Joe Gunn

By: Derek Yu

On: September 5th, 2007

Everyone loves tomb raiding, right? Dusty passageways, deadly traps, mysterious ruins, ancient treasures… snakes. It’s adventure and exploration and legend and all that good stuff. It’s Indiana Jones, man!

Well, there have been a lot of games set in the “Indyspace,” and some have been good and some have been bad. Joe Gunn, a newish C64 homebrew from George Rottensteiner, is definitely one of the good ones. What can I say? It’s old-fashioned platforming the way Ra intended, with 70 rooms, and plenty of items, puzzles, and secrets. And it nails the theme to the floor, right down to the great “Egyptian” music.

If you thought La Mulana was cool, but couldn’t get into it because it is so frickin’ difficult, give this one a try. It’s not easy, by any means, but it’s much more forgiving than NIGORO’s unholy beast.

Joe Gunn requires a C64 or a C64 emulator. Terry (who recommended the game, thanks!) recommends Vice. Don’t forget to configure Joystick II before you start.

See the extended for controls:

Walk – Left / Right

Climb Ladders – Up / Down

Jump – Hold Fire and press Left / Right (can be done on ladders)

Examine – Hold Fire and press Down

Use an Item – Hold Fire and press Up, then Up / Down to cycle items

At certain points in the game you will be able to climb ropes. Grab the ropes by pressing Up and press Down to let go. You can only grab onto a rope when you’re standing.

There’s no way to save in the game and it’s possible to get stuck, so be careful!