Biffdrop was probably my best game-- the graphics were smoother, the game design and story line a little more original; each of the eight rooms made jam-packed novel use of the obstacles, and it culminated with a surprise/trick ending. Like most of my games, it involved danger without much violence.
Room 1
Antic ~ December 1984
Biffdrop Room 2
Original Biffdrop Sketch
"Wow! This stuff
really hits the spot," declared Slyvester Biffdrop as he slurped down his
last drop of Diet Crab Cola. He was enjoying every minute of his vacation
at Bologna Beach. Lying in the sun getting a xanthic tan was Sly's
favorite sport. This vacation as well deserved after surviving his many
perils in "Escape from Epsilon,” but the relaxation was soon to end.
"Phone call for Mr.
Biffdrop!" cried a small boy from a nearby pay phone. Sly quickly
disposed of his Crab Cola bottle and ran to the phone.
"Hello," he panted.
"Hi Sly," a voice
returned, "This is your Aunt Icked. Now listen, I didn't send you to
Bologna Beach just so you could get a xanthic tan. Go down to Gulls'
Grotto and get that ring back for the museum. Bye Sly." CLICK.
THE GAME
Plug a joystick into port 1 and RUN
the program. You start with five lives and gain an extra one for each
room you successfully pass through. The game is over when Slyvester loses
his last life or when he gets the ring. If he does get the ring, the time
taken to do so is displayed to the nearest minute.
THE STORY SO FAR
Two weeks ago a flock of sea gulls
had flown to the Icked Medley Museum and stole a valuable ring. They're
holding the ring for ransom at the infamous Gulls' Grotto. Slyvester
Biffdrop, Inspector of Mysterious Mishaps for Icked Industries, is assigned to
recover the ring. He's now at the entrance to Gulls' Grotto.
GULLS' GROTTO
One mile south of Bologna Beach is
one of the world's most dreaded areas-Gulls' Grotto. Few have returned
from this extremely dangerous series of caves. Here is a list of some
items said to be found in the Grotto:
Gruesome Gulls - They fly throughout Gulls' Grotto. Their touch
is deadly to Sly.
Eggs - The gulls have laid numerous eggs throughout the Grotto.
Sly must kick an egg (touch it with his webbed foot) to dispose of it.
Doors - Doors lead to other rooms in the Grotto. A door opens
only when Sly has destroyed all the eggs in a room.
Lasers - These turn on and off intermittently. One zap and it's goodbye
Sly.
Spikes - Sly's experience in "Escape from Epsilon" has
taught him that spikes are very sharp, and are deadly if fallen upon.
Ladders - Sly can climb up ladders, but not down (a hereditary
phobia).
Jelly Cubes - Sly can walk and fall through these, but you can't see
Sly when he's in one.
Hard Cubes - These look like Jelly Cubes, but Sly cannot penetrate
them. Hard Cubes and Jelly Cubes are usually mixed together, so you must
help Sly find his way through the mazes of cubes (counting footsteps sometimes
helps).
The Ring - The ring is in the last room (room eight) of Gulls' Grotto. Touch the ring, and you (and Sly) have won!
HINTS
Get to know Sly - test his limits to see just how much he can do. Sly is a duck and has wings, so he can fly to a limited extent while in midair. Practice controlling his jumps and falls. When you come to a new room, position Sly in a safe spot and figure out a strategy for that room. If you can't find a way to get through the room, have someone else take a look at the situation with a fresh point of view.
From 1984 Interview with Antic:
J.D. Casten is the author of the two most popular action games that have appeared in Antic so far-"Risky Rescue" (April 1984) and "Escape From Epsilon" (June 1984). Last month we printed his first text adventure game, "Advent X-5." And this issue features "Biffdrop," his fourth game to appear in Antic during 1984.
Antic's star game programmer "discovery" lives in Eugene Oregon and is a 16 year old high school senior. He plans to major in computer science at his hometown university.
Readers of Antic can look forward to Casten's biggest opus yet, "Operation Omega," a super expansion of "Escape from Epsilon." When Casten finishes the game, it will be his first major machine language program and contain nearly 750 scrolling screens.
Staring in Casten's last two action games is the dauntless Slyvester Biffdrop (not spelled Sylvester). Unfortunately when Antic published "Epsilon" the author didn't inform us that Sly is a duck, so we illustrated the program with an Indiana Jones type hero. In "Operation Omega" Sly will be joined by a flying rodent named Oswald Dipthello.
What makes JD. Casten's games outstanding is their fast movement, smooth graphics and humorous plot backgrounds.
Casten is also working on his second text adventure game. But be won't turn it in until he's satisfied that the new parser recognizes words more sophisticatedly than 'Advent X-5 " did.
When he was 13 years old, Casten got his first computer It was a Timex-Sinclair which he quickly upgraded to an Atari. At that time, he also bought the very first two issues of Antic. He says the magazine showed him what a wealth of information was available for the Atari and that he could learn to program games.
Casten's advice to starting programmers is to keep practicing and tinkering. "If you want to do it, you will," he says. "The information's there, you just have to use it."
Admittedly, Casten is a spurt programmer. When he's inspired he might work 12 bours straight and then finish a program in a week. But afterwards he might not do anymore programming for a month. In his spare time, Casten reads science fiction and fantasy, plays quite a lot of Dungeons & Dragons.
And what do the initials J.D. stand for? John David. But everybody's been calling him JD. for years.