Death Test 2 Prints

The first MicroQuest, Death Test, went through a few different print runs and formats, starting with the first "baggie" edition/print in 1978(?), and went through changes in title format and, eventually, in 1980, a 3rd print in the "crush-box" format was released.

Death Test 2 was released in 1980, corresponding with the publication of the full TFT game system. As such, DT2 was fully compatible with the TFT rules, incorporating monsters from In the Labyrinth, some magic items, and even stats for jobs depending on rank achieved in the Thorsz' army as determined by performance in the dungeon.

There are two distinct prints of DT2. The most commonly encountered one is what I refer to as the "Pink Box" edition, which has the back of the box and the lettering on the front in a distinct pink color, and much of the cover art is tinted a weird green color, to include the skin of the two warriors depicted climbing into a chamber and being attacked by a large wolf. Recently, however, I was able to obtain a different version that hithertofore had only seen in a few pictures online, what I have called the "Orange Box" edition, which has the back and lettering a much better looking (and more distinct when set over the background) orange color and a much more natural color both for the torch light and the warrior's skin. The two prints are shown side by side, below:

(NOTE: I wasn't consistent when I took the 2nd picture - while the top photo has the Orange print on the left, I swapped positions in the second photo showing the back of the box and put the Orange print on the right. Sorry for the confusion!)

Why the two print runs? My guess is that the "Pink Box" is, in fact, a mistake; likely, the print shop screwed up in some fashion (whether due to faulty equipment or misunderstanding is an open question). Assuming this is true, then the next question is why weren't these destroyed and new ones printed? It's possible that time constraints played a role - Howard Thompson probably wanted to release DT2 right away with TFT, and may have chosen to overlook the problem. It is also possible that perhaps the print shop attempted to remedy the situation by offering a steep discount on the flawed print run. Given that HT had something of a reputation for being a cheapskate, this is not an unlikely possibility.

If I ever get ahold of Pat Hidy, I should ask for his comments on the cover art and if he has any recollection of what happened.

Note: There was a rumor that some very early print runs of DT2 were in the original pre-crush box format, with a booklet, counters, and die in a baggie as was done with early Metagaming releases, but this appears to be false.