Jaeger: "Director's Cut should be considered the complete version of Montezuma's Revenge"

June 14, 2024 • Updated: Mar 18, 2025 - 12:55 AM

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Robert Jaeger, the acclaimed programmer behind the iconic 8-bit game Montezuma's Revenge, returns with two exciting remakes: Montezuma's Revenge - Director's Cut and the 40th Anniversary Edition.

With a renewed focus, and taking advantage of the possibilities of today's technology, Jaeger is ready to offer an expanded and more challenging experience, maintaining the essence that made "Montezuma's Revenge" a beloved classic for the Atari 8-bit community. In an exclusive interview for Atariteca, the legendary programmer shares details about "Montezuma's Revenge - Director's Cut" and the special 40th anniversary edition, where he fuses his original vision with today's technological innovations; ensuring a gaming experience that will honor the legacy of the original title while attracting new generations of players.

What motivated you to create “Montezuma's Revenge – Director's Cut” after four decades since the original release?
It was something that just needed to be done. In 1983, I had a lot of ideas for "Montezuma." The leaked 1983 version, known as "Montezuma 2" on the pirate forums, indicated what I had in mind. Note that this leaked version was never completed. You can't beat the boss. Parker cut my game down to support the 16k systems of the time. They removed the boss, the bat, the burning ropes, and changed a lot of rooms. "Director's Cut" (or DC) should be considered the completion of that version of the game.

How has your creative and technical approach evolved from developing the original game until now?
I was 16 when I wrote "Montezuma's Revenge." My life at that age included no rent; I had cleanliness, free food, and unlimited time to program. Nowadays, I've been working mainly on the technical side and 8-bit style graphics. There's a lot of effort to customize and maintain the reboot for different markets.

What was the design process for the new rooms in “Montezuma's Revenge – Director's Cut”?
"Director's Cut" has become much bigger and better than originally planned, thanks to the addition of Jose Parga on level design. He's so good at creating great challenges that I've asked him to improve or redo almost every room. DC is almost a new retro "Montezuma" game.

In Director's Cut, the pyramid is structured into four challenges with groups of special rooms, which we call "realms"; each with a special item objective. Each realm is ruled by one of the enemy characters. Depending on the level, to access the boss, you will need to complete 1, 2, 3, or all 4 enemy realms.

"I was planning to release 'Director's Cut' for Atari 8-bit computers and I'd still like to see it done."

Can you tell us about the new features like trampolines, elevators and explosive pots? How did these ideas come about and how do they change the dynamics of the game?
The trampolines are the main upgrade because they can also trigger other elements in the room. There are several rooms with trampoline-oriented challenges. There is a learning curve, but once you know how they work and how to time them, they are a lot of fun.

Elevators were a natural extension of the tubes. They could sometimes reverse direction by means of a springboard.

Most pots in "Director's Cut" are of the explosive type. When they explode, they will remove the bricks around them and expose their contents.

The “Three Masks Challenge” sounds intriguing. How did you come up with this idea and what does it add to the player experience?
It's not my idea. It was first seen in the iOS clone of "Montezuma" called "Montezuma's Resurrection" written by Jim Pavlov, and they were originally stars, not masks. I acquired this version as the basis for the current mobile reboot, so we decided to keep this feature; but I changed the stars to masks to better fit the theme. It's basically an extra credit feature of level exploration. You can either complete the level or complete it perfectly by acquiring all 3 masks.

Finally, after 40 years, players will be able to face King Moctezuma. How have you designed this confrontation to be "much more dramatic", as you always wanted?
I'm really happy with it. It's incredibly fun! It took a long time to make this part of the game entertaining. Many thanks to Rocket Smash Studio for their contributions to this.

How did you balance introducing new features without losing the spirit of the original game?
It's hard to explain. Since the code is based on the reboot with the movement and graphics very similar to the Atari 8-bit computer version, and with Jose and I working on it, it always had the spirit of the original. The biggest challenge was to incorporate the spirit of "Montezuma" into the 40th Anniversary console version.

In what ways do you think Montezuma's Revenge - Director's Cut differs the most from the original game?
DC has many new challenges geared towards trampolines and explosive pots.

What elements of the original game did you consider essential to preserve in this new version?
Keep Pedro's character and the jumping physics the same as in the original.
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How has today's technology influenced the design and development of these new versions, compared to the limitations you faced in 1984?
In 1983, the best 8-bit technology at the time was the floppy disk drive which had 77k. That was a lot of storage at the time! For the released version, which was an 8k cartridge, I used a lot of memory-saving tricks on the geometry of the rooms. I think all the rooms were based on 10 unique patterns, customized with optional symmetry, doors, walls, and other features. Today, for these new versions, there is no concern about saving memory. For an eventual version for Atari 8-bit computers, compression will need to be considered.

What has been the reaction from players who have tried the preliminary versions of «Montezuma's Revenge - Director's Cut»?
The feedback has been great, but very few people have played it. We will soon be releasing a free demo which will include level 1.

What kind of fan feedback has been most helpful to you during the development of the game?
This development has been done in secret. The overall feedback from fans has been essential to the development of this project. I don't think I would have been able to complete it without the enthusiasm I constantly receive from the fan community.

Do you have plans to release “Montezuma's Revenge – Director's Cut” on platforms beyond PC/Android, especially on retro consoles?
Yes. The Atari VCS has been an important console for us in the reboot, and is a high priority for DC. The first releases will be on PC, Steam, GOG, Windows Store platforms. Mobile versions will follow. I am in negotiations with some dedicated arcade platforms. If anyone has a platform they think Montezuma would be a good fit for, please contact me via our website

You mentioned the possibility of a version for Atari 8-bit computers if all goes well. What technical challenges would be involved in adapting the "Director's Cut" or the "40th Anniversary" version to this retro platform?
The 40th Anniversary version is for consoles with advanced graphics. It's not really a candidate for 8-bit computers. I originally intended to release the Director's Cut for Atari 8-bit computers and I'd still like to see that done. Priorities changed with the addition of the 40th Anniversary edition.

For an Atari 800 version I was considering using a 256k selectable cartridge to handle all the unique rooms. I tried to adhere to Atari's graphical restrictions on the PC versions, but I know I broke the rules in a few places.

What factors will influence your decision to develop a version for Atari 8-bit computers?
Much of the future development of the Director's Cut will be based on the success of the PC version.

The 40th Anniversary version promises modern graphics and more complex rooms. How did you balance the visual modernization with preserving the retro essence of the game?
Yes. It uses 3D rendered characters, but still has a retro feel. It's a really fun "Montezuma" game, with many of the rooms inspired by the original title.

"The Atari 2600 console is a high priority for us in the reboot of «Montezuma's Revenge»."

What additional challenges were presented when developing the anniversary version?
I don't want to spoil the surprise, there's a lot new. A lot of new enemy characters. A lot of new challenges.

What new mechanics or challenges have been added specifically for the Anniversary Version that are not present in the Director's Cut?
Many of the enemy characters in the Anniversary Edition. There are also underwater challenges. The Boss Challenge is totally different from the DC one.

Is there anything you would change about the development process of the original game now, given how technology and gaming in general have evolved?
No. The original game was written in 6502 assembly language with a lot of coding tricks around the Atari computers' graphics and sound chips. All the great old games were written like that. It's a nightmare to maintain that kind of code, but there's nothing you can do about it.

What would you say to young developers who are inspired by classics like Montezuma's Revenge to create their own games?
Let your love of games inspire you to learn to code, like it did for me. Remember this: game development is hard, other areas of programming are easier. Jobs in game development are very competitive. Get good at programming and learn to love programming; and don't necessarily limit yourself to game development.