Auf Wiedersehen Monty
Description official descriptions
In Monty On the Run the intrepid coal thief Monty Mole fled to the rocky island of Gibraltar. However, the Intermole agency is on to him, and his only hope of escape is to trek across Europe, collecting enough cash to buy the Greek island of Montos and live there in luxury.
This is Monty's third game (fourth if you count Monty is Innocent), and the structure is similar to the previous three. It's platform and ladders based, with 80 screens each representing some area of Europe - the Eiffel Tower and the Leaning Tower of Pisa are among the identifiable landmarks.
There are different ways of travelling through the levels - some bouncy platforms coupled with a new super-leap move allow for big progress to be made, while Monty can also suspend from the ceilings and dodge his way across. Monty can now fall without being hurt, although landing on water can cause multiple lives to be lost in quick succession. Collecting wine bottles makes Monty drunk and he will stumble around randomly until he recovers by becoming sober again.
There are many items to collect - the most important are Eurocheques for money and airplane tickets. Once on a plane you must fight off the encroaching Intermole planes for extra points.
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Credits (Commodore 64 version)
9 People
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Reviews
Critics
Average score: 73% (based on 8 ratings)
Players
Average score: 3.1 out of 5 (based on 16 ratings with 1 reviews)
The high watermark of Spectrum platform games
The Good
Controls are responsive, and the addition of the quick jump (plus the somersault introduced in Monty on the Run) makes navigating the screens an achievable challenge.
You can't jump in all guns blazing - you need to plan your moves, allowing for the patterns of the foes and the arrangement of poles and platforms.
The trial-and-error 'Freedom Kit' of Monty on the Run is gone, and there are no unforseeable deaths, so it's a pure game of skill, unlike all too many 80s platform games (especially British ones).
Different parts of Europe are represented nicely, with smart clash-free graphics and a variety of backdrops.
The Bad
You have to be pixel-perfect in places, which isn't easy. Fortunately you get plenty of lives and always restart on the screen you died on.
The Bottom Line
A classic example of 80s platform games, delivered with real panaché. Monty Mole was the big Spectrum games hero (and loved on the C64 as well) and this game demonstrates why.
ZX Spectrum · by Martin Smith (81736) · 2006
Trivia
Title
The English release uses German words as a reference to Auf Wiedersehen Pet, a popular British television programme of the time, in which a group of laborers from the English city of Newcastle were working in Germany. ('Auf Wiedersehen' is German for 'see you later', 'Pet' is Northern English dialect to refer to a significant other). Note that the person behind the French name appears to have missed the reference.
Awards
- CRASH
- Newsfield Reader's Awards - Best Platform Game 1987 (readers choice)
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Contributors to this Entry
Game added by Martin Smith.
Windows added by Rik Hideto. Antstream added by firefang9212. iPad, iPhone added by Sciere. Commodore 16, Plus/4 added by Kabushi.
Additional contributors: Patrick Bregger, Jo ST.
Game added April 30, 2005. Last modified June 27, 2024.