How to play Spike’s Peak online
- Move Spike: arrow keys
- Jump and other actions: Space bar
- Start a new game: F12 (the console’s Reset switch)
- Set the difficulty: F4 and F9 (the two difficulty switches)
- Save and load your progress: Ctrl + 0–9 saves to a slot, Alt + 0–9 loads it
Gameplay
The first screen shows the mountain, with flags for your remaining lives and a blinking dot at the highest point you reached. Then come three climbing stages and the summit:
- The meadows: follow the paths upward and jump over water. Eagles dive from the sky and bears roam the slopes; you can hide from them by ducking into a canyon (push down) or a cave (push up).
- The rocky ledge: drive pitons into the rock to climb, pick up gold nuggets and avoid cacti and rockslides. You can leave the path and climb straight up or diagonally, but it is slower.
- The ice cap: find the ice axe so you can cross the ice and stop avalanches. Ice diamonds lie around, and an abominable snowman blocks the way; you fight it by pressing the button with the joystick centred.
- The peak: plant your flag on the summit to finish the climb.
Your body temperature drops all the time. It is shown as a line under the score that keeps getting shorter, and if it runs out, Spike freezes and you lose a life. You have three lives, and you earn a bonus life at 100,000 points, up to a maximum of three.
| Achievement | Points |
|---|---|
| Every 1,000 feet climbed in the meadows | 1,000 |
| Every 1,000 feet on the ledge or ice cap | 2,000 |
| Gold nugget | 3,000 |
| Abominable snowman | 2,000 |
| Ice diamond | 5,000 |
| Reaching the peak | 10,000 |
Difficulty switches
This is a one-player game, and the two difficulty switches together give four levels: both on B is easiest, both on A is hardest. The level changes how quickly Spike jumps and moves, whether eagles give a warning, and how the boulders behave.
Tips
- Use the hiding places. Canyons and caves in the meadows keep you safe from eagles and bears, so wait there rather than trying to outrun them.
- Keep an eye on the temperature line. Leaving the path is slower, and slow climbing means more cold.
- Get the ice axe first. On the ice cap it lets you cross the ice and stop avalanches.
History
Xonox was a short-lived Minnesota division of K-tel, known for “double-ender” cartridges with a different game at each end. Spike’s Peak, released only for the Atari 2600, came out on its own and on double-enders with Artillery Duel, Chuck Norris Superkicks and Ghost Manor. The single cartridge is much harder to find today than the double-enders.
Similar games to play next
- Ghost Manor – another Xonox game, once sold on the same cartridge
- Chuck Norris Superkicks – Xonox’s martial arts adventure, also paired with Spike’s Peak
- Artillery Duel – the third double-ender partner, a two-player cannon duel
- Crazy Climber – another climbing game, up the side of skyscrapers
- Mountain King – exploring a mountain full of treasure and danger