How to play Karateka online
The 7800 version has an unusual control scheme with two modes: standing (fast but defenceless) and the fighting stance.
- Start the game: F2 (Select). F2 also restarts a game in progress.
- Back to the title screen: F3 (Reset)
- Pause and resume: F4
- Difficulty: F5 (the left difficulty switch). The left position is easier, the right position harder.
- Standing – run forward: right arrow
- Switch between standing and the fighting stance: X (the right button)
- In the stance – step forward or back: hold Z (the left button) and press right or left
- In the stance – kick: right arrow; up + right for a high kick, down + right for a low kick
- In the stance – punch: left arrow; up + left for a high punch, down + left for a low punch
- Full screen: F9
Both the USA (NTSC) and European (PAL) releases are on this page; use the switch to choose.
Gameplay
The warlord Akuma has burned your village and carried off your bride-to-be, Princess Mariko. Armed only with karate, you must get past his palace guards.
The game is a series of one-on-one duels. You meet the guards one at a time, and each has his own fighting style; they get tougher the deeper you go. The red arrows at the bottom left show how many hits you can still take, and the blue arrows at the bottom right show the same for your opponent. Every hit removes an arrow, and both sides slowly win arrows back while they avoid being hit. Empty the guard’s arrows and he is beaten; lose all of yours and the game is over. Stand still and the guard comes to you. Beat every guard to win.
Tips
- Never meet a guard while standing. Standing and running leave you unprotected, and one blow is enough to finish you. Press X to drop into the stance before the next guard reaches you.
- Run between fights. Once a guard falls, stand up and run forward to the next one. Running gets you there far quicker than stepping in the stance.
- Back off to recover. Your arrows refill when you are not being hit. If you are low, hold Z and step back for a moment before you attack again.
- Mix high, middle and low attacks. Each guard fights differently.
- Be careful at the very end. In the Apple II original, approaching Mariko in the fighting stance gets you kicked to death; you have to walk to her standing up. We could not confirm whether the 7800 version keeps this joke, so play it safe.
The story behind Karateka
Jordan Mechner wrote Karateka for the Apple II as a Yale student; it was his first published game, released by Broderbund in 1984. To make the fighters move naturally, he drew the animation over film of his karate teacher performing the moves, a technique called rotoscoping. His father, Francis Mechner, wrote the music. Mechner later became famous for Prince of Persia, and in 2012 he led a remake of Karateka.
Of its many conversions, the 7800 version was handled by Ibid, Inc., with Jack Sandberg as programmer, and released in October 1987. Two prototype versions dated October and December 1986 have since surfaced, the later one almost identical to the final cartridge. The 7800 port is not well loved: the AtariProtos site criticises its colours, choppy animation and collision detection, and above all its controls, which differ from the simpler two-button scheme of the Apple II original.
