# Mine Runner Classic — 201 unlocked levels

> Puzzle-platformer where players collect gold by drilling through brick floors. (iPhone/iPad app by Pei Ying Liu.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mine-runner-classic/id1503941699 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Pei Ying Liu](https://appshunter.io/developer/1502930985)
- Category: Games, Puzzle
- Price: Free
- Rating: 3.48/5 from 21 App Store ratings · 9 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 9.0 · 85 MB
- Languages: English
- Released: 2020-03-21
- Data updated: 2026-06-10
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mine-runner-classic/id1503941699/reviews.md

## What is Mine Runner Classic?

[Game Play]
To complete a level, you must collect all the gold in a scene. When you succeed, you may then climb a ladder to the top of the screen and enter the next level. You will use your laser drill pistol to drill pits and passageways through brick floors. You may dig through fissured bricks only, not through solid surfaces, and holes must be drilled all the way through to be effective. 

If a guard falls into a pit and gets stuck, it will become safe (for a moment) for you to run over him. He will release any gold he is carrying. Any holes that you've drilled will fill in again after a period of time, and guards caught in them when they refill will die and be replenished by new guards at the top of the screen. Guards can climb out to pits that do not close up around them. Your player cannot climb out of pits and will die if trapped in a pit that is only a single brick wide. Your player may also get caught in a situation with no way out and yet be alive. In this case you can only click pause—> reload to restart the level.

gold carried by enemy guards cease to be visible. If you have picked up all the visible gold on the screen but still not enough, one or more of the guards is still carrying gold. You must trap the guards in a pit and pick up their gold. If an enemy carrying gold falls into a "dead end" that he and you are unable to leave, you can only restart the level. 

Floors may also contain trapdoors, through which the player and guards will fall. The player can only dig a hole to the sides, and not directly underneath himself. This introduces an important strategy for when digging a hole x blocks deep, the player must first dig a gap at least x wide to be able to dig through it, as the number of spaces will shrink with each layer, and the player needs at least one free adjacent space to be able to dig. However, exceptions to this rule arise when the player digs from the position of standing on a ladder, or hanging from a hand-to-hand bar, which allows the player to repeatedly dig and descend one row. This kind of digging is involved in solving many levels.

The player's character can fall from arbitrary heights without any injury but cannot jump, and players can trap themselves in pits from which the only escape is to abort the level, costing a life, and begin again.

The player may come into contact with a guard directly from above, with the stick figure's feet touching the guard's head. This is what enables the player to walk over guards who are temporarily stuck in a hole that has been dug. It is also possible to make this contact while both the guard and the player are in free fall, since the player not only runs faster than the guards, but also falls faster; moreover, it is possible to survive the feet-to-head contact while a guard is standing on a platform and begins to move. Both forms of contact are necessary to solve some levels. Sometimes it is necessary to liberate a trapped guard by digging while standing on his head, but then moving rapidly in the opposite direction when the guard begins marching to freedom. In some levels, it's necessary to use a falling guard as a bridge to reach an otherwise unreachable area. One subtlety is that if a down movement is initiated while standing on a guard's head, or briefly touching the guard's head during free fall, the consequences are fatal.

In some levels, guards can be deliberately trapped in various ways. They can be lured into entering a part of the level from which there is no escape. In some situations, the player can liberate trapped guards by digging them out. In some levels, to collect some gold, the player must exploit the guards into collecting it.

[Control]
-- Joystick/D-Pad: move the player
-- A : Dig a hole at the right side
-- B : Dig a hole at the left side

[Features]
- 201 completely free and unlocked levels, waiting for you to challenge
- Retro game graphics and sound effects, allowing you to relive the past experience

## Key features

- Collect all gold to complete levels
- Drill through fissured bricks with a laser pistol
- Trap guards to retrieve their gold
- Navigate trapdoors and falling hazards
- Strategic digging mechanics
- 201 unlocked levels

## Recent user reviews (9 of 9)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mine-runner-classic/id1503941699/reviews.md

### 1/5 — Good bits but buggy

*2025-05-24, version 1.0*

Great game. There are a few bugs like the chasers getting stuck in random places when re-spawning.
Most frustrating is that level 29 is incorrect and impossible to complete.

### 4/5 — Good game

*2023-08-28*

Great game to kill time.

### 5/5 — Addictive, Challenging, Not Broken

*2023-06-19*

This version of the classic game load runner is ridiculously addictive. Some people have said that it is broken. It is not. You’re supposed to fall through the floors at times. Some people say the levels cannot be beat. You just have to be smart enough to beat them, or do what I did and look on YouTube. It is insanely fun!

### 5/5 — Great!

*2023-02-16*

A great NES classic game! I’m on level 85 now and it works perfect! Thank you for a FREE opportunity to get back to childhood

### 4/5 — OMG

*2022-12-22, version 1.0*

I’m a Nintendo fanboy so seeing lode runner come to iOS is amazing I wish Nintendo payed tribute to old games like lode runner

### 1/5 — Fix

*2022-06-18*

Please the fix the game. Some levels cannot complete.

### 1/5 — Has bugs

*2022-03-20*

Please fix app.  There are levels which you just fall through the floors.

### 5/5 — Brilliant brilliant! Proper 80’s retro classic game. Wow!

*2021-08-26, version 1.0*

This simple yet challenging miner game is a genuine 80s classic. Everything here, the music, the sprite graphic takes you right back to commodore amiga or whatever platform this release was for. Many levels are very difficult yet it is incredibly addictive. A proof that a simple game made out of 5 primitive bits of graphics; miner, enemy, brick, ladder and gold is far more fun and charming than modern big budget iOS games. It’s a total mystery why this game has no ratings. Download and play now.

### 5/5 — Game

*2020-04-13*

Please make controller support!

## Frequently asked questions about Mine Runner Classic

### How do you complete a level in Mine Runner Classic?

To complete a level, you must collect all the gold in the scene. Once all gold is collected, you can climb a ladder to the top of the screen to enter the next level.

### What is the main gameplay mechanic in Mine Runner Classic?

The primary mechanic involves using a laser drill pistol to drill pits and passageways through brick floors to collect gold and trap guards.

### Can you dig through any surface in Mine Runner Classic?

No, you can only dig through fissured bricks. Solid surfaces cannot be drilled through, and holes must be drilled all the way through to be effective.

### What happens if a guard falls into a pit?

If a guard falls into a pit and gets stuck, it becomes safe to run over them, and they will release any gold they are carrying. Drilled holes will refill after a period, potentially trapping and killing guards.

### How does Mine Runner Classic handle player death or being trapped?

If the player gets trapped in a pit with no way out, they must click pause and reload to restart the level. Falling from arbitrary heights does not injure the player.

### Does Mine Runner Classic have ads?

No, this application does not contain advertisements.

### What devices is Mine Runner Classic available on?

Mine Runner Classic is available on iPhone, iPad, and iPod devices.

### How often is Mine Runner Classic updated?

The app was last updated on March 22, 2020, with version 1.0. It was initially released on March 21, 2020.

## Version history (last 1 release)

### 1.0 — 2020-03-22

No release notes.

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## More apps by Pei Ying Liu

- [Warehouse Puzzle](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/warehouse-puzzle/id1502930986)
- [The Tanks War](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-tanks-war/id1503974231)
- [Fuzzy's Adventure Island](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/fuzzys-adventure-island/id1506073220)
- [Solo 8 Ball](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/solo-8-ball/id1506427777)
- [Zumma Legend](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zumma-legend/id1522878984)

All apps by Pei Ying Liu: https://appshunter.io/developer/1502930985

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-10.*