Hangman

You have just one guess left and one letter to go. Get it right and win. Guess wrong and the computer makes a monkey out of you.

The nine game variations help little people earn big and big people earn a little. You also get to drive one another crazy.

About the Game

Hangman comes from a popular word game usually played with pencil and paper. The game features a somewhat macabre depiction of a person hanging from a gallows. The game master draws the head, body, legs, and arms for incorrect guesses. The Atari version softens the concept of the traditional Hangman game by instead using a monkey hanging by its arm.

Don’t let this game make a monkey out of you when you test your word skills! Line spaces appear at the bottom of the screen. One space equals one letter of the Hangman Word. If there are six spaces, for example, the Hangman Word could be LUXURY.

Object of the Game

The object of the game is to complete the Hangman Word within 11 incorrect letter guesses. Games 1, 2, 3, and 4 are one-player games in which you compete against the computer. During Games 5, 6, 7 and 8, two players compete to guess the Hangman Word first within 11 incorrect guesses. The first player to score five points is the winner. In Game 9, one player composes the Hangman Word for an opponent to guess.

How to Play

Use the joystick to select the alphabet letter you choose to enter into the computer. Letters of the alphabet appear one at a time on the right side of the screen.

Push the joystick forward to cycle through the alphabet letters from A to Z. Pull the joystick towards you to cycle through the letters in reverse order from Z to A. When the letter you want appears on-screen, release the joystick and press the red controller button to enter the letter.

• If the letter you select is in the Hangman Word, it appears in the appropriate blank (or blanks) and that letter is removed from the alphabet cycle.
• If the letter you select is not in the Hangman Word, a part of the monkey appears in the upper-left corner of the screen and that letter is removed from the alphabet cycle.

If you don’t complete the Hangman Word after 11 incorrect selections, the Hangman Word automatically appears in the spaces and the monkey is completed in the upper-left corner.

In one-player games, the number of games you win appears in the upper-left corner; the number of games you lose appears in the upper-right corner.

In two-player games, a player scores one point for completing the Hangman Word. The first player’s score appears in the upper-left corner, while the second player’s score is in the upper-right corner.

Difficulty Options

When the difficulty is in the A position, a player has 20 seconds to select the next letter. When the difficulty is in the B position, there is no time limit.

Game Options

Games 1, 2, 3 and 4 are one-player games against the computer. You score one point for every Hangman Word you complete, while the computer scores one point for each Hangman Word you do not complete.

Game 1

One player competes against the computer that uses words from a first through third grade vocabulary.

Game 2

One player competes against the computer that uses words from a first through sixth grade vocabulary.

Game 3

Playing with words from a first through ninth grade level, one player competes against the computer.

Game 4

Words from a first through high school vocabulary are used for competition between one player and the computer.

Games 5, 6, 7 and 8 are two-player games against the computer. After you select the game vocabulary, you and your opponent take turns selecting alphabet letters to find the word generated by the computer. Both players together are allowed 11 incorrect selections. When you make a correct letter guess, you receive a consecutive turn. The first player to complete the Hangman Word scores one point and starts the next word. The first player to score five points wins the game.

Game 5

Two players compete to complete the Hangman Word from a first through third grade vocabulary.

Game 6

Two players test their word skill with Hangman Words from a first through sixth grade vocabulary.

Game 7

Words from a first through ninth grade vocabulary are used for competition between two players.

Game 8

Two players compete using words from a first through high school vocabulary.

Game 9

Now it’s your turn to choose the Hangman Word! Instead of playing with a computer word, one player composes the Hangman Word with the joystick controller; the opposing player receives 11 guesses to complete the Hangman Word.

To enter your own Hangman Word into the computer, cycle through the alphabet letters on-screen while your opponent avoids looking at the screen. The Hangman Word may be between one and six letters.

If you want CAT to be the Hangman Word, cycle to the letter C with the joystick and enter it into the computer by pressing the red controller button. Repeat this process for the letters A and T. To enter the same letter in succession, cycle to the letter and enter it into the computer. Cycle off the letter and move back to the letter again. Now enter it into the computer and the letter appears a second time.

Two players take turns composing and completing the Hangman Word. You score one point when you complete the Hangman Word your opponent has submitted. The player who scores five points first is the winner.