Burgertime: 295750

This is what happens when you group the first three stages of Burgertime then choke on the next seven.

My 10 Favorite Posts Of 2009

#10 Sega Genesis Collecting And Arms Dealing: See what happens when my son and I trade an air pistol for a SEGA Genesis.  This was a favorite post because I caught it on tape, and that I did it with my son.

#9 Burgertime: I have alot of blog posts about Burgertime, but this post is significant because it was the first post that explained that I'm attempting to collect all of the licensed Nintendo games.  What spurred me to to this was that the previous November I had finished my 60-in-1 arcade game.  On it is Burgertime, but the machine was left at my in-laws house and I was craving Burgertime.  Mmm delicious memories.

#8 Salzmafia Nintendo Price Chart: This post was all about creating the Nintendo Price Chart which eventually became http://www.videogamepriceguides.com/

#7 Nintendo Golf New Label: Remember Hussy Golf?  This was my experiment in creating new labels for Nintendo cartridges where the original label was ruined.  This inspired some additional ones, though I have not yet created them due to lack of time.

#6 Burgertime New Personal Best: Ever look back at old yearbook photos and ask yourself "What was I thinking?"  Thats kinda what I think of now when I look at this post.  What kind of loser score is 44,500 points on Burgertime?  Breaking 100,000 on the first level is expected!

#5 How To Clean Your Nintendo Games: I love this post!  So many people make cleaning a Nintendo game a chore, and it doesn't have to be.  Also, many people think brasso and other ridiculous garbage will clean their game.  Boy are they wrong.

#4 Videogame Box Art History: Racing the Beam is a pretty cool book, and the revelation of Activision's marketing was genius!

#3 Red Or Blue: Take a trip down memory lane and relive the importance of wearing an 80's bandana makes when you're a character in a Nintendo Video game.

#2 The Spy Hunter Experience: I preach it all the time: Less is More when it comes to a videogame.  Read a real life example of how Spy Hunter has a greater depth than Metal Gear Solid IV due to the player's imagination

#1 Burgertime Grouping Performance: Yeah I know, I already have a Burgertime post mentioned in the top-ten, but this has to be my #1 favorite post of 2009.  After struggling for months on Burgertime I was able to find a workable pattern for the first level that yields 100,000 each and every time (which 100k is not depicted in the video).  Hear my excitement as I pull off the massive groupings.

Burgertime Arcade Grouping Stage 1

There's always time for Burgertime... except when you're working on making a full length movie about it.  Anyways I've been working closely with the arcade version, and have been concentrating on the differences in it, and with the Nintendo version.  It seems the AI does have a few subtle yet dangerous differences.  Mr. Egg changes direction for no reason at all... Mr. Pickle acts drunk or high.  And then there is the rouge Mr. Hotdog who made the following video a pain.

You see, I'm convinced you can group the arcade version with a simliar strategy on the NES version.  The problem is there is a Mr. Hotdog on the first stage that always seems to go rogue when there is a camera on.  15 takes later I finally capture it.  Finally!

Escaping The Burgertime Level 3 Trap

The third level of Burgertime demands that you start running to the right and then up the ladder narrowing escaping the egg.  Hesitate for even a second and the egg will kill you.  This little manuver is what to do if you wasted that second and are now in danger of losing a life.  It's also the first half of the setup for grouping on the third level which I will share another time.

Burgertime Level 4 Grouping

It's been quite awhile since I posted about Burgertime. As you can see I had a loose grouping and it quickly fell apart. I ended with a quite dismall score, which isn't too bad I suppose since I really haven't practiced in weeks.

Burgertime Movie

Is there a Burgertime movie? Not that I know of. Is there a movie about Burgertime? Yes... sorta. Over this past year I've come to realize that Burgertime is much more than a game. It's a piece of art. It's an enigma. It represents qualities that are no longer found in games. Could you imagine Burgertime as a first person shooter? Today's youth wouldn't understand it. I'm willing to bet many teenagers would dismiss it as stupid. But despite having only six screens three enemies and one weapon it contains a depth that rivals any game you can play today.

Take for example Metal Gear Solid. Four games, and three of which I completed in less than a week and never touched since. Lets dissect MGS for a moment. The story starts out like this... oh... wait a minute. There's the problem right there: a story. We're talking videoGAMES right? Seems to me that the word STORY doesn't fit well with a game... I mean think about it... what's the plot behind tic tac toe? Poker? Baseball? Football? Chess? Is there some salacious plot behind bowling?

That's not to say games with a story are not entertaining... they are, but the are more story than game. Many games are not particularly challenging nowendays because they are bound to a story. The game needs to be easy enough so that the purchaser can complete the game and finish the story.

If you consider the plot to any early 80's videogame my point becomes clear. Donkey Kong: avoid obstacles to rescue your girl friend. Pac-man: eat dots and avoid ghosts. Paperboy: Deliver papers and avoid obstacles. Now consider current games. Metal Gear: Destroy Metal Gear located on Shadow Moses Island which has been taken over by terrorists. Collect weapons and rations and interact with people through cutscenes. PS if you die don't worry about it. Just continue. Grand Theft Auto: Steal cars go on missions attack people watch cut screens count your money avoid cops. PS if you die just continue. Neither of these games sound like videogames... they sound like videoWORK! If you go to a job everyday and you mess it up you get fired then find another job and repeat (continue). Isn't that work?

So a game like Burgertime is not work. If you play chess and you mess up it could mean game over and if you throw a gutter ball you're not gonna score 300 and if its the bottom of the 9th or final seconds of the forth quarter and you lose... you are done. There are no continues.

So anyways the story of Burgertime needs to be told, and what better way to tell it than through a movie? More details coming soon...

Burgertime Level 2 Grouping

Below are instructions on how to get a tight grouping on level 2 of Burgertime for Nintendo.  A couple things to keep in mind: 1.) Do not attempt this grouping on a full stomach (you'll learn why later.)  2.) As soon as the level starts you need to start walking so already be pressing up when you complete level 1.  As you follow the path do not hesitate or pause, the timing needs to be perfect!  Do not stop moving until you get to the yellow dot in the 2nd screen shot below.

Begin by pressing up then going left as shown below.  Go down then cut across to the right.  Start running up the ladder.  When you get to that platform with the lettuce, go right and be ready to go up the blue ladder that will be to your right...  It will look like you will be killed by a hotdog that will be running up to the same platform you are standing on.  If your timing is perfect, and you have not hesitated he will not kill you.  The top of his head will touch your feet, but just keep pressing up and you will be ok.  Again, make sure you have not had a full stomach before attempting this grouping because that hotdog will make you pollute your underwear...

Once at the top run to the right then go all the way down.  Now before you start running to the left there will be a hotdog and an egg on the same platform getting ready to run up that blue ladder.. the same blue ladder you started to run up at the begining of this screen shot...  Follow the pattern going down the green ladder, across half of the cheese, then down the blue ladder in the middle of the screen.  Once you get to the platform with the two bottom buns walk to the left and stand between the green and blue ladder (indicated by the yellow dot.)

Wait here, and a group of hot dogs and an egg will come down the ladders and follow the yellow arrow.  There will be one hotdog that will be lagging a little behind.  Wait for the precise moment where he gets down the blue ladder and starts to walk to the left... that is your cue to run up the blue ladder (indicated in red) face down and pepper those bitches.  You'll need at least 3 (three) peppers to group them.  Once grouped have them follow you on to the lettuce and the'll be grouped.  I'll post a video when I have time.

Burgertime Explaination

Ok, so as you can see it's the start of level three of Burgertime. 100k was achieved on level 1. 75k was achieved on level 2. 12 lives in reserve. Notice that I didn't say earned. Also notice that the screen shot looks different from previous ones. That's because it was achieved on the Nintendo DS. That's right, NES Burgertime on the DS. Don't ask how or why. Just know that I can't and won't claim the score to be legitimate. It's all part of my method to decypher the grouping for level 2.

Burgertime 2nd Stage Grouping

I promised I wouldn't post about Burgertime for a week... well it's been a week! A long one- and I've filled it with stage 2 grouping.... I might have it perfected... It's going to be critical to break 200k and the eventual TwinGalaxies record.

Seconds Away From 100k In Burgertime

I can now say with 100percent confidence that my grouping pattern works for Burgertime for the first level. Again though, I choked on every single level thereafter. It's disgusting. I didn't even finish the sixth level!  This is the 100th official post of this blog, and a good percentage has been Burgertime related... so with that in mind I'm going to give Burgertime a 7 day rest.

Choking On Burgertime

Another choke on Burgertime! Using my new grouping pattern I started level 2 just shy of 100k, and immediately I started dying and wasting peppers. My final demise came on stage 6.

Burgertime Grouping Redux

Tonight I tried something new with my Burgertime pattern (original here).  If you watch the video you know that normally I'll walk up the ladder where the chef is standing in the image below, then walk to the right then press to the left and pepper the Mr. Hotdogs and Mr Egg in a vain attempt to group them.  They would always be grouped but the problem was that they were not grouped tight enough.  So, for the last couple days I've invested a few hours into Burgertime and have modified the pattern.  Instead of doing that "right then left" manuver and peppering the enemies as they come down the ladder I've instead walked to the right, gone up the ladder and when the chef's feet are aligned to the top rung (shown as the red dot below) I'd press down and pepper the enemies.  This has worked alot better, however...

I still choke on the latter stages...

Burgertime Controller

What do you do when you obtain a filthy controller? You clean it up and re-brand it of course! this first attempt was terrible. I needed a sharper knife and that's why the edges look chewed.

The Real Burgertime Score

This was the real Burgertime score after I perfected my grouping technique on the first stage. I actually entered stage two with over 100,000 but I kept choking on the subsequent stages... I dunno nerves I guess.



I limped into stage 7 (repeat stage 1) on my last life (down from 8 lives when I started stage 2) and pissed it away trying to group them with the same technique, which proved to be a big mistake as their were enemies all over the screen. It kinda looked like a disturbed wasps nest!

Burgertime Grouping Performance

Now this performance is not perfect mind you, but the spirit behind it is perfect.

Ebay and more Burgertime Progress

I won Karnov and Breakthru earlier this week for a penny each with reasonable shipping. Both are made by Dataeast which by the way (oh my!) Burgertime is well. I broke 50k, this afternoon on the forth level. Perhaps its a cheap victory because I was able to group and drop all of the hotdogs eggs and pickles all at once for 8000pts. before they regrouped and killed me

Burgertime New Personal Best

My personal best at Burgertime still sucks but its better than what it was thanks to the 5th level.

Burgertime 5th Level

I finally made it to the 5th level of Burgertime at the expense of ripping some hair out...

Burgertime Progress

Compared to others this Burgertime score sucks. But it's the highest I've gotten so far. The forth level always seems to get choppy for me. I'm pretty certain it's only because of all the stuff on the screen... several burger ingredients, the chef, the egg, the pickles, the hotdogs. It seems that when the programmers of NES games encountered a situation like this they always had two options... the first is to let the game suffer the slow down, and the other was to compensate with 'flicker'. Super Mario Bros. encounters this a lot. But I guess in a game like Burgertime choppiness is better than flicker because who would want Mr. Hotdog creeping up on you like a ghost?

Mmmm... Burgertime

Burgertime is a beautifully designed game. It seems so simple: Avoid Mr. Hotdog, Egg and Pickle, while stacking up burger ingredients. But it's not simple. It's hard. Damn hard. Except in the video below this guy makes it look simple. Embarrassingly simple.

While still plugging away at the Popeye record I'll take breaks from time to time to play Burgertime. As a child I remember my mom laughing at the live actor commercial for Burgertime. I'm not sure if she knew it was for a game or not (she hated video games) but it is a definate memory I'll take to my grave. The commecial always reminded me of a cross over of a Fruit of the Loom commercials. Perhaps they were conceived by the same marketing firm.

Anyways it seems the key to this torture is to group the enemies so you can drop them with the burger pieces for big points. Sounds simple. Again, its not. Again, this video makes it seem simple.

The AI seems simple enough which is probably what makes the game so difficult: Move towards the chef. If you approach a ladder and he is above or below you take the ladder in that direction. Repeat. Perhaps the true difficulty is keeping track of that many enemies. Usually I find myself trying to force an enemy in one direction and not realizing that I'm sending another enemy either right towards me, or down a path that will eventually box me in.

Another difficulty is that you need to be aligned perfectly with ladders walk off them. This isn't so difficult at the top or the bottom of one, but if you're trying to step off in the middle of a platform good-luck.

BurgerTime

I've decided to start collecting original Nintendo games and I just received BurgerTime in the mail. It was a spur of the moment purchase from eBay and it plays perfectly.