Carnival (video game)

Carnival
Developer(s)	Sega
Publisher(s)	Sega Gremlin Industries
Platform(s)	Arcade, Atari 2600, ColecoVision, Intellivision, Atari 8-bit
Release date(s)	‹See Tfd› NA: 1980
Genre(s)	Fixed shooter
Mode(s)	Up to 2 players, alternating turns
Cabinet	Standard and cocktail
Arcade system	Sega VIC Dual
CPU	Z80 1.933560 MHz
Display	Raster resolution 224 x 256 (Vertical) Palette Colors 64

Carnival is a fixed shooter arcade game created by Sega in 1980.^[1] It has the distinction of being the first video game with a bonus round.

Carnival was ported to the Atari 2600, ColecoVision, and Intellivision. An Atari 8-bit family version was published in 1982 by ANALOG Software, the commercial software branch of ANALOG Computing magazine.^[2]

Gameplay

The goal of the game is to shoot at targets, while carefully avoiding running out of bullets. Three rows of targets scroll across the screen in alternating directions; these include rabbits, ducks, owls, and extra-bullet targets, with higher rows awarding more points. If a duck reaches the bottom row without being shot, it will come to life and begin flying down toward the player. Any ducks that reach the bottom of the screen in this manner will eat some of the player's bullets. A large pop-up target above the top row can either award or subtract bullets or points when hit. A spinning wheel with eight pipes also sits above the top row; these pipes and all targets must be shot in order to complete the round. In addition, a bonus counter increases by the value of every target shot in the three rows. A bonus counter increases for every target hit in any of the three rows, and can be collected by shooting the letters of the word "BONUS" in order as they cycle through the rows. The bonus stops increasing as soon as any letter is shot.

At the end of each round, the player receives bonus points for all unused bullets, then plays a bonus round in which a large bear with a target walks across the screen. Each time the bear is shot, it rears up for a second, then begins walking more quickly in the other direction. The object is to shoot the bear as many times as possible until it escapes off the screen. Following the bonus round, the next wave begins. Later bonus rounds add more bears to the screen.

In higher levels, there are more ducks and fewer extra-bullet targets, putting a premium on accurate shooting. The game ends when the player runs out of bullets.

Technical details

The controls for the standard upright version of Carnival are left and right directional buttons, and a fire button. The cocktail version replaces the directional buttons with a two-way joystick. Carnival is also one of the few games that has two different PCBs, one for each version; normally a game only has one PCB with a dip switch that sets it to either upright or cocktail mode. The upright and cocktail cabinets each come in two varieties, one woodgrain and the other painted orange and white.

Music

The tune that plays throughout the game is Sobre las Olas (Over the Waves) by Juventino Rosas, a tune commonly associated with carnivals and funfairs. The game's General Instruments AY-3-8910 chip allowed for a relatively complex rendition of Rosas's waltz with overlaid sound effects. Videogame scholar Andrew Schartmann notes, "as the track makes use of all three tone-channels—using two for the waltz's characteristic oom-pah-pah and one for its memorable melody—the resulting texture is rich enough to do the music justice. And the inclusion of numerous sound effects, including three different duck quacks and a bear's roar, makes for a veritable sonic feast."^[3]

Home versions

Home versions such as those in the Atari 2600 are similar to the arcade. However, the music and the bonus round have been omitted.

References