GAME DOCUMENTATION


John A. Reder Presents 
Handy Pick Hank - The Vexed Mines! v1.0.3
© 2020 John A Reder, all rights reserved.
TacticalNeuronics.com

Handy Pick Hank was inspired by "Pick Axe Pete" for the Odyssey2 System which was developed 
by Ed Averett and released in 1982. Handy Pick Hank is not a direct port of Pick Axe Pete. 
Handy Pick Hank is also written for the Atari 2600 and is available in cartridge form from 
2600connection.com.

Handy Pick Hank! 

Thrills, chills and spills as Handy Pick Hank strikes it rich in the Vexed Mines! 

1) When prompted press the Button 2 and Hank will enter the Mine!

2) The screen will display Handy Pick Hank in one of the caverns of the famous Vexed Mine. 
Three doors leading to deeper parts of the mine are also displayed. Rolling boulders will burst 
through the doors at random intervals. 

3) Handy Pick Hank is activated by the Player 1 Controller. 

Controls:
---------
Joystick	Move Hank 
Button 1	Jump (Joystick controls direction)
Button 4	Game Menu / Score / Pause (Press [1] Return or [2] Reset)

4) Move the joystick to the left to make Handy Pick Hank walk to the left. Move the joystick to 
the right to make Handy Pick Hank walk to the right. Use button 1 to jump. Be creative when Jumping 
to catch keys and picks while they travel through the air or to reach a ladder or platform that 
you cannot walk to. 

5) Ladders will appear at random times during play. Push the joystick forward and Handy Pick Hank 
will climb a ladder. Pull the joystick towards you and he can descend it. If he has a pick the 
ladders will appear on the same level he's on. Otherwise they will be completely random. You can 
keep a ladder active by staying on it, you can even stand on top of a ladder that cannot reach a 
platform and use it as a jumping point. Ladders can also provide a way down to a lower level when 
climbing down past the bottom you can continue down and fall to the floor below (if there is a 
floor below) note that the bottom level is above the Magical Stone Recycler (more on that in 
section 16).

6) If Handy Pick Hank comes to a break in one of the horizontal cavern lines, he will fall downward 
(unless he jumping). 

7) Handy Pick Hank strikes gold every time he hits one of the boulders with his pick. The more 
points he scores, the more boulders come through the doors of the mine. 

8) The catch! Handy Pick Hank is so strong the picks keep breaking (just before it wears out hank 
will become less bright). if Handy Pick Hank gets bowled over by a boulder without his pick, the 
game is over. That’s it! There are (more or less) safe places to stay on each of the playfields. 
The trick is to find them. Hint: even ladders can be used to get Hank out of harm’s way! While 
Hank has a pick it is shown in his inventory in the bottom right corner of the display.

9) Handy Pick Hank can jump the boulders if you move the joystick and then press the action button. 
You can control his direction while jumping. 

10) Once a Pick is lost Hank might encounter another pick which remains onscreen (very temporarily) 
until it disappears in the turmoil. 

11) Another “get rich quick" opportunity. When two boulders crash, keys to deeper regions of the 
mines may be seen flying through the air. If Handy Pick Hank captures one before it disappears 
(It will get less bright just before it goes away), you will see the key in your inventory at 
the bottom corner of the screen and can unlock any door at any time. 

12) When Hank goes through a door, the playing field changes ...the tempo of the game will increase 
after each 16 levels are completed. 

13) If Hank tries going through a door without a key, he can get thrown clear and could be at the 
mercy of the next boulder to roll along. If used with a ladder and a jump you may get lucky and get 
a push up to the next level or more! Doors placed near the sides of the mine can throw you so hard 
that you'll go off the screen and warp over to the other side! You might be able to use this to 
escape a sticky situation if you are lucky!

14) Scoring: 
BREAKING A BOULDER  		1 POINT 
GETTING A NEW PICK 		5 POINTS 
GETTING A KEY 			10 POINTS 
GOING THROUGH DOOR WITH KEY 	20 POINTS 

15) The score of the game in progress is shown at the lower right corner of the pause and end 
game screens. 

16) The game ends automatically every time Handy Pick Hank is bowled over without a pick or when 
he falls into a bottom floor opening if one exists (this is the Magical Stone Recycler!) *If you 
fall in one you are converted to stone... a tombstone that is... and out you'll pop through a 
random door, stone dead. :)

17) To start a completely new scoring cycle, press button 4.

RATINGS 
YOU’VE STRUCK GOLD! 		50-99 
YOU’VE HIT THE MOTHER LODE! 	100-249 
YOU’RE LIVING RICH! 		250-399 
BUY THE HOUSE ON THE HILL! 	400-599 
BUY TEXAS! 			600-799 
YOU HAVE FOUNDED A DYNASTY! 	800+ 

Handy Pick Hank! 

Thrills, chills and spills as Handy Pick Hank strikes it rich in the Vexed Mines!