Crystal Castles

Once upon a time, Bentley Bear was rambling through the woods, daydreaming about poached salmon. He stopped to take a nap in his favorite hollow tree trunk. But when he awoke, he found himself inside a huge castle glittering with diamonds, emeralds, and pearls.

Though Bentley didn’t know it at the time, he was trapped in Crystal Castles, home of Berthilda the Witch and her evil cronies. To escape their spell, he must harvest the gems in the castles before Berthilda and her malicious gang send him into permanent hibernation.

About the Game

In the early 1980s, Atari struck gold by recreating a string of popular arcade games as cartridges, such as mega-hits Space Invaders, Asteroids, and Missile Command. Atari tagged Crystal Castles as the next conversion after the game burst onto the arcade scene in 1983. How big was it? In order to meet consumer demand for Crystal Castles, Atari produced a combined 5,000 cabinets and cocktail table units over the game’s lifetime.

The coin-op crowd lauded Crystal Castles’ graphics, controls, and even the design of its cabinet. The game’s appeal led to it appearing as one of the games contestants could play on the arcade-themed game show, Starcade.

While the conversion from coin-op cabinet to home console cartridge required scaling back certain features, such as warp points, the overall gaming experience remained the same.

The Atari team managed to keep isometric (meaning appearing as three-dimensional on a two-dimensional screen) level maps, something that hadn’t been done before on a game for the 2600.

The appeal of Crystal Castles persisted after Atari discontinued the 2600. It’s commonly included in Atari game collections for home computers and consoles. Even modern reviewers rate

it as one of the best games released for the 2600. If you haven’t played it yet, you’re in for a treat!

Object of the Game

Rack up a high score by guiding Bentley Bear through a series of castles. Avoid the deadly touch of the castles’ evil inhabitants by jumping over them. Collect magic gems, pick up special items, and defeat certain enemies to score points.

How to Play

You begin at the first castle of the level you selected (1-8). Each level features four castles, and each castle contains up to seven enemies that try to thwart Bentley’s efforts to collect gems. Completing a level’s fourth castle advances you to the next level’s first castle.

Use the joystick to guide Bentley Bear through the castle interiors.

Press the red controller button to make Bentley jump. Run over the gems to collect them. Jump over enemies to avoid them in tight spaces.

There are two beneficial items found on some levels: a Magic Hat and a Pot of Honey. Collect the Pot of Honey as quickly as enemies allow, otherwise a Swarm of Bees (see “Enemies”) appears to protect the pot.

The Magic Hat grants temporary invincibility to Bentley when he runs into it, or jumps over it. For the first three levels, the hat stays in one spot. For Levels 4-8, the Magic Hat bounces around the level until Bentley collects it. In Levels 9 and above, the Magic Hat turns into a Crystal Ball if Bentley doesn’t get to it quickly.

You begin with five lives, and earn additional lives at intervals of 20,000 points. The primary way to score points is by collecting gems. The first gem you collect on each level is worth a single point. Subsequent gems are worth one additional point each (the second gem is worth 2, the third gem is worth 3, etc.), up to 99 points per gem. Harvesting the final gem in a castle is initially worth 1,000 points, increasing by 100 points for every castle you clear. The enemies in some levels consume gems, so you are not guaranteed this bonus amount.

The other ways to score points include picking up the Magic Hat (500 points), consuming the Pot of Honey (1,000 points), running into a Gem Eater enemy while it’s consuming a gem (500 points), and hitting Berthilda the Witch while wearing the Magic Hat (3,000 points).

Enemies

Berthilda the Witch occupies the fourth (final) castle of each level. Her only predictable aspect is her favorite snack—large furry mammals, served with a bear-naise sauce. Avoid her as much as possible, unless Bentley is wearing the Magic Hat. Run into Berthilda while wearing the Magic Hat to change her from threat into bonus points.

Crystal Balls eat gems. They chase Bentley with a rolling motion. They’re small and easy to avoid with jumps.

Gem Eaters compete with Bentley for gems. As long as Bentley isn’t wearing the hat, he can turn Gem Eaters into dust by running over them just as they swallow their lunch. Look for a red segment in a Gem Eater’s otherwise green body.

Ghosts don’t pop up often. They’re more scenery than threat. They don’t chase Bentley, preferring to stay in a limited area.

Nasty Trees beeline for Bentley and gobble up gems. Avoid these woody monsters by trapping them behind a wall or in a corner. Jumping over a Nasty Tree causes it to shrink down briefly.

Skeletons are rarely encountered and don’t actively chase Bentley. They move slowly and stick to a small area in a castle.

The Swarm of Bees appears for one of two reasons. First, they protect Pots of Honey; they come and go as long as the Pot of Honey remains on the level. Second, if you take too long to collect the gems in a castle, the Swarm of Bees acts as a reminder to get you going.

The final opponent is more hazardous item than mobile enemy. The Witch’s Cauldron turns Bentley into bear stew if he touches it. Avoid this deadly pot by jumping over it.