Unfortunately, we have recently learned that the original Pitfall!, despite being in the SNES version of Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure, will in fact not be included in this port due to time and space constraints.  Bummer.

The good news is that we finally have some actual GBA screenshots of the game in action. The quality of them is somewhat suspect (they look like they were taken from a camera and not directly from the game), but they do give a good idea of how faithful it will be to the original SNES version. Take a look:

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One of my favorite games as a kid was the original Pitfall, developed by Activision, for the Atari 2600. Perhaps the first true platforming game ever (some claim Super Mario Bros. is because each world isn’t broken into screens), the original Pitfall featured lots of scary (well, too my young imagination anyway) jungle environments filled with (naturally) pits, vines, crocodiles, snakes and other jungle nasties.

(PC Screenshot)

Activision realized the fond memories many gamers had of the original Pitfall, and attempted to resurrect the series in the early 16-bit days with Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure for the SNES, Genesis and PC. In a lot of ways they succeeded, as it was a well received 2D platformer that garnered decent reviews. It never quite achieved the legendary status of the original though. Now, Majesco has licensed the title from Activision. Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure for the GBA is in essence a port of the SNES version.

Since it’s just a port of the original version, it’s pretty safe to assume that Pitfall will feature the same storyline as the SNES version. Taken directly from the SNES manual:

Many years ago there was a daring adventurer who traveled the world in search of ancient legends and lost treasures. His journeys took him across the seven seas and to the ends of the earth. He ventured into vast, uncharted regions filled with unthinkable dangers. As word of his exploits filtered back to civilization, he soon became larger than life...a legend. This great explorer was Pitfall Harry.

After many successful quests, Harry settled down to raise his son, Harry Junior. Having inherited his father’s love of the unknown, Harry Jr. grew up to become a hip 18-year-old with a deep sense of adventure- and a bit of an attitude. He quickly learned the thrill of exploration and discovery and soon experienced many exciting quests of his own.

Hearing of his son’s thrilling escapades, Pitfall Harry realized how much he longed for the life he once knew. So together the daring duo set off for the jungles of Central America in search of the lost treasures of the Mayans.

But something went terribly wrong...

Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure is what you’d expect out of a platform game based on the Pitfall license. You’ll once again explore the jungles of South America, facing off against crocodiles, skeletons, jaguars and a host of other jungle dwellers in an attempt to rescue your father. Naturally, you’ll also do a lot of vine-swinging. The Mayan Adventure also had the original Pitfall hidden in it, and it’s a good bet that will make it to the GBA as well.

Majesco is aiming at providing a "user-friendly" control setup, while at the same time featuring a storyline and gameplay that will appeal to seasoned platform gamers. It’ll also feature 10 worlds, down slightly from the 13 worlds in the original Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure.

Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure is currently scheduled for release with the GBA launch on June 11^th.