Seeing as though I’m old enough to have experienced Pac-Man when it first came out, I’m pretty familiar with most retro games.  However, sometimes one comes along that just flew under the radar for me.  Montezuma’s Revenge was one such game.  I remember seeing it back then, but never playing it.  Many years later, at one of the first E3 shows I went to, they showed a 3D version and I remember the bouncing skulls, but that’s it.  And now, 40 years later, we have a new remake of the classic game and I finally get to play it and review it!  Montezuma’s Revenge: the 40^th Anniversary Edition is available on all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.

Montezuma’s Revenge was a 2D single screen platformer where you explored a South American pyramid and collected treasure in single screens while avoiding enemies, climbing ladders, collecting items, etc.  Your goal was to make it to the bottom of the pyramid where a big treasure awaits.  Naturally the remake touches up the graphics and adds some new features.  You can play as a male or female explorer now, and as you play, Montezuma will taunt you with spoken voice!  If you run out of lives, you can choose to extend your game, too, since it’s a pretty tough and obtuse challenge.  You can also read about the history of the game and how to play, too.

Since I never played this one back in the day, nostalgia for this title was lost on me.  But there were a lot of other things that kept me from being too interested in this remake, too.  The collectable items kind of blended into the background and I would miss a lot of them because of that.  Jumping controls were stiff and if you fall too far you lose a life, which got frustrating.  And again, the game is just too difficult, even if you can change the settings on that.  I would’ve also liked to have been able to play the original game as well, just to see what had changed.  I think only big fans of the original game would like this one.

Kid Factor;

Montezuma’s Revenge: The 40^th Anniversary Edition is rated E-10 with an ESRB descriptor of Fantasy Violence.  If you get hit by an enemy or fall too far, you just fall down and disappear and that’s it.  Reading skill is helpful for the text, and younger gamers may find it too difficult.

Tags: Game Reviews