Bannercatch

Bannercatch
Developer(s)	Tom Snyder Productions
Publisher(s)	Scholastic
Platform(s)	Apple II, Atari 8-bit, Commodore 64, IBM PC
Release	1984
Genre(s)	Action

Bannercatch is a video game version of Capture the flag published by Scholastic in 1984 for the Apple II and Commodore 64.^[1] An edutainment game, Bannercatch allows up to two humans (each alternating between two characters in the game world) to play against an increasingly difficult team of four AI bots.

Gameplay[]

Gameplay screenshot (Atari 8-bit)

Bannercatch's game world is divided into quadrants: home, enemy, and two "no-mans land" areas which hold the jails. A successful capture requires bringing the enemy flag into one team's "home" quadrant. Players can be captured when in an enemy territory, or in "no-mans land" while holding a flag. Captured players must be "rescued" from their designated jail by one of the other members of the team. Fallen flags remain where they dropped until a time-out period elapses, after which the flag returns to one of several starting locations in home territory. The 2D map also has walls, trees and a moving river, enabling a wide variety of strategies. Special locations in the play area allow humans to query the game state (such as flag status) using binary messages.

Reception[]

Phil Seyer for Antic said "The action can be quite exciting as you try to elude Max's robots or chase them when they steal your flag."^[2]

Tan A. Summers for Family Computing said "Bannercatch's best lesson may be the wonderful "Aha!" feeling that's a part of the discovery that occurs as you play it."^[3]

InfoWorld's Essential Guide to Atari said "Earning points for tagging, capturing and winning are a lot of fun, but learning the skills involved in cooperation and teamwork are applicable skills in every facet of life."^[4]

References[]