Pitfall Harry looking strong
Potentially not just rehashed pap…
Activision's Pitfall Harry, of which we still only have one very lonely screenshot, is starting to sound rather good - to us at least. We fully expect to see the bottom of the page soiled with an unending stream of cynicism, and since the things we've heard remind us of various gaming clichés and even Trespasser (God forbid) we aren't expecting sympathy for young Harry. But still, try to show a little compassion…
We suppose it's best to get the Trespasser thing out of the way. Ok, well according to developer Edge of Reality (speaking in the April edition of US based Electronic Gaming Monthly), the analogue sticks are going to be used to manipulate Harry's hands. Harry's arm, for example, can be waved around like a stick with a torch on the end of it, in any direction, shifting light around in dark environments to spot hidden traps and ambushes. It sounds like a good idea - the thing to avoid for EoR will be inorganic movement, which really hurt Trespasser and to a greater extent Rage's robotic mash 'em up Twin Caliber.
EoR has also explained that traditional adversaries like scorpions and crocodiles will be joined by alligators, jungle cats, monkeys, piranhas and angry natives - Tarzan's extended family on a bender, no doubt. In fact, these chaps will be so angry they'll be lobbing stink bombs at you and apparently performing tornado attacks. Bizarre. Apparently EoR refers to them as "bush ninjas", which sounds more like a euphemism to us.
However, instead of dying on first contact like the Pitfall of old, new-age Harry will have a better chance of defending himself. If snagged by a croc, he can prise its mouth open to escape (presumably thanks to button mashing), and even toothy pits will spit him out. Harry's projectiles attacks and weapons, which will range from ice picks and slings to the aforementioned stink bombs and dynamite, will all be easily manipulated in 3D, too, thanks to the GTA style lock-on system. And speaking of the 3D world, EoR hopes to retain some of the spirit of the original whilst injecting shades of Indiana Jones' situational humour.
Now, ardent cynics though we generally are when it comes to this sort of thing, it is conceivable that Pitfall Harry might make a better job of reselling our childhoods than recent attempts like Defender, Bubble Bobble, Pac-Man, Contra, MicroMachines, and so on.