Crazy Climber

Crazy Climber (クレイジークライマー, Kureijī Kuraimā) is a coin-operated arcade game produced by Nichibutsu in 1980. It was released in North America by Taito America by UA Ltd. in 1982 for the Emerson Arcadia 2001 and other video game consoles. It is one of the most acclaimed games in Nichibutsu's library. A precursor to the platform game genre, Crazy Climber was the first climbing-themed video game—specifically, climbing buildings—before Nintendo's 1981 release Donkey Kong.[7][8]

Crazy Climber
Arcade flyer
Developer(s)Nichibutsu
Publisher(s)Nichibutsu
(Nihon Bussan Co. Ltd.)
HAMSTER Corporation
Designer(s)Shigeki Fujiwara
Composer(s)Kenji Yoshida (Famicom)[1]
Platform(s)Arcade, Arcadia 2001, Atari 2600, Famicom, Sharp X68000
ReleaseArcade
October 1980[2]
Atari 2600
Famicom
Sharp X68000
PlayStation
  • JP: February 23, 1996
PlayStation 2
  • JP: July 21, 2005
PlayStation 4
  • JP: May 15, 2014
  • NA: May 26, 2015
Genre(s)Vertically scrolling video game
Mode(s)Up to 2 players, alternating turns
Arcade systemCrazy Climber[6]

The game was ported to the Atari 2600, Arcadia 2001, Famicom, and Sharp X68000.

Description
Famicom screenshot

The player assumes the role of a climber attempting to reach the top of four skyscrapers. The climber is controlled via two joysticks.

Obstacles
  • Windows that open and close
  • Residents who throw objects such as flower pots, buckets of water and fruit in an effort to knock the climber off the building.
  • A condor, who drops eggs and excrement aimed at the climber.
  • A giant ape whose punch can prove deadly.
  • Falling steel girders and iron dumbbells.
  • Live wires which protrude off electric Nichibutsu signs.
  • Falling Crazy Climber signs.

Some of these dangers appear at every level of the game; others make appearances only in later stages. Should the climber succumb to any one of these dangers, a new climber takes his place at the exact point where he fell; the last major danger is eliminated.

One ally the climber has is a pink "Lucky Balloon"; if he is able to grab it, the climber is transported up 8 stories to a window. The window onto which it drops the climber may be about to close. If the window that the climber is dropped onto is fully closed, the balloon pauses there until the window opens up again. The player does not actually earn bonus points for catching the balloon, but he is awarded the normal 'step value' for each of the eight floors that he passes while holding the balloon.

If the climber is able to ascend to the top of a skyscraper and grabs the runner of a waiting helicopter, he earns a bonus and is transported to another skyscraper, which presents more dangers than the past. The helicopter only waits about 30 seconds before flying off.

If the player completes all four skyscrapers, he is taken back to the first skyscraper and the game restarts from the beginning, but the player keeps his score.

The difficulty level of any game was modified to take into account the skill of previous players. Hence if a player pushed the high score up to 250,000 any novice player following would get thoroughly wiped out for several games, due to the increased difficulty level, and have to play until it dropped back down.

Musical cues used throughout the game include "Baby Elephant Walk", "The Pink Panther Theme", and "The Entertainer".

If the climber is not moved for several seconds, a voice says "Go for it!"

The Family Computer version had a special controller that could be used with it.

Legacy
  • In 1981, Bandai Electronics manufactured a hand-held VFD version of the game.
  • A Japanese-only sequel, Crazy Climber 2, was produced in 1988. The game was essentially identical to Crazy Climber in gameplay but featured more sophisticated graphics and a few new features.
  • On February 3, 1996, Hyper Crazy Climber was released only in Japan for the PlayStation. It has similar gameplay to that of the original game but also a few differences. Players can choose between three cartooney characters, each with their own strength/speed attributes. Several buildings can be selected from a Bomberman-style map screen, including an underwater building, a medieval clock tower, a haunted skyscraper, and a beanstalk. Power-ups are also used.
  • On March 2, 2000, Crazy Climber 2000 was released for the PlayStation. This is more of a remake of the original arcade game using 3D graphics for the first time. A notable feature is the ability to turn corners and access different sides of the buildings, which now have a variety of designs (including one with a cylindrical, tower-like shape). The game included the original port of the arcade Crazy Climber and a scan of the instruction panel. Like Hyper Crazy Climber which released for the same console 4 years earlier, Crazy Climber 2000 was released only in Japan.
  • On July 21, 2005, Japanese publisher HAMSTER released the arcade version of Crazy Climber under their Oretachi Geasen Zoku Sono (オレたちゲーセン族) classic game line for the PlayStation 2.
  • Crazy Climber Wii was released for the Wii in Japan on December 20, 2007.[9]
  • The arcade game was released on the Virtual Console in Japan on February 23, 2010.
  • On February 8, 2018, the game was released for the Nintendo Switch by HAMSTER under their Arcade Archives series.[10] It had been previously released on May 15, 2014, for the PlayStation 4 as the very first entry in the series.[11]

References
  2. Arcade-history.com
  3. Gamefaqs.com
  4. Gamefaqs.com
  5. Gamefaqs.com
  6. Mamedev.org Archived 2014-10-27 at the Wayback Machine
  7. Donkey Kong at AllGame
  8. Crazy Climber at AllGame
  9. IGN: Crazy Climber Archived 2011-07-13 at the Wayback Machine
  10. Lane, Gavin (2020-03-13). "Guide: Every Arcade Archives Game On Nintendo Switch, Plus Our Top Picks". Nintendo Life. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  11. "Arcade Archives | HAMSTER Corporation". www.hamster.co.jp. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
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