ForColecoVision
Guide No. PD-2026CARTRIDGE
INSTRUCTIONS

Original game from Timelost, Que, 1983

• For one player only• No keypad needed

Play with either controller.

The Wizard's creatures are climbing out of the dark pit! Help Jacque and Erin hold the rim with a positron blaster. Hit the demons as close as you dare, watch the rocks where they hide, and keep an eye on the sky: the Warbird is hunting tonight.

AMY STUDIO

Your Night at the Pit

WARNING

Travelers lost in time are advised to stay clear of the great stone dome. Strange lights over the lava. Claw marks on the rim. Locals report a large dark bird circling under the full moon. The Wizard is said to be displeased.

Lost in time, John, Erin, Jacque and their new friend D'reen have crossed the Wizard once too often. Tonight he answers from below. The ground splits open over a lake of lava, and his underground creatures start to climb.

Jacque holds the only weapon they have, a positron blaster. Erin watches the sky. If a single Pitdemon reaches the rim where they stand, it's over in one bite!

Getting Ready to Play

Make sure the console is off before inserting or removing a cartridge.

One-Player Game

Use either controller.

How to Start

Insert the cartridge, then turn on your game system. The credits page appears; press either fire button. On the title screen the theme "The Pit" plays and the high score is shown with its owner's initials. Press fire again to start your first wave.

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Using Your Controls

123456789*0# CONTROL STICKWALK / AIM UP LEFT BUTTONFIRE RIGHT BUTTONFIRE KEYPAD(NOT USED)
  1. Control Stick: push it left or right to walk Jacque and Erin along the rim. Hold it to keep walking.
  2. Side Buttons: press either one to fire the blaster straight down into the pit. Only one shot can be in the air at a time, and it passes right through rock.
  3. Stick up + Side Button: Jacque aims at the sky and fires at the Warbird.
  4. Menus: push the stick up or down to move the arrow, then press a Side Button.

NOTE: The keypad is not used in PERIL OF THE PITDEMONS. Either controller can play.

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Here's How to Play

Guardians of the rim

Jacque and Erin stand on the grass at the top of the pit. Below them, the stone dome opens onto a lava floor. Demons climb up from the bottom row, each in its own column. Stop every one before it reaches the rim!

12345678
  1. Warbird
  2. Jacque & Erin, stunned by an egg (they flash white)
  3. Rock: demons here are hidden
  4. Crawler
  5. Pitdemon
  6. Brute
  7. Ghost
  8. Lava at the pit floor

Top line: your score, the wave, and the high score with its owner's initials.

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Point blank

The closer a demon is when your shot hits it, the more points you earn. Waiting is tempting, but don't wait too long!

Dark rocks

The edges of the dome are solid rock. A demon climbing through rock is invisible, but it is still coming. Listen to the heartbeat: it beats faster as the nearest demon gets closer to the top, whether you can see it or not.

No escape

A demon that jumps past your shot on its way up is hit anyway.

Meet the Wizard's creatures

Pitdemon. The common horde. Every wave.

Crawler. Climbs two rows at a time. From wave 2.

Brute. The first hit only wounds it; it takes two. From wave 3.

Ghost. Fades out of sight and comes back. From wave 4.

Warbird. Flies over from wave 2 and drops an egg on the couple. Get hit and you're stunned for a second and a half: no walking, no shooting.

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Wave after wave

Destroy 16 demons to clear wave 1. Wave 2 needs 20, and each wave after needs 4 more. Every new wave is faster, and more demons can be in the pit at once.

M U N C H

When a demon reaches the rim, the game is over. There are no extra lives: the Wizard gives no second chances!

Good shooting!

Beat the high score and the game asks for your initials. Push the stick up or down to change a letter and press a Side Button for the next one.

Starting over

After a game, choose ANOTHER GAME to play again right away, or TITLE PAGE.

Reset

The Reset button on the console returns you to the credits page.

Scoring

A hit on the bottom row of the pit earns 10 points, and each row higher earns 10 more, up to 180 at the rim itself. Then the bonuses below apply.

TargetPoints scored
Pitdemon10 to 180
Crawlerx2
Brute, second hitx3
Ghostx4
Demon hidden in rockx2
Warbird500
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The Fun of Discovery

This guide gives you the basics, but the pit has a few secrets of its own. Experiment with different techniques, and enjoy the game!

  • Shoot the highest demon first. A low one can wait; a high one cannot.
  • Let a demon climb before you fire; it's worth more near the top.
  • A shot fired into the rock can still find a hidden demon, and it pays double.
  • Fire just ahead of a quick Crawler and let it climb into your shot.
  • When the Warbird cries, step out of its path before it drops its egg.

Credits

Original game"Peril of the Pitdemons," a type-in game for Atari computers from Timelost: A Computer Adventure by Kris Austen Andrews, Arlan Keith Andrews Sr. and Joseph C. Giarratano (Que Corporation, 1983).

Original ideasThe Warbird, new creatures worth different points, and demons that go invisible come from the book's own "Some Changes You Might Like to Try." This cartridge makes all three real.

ColecoVision conversionAmy Bienvenu with Claude, 2026, written in the Amy language with Amy Studio. Graphics, sound effects and the title theme "The Pit" are original.

Title screen artMade with another AI image tool, supplied by Amy Bienvenu.

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ABOUT THIS CARTRIDGE. This is a 2026 fan conversion made for fun and for the homebrew community. It is not a product of, and is not endorsed by, Que Corporation, Coleco or any console maker. It comes with no warranty.

ColecoVision is named only to say which system this cartridge runs on; the name belongs to its owner.

Timelost © 1983 Kris Austen Andrews, Arlan Keith Andrews Sr. and Joseph C. Giarratano, Que Corporation. The game design and its three suggested changes are theirs.

Program, graphics and sound of this conversion © 2026 Amy Bienvenu.