Tutankham

Tutankham (ツタンカーン, Tsutankān) is a 1982 maze shooter developed by Konami and released in arcades by Stern in the US.[2] The game was originally titled Tutankhamen, but the full name could not fit on the arcade cabinet, so the title was shortened.

This article is about the video game. For other uses, see Tutankhamun.
Tutankham
Developer(s)Konami
Publisher(s)Konami
Stern
Parker Brothers (ports)
Designer(s)H. Tanigaki
Platform(s)Arcade, Atari 2600, Magnavox Odyssey 2, ColecoVision, Intellivision, VIC-20
Release1982
Genre(s)Maze, shooter[1]
Mode(s)Up to 2 players, alternating
CabinetUpright
DisplayVertical orientation, raster graphics

Tutankham is one of six games chosen to appear in the LIFE magazine photo-session conducted at Twin Galaxies on November 7, 1982, featuring video game record holders of the 1982-era, gathered for a group photograph. The Tutankham champion in the photo is Mark Robichek of Mountain View, California.

Gameplay

Taking on the role of an explorer grave robbing the maze-like tomb of Tutankhamun,[3] the player is chased by asps, vultures, parrots, bats, dragons, and curses, all of which kill the explorer on contact. The explorer wields a laser weapon that only fires left and right—there is no vertical offense—as well as a single screen-clearing "flash bomb" per level or life. Warp zones teleport the player to another location in the level, which enemies cannot use.

To progress, the player collects keys to open locked doors throughout each level and well as optional treasures for bonus points. When a timer reaches zero the explorer can no longer shoot. Passing through the large exit door ends the level, and any remaining time is converted to bonus points.

Ports

Tutankham was ported to the Atari 2600, ColecoVision, Intellivision, and VIC-20. Versions for the Odyssey²,[4] TI-99/4A,[5] and Atari 8-bit family[6] were in development by Parker Brothers in 1983, but not published.

Legacy

Tutankham is included in Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits for the Nintendo DS (renamed to Horror Maze).

Time Bandit, for the Atari ST and other systems, was heavily inspired by Tutankham and had a working title of Pharaoh.[7]

Clones
  • King Tut's Tomb (Atari 8-bit)[8]
  • Key Quest (VIC-20, 1983)
  • Cuthbert Enters the Tombs (Commodore 64, 1984)
  • The Touchstone (Tandy Color Computer, 1984)[9]
  • Lord of the Orb (Atari 8-bit, 1985)[10]
  • DungeonLords (Atari 8-bit, 1988)[11]

See also

References
  1. Brett Weiss (2012), Classic Home Video Games, 1972-1984: A Complete Reference Guide, page 126, McFarland
  2. "Overseas Readers Column - Konami And Stern Pact On "Tutankham" Video". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 194. Amusement Press, Inc. 15 August 1982. p. 26.
  3. http://www.thelogbook.com/phosphor/1983/tutankham-o2/
  4. "Odyssey2". the-nextlevel.com. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  5. "TI-99/4A Prototype Cartridge". TI-99/4A Videogame House.
  6. Reichert, Matt. "Atari". AtariProtos.com. Retrieved September 19, 2014.
  7. "Harry Lafnear Interview". Atari Legend. September 5, 2003.
  8. "King Tut's Tomb". Atari Mania.
  9. Boyle, L. Curtis. "The Touchstone". Tandy Color Computer Game List.
  10. "Lord of the Orbs". Atari Mania.
  11. "Dungeonlords". Atari Mania.
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