Joust machines were first manufactured in '82. In 1986, Williams debuted the Joust 2: Survival of the Fittest arcade game, but it never was distributed very widely owing to the home console market growing larger by that time. It's estimated that only around a thousand of them were ever produced.
So I got back in tonight, and after catching up on some puffing, a thought occurred to me. Posting all this Joust stuff made me think of looking for the Joust 2 rom.
I googled "Joust 2 rom" and got a page with a free download lickety-split.
But, just like one of the three (regular version) Joust roms I have, it didn't run, but instead froze on the "factory settings restored" screen.
But, ever the optimist, I tried again, this time googling "joust2.zip" because by now I had confirmed the name of the rom. The very first result I clicked led me to the Joust 2 (set 1) rom and the game works with no bugs whatsoever. I was surprised at how easy it was to find this rather rare game for free.
Anyway, the game allows for a continue which renders hi-scores meaningless, but does allow for easier passage through the thirty-five varied screens.
You can "transform" back-and-forth from your speedy, more agile ostrich to a less maneuverable but more imposing flying golden steed in this game (see below). There are also chances at randomized bonuses earned for picking up golden eggs.
http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?...=8244&letter=J