Beanstalker

Roy Coates, who converted the classic platformers Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy to the Dragon, went on to form his own company, and this was his first stand-alone release.

Beanstalker, which takes its background story from the old tale of Jack and the beanstalk, boils down to nothing more than a clone of Loderunner, but still manages to take with it some of the spirit of the programmer's earlier works in the shape of the detailed animation of the small sprites, and the different screens are also much more varied than the original Loderunner.

Still, it plays exactly like Loderunner, with a small man running around ladders and platforms to pick up various items. Once all items are picked up a ladder to the next level is introduced. The screen is guarded by nasties such as mice, worms or spiders, which vary according to the level. They can be stopped in their path by digging a hole in the ground for them to fall into.

The game features 60 screens, runs in monochrome high resolution and has a (password-protected) level editor.