber in the air. Your aircraft is equipped with machine guns (left and right) with unlimited rounds of fire power, so fire at will as the enemy approaches. When the time comes, you will have to bomb the target manually. So, get ready to unload the cargo and give them hell!

Diablo

Coleco ADAM - 1981

Donkey Kong

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1984

Released in the arcades in 1981, Donkey Kong was not only Nintendo's first real smash hit for the company, but marked the introduction for two of their most popular mascots: Mario (originally "Jumpman") and Donkey Kong. Donkey Kong is a platform-action game that has Mario scale four different industrial themed levels (construction zone, cement factory, an elevator-themed level, and removing rivets from girders) in an attempt to save the damsel in distress, Pauline, from the big ape before the timer runs out. Once the rivets are removed from the final level, Donkey Kong falls, and the two lovers are reunited. From there, the levels start over at a higher difficulty. Along the way, Mario must dodge a constant stream of barrels, "living" fireballs, and spring-weights. Although not as powerful as in other future games, Mario can find a hammer which allows him to destroy the barrels and fireballs for a limited amount of time. Additionally, Mario can also find Pauline's hat, purse and umbrella for additional bonus points. Donkey Kong is also notable for being one of the first complete narratives in video game form, told through simplistic cut scenes that advance the story. It should also be noted that in many conversions of the original coin-op game for early 1980's consoles and computer-systems, Donkey Kong only used two or three of the original levels, with the cement factory most often omitted.

Donkey Kong Jr.

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1983

Mario has kidnapped Junior's Papa! Donkey Kong Jr. was originally released in the arcades in 1982 as a sequel to Donkey Kong. In this game, Mario plays the antagonist, finally having captured Donkey Kong, and has put the ape in a locked cage. As Donkey Kong Jr., players will have to make their way through four different levels (Vines, Springboard, Chains and Mario's Hideout) in an attempt to find keys to free the little monkey's father. Along the way, Mario will send out Snapjaws, swooping purple birds, and electric sparks in an attempt to stop Junior. Junior can defend himself by dropping fruit found around the levels on the heads of his foes. The more foes a piece of fruit hits in a falling sequence, the higher bonus points can be scored. Junior can also avoid enemies more easily by grabbing hold of two chains or vines at a time to climb away faster, or by jumping over his foes. However, any long fall or falling into the water on certain levels will mean the loss of a life for Junior. In the final cut scene, Junior will free Donkey Kong and both will escape after giving Mario the boot. Once all four levels are cleared, the game levels will start over at a higher difficulty. Like the original Donkey Kong, the earlier 1980's console versions do not have all of the levels and animations from the arcade.

Dragon's Lair

Coleco ADAM - Released - December 4, 1984

The first home conversion of the legendary Dragon's Lair laserdisc arcade game was originally released for the Coleco Adam home computer in the USA; UK-made ports released by Software Projects followed two years later. While mostly maintaining its trial-and-error gameplay concept, the computer versions adapt the original only loosely: the player controls Dirk the Daring on his quest to rescue Princess Daphne from the dragon Singe through nine distinct scenes: The Falling Disk: Dirk must try staying on top of the disk that falls down to the dungeons. An Air Genie will try to blow him off, and he also has to jump off at the right moment to get onto a ramp leading to the next level. Skull Hallway: Dirk must evade or fend off creatures like skeletons, slimes and bats emerging from passageways. The Burning Ropes: Dirk must swing across chasms on ropes, being fast enough so the rising flames won't engulf him from behind. The Weapons Room: Weapons and armor come to life and attack Dirk: he can only survive through well-timed sidesteps or weapon slashes. Ramps and Giddy Goons: Dirk must jump from ramp to ramp quickly before they disappear behind him, and he also has to take out the goons standing in the way with his sword. The Tentacle Room: Similar to scenes two and five, Dirk must again evade or kill creatures in a room, who emerge from the ceiling and floor. The Second Disk: a reprise of the first scene, deeper in the dungeons. The Deadly Checkerboard: A dangerous game against the Phantom Knight. The Knight can teleport around the board at will and will turn a line of squares in front of him into deadly traps. Dirk must get close to the Knight and strike him down with a series of sword hits. Slaying the Dragon: The grand finale: Dirk must evade Singe's fiery breath long enough to get to a magic sword and then deliver the final blow.

Evolution

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1983

Evolution is an arcade style action game with six levels where you need to evolve from an amoeba to a human. Each level is a different stage in evolution with it's own unique goals. The first level is the amoeba stage where you need to eat all the DNA on the screen while avoiding the spores, microbes, and antibodies that are trying to stop you. The second level is the tadpole stage. The tadpole needs to eat three flies to move on to the next stage while avoiding the very hungry fish. Next is the rodent stage, where you need to eat five blocks of cheese while avoiding the snakes. In level four you need to guide a beaver across alligator infested waters to retrieve sticks and build a dam. The fifth level is the gorilla stage, where your gorilla has to use coconuts to fight off monkeys that are trying to steel its orange stash. And finally is the human stage, where you have to use a laser gun to fight off mutants that are trying to take over the earth.

Family Feud

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1985

This is the first Family Feud computer game based on the successful television game show. A few years later, Softie developed The All New Family Feud with more advanced graphics and music. Two families compete against each other or against a computer family, 5 people per family. Just like in the tv show, there are 3 Rounds ending in a timed Bonus "Fast-Money" Round. Randomly generated questions are asked, and the object is to figure out the most popular answers from the 100 people poled. Each member of the family contributes during the Rounds, and two people play in the Bonus Round.

Troll's Tale

Coleco ADAM - Unreleased

Victory

Coleco ADAM - 1983

Zaxxon

Coleco ADAM - Released - 1984

The Zaxxon defence system must be destroyed in this isometric-viewed shoot 'em up. The game has three stages, first taking you through Asteroid City, which is heavily protected by aircraft, guns and missiles. Many barriers are alarmed, leaving you with limited space to progress through, and fire must constantly be dodged. Stage two is a space shoot out against hordes of enemy aircraft - those you failed to destroy in the first part of the task. Complete this and you reach the final battle with Zaxxon, the game looping with increased difficulty if you can survive the first time. There are three distinct skill levels, while controls involve using forward to dive and back to climb, in the manner of flight simulation.

Zork I

Coleco ADAM

Welcome to Zork 1: The Great Underground Empire. It beckons you into a world fraught with danger and discovery. Using all the cunning you can muster, you'll plunge far below the surface of the earth in search of the incomparable Treasures of Zork. But this is no mere treasure hunt. During your amazing journey you'll come face to face with creatures so outlandish they defy description. And you'll wander through an underground domain so vast, with so many twists and turns, it can offer you new surprises no matter how many times you explore it.

Zork III

Coleco ADAM - 1982

The game starts where Zork II leaves off, and there is less of a focus on a pure treasure hunt and more on proving worthiness to become the Game Master.