ULTIMATE GUIDE
ARMED WITH A SIX-SHOOTER, SOME DYNAMITE, A POINTY STICK AND A CHEESY GRIN, RICK DANGEROUS WAS CORE DESIGN’S ORIGINAL TOMB RAIDER. JOIN US AS WE RISK LIFE AND LIMB TO EXPLORE THE CURIOUS APPEAL OF THIS PERILOUS PLATFORMER
Summer 1989. Indiana Jones was back on the big screen in The Last Crusade and there was not one but two official videogames based on it: The Graphic Adventure and The Action Game. But if you wanted the thrills and derring-do of the Indiana Jones movies distilled into a single game, there was another option: Rick Dangerous.
There was room for this Indy wannabe because it was neither an adventure nor an action game. Rick Dangerous was a puzzle game. Yes, it was a platformer, and that meant jumping and climbing, but it was rarely about reflexes. Generally you didn’t have time to react to the everpresent threats around you. One wrong turn and a spear would skewer you. Another misstep and spikes would impale you. It seemed that instant death was always just a pixel away.
As with any puzzle game, there were a series of problems to solve as you navigated the game’s trap-laden levels. Sometimes this would be as simple as selecting the correct ladder to descend – the one on the
right was rigged, while the one on the left offered safe passage. Hence, note to self: use the left ladder. On other occasions, passage through a single screen involved precision movements that would make Miner Willy sweat. Solving each problem relied heavily on recall. You would die, again and again, and each time you tried not to repeat the same perfectly plausible mistake.
Such gameplay was divisive. Some enjoyed the challenge, with the sense of achievement earned by reaching the next section outweighing the frustration suffered in getting there. Others disliked what was effectively a giant memory test. But love it or hate it, few could deny the thrill of watching someone who’s mastered the game by rote, skipping through the screens like they’re playing Animal Crossing. Go and watch a playthrough video and witness all those hours of trial and error, brought to bear.
