Jungle Journey

By David Boddie

Originally published in EUG #74

Introduction

The last flames of the campfire fade to glowing embers and I am alone. My recent acquaintances, their packs and paraphernalia have gone, leaving me stranded deep in the heart of this jungle realm. Clouds momentarily sweep the cold face of the moon and I perceive the clicks, whistles and cries of creatures in the hot air that cloaks this place. Desperately, I try to stay my panic and remember those fragments of wilderness craft learned and unlearned many years ago.

Choose your weapon carefully,
Get ready for a fight.
The jungle can be dangerous
If you go there at night.
There's time to pick up treasure,
But no time to stop and stare.
If you don't find the hidden cave
You won't get out of there.

Hopeless, I scramble to my feet, reaching for any weapon still left to me. Struggling through the dense undergrowth, I search for signs of a track or trail. At first glance, paths that seemed to lead to safety turn out to be impassable, overgrown by tangled and twisted vines. I remember the words of an old teacher:

"Do not be tempted to use fire to make your way. Many a traveller has strayed from the path, using fire to blaze a trail, only to reach a dead end. Trying to return, they find that the jungle has grown back. Those who are desperate enough will even seek out forgotten routes when the way home is in sight."

Sensing my presence, obscene creatures emerge from the darkness, hungry for prey. Only through skill and luck am I able to dispatch them back into the shadows. Even though I know I must journey deeper into this uncharted land to find the way home, the thought of vengeance drives me on.

Playing The Game

The player must help the character reach the exit for each level. However, the player must first find a key to unlock the exit. On the final level, the exit does not require a key but it may be obstructed. Enemies will appear in each location and attack the player's character. They can be destroyed by projectiles fired by the current weapon.

Game Controls

Z - Left, X - Right, : - Up, ? - Down

To fire a weapon, press RETURN. There are four different types of weapon available in the game.

Alternatively, you may play using an analogue joystick. Select joystick controls by pressing Fire on the title page to start the game. Press SPACE to start the game with keyboard controls.

Other keys can be used within the game as follows:

S/Q - Sound/Quiet, P/O - Pause/Resume, ESCAPE - Return to title screen

Licence

Copyright (C) 2011 David Boddie
An Infukor production for Retro Software

This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but without any warranty; without even the implied warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. See the GNU General Public License for more details.