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Paperboy

Game Mechanics

The player controls a pack that distributes the logs by bike along a residential track. The game is in two dimensions (2D), and the landscape appears from an isometric perspective. This perspective allows an impression of depth, in particular, to a 2D game. The pounder is located in the center of the screen, and the scenery scrolls diagonally when it advances in the street.

The main objective of the game is to keep all its subscribers by delivering a newspaper for a week of play (Monday to Sunday). The player must also avoid any obstacles to him, as a collision leads to loss of a point of life. Accessoryly, the player also has the opportunity to vandalize the home of non-subscribes by breaking their window with a newspaper, or to launch newspapers on the obstacles. The player loses subscribers when he fails to deliver a newspaper, or when he vandalizes their home by mistake.

The player can choose between three difficulty levels: Easy Street (Easy Street) Middle Road (average ride) and Hard way (Laughs) Each game day starts by showing the player a street map showing the subscribers' houses (in blue) and non-subscribes (in red). During the game, the player can discern the homes of subscribers by their bright colors, compared to the dark houses of the non-subscribers. The player starts at the bottom of the street and goes back without ever stopping. Indeed, the player can control the speed of the bike, but the pounder cannot stop or back until the day is over. In the arcade version, a cloud of bees falls on the pounder if he dares to brake for a moment.

It is relatively simple to keep its subscribers: just give them a newspaper. No penalty is granted if the delivery booker delivers more than one newspaper to the same home. The delivery can carry a limited number of newspapers. It must therefore collect packets of newspapers throughout its route, and some packages are located in difficult places of access. If the delivery provider fails to deliver a copy of a newspaper to a customer, the customer cancels his subscription and may take revenge on the following day by attempting to trap him. When the difficulty of the game increases, the discontented customer may even pursue the delivery when his home is vandalized.

The deliveryman must remain alive by avoiding obstacles to him throughout the street. Among the obstacles he might encounter, we note the fountains (fire terminals), the sewer grids, skaters, children with teleguided toys, and even a tornado and Death in person. The player can launch newspapers on some obstacles to get bonus points. However, he loses a life if he goes on cycling barriers. The pounder must also cross intersections without getting hit by the cars circulating there (a task that becomes increasingly difficult over the days).

Two types of collisions are possible when the deliveryman moves into an obstacle. A collision marked with a " %#@*!" occurs when the camlot flies into obstacles that form part of the decor, such as fountain terminals, fences and signs. A collision with a "SMACK!" occurs when the deliveryman meets objects in motion. In this case, we can hear the voice of the pounder commenting the game. For example, if it collides with a tricycle child, it will say “I hate that kid» ("I hate this kid"), while it will launch a “Let's see you hang ten» ("We'd like to see you do something hang ten») to the skaters he meets.

The difficulty of the game increases every "day" in the game, that is, the obstacles multiply, the cars roll faster and the packets of newspapers are more difficult to get. On Sunday, last day in the game, the newspapers fly more slowly, which requires an adjustment of the player's reflexes.

The player wins the game by finishing the last level while retaining its subscribers. The game ends with a newspaper that appears on the screen, on which we see the photo of the pounder who holds a trophy with the title “Paperboy wins awards for outstanding paper delivery» (« Paperboy wins a prize for his extraordinary newspaper delivery service »). The game also ends when the pounder loses all his lives but, in this case, it is the title “Paperboy calls it quits» (« Paperboy resigns ») that appears on the newspaper. If the booker loses all its subscribers, the newspaper commented on its failure by the title “Paperboy fired» (« Paperboy is put at the door ») and you can hear a voice say “You're fired» ("You're fired! »).

For each newspaper delivered in a subscriber's mailbox, the player receives 250 points. The player receives 100 points if the newspaper is delivered on the doorstep of the house. The points are multiplied by two if the difficulty level is Middle Road, and by three if it comes to Hard way. The player also earns points by vandalizing the home of non-subscribers, crushing the platforms and launching newspapers on obstacles.

The player receives a prize Perfect Delivery ( impeccable delivery) when it arrives to deliver a newspaper to all subscribers during a day. This price allows you to double the points earned on each delivery, and return to a customer who was no longer subscribed, up to ten subscribers on twenty houses. If the player gets the price Perfect Delivery but it already has ten subscribers, its points are doubled without obtaining additional subscriber.

The player has access to a training course every time he finishes a level. This is a path where there are several obstacles, as well as objects on which the camelot can launch newspapers, and ramps to make bike jumps. The player wins bonus points by launching newspapers on targets, making jumps (which fill his newspaper reserve), and finishing the course within the time allocated. Since this is a bonus level, the player does not lose life by breaking into obstacles or by not ending the course in time. Once this level is over, a new day begins.

In the older versions of the game, it was possible for the player to bypass the finish line in order to repeat the same level a second time rather than finish it. This bug gave rise to the appearance of erroneous data on the screen, while giving full points to the player.