Mines of Minos
Developer(s)CommaVid
Publisher(s)CommaVid
Programmer(s)Irwin Gaines[1]
Platform(s)Atari 2600
ReleaseOctober 1982
Genre(s)Maze
Mode(s)Single player, two-player simultaneous

Mines of Minos is an Atari 2600 maze video game developed and published by CommaVid in 1982. The player controls a mining robot in a maze, fighting off alien attackers.[2] A two-player mode, in which the second player can control an alien, is also available.

Gameplay

The gameplay of Mines of Minos consists of controlling a mining robot trapped in a maze surrounded by hostile aliens.[3] The player's goal is to locate and destroy the alien's command center. The player must navigate the maze and avoid the aliens; colliding with an alien causes the player to lose a life.[4] Unlike a typical video game (where the player starts with multiple lives), the player starts with zero additional lives and can only earn more by collecting robot pieces scattered throughout the maze; collecting enough pieces to form a new "robot body" awards the player with an additional life.[5] The player can drop bombs in locations, requiring strategy to choose the best spot that an alien might walk into. Gaming website The Retorist called this a "change [from] the nature of the standard offense-oriented Atari game". As an additional element of difficulty, the maze gradually fills with water, forcing the player to move on to the next board.[6]

The game may be played in single-player mode, or in a two-player mode where the second player can control an alien.[7]

Release

CommaVid released Mines of Minos in October 1982. The game was only released for the Atari 2600.[8]

Reception

The gameplay was well received. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram called Mines of Minos "an extremely intense game: constant pressure, no rest".[9] They liked the number of mazes it offered to explore, but criticized as being a Pac-Man clone. In a 1983 review, Electronic Fun with Computers & Games wrote that the game's aliens "are stunningly scary due to their excellent resolution".[10]

In a retrospective review, the Video Game Critic praised the game's depth and challenge.[4] The Retroist wrote that Mines of Minos joined the slew of games "being cranked out immediately before the video game crash of 1983".[6]

References

  1. ↑ "Mines of Minos". AtariProtos.com. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  2. ↑ Davidson, Drew (2009). Well Played 1.0 Video Games, Value and Meaning. ETC Press. ISBN 9780557069750. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  3. ↑ Greenberg, Perry (August 1983). "HOT SUMMER FUN Home Carts Provide Some Rays of Hope". Video Games. No. 11. Pumpkin Press. p. 64. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  4. 1 2 "Mines of Minos". The Video Game Critic. 27 May 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  5. ↑ Weiss, Brett (20 December 2011). Classic Home Video Games, 1972-1984. McFarland & Company. ISBN 9780786487554. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  6. 1 2 "Atari 2600 Mines of Minos Review". Retroist. 20 December 2009. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  7. ↑ "Mines of Minos". AtariOnline.org. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  8. ↑ "Mines of Minos". MobyGames. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  9. ↑ Hudson, Lou (19 February 1983). "Video Play". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. p. 62. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  10. ↑ Steere, Noel (July 1983). "Mines of Minos". Electronic Fun with Computers & Games. Vol. 1, no. 9. p. 53. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
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