Q&A With Montezuma’s Revenge’s Robert Jaeger

When it comes to longevity, few games have endured as long as 1983’s Montezuma’s Revenge. Programmed by sixteen-year old Robert Jaeger, the action-adventure title was quickly purchased by Parker Bros, who shrank the Atari 800-based computer game to fit on console cartridges. Revisiting his work, Jaeger worked on the development of a Director’s Cut and consulting on the upcoming 40th Anniversary Remake. Recently, we spoke to Jaeger as well as EastAsiaSoft’s Joshua Michael French about influences, design decisions, and the leading cause of death for Pedro. 

Tech-Gaming: When it comes to the original Montezuma’s Revenge, which was more influential:  Raiders of the Lost Ark (the 1981 film) or Pitfall! (the 1982 David Crane game)?

Robert Jaeger: Neither. There were lots of Montezuma influences, but I don’t consider either of these influences. I developed Montezuma before seeing Raiders. Pitfall was a great game, but I didn’t own an Atari 2600 and I didn’t play it before Montezuma. The original Mario from Donkey Kong is the main influence of all jumping man games, but I also credit some early non-linear games like Atari 2600 Superman.

T-G: The original Montezuma’s Revenge was one of the most widely ported games of the era. Robert, how much oversight did you have over the different versions?

RJ: Parker Bros took my original Atari computer source code and used it as a base or reference for all the ports. I didn’t really have much oversight at all, but I thought that Parker did a great job on all the ports.

T-G: Robert, along with Caverns of Mars’ Greg Christensen, you were among the first wave of teenage game developers. Can you share with us how it felt to create a game for Parker Bros while still in high school?

RJ: Caverns of Mars was a great game. I never met Greg, but there were plenty of other well-known teenage game devs in the 80’s. I really shut down when I was working on the original Montezuma. My grades in school suffered for certain. It was special to have a degree of fame as a kid.

T-G: Over the years, have you ever encountered any Panama Joe death statistics? At least 75% of my fatalities must be related to falls.

RJ: No, I don’t believe the statistics have ever been calculated. Montezuma is a notoriously difficult game, and falling is probably the main cause of death.

T-G: Speaking of old Joe, I must have missed some lore. How and when did he become known as Pedro?

RJ: The main character was called Pedro in the original leaked release of my first version of Montezuma. Parker changed the name I suppose to capitalize on the Indiana Jones popularity. This original version is sometimes known as “Montezuma 2” in the community because the players thought it was a sequel – the reality was I was planning a bigger game than what was released. Parker Brothers reduced my original game to fit into a basic system of the day.

T-G: Staying true to the source material can be complicated for a reboot. When you sat down to create Montezuma’s Revenge – The 40th Anniversary Edition what kinds of things do you feel needed to be retained from the original game?

RJ: Credit goes to Mission Critical Studios as I gave them plenty of liberty. I wanted them to introduce lots of new enemies and features and they really delivered. I was adamant about preserving the feel, character and basic gameplay elements of the original game. There are ladders, ropes, jumps of course, but also tons of new gameplay elements. It’s really an updated, modernized, fully blown-out version of the classic.

T-G: What are some of the biggest changes?

RJ: The boss challenges. Both the 40th Anniversary Edition and the Director’s Cut have pyramids that culminate in a battle with King Montezuma. None of the previous releases had this. Also, the underwater challenges and the new enemies like Turtles and Lizards.

T-G: How long did development take?

RJ: A few years for each. Director’s Cut took much longer than anticipated, but we wound up really making a new game.

T-G: The 40th Anniversary Edition also includes a complete director’s cut. What are some of the key differences in this version? Is the bat in there?

RJ: Director’s Cut is my baby. This is the version of Montezuma which is the completion of my vision. As discussed, Parker greatly reduced my game, and told me I didn’t need to finish it to my specifications. It has taken 40 years for me to complete this vision.

T-G: Montezuma’s Revenge’s golden anniversary is only a decade away. What does the franchise look and play like in 2034?

RJ: In ten years I hope to enhance the brand with new retro-style Montezuma games and hopefully some new versions for old systems too.

T-G: Joshua, I know you and the crew of EastAsiaSoft aren’t afraid of experimentation. If you could adapt Montezuma’s Revenge into another genre, what would that game look like? 

Joshua Michael French: That’s an interesting question. My immediate thought might be to turn it into a full 3D adventure along the lines of Tomb Raider, but that seems too conventional. I actually think it would be cool to spin it into a Mesoamerican themed block puzzler where idols and artifact blocks have special effects as you drop them into place. An experimental side game like this wouldn’t need to be so big that it eclipses the original or its remake in scope, but it would expand the IP in a fun “one more play” kind of way. For every game that takes time and dedication, I think it’s great to add a component or counterpart intended for anytime play that’s more for instant gratification. That’s my thought, anyway, but if there’s an opportunity to grow the IP with something grander, we’d certainly want to explore that too.