Monty on the Run Longplay (C64) [50 FPS]
99Developed by Micro Projects and published by Gremlin Graphics in 1985.
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This video was requested by rego023.
Monty on the Run is the second game released on the C64 to feature Monty Mole, although it is, chronologically, the third in the Monty Mole series and follows on from Monty is Innocent. That game was a Spectrum title and wasn't released on the C64.
To set the scene, the original game saw Monty Mole collecting buckets of coal to keep his family warm (the game was released during the infamous Miner's Strike in 1984), but was subsequently locked up for stealing coal. The second game, Monty is Innocent, sees Monty escaping from prison, while Monty on the Run has Monty fleeing from the police in a bid to escape across the English Channel to safety.
What this actually boils down to is a platform game that, visually, bares a resemblance to Manic Miner/Jet Set Willy and requires the player to navigate through a series of interconnected rooms whilst collecting items to help Monty escape, as well as coins for bonus points.
The threat of the law is little more than a MacGuffin. The real threat in the game are the legions of outlandish enemies that seemed to haunt the screens of so many 8-bit games during the mid 1980s. In fact, anyone looking back at these games would be excused for thinking that we spent the decade in an LSD-addled stupor (we probably did...). It would be fair to assume that Monty was mainlining some rather trippy substances if he was living in a house where most of the appliances have become sentient and his living room floor had dissolved into a lake of boiling lava.
Enemies aside, many screens contain booby trapped items, such as the teddy bear that spawns an enemy right next to Monty when collected. Certain pressure plates create impassable walls and lifts/elevators are not to be trusted. The player is almost certain to fall for these traps the first time that they are encountered, thus prolonging the length of time required to learn the map and to beat the game.
One of the most interesting things about the game is the fact that the player must pick out an escape kit for Monty before starting the game. The kit is actually an anti-piracy measure since picking the wrong items meant that the game could not be completed; the player would have needed the instruction manual in order to work out the correct items to include in the kit.
On his journey, Monty gets to fly a jet-pack, as well as drive the fastest Sinclair C5 in existence (if only, Sir Clive, if only...).
The game's graphics are typical for the era and of the genre; there's nothing particularly special (or terrible) on show here.
The music, however, is a different story altogether. Rob Hubbard composed what is, quite possibly, one of the most iconic themes for any game on the C64 (and 8-bit machines in general). Considering that the C64 would have still been in a relatively early period of it's commercial lifespan in 1985, games with sound that were little more than basic blips and bloops were still common. It's quite clear that the Hubbard has tried to simulate the use of violins, guitars are other instrumentation throughout the piece and it works extremely well.
On a personal level, I never played any of the Monty Mole games other than Impossamole (which isn't really a Monty Mole game apart from the fact that it uses the same character). For a first play-through, I quite enjoyed it and it's easy to see why it scored highly upon release.
#retrogaming