History VideoGame / SuperPitfall

''Super Pitfall'' is the sequel to the [[UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideogameCrashOf1983 Game Crash]] denyingly popular ''[[VideoGame/{{Pitfall}} Pitfall II: The Lost Caverns]]'', and was released for the NES, Tandy, and PC-8801 systems. ''Super Pitfall'' would be the last of the original style of Pitfall games, as the series shifted from open world to level-by-level with 1994's ''VideoGame/PitfallTheMayanAdventure'', which was released for SNES and Genesis.

* NintendoHard: Difficult to complete, though generally easy to deal with enemies. Due to hidden items and the possibility of entering an area too soon, it's very possible to get lost or stuck.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/super_pitfall_30th.png]]

[[caption-width-right:350:[[CoversAlwaysLie Now with 100% less rock climbing.]] ]]

*** If you leave this mandatory area without saving Quicklaw, [[UnwinnableByMistake the game becomes unwinnable.]] It is very likely that the player will not even notice until they go to find the bird again.

* UnwinnableByMistake: Sub-areas cannot be reentered, and some sub-areas have parts you can only complete with items from other sub-areas, which means if you don't explore in the proper order, the game is unwinnable.

** One section of the game has you ''jumping into an enemy vulture'' to enter a mandatory area. While it has tells, as it's immune to gunfire and flies faster and lower than most vultures, this was a frequent topic on ''UsefulNotes/NintendoPower''.

* BlueIsHeroic: Harry's outfit is entirely blue.

* PiranhaProblem: There are piranhas (and sea snakes) in the underwater sections that can kill Harry. Because they are underwater and [[RealityEnsues normal handguns don't work underwater]], they are basically invincible.

* PowerUpLetdown: Gold ingots. They're the only powerup in the game that isn't hidden in any way, and they even flash bright yellow to draw your eyes... and they're also completely worthless. They provide no intrinsic benefit and there's no shop for you to trade the gold or anything like that, so the only thing they do is give you points. [[SubvertedTrope However,]] [[Every10000Points you can get extra lives with enough points.]]

* GuideDangIt: One section of the game has you ''jumping into an enemy vulture'' to enter a mandatory area. While it has tells, as it's immune to gunfire and flies lower than most vultures, this was a frequent topic on ''UsefulNotes/NintendoPower''.

* PowerUpLetdown: Gold ingots. They're the only powerup in the game that isn't hidden in any way, and they even flash bright yellow to draw your eyes... and they're also completely worthless. They provide no intrinsic benefit and there's no shop for you to trade the gold or anything like that, so the only thing they do is give you points. And Super Pitfall is not a game where most players ever care about high score.

* PetBabyWildAnimal: While its age is never brought up, it's worth mentioning that one of Harry's goals is to rescue his pet lion.

* CoversAllwaysLie: Harry does not do any rock climbing. Also, his uniform is blue, not yellow.

* SkeweredPriorities: The manual states that Harry, Rhonda, and Quickclaw came to retrieve the Raj diamond, but Rhonda and Quickclaw have both gotten lost in the caverns. The manual states that Harry must retrieve the diamond, and that the fact that his niece and pet have gotten lost and he must save them "complicates matters".

floor too soon, you can access two large stacks of gold. Unfortunately, your ride disappears the moment it goes offscreen, so you're pretty much dead.

* [[InvisibleBlock Invisible Item]]: Excluding the gold, every item in the game is invisible, requiring jumping around a small area to reveal.
* KaizoTrap:
** The first ladder in the game is a famous Kaizo Trap that, if climbed down, sends the player hurdling into a pit. It was famously exaggerated on ''WebVideo/AngryVideoGameNerd'', and subsequently was used for a joke room in ''VideoGame/AVGNAdventures''.
** After getting the diamond, a lift can take you safely to the bottom where you can get to the key. If you get off one floor too soon, you can access two large stacks of gold. Unfortunately, your ride disappears the moment it goes offscreen, so you're pretty much dead.

* AntiFrustrationFeatures: As if taking notes from the original's ''WebVideo/AngryVideoGameNerd'' treatment, the hack removes the opening KaizoTrap, adds a gun with infinite ammo, an auto-save feature, and makes everything that was once invisible or esoteric far easier to find. Parts of the map have also been modified to reduce backtracking and provide better hints for dealing with problems.

The gameplay is vastly builds on its predecessor, keeping most of the elements of ''Pitfall II'' except for the eel and insect monsters. The game featured omnidirectional scrolling, and was one of the first NES games ever to do so. The layout was far more complex than its predecessor, many new monsters were added, and there were a total of five maps to explore. There were also visible differences in sediment as the player got deeper, a feature ubiquitous with ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' style games.

However, the game was also known for its many glitches -- things popping in and out of view, clipping issues, and the like. The invisible items were also somewhat [[BrokenBase base breaking]]. As a result, the game received mixed reception, and generally fell into obscurity until the ''WebVideo/AngryVideoGameNerd'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJEXpsDB2XQ featured it]] in 2011. Although generally lambasting it in his review, he went on to play the SecondQuest, reflecting said mixed reception.

The gameplay is vastly builds on its predecessor, keeping most of the elements of ''Pitfall II'' except for water traps and gators. The game featured omnidirectional scrolling, and was one of the first NES games ever to do so. The layout was far more complex than its predecessor, many new monsters were added, and there were a total of five maps to explore. There were also visible differences in sediment as the player got deeper, a feature ubiquitous with ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' style games.

* InternalHomage: The main area's music is heavily drawn from ''[[VideoGame/{{Pitfall}} Pitfall II]]''[='s=] music, with bits from ''Super Pitfall''[='s=] score tossed in as well.

* AntiFrustrationFeatures: As if taking notes from the original's ''WebVideo/AngryVideoGameNerd'' treatment, the hack removes the opening KaizoTrap, adds a gun with infinite ammo, an auto-save feature, and makes everything that was once invisible or esoteric far easier to find.

* ROMHack: It's a hack of the US version of the game, with minor map adjustments, graphics and sound overhauls, and much more.

* InternalHomage: The main area's music is heavily drawn from ''[[VideoGame/{{Pitfall}} Pitfall II]]'''s music, with bits from ''Super Pitfall'''s score tossed in as well.

[[caption-width-right:350:some caption text]]

* KaizoTrap: After getting the diamond, a lift can take you safely to the bottom where you can get to the key. If you get off one floor too soon, you can access two large stacks of gold. Unfortunately, your ride disappears the moment it goes offscreen, so you're pretty much dead.

* VineSwing: While greatly downplayed from its predecessors, vines do still appear in the Underworld. The player has to touch a vine's tip to grab onto it.

Of note, a [[StillbornFranchise planned sequel]] was once considered as a localization of ''VideoGame/AtlantisNoNazo'', another game centered around treasure collection and exploration, but this was abandoned. A video of the prototype can be found [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aj89JuFsQac here]].