Blue Print is an arcade maze game released in September 1982.[1] It was developed by the Stamper brothers at Zilec Electronics and licensed to Bally Midway. Ports of Blue Print were published by CBS Electronics for the Atari 2600, Atari 5200, and Commodore 64 in 1983.
| Blue Print | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Zilec Electronics |
| Publisher(s) | Bally Midway CBS Electronics[2][3] |
| Designer(s) | Tim Stamper John Lathbury Chris Stamper |
| Platform(s) | Arcade, Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Commodore 64 |
| Release | Sept 1982: Arcade[1] 1983: 2600, 5200, C64 |
| Genre(s) | Maze |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Gameplay
editThe player controls J.J., a man whose girlfriend Daisy is being chased by Ollie Ogre. To defeat Ollie, J.J. must find all the parts of a machine he has designed, assemble it, and use it to shoot Ollie. Controls consist of a joystick and a button.[3]
The screen is divided into three sections. At the top is a ledge on which Ollie chases the girl, occasionally knocking down flowerpots that may hit J.J. The center portion is a maze of 10 houses. The bottom contains the machine's blueprint, a "start button", and a pit. Eight of the houses contain one machine part each, while the other two contain bombs; the contents of a house are only revealed when J.J. enters it. If a part is found, the player must move it into the proper position on the blueprint. If a bomb is found, the player must carry it to the pit before it explodes. The player will always find a bomb in any previously visited house. Holding the button down allows faster movement, but speed can be used only for a limited time as shown by an on-screen gauge. The gauge is partially refilled when setting a newly found part on the blueprint.[2]
Once the machine is assembled, J.J. must step on the start button and then climb aboard the machine. The player must now use the joystick to maneuver left and right as it shoots balls upward. If Ollie is hit, he falls down and the level is complete, with bonus points awarded for each flowerpot remaining on the ledge. A new level then begins, with the houses in a different configuration.[3] The first three levels are unique, but the fourth level and beyond use the same level layout.
J.J. must avoid falling flowerpots, bouncing flowers that emerge from the flowerpots, and a creature named Fuzzy Wuzzy who roams the maze. A monster named Sneaky Pete occasionally climbs out of the pit and wanders across to the start button, stomping on it, which causes the parts of the machine to fall off of the blueprint. J.J. must drag Pete back to the pit and then set the fallen parts in place again.
Ports
editSome of the creature names are different in the C64 version: Fuzzy Wuzzy was changed to "Maze Monster" and Sneaky Pete became "Weird Willy".
References
edit- ^ a b "Blue Print Advert". Cash Box Newspaper Sept. 18th 1982. Cash Box Pub. Co. 18 September 1982. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
- ^ a b "Blue Print". International Arcade Museum. International Arcade Museum Library. Retrieved 5 December 2012.
- ^ a b c "CBS Electronics Blue Print". 8-Bit Central. Retrieved 5 December 2012.
External links
edit- Blue Print at the Killer List of Videogames
- Blue Print for the Atari 5200 at Atari Mania