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Atari 400/800/1200 version

Miner 2049er was created by Bill Hogue (pictured right in 1983) of Big Five Software. It was a breakthrough game for the time not only because it featured 10 screens of challenging puzzles and arcade quality graphics and sound but also because of the innovative marketing campaign by ICG (International Computer Group) that saw it licensed to just about every system around at the time.

The Atari 400/800/1200 version became the template version that all the others were modelled on. Due to the programming skills of Bill Hogue and the advanced audio visual hardware of the Atari home computers, it is generally regarded as the best version very closely followed by the Commodore 64. Miner 2049er remains a popular cartridge for collectors and have seen complete packages sell for around $100US on ebay. Pictured below is the cartridge variations of the Atari 400/800/1200 version. The ROMOX version was a UK release.

The game artwork was created by Scott Ross who was given the task to visualize the look of Bounty Bob. In his artwork, he includes a mule which doesn't actually appear anywhere in the game or storyline. In an interview with Scott Ross, I asked him how the mule came about and his response was... "who ever heard of an old prospector without his packmule and a little jug of hooch to take off the chill...and it was a nice spot to put the creators name on in each version!"

Atari Version Cheat Code

Having trouble getting to those higher levels in the original Atari 400/800 version of Miner 2049er? There is an "official" cheat code that will allow you to start at any of the 10 levels! It was probably originally added to make the testing of each level easier for the programmer but gee, whose complaining!! :)

- Start the game normally.

- Move Bounty Bob up onto the first platform so that the mutant cannot get him.

- Type in Big Five Software's phone number of 1982! - 213 782 6861.

- While holding the SHIFT key down, press the level number you wish to restart from.

Download the emulator!

Bill Hogue has written a dedicated emulator that allows you to play Miner 2049er and the sequel, Bounty Bob Strikes Back in a window on a Windows PC. Click here to jump to the official Big Five Website's download page and experience the challenge of Miner 2049er.