How to play Mr. Do! online
- Move and dig: arrow keys (up, down, left, right)
- Throw the Power Ball: Space bar (it flies in the direction Mr. Do is facing)
- Start a game: Space bar right after loading, or F12 (the console’s Reset switch) to start again
- Choose a skill level (1–4): F11 (the console’s Select switch)
- Save and load your progress: Ctrl + 0–9 saves to a slot, Alt + 0–9 loads it
Gameplay
Each screen is a patch of earth with clusters of cherries and a few apples. Mr. Do cuts a path wherever he walks. Soon after the round starts, the enemies (the manual calls them Badguys) appear from their starting spot and follow your tunnels to hunt you down.
You have two weapons. The Power Ball is thrown in the direction you face and destroys an enemy it hits, but you have to wait for it to come back before you can throw it again, and sometimes that takes a while. Apples fall when you dig out the earth beneath them, and crush any enemy underneath. They can crush Mr. Do too if you dig straight up under one.
Now and then, special Alphamonsters appear, each carrying one letter of the word EXTRA. Hit one with the Power Ball or an apple to earn its letter. Spell the whole word and you get an extra life. Be careful: touching an Alphamonster costs you a life. A screen is finished when you pick every cherry, destroy every enemy or complete EXTRA.
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Each cherry | 50 |
| Six cherries in a row | 500 bonus |
| Enemy hit by the Power Ball | 500 |
| Alphamonster hit | 500 |
| Enemy crushed by an apple | 1,000 |
Skill levels
There are four skill levels. Level 1 is meant for beginners: the enemies are slow, they chase you badly and you get five lives. Levels 2 to 4 give you three lives and faster, smarter enemies. Level 3 is meant to feel close to the arcade game, and level 4 is the hardest.
Tips
- Set apple traps. Dig up beside an apple instead of directly under it, then cross underneath and keep moving. The apple drops behind you onto whoever is following.
- Apples pay double. A crushed enemy is worth 1,000 points, twice as much as one hit by the Power Ball.
- Don’t waste the ball. Throw it when an enemy is lined up in a straight tunnel. If you miss, you may be defenceless for a while.
- Clear cherry clusters in one go. Six cherries in a row earns the 500-point bonus.
History
Universal released Mr. Do! in arcades in Japan in 1982 and in North America in early 1983. It was one of the first arcade games sold as a conversion kit, so operators could turn an older cabinet into a Mr. Do! machine. Coleco licensed it for home systems and released a ColecoVision version in 1983, with the Atari 2600 cartridge following later the same year. Reviews of the 2600 version were mixed, and it is now fairly hard to find as an original cartridge. Universal later made follow-ups, and Mr. Do!’s Castle also came to the 2600, published by Parker Brothers.
