Reviews

The surreal children's TV animated series was a perfect licence for the creative programming genius of Don Priestley. The combined forces unleashed some of the most extraordinary animated sprites into Spectrum gameplay.
I hated the idea of a licence from such a kid's show back in the day and I'm sure the licence didn't inspire as many teenagers to buy the game as it deserved. But fortunately I can now appreciate it as an adult.
In Trapdoor Priestly leads you, personified as the servant Berk, into participating in a crazed bizarre interplay. The scenes play out with comic gusto.
At one point you will flip a large bullet up a giant chicken's arse causing it, eyes bulging, to fire an egg into your awaiting sizzling fry pan. And if you lost the bullet down the trapdoor you can fire the friendly skull up the same jacksy. What other Spectrum game can offer up a skull stuffed broody bird for your delictation?
The Trapdoor is an absolute tour de force. Videogaming will never see its like again.

Don (genius) Priestley's tie-in arcade adventure.
Trapdoor is a demonstration of Priestley's mastery of the Spectrum hardware. Trapdoor, and other games in what came to be his trademark 'mahoosive graphics' style, were quite jaw-dropping for some of us when they were released. Not just technically impressive, it captures the humour, look and charm of the claymation cartoon perfectly. The huge sprites, beautifully animated backgrounds and little details all fit together and draw you right in.
Carrying out the tasks and puzzles in the game is reward in itself, like interacting with a well scripted and genuinely funny cartoon. There really isn't much bad to say about this game at all, yes it has a relatively slow pace, but it feels like the appropriate pace.

Help Berk prepare meals for I'm upstairs in this bonkers adaptation of an equally bonkers tv show. Being a Don Priestley game we've got some large colourful graphics which really suit the game. It's maybe a bit too tough for the target audience at the time but kids back then were made me sterner stuff.

1986 Piranha (UK)
by Don Priestley

For me Popeye is Don's Masterpiece, but The Trap Door comes right in second place. The game is just another genius work by one of the best programmers on the Spectrum. It's not just pretty and graphically accurate, it's also very faithful to the weirdness of the TV Show.

The tasks Berk has to perform are delightfully funny and freakish at the same time. And are always a surprise to my eyes, even after all these years.
There are few games so whimsical and quaint for this machine.

I'm sure a lot of 'grown up's' and adolescents let this game pass by because of the idea that it was a child's game. Boy, were they wrong! If you belonged to this group, please give the game a try and tell me (and other reviewers), if I'm wrong. Believe me, you won't regret it.

Hard to believe this game was written by just one man.