Repton (video game)

Repton Repton, the titular protagonist, is moved around an underground maze in a quest to find all the diamonds (some are held in safes, their release being triggered by finding and collecting a key) within a time limit for each of several levels, while avoiding being trapped or killed by falling rocks and monsters hatched from eggs. The original Repton game was released in the summer of 1985 and has 12 levels, with passwords making it possible to jump directly to later levels. If passwords are employed, on completion of the final level the displayed message challenges the player to complete the game without using them. The new versions of Repton for the PC, iOS and Android introduce additional levels; new Repton levels are also featured in Repton Spectacular, ''Repton's Mystic Challenge (for Repton 1) and Repton's Journeys (for Repton 2)''. Repton 2 The sequel to the game, Repton 2, released for Christmas 1985 (release date 14 November 1985 ) is much bigger. It introduces several new features: spirits (that follow walls and objects to their left and must be guided into cages, turning them into diamonds) and skulls, both of which are fatal to Repton on collision. There are also jigsaw puzzle pieces to collect, which eventually spell out the message "Repton 2 is ended". There are no levels as such in Repton 2: instead transporters move Repton between different screens which, subject to some restrictions, can be completed in any order desired. The entire game is in effect one very large level without passwords, meaning that it must be completed in one attempt. Finally, some screens also contain an exposed 'roof', where meteors (predictably fatal to Repton) fall from the sky. Repton's requirements in Repton 2 are challenging: Repton must not only collect all diamonds (including those held in safes and behind cages), but also collect all earth, kill all the monsters, collect all puzzle pieces and use all transporters. Once these substantial tasks have been accomplished, Repton must then negotiate the 'roof' of the entire width of the final screen, avoiding meteors falling from the sky in order to reach the starport and thus complete the game. This part is particularly tricky, since the meteors fall in a random fashion, making it difficult for the gamer to guide Repton to safety. This long list of requirements, coupled with the fact that the game must be completed in one attempt, marks Repton 2 as the hardest Repton game to successfully complete. The initial release of Repton 2 could not be completed as one diamond was hidden under a transporter and impossible to collect was developed by Matthew Atkinson at Superior's invitation since Tim Tyler was not interested in programming it, although he did design some of the levels for the new game. While the first two games had only taken a month each to program, Repton 3 took eight months. The game bears little relation to the rest of the Repton series, particularly in that contrary to the spirit of the original it relies on "secret" traps and passages which can only be discovered by walking onto them. The objects and objectives in all the previous Repton games are visible and there are no hidden secrets to be discovered, although in some advanced episodes - notably "OAP" in Life of Repton, "Oceans" in Around the World and "Future" in Repton Thru Time - some objects and enemies are invisible or appear very similar to desirable or innocuous objects. Repton: The Lost Realms In 1988, teenage programmer Paras Sidapara submitted a game he called Repton 4 to Superior Software. As Superior were already working on Repton Infinity, it was not published, and was forgotten until 2008, when a copy was rediscovered. The game was re-programmed by Sarah Walker and rechristened The Lost Realms, to avoid confusion with the Repton 4 game included in Repton Infinity. It was launched in November 2010 by Retro Software, with Superior's permission. The game is similar in style to Repton 3, retaining the structure of separate, password-protected levels and the map and graphics editors. New features include balloons, "absorbency" doors (which can be opened when an "absorbalene" pill is collected, but each pill only allows a certain number of doors to be opened) and ice crystals (which, when collected, freeze any monsters on the level). ==Music==

The music for Repton is Black and White Rag, by George Botsford, which has been well-known in the UK since at least its 1969 popularisation as the theme tune to the long-running television snooker programme Pot Black. The Scott Joplin piece The Chrysanthemum is the music for Repton 2, and the music for Repton 3 was composed specifically for the game by Paul Hughes and Peter Clarke. Repton Infinity features in-game music, on pressing the 'T' key, although it does not play at the same time as the sound effects during the game, and is turned off by default; it was composed especially for the game by David Acton. ==Repton ports, clones and derivatives==

Ports The Repton games were closely associated with the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron but versions were released for other 8-bit computers. Superior Software had planned to launch Repton 3 with ports for the Commodore 64 and Amstrad CPC (as shown in pre-release press advertisements). The Amstrad version was never released, but the C64 port did arrive in 1987. The first two games were later ported to the ZX Spectrum and released together as Repton Mania in 1989 using the joint Superior/Alligata name. In 1989 a version of Repton 3 featuring all expansion packs was also released for the BBC Micro's replacement, the 32-bit Acorn Archimedes. Its programmer, John Wallace, also produced a slightly expanded version of Repton 2 for the Acorn Archimedes which was released on the 1993 Play It Again Sam 2 compilation (which also included Zarch, Master Break and Arcpinball). None of these ports achieved the sales of the BBC originals. In the late 1990s, Superior sub-licensed the games to ProAction who released a number of RISC OS ports for the Acorn Archimedes and RiscPC. John Wallace created new ports of Repton, Repton 2 and Repton 3. ProAction also released Desktop Repton which includes the 3 games (including the expansion games for Repton 3). These games were built from scratch by Darren Salt, and developed to run in a multi-tasking window on the desktop. There have been numerous ports of Repton 3, including a free version for Linux. Under the name Superior Interactive, the original publishers re-released versions of Repton 1 (2003), Repton 2 (2004) and Repton 3, including all of the expansion games (2005), for Microsoft Windows. They also released a large pack of new levels for all three modern Repton ports named Repton Spectacular in 2010. Also in 2010, iRepton was released for the Apple iPhone / iPod Touch (ESZ Consulting / Superior Interactive). This has retro and enhanced graphics and sounds and new screens. Derivatives Due to Repton's ubiquity on the platform, it is sometimes compared to other scrolling-map games for the BBC/Electron. Later puzzle-based games such as Bonecruncher and Clogger might be said to be derivatives of Repton, and this perception is also encompassed by arcade adventure/role-playing games presented in four-way-scrolling format – the notable ones being Ravenskull and Pipeline – despite their different styles involving unique objects, encounters and unexpected traps. A non-scrolling 5-level type-in called Pitfall Pete written by Jonathan Temple was also described as "'Repton' style" when it was published by BEEBUG in 1986 and expanded to 15 levels in 1991. Repton's original author has written a public domain Java rocks-and-diamonds game, Rockz, which features elements in the vein of both Repton 2 and Boulder Dash. A game called Mole Miner was released for Android devices in 2009 by Little Fluffy Toys Ltd. The game was designed by Kenton Price, who also wrote Ripton. It builds on the rocks-and-diamonds genre typified by Repton, extending it with features such as explosives, sliding ice and wraparound, and includes a community level designer. Mole Miner contains 60 levels created by Michael S. Repton, the author of many levels in later Repton series games. ==References==