| The Pit | |
|---|---|
The Pit |
|
| Developer(s) | Zilec |
| Publisher(s) | Taito (JPN) Centuri (US) |
| Platform(s) | Arcade |
| Release date(s) | 1982 |
| Genre(s) | Overhead View Action |
| Mode(s) | Up to 2 players, alternating turns |
| Cabinet | Upright |
| CPU | Z80 (8-bit, 3.072 MHz) |
| Sound | Z80 (8-bit, 2.5 MHz); AY-8910 x 2 (1.536 MHz) |
| Display | Raster, 224 x 256 pixels (Vertical), 99 colors |
The Pit (ザ・ピット Za Pitto) is a 1982 videogame developed by Zilec and published by Centuri in the United States.
Contents |
The objective of The Pit is to descend into an underground labyrinth, retrieve a gem, and escape.
The Pit is comparatively rare and devilishly difficult. The player's avatar (described as "The Astronaut-Explorer" by the game manual) lands in a spaceship and must dig his way into a series of underground tunnels. While there, he must avoid being crushed by rocks, eaten by monsters, impaled by arrows, or melted in a vat of acid. In lieu of a traditional timer is a tank (the "Zonker") shooting away a mountain near the player's spaceship. If the player dallies too long in the maze, the Zonker will destroy the player's spaceship, and the player loses a life.
After collecting the treasure, the only route back to the spaceship is by crossing "The Pit", which is a room with a sliding retractable floor underneath which is a monster that will devour a player who tarries too long.
There are superficial similarities to Dig Dug, but shooting enemies in The Pit is an incidental activity,
The player receives 200 points for shooting each enemy, 1000 points for each crystal collected, 2000 points for collecting buried treasure, and 1000 points for crossing "The Pit" safely and reboarding the ship.
The tank is labeled "Zilec" in the original U.K version, and the developer's name is also displayed in the title bar instead of that of the local publisher "Centuri" in the American version. In addition, the game map layout as well as the color palette differ between the two versions.