(Link to video)

Miner 2049er (Commodore 64)

Miner 2049er is a platform video game created by Bill Hogue that was released in 1982 by Big Five Software. The title "Miner 2049er" evokes a 21st-century take on the California Gold Rush of around 1849, in which the gold miners and prospectors were nicknamed "49ers". As Bounty Bob, the player's goal is to inspect every section of each mine in search of the evil Yukon Yohan while avoiding the radioactive creatures that inhabit the mine. As Bounty Bob walks over a section of flooring, it fills with color. To complete the level, every section of flooring must be colored.

Tools Used

  • BizHawk 2.9.0

Effort In TASing

I had got the erge to TAS a game across multiple platforms again. This time, I had started with the Atari 2600 version...only to be followed up with the Commodore 64, and finally the Colecovision version.
This particular version was one that avoided, because I always liked the Colecovision version better. Now that I have TASed this version, I have changed my mind. The mechanics here, offer more exploits over the other two that I have submitted. In fact, when I discovered it...I had to go back and re-TAS this one multiple times, because I was seeing how to be more creative with the movement. These exploits can be read about below.

Version Differences

  • Atari 2600 (Tigervision)
    • Extremely Slow (The slowest of the 3 submissions)
    • Only has 3 Levels, which then repeat over and over.
    • Slide levels require that you cover parts of the flooring, that exist on the slide.
    • Movement controls are extremely sluggish. I'm not sure of the numbers here, but movement takes around 10 frames to occur.
    • Cannon level shares a similar goal with the Commodore 64. The location of ammo must also be "Mining", to complete the round.
    • Extremely tight jumping of enemies. Human efforts show a lot of death, surrounding this task.
    • Elevator performs instantly. This version has the fastest of the 3.
  • Colecovision (Micro Fun)
    • Fastest among the 3 submissions
    • Has 11 levels. The 11th is a special one created by Micro Fun. (Levels are mostly matched up against the Commodore 64)
    • Slide level don't require that you cover part of the flooring, that exist on the slide. This version is well made in my opinion for this mechanic.
    • Movement controls are extremely responsive.
    • Cannon level is the only one of the three that doesn't require "Mining" of the ammo area to complete the level.
    • There is one trick that I don't see human performing. On the "Stomper" level, the platforms that provide you a ride to the opposite can be positions so that you can fall to the bottom and walk over the "Stomper" area. This is the only version where the stop...after you finish using them.
    • The elevator is quite different, over the other 2. It actually performs movement from one floor to another. In this version, I creatively use it to jump around on a timely fashion to get the job done quickly. Here, it runs at a speed that's between the Atari and C64.
  • Commodore 64 (Big Five Software)
    • 2nd faster of the 3 submissions.
    • Has 10 levels. (Levels are mostly matched up against the Colecovision)
    • Slide level require that you cover parts of the flooring, that exist on the slide. Additionally, this version has extra flooring beyond some slides that don't exist on other versions.
    • Movement controls are moderately responsive. This version may run 60 fps visually, but has input lag every other frame.
    • Cannon level shares a similar goal with the Atari 2600. The location of ammo must also be "Mining", to complete the round.
    • This version has two tricks that are extremely difficult to execute for a human, but possible.
    • Elevator performs like a Star Trek transporter. Only issue, is that you have to wait for the elevator to cycle through the floors. Once the floor you want lights up, you can teleport. With such a good game version, this one has the slowest elevator action of the 3.
      • Trick 1: It was not intended, but when you traverse down a slide, you can jump off of the slide when the direction changes. This is a frame perfect trick. I've never heard of this from any source, so it would seem that I discovered it.
      • Tricks 2: Avoiding the "Stompers" on level 9. On this level, the platforms stop when you are not riding them, and can be reactivated when you jump back on them. If you do so, on the left side of the screen, you can immediately jump to avoid the "Slide" pulling you down to the bottom where the Stompers are. There are a few frames that this trick can be performed within. If successful, you can continue your journey back to the right side, and avoiding any climbing or avoidance of the Stompers.

Human Comparison


DrD2k9: Claiming for judging.
DrD2k9: Delayed pending route changes.

nymx: Replaced movie with an updated one that is 15 frames faster.

nymx: Uploading a version that is 714 frames faster.

DrD2k9: Route change improvements sync. Accepting.

despoa: Processing...

TASVideoAgent
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This topic is for the purpose of discussing #8324: nymx's C64 Miner 2049er in 09:16.03
nymx
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DrD2k9...After that simple routing that you brought up, I'm going to hold off on my newest improvement for a day or so. I think I have too much of the Coleco version in me to see things clearly. So far, I've found 40 more frames...for a total of 55 since your suggestion. I don't want to confuse you with any downloads, that you might already have, by me constantly uploading improvements. I'll report back when I've updated it.
I recently discovered that if you haven't reached a level of frustration with TASing any game, then you haven't done your due diligence. ---- SOYZA: Are you playing a game? NYMX: I'm not playing a game, I'm TASing. SOYZA: Oh...so its not a game...Its for real? ---- Anybody got a Quantum computer I can borrow for 20 minutes? Nevermind...eien's 64 core machine will do. :) ---- BOTing will be the end of all games. --NYMX
nymx
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Joined: 11/14/2014
Posts: 812
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Ok. The only level that I had concerns over was the 9th screen. I don't have any ideas on how to improve anything else. For this particular submission, you can resume judging.
I recently discovered that if you haven't reached a level of frustration with TASing any game, then you haven't done your due diligence. ---- SOYZA: Are you playing a game? NYMX: I'm not playing a game, I'm TASing. SOYZA: Oh...so its not a game...Its for real? ---- Anybody got a Quantum computer I can borrow for 20 minutes? Nevermind...eien's 64 core machine will do. :) ---- BOTing will be the end of all games. --NYMX
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While I wouldn't put this at the top of my enjoyment list, I do have to say it became more interesting as the run went on. There's some tricky routing choices here, and I appreciate that some of the mechanics are TAS only. Thanks for your tireless efforts to never stop improving!
I was laid off in May 2023 and could use support via Patreon or onetime donations as I work on TASBot Re: and TASBot HD. I'm dwangoAC, part of the senior staff of TASVideos as the Senior Ambassador and BDFL of the TASBot community; I post TAS content on YouTube.com/dwangoAC based on livestreams from Twitch.tv/dwangoAC.
Post subject: Movie published
TASVideoAgent
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This movie has been published. The posts before this message apply to the submission, and posts after this message apply to the published movie. ---- [5389] C64 Miner 2049er by nymx in 09:16.03