If you've read the Adventure column in the last three
issues, you would have noticed that a large part of each column was
devoted to an informal history of Adventures. It was something that I've
always wanted to do and I hope you found the subject as interesting as I
did. Now that I've got it out of my system, let's take things easier for
a while.
There is an absolutely huge number of Adventures
available for the Atari. I am trying to cover a broad cross section
of these to give you a feel for what's available. If you'd like me
to feature a particular Adventure, then drop a line to the Editor
and he'll pass it on to me. I have completed over 35 Adventures
myself, so I have a good base to draw from. If you just need a hint,
again drop a line to the Editor and he'll put it in CONTACT. If I
can't give you any help, then maybe somebody else can.
I'd also like to know how you feel about the hints
that I supply in each column. Is the coding system alright? Are the
hints too easy? Too hard? Too many? Too few?
Anyway, enough chit chat. Let's get down to
business.
Review
This issue, we'll take our first look at an
illustrated Adventure. I've chosen Sirius' "Blade of Blackpoole"
because it deserves more recognition than it has received so far.
Sirius is best known for their arcade games for the
Apple. Several of the better ones such as "Bandits" and "Wayout"
have been translated for the Atari, but "Blade of Blackpoole" was
their first translation of an Adventure. It is an illustrated
Adventure somewhat like the well known Sierra On-Line series, but of
a much higher quality. The game was designed by Tim Wilson and runs
on an Atari with 48k and an 810 disk drive. If you've got a drive
other than an 810, try before you buy. The copy protection is such
that it may not work on some non-810 disk drives.
The game comes on a double-sided disk. Side A is
copy protected, but side B is not. When you first boot the game, you
are given the option of making a backup copy of side B. Make sure
you do! From that point on, you need the original disk only to boot
the game. The backup of side B is used for everything else. I wish
other manufacturers would adopt this policy as it has three big
advantages. Firstly, it doesn't matter if your copy gets damaged,
because you still have the original game to make another backup.
Secondly, the SAVE GAME routine is carried out directly to the
backup disk. This saves all the dreaded disk swapping inherent in
other disk-based Adventures. Thirdly, the manufacturer maintains
sufficient copy protection to prevent the average user from
illegally copying the program and giving it to friends. Bravo
Sirius!
When you've completed the backup procedure, you can
proceed with the game. Following the title screen, you are dumped
into the first location. The top two thirds of the screen is devoted
to high resolution pictures of your surroundings in ANTIC mode 14
($E to you hex freaks) or GRAPHICS 7+ as it is often incorrectly
referred to. The pictures are always drawn as though you are facing
north. They are not as high in quality as (say) Datasoft's "The
Sands of Egypt", but they are much better than the
kindergarten-style of Sierra On-Line. I particularly liked the soft,
pastel tones chosen for the colours. One thing you'll notice is that
the pictures are drawn fast. Very fast! I'd like to see their fill
algorithm!
At the bottom of the screen, eight lines are
reserved for text. Unfortunately, this is always in upper case –
probably due to its Apple origins. Overall, the only really bad
point about the display is an occasional screen flicker.
The room descriptions are usually two or three
sentences long, but I found that they never provide any useful
clues. They just add atmosphere to the game. Upon subsequent visits
to the room, only the first sentence of the description will be
printed. You can opt for lengthy descriptions all the time by typing
LONG or revert to the default by typing BRIEF.
Talking about input, "Blade of Blackpoole" has an
excellent input routine. You can use multi-word input like TALK TO
THE BARTENDER or MOVE THE ROCKS WITH THE STAFF THEN GO NORTH.
Despite this, I tended to use the traditional two word input
whenever possible. When you've finished typing your command and you
press RETURN, a response comes up immediately! Now that's what I
like to see! Another thing you'll notice about the input routine is
the absence of the keyboard click. I missed this at first, but you
soon get used to it.
On the negative side, the program is marred by the
occasional bad spelling (or American spelling such as tunneled,
center, etc.) and some really pathetic grammar and punctuation. Why
do text-based programs like Adventures always fall down in this
area?
The remainder of this review contains quite a few
game playing strategies, so if that bothers you, don't read any
further! The instructions tell you that the object of the game is to
recover the magical sword "Myraglym" from a secret chamber beneath
the lake at Blackpoole. You must then return it to the altar from
which it was stolen. (There is actually a further requirement, but
this will be explained to you within the game.) You begin at the
edge of a small lake (this is NOT Blackpoole). Nearby, you will find
a tavern where you can quench your thirst or buy goods essential to
the completion of the game. You do not have enough gold pieces to
buy everything available and you will not know which items are
useful until much further into the game, so be prepared to restart
if you buy the wrong items. Experienced players beware. Your
Adventurer's instinct may be misleading!
Inventory control is very important. You can only
carry six items at a time and several of the items you find are
useless, so carry only what you need. About halfway through the
game, you will have to get to the top of a cliff. You will later
find that you should have carried six specific items up the cliff in
order to complete the game. If you find that you don't have the
items, then there is no way to return to the bottom of the cliff.
Therefore, always maintain a saved game prior to ascending the
cliff. I'd also suggest that you save the game before exercising any
magic unless you are familiar with the consequences.
The HELP or HINT command is very useful, although
some hints are so obscure that you will not understand them until
after you have solved the puzzle that they refer to. If you run into
trouble, try everything you can think of. The game has a huge
vocabulary and will quite often return a humorous response.
As you work your way through the game, you are
awarded points for achieving certain tasks. Keep track of your
score. The maximum is 500, but I could only get 480 points at the
completion of the game. The last 20 points are some sort of bonus,
but I couldn't figure out how to get it. Could somebody please help
me?
In summary, "Blade of Blackpoole" does not have a
very original theme, but it is very well implemented. Unlike some
other fantasy Adventures, the objects and surroundings are very
consistent to the story. There is very little violence, but a fair
share of riddles and magic. It is easy to map, but hard to solve. I
would put it in the intermediate category, although a couple of
puzzles are extremely difficult.
Hints
If you come to a grinding halt, try HELP or HINT in
each room. If that doesn't help, try the hints below. (Note that I
haven't given any hints where they're available within the program.)
If you're extremely desperate, a complete solution may be found in
"A Shortcut Through Adventureland" by Jack Cassidy, Pete Katz,
Richard Owen Lynn and Sergio Waisman (published by Datasoft, 20660
Nordhoff Street, Chatsworth, CA 91311-6152, U.S.A).
Blade of
Blackpoole hints
Don't know what you're supposed to do?
59 9 21 56 36
Can't take any of the items from the small room next
to the tavern?
35 44 36
Can't get out of the quicksand?
11 25 12 24 8 20 39 53 21 26 52
Can't catch the bees?
36 36 36 13 57 1 40 36
Can't get past the carnivorous plant?
7 46 61 36
Can't move the boat?
11 25 62 27 52
Can't carry the boat?
15 41 36 14 47 36
Can't find the source of the faint voice near the
misshapen tree?
7 46 61 36
Can't find the Jewel of Selmarn?
32 9 66 5 16 64 36
Can't get closer to the eerie light emanating from
the trees?
34 63 67
Can't get past the monster in the river?
68 3 43 48 68 3 14 36
Can't move the boulder?
17 68 22 45 36
Can't open the huge metallic door?
68 51 33 36
Still haven't found Myraglym?
59 51 49 21 51 2 18 36
Can't find the key?
30 51 19 55 46 51 2 18 36
Keep hitting your head when you take a dive?
28 54 46 50 61 36
Can't find a bow?
17 51 29 36
Can't find an arrow?
6 51 31 52
Lost all your belongings?
10 37 65 23 4 58 42 67
Can't get the last 20 points?
69 38 10 67
1 THAN
2 RIGHT
3 STRONG
4 DABBLING
5 SHED
6 REMEMBER
7 TALK
8 BREASTSTROKE
9 HINT
10 I
11 WHAT
12 BACKSTROKE
13 IS
14 DRINK
15 SAVE
16 SOME
17 TRY
18 PLACE
19 SPELL
20 AND
21 IN
22 HIGH
23 ABOUT |
24 ,
25 DO
26 COMMON
27 USE
28 WEAR
29 MAZE
30 RETURN
31 SCROLL
32 THIS
33 KEY
34 DON'T
35 TAKE
36 .
37 WARNED
38 CAN
39 BUTTERFLY
40 WINE
41 GAME
42 MAGIC
43 MONSTER
44 INVENTORY
45 FREQUENCY
46 TO |
47 POTION
48 NEEDS
49 PRAYER
50 PROTECTS
51 THE
52 ?
53 WAVE
54 SOMETHING
55 BOOK
56 TAVERN
57 SWEETER
58 WITH
59 SAY
60 FIND
61 IT
62 GONDOLIER
63 BOTHER
64 LIGHT
65 YOU
66 SHOULD
67 !
68 A
69 NEITHER |
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