Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure

aka: Pitfall: Das Maya-Abenteuer, Pitfall: Maya no Daibōken
Moby ID: 2399
SNES Specs
Note: We may earn an affiliate commission on purchases made via eBay or Amazon links (prices updated 3/18 4:53 PM )

Description official descriptions

Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure is a side-scrolling action game in which you play adventurer Pitfall Harry Jr in search of his father Pitfall Harry. You battle your way through the Mayan jungles, waterfalls, deserted mines and can bungee jump and boomerang your way to safety. There are 13 levels and the action is fast and gripping. You will need to be attentive—and quick. Or prepare to die.

Spellings

  • ピットフォール マヤの大冒険 - Japanese spelling

Groups +

Screenshots

Promos

Credits (SNES version)

109 People (88 developers, 21 thanks) · View all

Producers
Programming
Lead Designer
Level Designers
Additional Design
Associate Producers
Background Art
Additional Tile Art
Animation & Rendering
Additional Rendering
Art Processing
Quality Assurance Director
Lead Tester
[ full credits ]

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 76% (based on 67 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.8 out of 5 (based on 83 ratings with 1 reviews)

Well produced but a tad generic.

The Good
Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure made quite a fuss when it got released because of it's early adoptation of Windows 95 and it's now common DirectX. This was a major deal back then and it definetively made the game stand apart from the competition. I remember how weird it was for the game to install on it's own and have nothing to configure except some screen settings, not to mention the way the game handled it's level selection and options via the now classic top command bar.

Anyway, on to the game... Pitfall is a remake/sequel of sorts to the original Atari hit, were you controlled a vaguely human-shaped block of pixels as he jumped over alligators and swinged around over (what else?) pits. That was eons ago however and by 1996 things have changed significantly, thus enter the Pitfall for the new millenium. You now take on the role of Pitfall Harry as he treks to the tepid jungles of latin america in search for his lost father and any treasure that lies in the way. Taking it's cues from classic platformer games, the new game moves beyond the "swinging from branch to branch" trick and takes you to large and detailed levels with multiple challenges that involve jumping around as well as battling enemies with boomerangs and jumping around, and uh... jumping around, and... well, you know how these games go, right?

The graphics and animations are particularly good, detailed and clean, perfectly capturing the "jungle adventure" feel of the game. The animations specially stand out to the point that they make the game feel like a cartoony Delphine game, complete with useless but cute animations like when Harry runs face-first into a wall or stands idle for a while. The sound department is equally perfect, with lots of clear and moody jungle tunes and sfx, overall the game has excellent production values and comes off extremely professional.

The Bad
Pitfall's only major flaw is that it's really... well... I guess the word is "lightweight". A rather simple level layout and a difficulty level that's novice at best, will make this game a temporary diversion with little to offer to the experienced player. Gameplay depth could have been spruced up, but the designers just went for the "generic platformer" feel that has you simply looking for the exit to the next level as you go.

The energy bar is hard to read also, presented as an croc's mouth behind the running image of Harry, all you know is that an open jaw is bad news, but not how bad!!

The Bottom Line
Polished and detailed product that simply lacks the value and gameplay depth to take it to true triple-A status. Still, not a bad investment at any rate. Platformer fans won't lose any sleep over it, but they will still enjoy it.

Windows · by Zovni (10504) · 2003

Trivia

Ending (Spoiler!)

When Pitfall Harry Jr. finally finds his father, at the end of the game, the surprise is to see that ol' dad Pitfall Harry is shown in all his 8-bit glory, standing out of the standard 16-bit graphics of the game.

Hidden game

There's a cheatcode (see tips & tricks section) that lets you play the original Pitfall!.

Technology

Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure utilized the initial release of DirectX and was one of the first PC games to be released as a native Windows 95 executable.

Awards

  • Power Play
    • Issue 02/1996 – Best Dexterity Game in 1995
  • VideoGames Magazine
    • March 1995 - Best CD Music

Information also contributed by Big John WV, chirinea and Ye Olde Infocomme Shoppe

Analytics

MobyPro Early Access

Upgrade to MobyPro to view research rankings!

Related Games

Pitfall: Beyond the Jungle
Released 1998 on Game Boy Color
Pitfall!
Released 1982 on Atari 2600, Commodore 64, 1984 on ColecoVision...
Pitfall: The Lost Expedition
Released 2004 on PlayStation 2, Xbox, Windows...
Pitfall II: Lost Caverns
Released 1984 on Atari 2600, Commodore 64, PC Booter...
3D Pitfall
Released 1995 on DOS
Pitfall Planet
Released 2016 on Windows, Macintosh, 2019 on Nintendo Switch
Le Fetiche Maya
Released 1989 on DOS, 1990 on Amiga, Atari ST
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure
Released 2011 on Windows, Xbox 360, Macintosh...
Atlantis no Nazo
Released 1986 on NES, 2015 on Wii U, 2020 on Nintendo Switch...

Identifiers +

  • MobyGames ID: 2399
  • [ Please login / register to view all identifiers ]

Contribute

Are you familiar with this game? Help document and preserve this entry in video game history! If your contribution is approved, you will earn points and be credited as a contributor.

Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Andrew Hartnett.

Wii added by Charly2.0. SEGA CD, SNES added by Corn Popper. SEGA 32X added by Terok Nor. Jaguar added by Servo. Game Boy Advance, Genesis added by Syed GJ.

Additional contributors: Kasey Chang, Katakis | カタキス, chirinea, Big John WV, Patrick Bregger.

Game added September 16, 2000. Last modified February 16, 2024.