Author: professor6153

Ali Baba & the Forty Thieves is the second offering from developer Stuart Smith. In many ways it is an improvement upon and a spiritual successor to Smith’s Fracas from 1980. Ali Baba has many of the same things that made Fracas so original and a delight to play. The game allows for cooperative play so that multiple players can sit around the computer and participate. All of the NPCs and creatures that you encounter in the game are unique and original. The NPCs also act independently of one another and make their own choices during their turn, even electing to turn on one another.

Ali Baba’s environment is much bigger than the Fracas landscape and the graphics are greatly improved. The controls and movement are quick and fluid. Combat descriptions are much like those found in Smith’s previous game and you can tell how successful an attack is by the description. For example a “jab” and a “poke” are sometimes described as just a scratch while a “smites” and “wallops” are tremendous hits. These are just a few of the descriptive adjectives that Stuart uses.

Ali Baba may take it’s name from the short story found in The Book of One Thousand and One Nights but other characters from other stories in the book can also be found in the game. The task of rescuing the sultan’s daughter, Princess Buddir, is the main quest of the game. However Princess Buddir is a character from the Aladdin folk tale. Aladdin can also be found within the game’s landscape. There are quite a few other literary references to be found in the game. It became a Who’s Who treasure hunt of social pop culture that I found to be very enjoyable. My favorite was the owl known as “Doctor Who” who keeps appearing in many of the panels. Celegorm from Lord of the Rings and Scheherazade from One Thousand and One Nights were two of the NPCs to be found. I’ll let you discover the others on your own.

Once you find the Thieve’s Cave in Ali Baba you’ll discover Cassim as well (Ali Baba’s older brother from the story) and there’s a pretty good joke that Stuart uses there which I won’t spoil. I literally laughed out loud.

The landscape in Ali Baba is huge and can be very confusing. One of the more difficult elements of the game is traversing through the maze of rooms in order to find Princess Buddir. There are runes scattered throughout the game and when you come in contact with them they provide hints to help you in your progress as well as helping with plot device. Some of the “clues” provided by the “friendly mage” are particularly tricky and useful. Many of the rooms have hidden passages, slides, and rooms. They are riddled with teleporters and traps as well to confuse and confound. I would suggest taking special care to note the names of each room as they contain clues as well. To make matters worse, all 40 thieves from the story move about the labyrinth and stalk you. Each of the thieves has his own unique name, ability scores, and equipment.

Combat can become extremely chaotic and deadly very fast. Your two attributes are strength and dexterity and the formula for hits and damage is explained in the manual which comes with the game. There are four different kinds of armor and four different kinds of weapons which you can purchase from multiple areas of the map. You can tackle the game solo or you can call upon allies, in which you control all of the characters, or you can play with friends and each of you control your own character. You can also choose to avoid combat and try to quickly sneak your way through the landscape as the NPCs can choose to ignore you and turn on one another. I chose the former strategy. You can also choose to hit R for rest and this will heal you during the game.

Once you find the princess it is a simple matter of taking her back to the sultan. This should not prove to be too difficult as by this time you have likely dispatched most of your enemies. The game took me a little over four hours to complete.

I’ve really enjoyed both offerings from Stuart Smith so far. It looks like we’ll encounter another offering from Smith in 1983; The Return of Heracles. Stuart Smith is best know for his Adventure Construction Set from 1985. If you enjoyed Fracas as much as I did you’re going to love Ali Baba & the Forty Thieves; a quality offering.

Ultima I is a must play for gaming historians. It is the ULTIMAte experience if you pardon the pun. The outdoor tile graphics in Ultima I would become a staple of the entire series and would vastly improve over time. Ken Arnold, a friend of Richard Garriott’s, worked on the machine language programming so that the tile graphics could be used. The City of Arnold, located in the Lands of the Feudal Lords, is named after Arnold. Ultima I would become the flagship for what would evolve into an enduring, award winning, fan favorite series.

I went into Ultima I completely blind. I had never played a single Ultima game nor ever read any spoilers. I also found the large overland maps to be intimidating and before I knew it the entire series had passed me by. Now many years later, I wanted to give the game the respect it deserved. I wanted to read the manual which came packaged with the game as my only preparation. I also wanted to turn my weakness with overland maps into my greatest strength by mapping all four continents out by hand. I was banking that this reciprocity would allow for a more immersive experience.

The game sports 4 continents, 8 castles, 32 towns, 36 dungeons, and 8 sign posts. It has a big bad in the form of an evil sorcerer bent on world domination who uses a phylactery to house his power. There are hover cars, space travel, interstellar dog fights with enemy ships, and a time machine. This game packs so much into it that I expected to find a discarded kitchen sink on a rocky shore while traversing Sosaria as well.

Ultima I is a game of exploration and discovery. When you begin the game you really have no idea what you are to do or where you are supposed to go. In one of my earlier blog posts I likened playing Ultima to watching an episode of Lost. You learn snippets of information by visiting each of the pubs scattered about Sosaria. Each piece of information by itself creates an even greater mystery. The overall plot is laid out eventually and you learn that you’re going to have to go back in time in order to defeat Mondain. You discover that you have to use a time machine and in order to operate it you need four different colored gems. So far so good. There are two castles on each of the four continents and each of the eight kings will send you on a quest. I had decided to map out all four continents before I took on any quests. My mapping and traveling ended up being fortuitous because it was only through visiting each of the towns that I learned what I needed to do. Once my mapping chores were complete I visited each of the eight kings to see what quests they wanted to send me on. Four of the quests tasked me with finding a particular sign post for each king. I knew where all of these signs were because my maps were complete so I finished those four quests first. Each king awarded me by raising my strength attribute several points. Now that I had four of the eight quests completed I was beginning to get a little nervous because I still had no idea where the time machine was located or the four gems were that I needed to operate it. The last four quests involved slaying a particular creature in the dungeons. I was tasked with slaying a Gelatinous Cube, Carrion Crawler, a Lich, and a Balron. I decided to venture into the Mines of Mt. Drash to complete all four of these quests. Once I accomplished that task each of the kings I visited awarded me with a different colored gem!

I learned that if I became a space ace the princess would tell me where the time machine was located.

This part of the game really surprised me. I had no idea there would be hover cars, blasters, and lastly a space shuttle! Once you purchase and then blast off aboard the shuttle Ultima becomes a completely different game. You move about space sector by sector by jumping to Lightspeed. Some sectors have bases where you can refuel or board a new vessel while other sectors have enemy ships that you have to attack. You achieve the rank of Space Ace by destroying 20 enemy ships. The controls and gameplay is reminiscent of Atari’s Star Raider. Once you achieve your desired rank you then have to return to Sosaria. There is a bit of a learning curve dealing with the enemy ships but I have no doubt you’ll soon master it.

Once back on solid ground it is time to seek out the princess. In each of the eight castles I had found a princess imprisoned there but I could not free her. I thought perhaps with my new rank of Space Ace the game would allow me to unlock her cell. No such luck. I tried the Unlock spell as well to no avail. All the while I’m attempting these things the jester is moving around crying; “I’ve got the key! I’ve got the key!” I had a hard time wrapping my mind around this part of the game. I could not steal the key from the jester nor could I transact with him in any way. I decided to do the unthinkable and kill the annoying little bastard. I was certain this would lead to disaster. Surely Lord British did not want me killing his jester right in front of him. I clobbered the clown and was awarded with a key! I was also assaulted by every guard in the entire castle. Once I dispatched all of them, I rescued the princess and she informed me where I could find the time machine.

Entering the time machine begins the end game or the final confrontation with Mondain. This was surprisingly well done. You have to best him in battle, destroy his gem, and then finally destroy him when he polymorphs into a large bat.

I wasn’t kidding when I said that this game had it all. All of this from a game published in 1981. When you approach the game with no prior knowledge and refuse to use spoilers of any kind the game seems incredibly massive.

It took me a total of 24 hours to complete Ultima I. The mapping of each of the four continents was a slow process and served to bloat the number of hours I spent with the game. In my mind it was time well spent. I wanted to honor the game’s place in history and give it the respect it deserved. The passion that Richard Garriott put into this creation is obvious. His youthful exuberance shines through every moment of this game as it resonates just plain fun. You can tell he tried to fit as much fun and enjoyment as he could into one game for individuals to enjoy.

Ultima differs from other games in the way that it awards hit points and deals with experience and I find this dichotomy very interesting. Whenever I needed more hit points I would enter the nearest dungeon and begin to work through the first three levels. In Ultima every time you exit a dungeon it awards you hit points based upon the experience gained during that foray. This is a vastly different approach from Wizardry I which I also just finished playing. While I found the hit point awards a bit odd at first, I found that it helped to promote a particular pace as well as overland exploration.

My experience with Ultima I has been a highlight for me as I work through the role-playing offerings from 1981. It was one of the games I was most looking forward to playing and it did not disappoint. In hindsight, I am extremely thankful that I steadfastly decided to take my time with the game and to simply enjoy it.

The outdoor map first encountered in Ultima I would continue to grow in each successive game and become a staple of the long running series.

I beat Ultima I last night and as I did so I punched a fist into the air as if my team had just scored a touchdown. I will write a final review of my experience but before I do I wanted to present my findings and data collection from roaming all over Sosaria.

There exists in the world of Sosaria 4 continents. Each continent has 2 castles, 8 towns, 9 dungeons, and 2 sign posts. I was surprised about two things: 1) that there were actually four large continents to explore; and 2) that there were an equal number of castles, towns, and dungeons on each continent. Ultima I took me 24 hours to complete and much of that time was spent thoroughly exploring and mapping out each of the four continents. In doing so it gave me a deeper appreciation of the game and a specific lens into the creative genius ofRichard Garriott a.k.a. Lord British.

I learned through reading that many of the towns are named after close friends, fellow programmers working on the game, family members, and past girlfriends. Richard Garriott would continue to do this throughout the entire series. The City of Helen for example is named after his mother and the City of Linda is named after one of his girlfriends.

The Key above matches the map that I made as I was traversing the continent. I have all four continents mapped out like this and as soon as I finish them I will post the final drafts for you.

I love some of the dungeon names that you find in each of the four continents. The Unholy Hole and Mondain’s Gate To Hell are two of my favorite names from the Lands of Lord British.

One of the biggest obstacles that stopped me from playing and experiencing any of the Ultima series when I was younger was feeling intimidated by the large outdoor maps. I wanted to turn my weakness and fear into my greatest strength and that is why I decided to map the four continents in Ultima I like I did.

The creation of these outdoor maps and the discovery of each location on the four continents was a painstaking process however it heightened my overall enjoyment of the game. Furthermore I found that as I progressed to later stages of the game that it made backtracking and moving about the four continents extremely easy and saved me a lot of time in the late stages.

I found that the dungeons in Ultima I share some interesting characteristics. Every single dungeon in the game has 10 levels. Each level is contained in a 9 x 9 grid. Every ladder down and every ladder up will always be found in the same two locations on the grid on each level. Each dungeon seems to be randomly generated for each new character and campaign that you begin and then that configuration remains the same. There is nothing unique about any of the 27 dungeons found in the game. So when it comes time to complete your quests, it is best to pick just one dungeon to map and stick to. I chose the Mines of Mt. Drash to complete my quests. I did map out the first two levels so that I could accrue experience and hit points easily but then I merely used Ladder Down and Ladder Up spells to get to the lower levels quickly and then escape them quickly too. Knowing that ladders going up and down are fixed, you can travel to one of those locations and only use half of the spells that you need.

So this is the data collected of my travels in the four continents of Sosaria. It involved a lot of time and patience and this travelin’ man wanted to share it with you. They say the journey itself is half the fun and I’m inclined to agree. Spending so much time with the journey heightened my own journey metaphorically and I’m more than happy to bring you along as well.

My next blog post will have my final review and thoughts on Ultima I.

Ultima I: The First Age of Darkness (First post)

There is a certain degree of commitment when you desire to play these older game offerings. Many computer games, both old and new, are rated by the level of immersion the player experiences. That threshold becomes easier to reach with new games using new technology. The Playstation 5’s improved framerates and graphics, for example, literally shine thanks to ray tracing. Furthermore, their new DualSense technology and 3D Audio headsets help to take a gamer’s adventures even further. This kind of technology requires no work from the player. The hardware is doing all of the heavy lifting to create a great gaming experience. There is very little in the way of reciprocity.

Ultima I: The First Age of Darkness is now 40 years old. There are no spectacular graphics or pulse-pounding sound. If you want to have the same awesome experience that players had in 1981 it requires a covenant between the game and the player. If you desire a truly immersive experience there needs to be reciprocity between the player and the game. The threshold for immersion was completely different in 1981 and some of the heavy lifting falls on the shoulders of the player as well. There needs to be a give and take between the game and the player or what I call reciprocity. Allow me to illustrate a bit further.

I am now 22 hours into Ultima I. Many might be surprised by that admission or exclaim; “But it is such a short game!” I have read reviews from modern gamers how they have finished the game in 2 to 3 hours. My contention is this: there is no way they finished the game in that length of time unless they already played through it once and then wanted to see how quickly they could run through it a second time. This is where that covenant or contract between player and game comes into play. If you’re going to be lured by the temptation of the many online walkthroughs and videos available for these older games then why play at all?

I mentioned in my prior blog post that I wanted to experience Ultima I as if I had opened the box for the very first time in 1981. I have purposefully avoided any spoilers or any kind of aid. I have also been mapping the outdoor environment of Ultima I by hand.

The map depicted above is not 100% complete yet. I have mapped out all four continents in the game and in a future blog post will provide you with updated photos of the finished products.

Based on the recommendations of William, a frequent contributor, I also purchased the Official Book of Ultima by Shay Addams.

The first half of the book does an excellent job of providing background information on Lord British and the creative process that transpired to make each of the Ultima games. It was a fascinating and captivating read. The second half of the book contains walkthroughs and spoilers for Ultima I – VI but I avoided that second half. I wanted the book to add to my collection and I was interested in reading about the history behind the series. The book now holds a special place on my bookshelves.

The care and the detail that has gone into the creation of these outdoor maps and reading about Lord British and the making of the game is part of the reciprocity that I am alluding to. I am doing my own part to create an enjoyable and immersive experience with the game. I am doing all that I can to experience and play the game the way that it should be played. These efforts have greatly added to my overall enjoyment and experience with the game. There is a reciprocity. A covenant. If you’re going to experience Ultima I for the very first time I urge you to do the same. Avoid spoilers, avoid cheating, take your time with the game and completely explore the environment.

In my next blog post I will provide greater detail on the four continents and what I have discovered on each of them.

So as I have said I am 22 hours into the game – where do I stand with it at this point in time? I have completed all 8 quests that were given to me by the eight different kings. My experience with the game reminds me of watching an episode of Lost. You wander about with virtually no idea what to do but as you explore each of the cities you learn snippets of information at each of the pubs. The information you receive is sparing and only gives rise to more questions. I learned that I have to go back in time to defeat Minax. Completing the quests for each of the kings not only awarded me four different colored gems but also more information. This new information is enough to propel me further into the game. I have learned from one of the kings that these gems will aid in operating a time machine that will allow me to go back in time. I have also learned that I am going to need to rescue the princess locked within the castle; that she will provide me with another piece of information. I believe however that the game is steering me to blast off and become a “Space Ace” (whatever that means) first.

Wish me luck. Until next time…

Ultima I is the first game in the Ultima series of role-playing video games created by Richard Garriott. It was originally released for the Apple II in June of 1981.

I had played and reviewed Aklabeth (which is now officially referred to as Ultima 0) in great detail and I was very excited to play Ultima I. I have an admission to make: I have never played nor even attempted to play any of the Ultima games. I am an Ultima series virgin. This may come as a bit of a surprise coming from an avid CRPG fan. So why have I never experienced any of the games in the Ultima series?

There are multiple reasons why I didn’t experience any of the Ultima games growing up. I think the primary reason was the time commitment needed to play the game. I grew up cutting my teeth on the genre with Wizardry I and then went on to play Wizardry II. When I was growing up I had to choose very carefully how to spend any of my free time. I ended up working three different jobs to put myself through college. When you add in somewhat of a social life to the mix that leaves very little time for computer role-playing games. The time that I did have I devoted to Wizardry and became somewhat of a dungeon crawling junkie. I thus found the large outdoor maps displayed in Ultima I to be a bit daunting. The years rolled on as did the Ultima sequels as it grew into one of the best selling series of all time. I find myself to be a bit of a completionist so by the time Ultima VI hit the market I felt as if the entire series had passed me by. The completionist in me wouldn’t let me start with Ultima VI never having played Ultima I. This is one of the primary reasons that I started this blog and journey in the first place. Now I do have the time to go back and do what I could not do before; or at least it is a dedication to make the time. So even though I did complete Akalabeth I am very excited to begin my relationship with the Ultima series.

Whenever I am on social media I have to make a conscious effort to avoid any spoilers concerning a show that I’ve yet to watch or have recorded. I want to be surprised and judge the show on my own terms. I view video games with the same lens. The internet is filled with fan sites, walkthroughs, and reviews of older games so I have had to make a conscious effort to avoid reading any Ultima I spoilers. I have read in Discord rooms how the game is actually relatively short and an individual also claimed to have beat the game in less than 2 hours. While I am certain this is true I find it to be shocking. The game thus far seems massive or least gives the illusion of being massive. My goal with Ultima I was to read the documentation and begin the game as if I was opening the box and exploring the contents for the very first time back in 1981. The only information I have concerning the plot or how to win is what is contained in the documentation that was shipped with the game – which isn’t much.

When you’re writing a blog and taking a video game challenge there is the danger of falling into a trap. There can sometimes be this sense of urgency or pressure to complete the game as quickly as possible so that you can move on to the next one. There can be a sense that you have a responsibility to “report” to readers of the blog or that you have the pressure of meeting a particular deadline. I find it is then important to take a step back and remind yourself that your ultimate goal is to enjoy the game on your own terms. Which is exactly what I am doing. I am taking my time with the game and choosing to create a complete outdoor map. I have created a character thus far and I am still in exploration mode. I am only now realizing there is more than one continent in the game and I have already spent over six hours in the Lands of Lord British and I am having a ball. The road to win the game may indeed be a short one but I choose to take the longer route and explore the game to its fullest. I will report back to you with my findings very soon but right now I have a particularly treacherous stretch of forest to cross. Until next time…

Wizardry Series Part I: The Legacy of the Series

Wizardry Series Part II: Character Generation

I can still remember my sense of wonder while exploring the very first dungeon level in Wizardry I. I was in awe that my new Apple IIC was host to such a technological marvel. There are enough special encounters sprinkled throughout the dungeon that you find yourself thirsting for more. The excitement of the unknown and questions like ‘What the hell is down here?’ were running through my teenage brain. Many of the rooms on each level are non-descript rooms filled with encounters. However there was just enough text and special encounters to keep you exploring each level for more.

There are 10 such dungeon levels in Wizardry I. Each level is unique and offers it’s own set of challenges. Each level is progressively harder than the first. An intrepid party that tries to tackle a deeper level too soon will find themselves completely wiped out. You must take your time exploring each level and build up enough experience to increase your abilities before venturing on ahead. Wizardry is one of the very first home computer games that introduced the player to the concept of grinding. The word is evocative of a treadmill because you are killing the same set of opponents over and over again in order to gain experience points or gold. The gaining of this experience and gold then allows you to increase your abilities or “level up”. Many games require some grinding but CRPGs are notorious for requiring this kind of time investment from players. It most certainly IS a time investment.

Each of the 10 dungeon levels are sized to a 20 x 20 grid. This information is provided to players through the excellent documentation which comes packaged with the game. The knowledge of such a rubric makes it easy for the player to map out each level. It is ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY that you map each dungeon level. There are secrets, special encounters, secret doors, traps, stairs, and elevators to find or avoid and this would be virtually impossible without a detailed map of some kind. There are squares that also have spinners and teleporters to confound you.

There are many different ways one can choose to map out dungeon levels in computer role-playing games. Auto mapping features in games would not come about until a few years later. I love getting a sheet of graph paper and a sharpened pencil and doing it myself by hand. There are some gamers who dread this but I have always loved this part of the computer role playing game experience. So the levels that I am presenting to you were mapped by hand using good old-fashioned graph paper and a #2 pencil. An eraser is a must.

The first dungeon level is a lesson in grinding. You may find yourself going through several characters until you’re able to string some successful encounters together and gain some progression. There are two hidden keys to find on the first level as well as an elevator that will take you to levels 1-4. A favorite grinding trick for experienced players of this game is to keep going back to the Murphy’s Ghost encountered on this level. Slaying the Murphy’s Ghost provides a lot of experience points and it is not a difficult encounter. You can keep doing this over and over again and amass a lot of experience in the process.

The second level of the dungeon is harder than the first and on this level you need to find a hidden frog statue and a gold key. You should not proceed further from this level until you feel confident in your ability to handle encounters because the third level ratchets up the difficulty factor. The third level opponents are dangerous and many of the monsters have a poisonous bite while others cause paralysis. There are five different pit traps on this level as well and they can be deadly. Once you know where they are located however they are easy to avoid in future dungeon delves.

The fourth level marks a major turning point in the game. There are several special encounters on this level such as the Monster Allocation center and your very first major battle is also on this level. This can be a very difficult challenge for many and I am sure this is the spot of many TPKs (which stands for TOTAL PARTY KILLS). If you should prevail and win the big battle there are two major things that happen:

1. you obtain a blue ribbon which allows you to operate the express elevator found on this level. This elevator can be used to quickly access levels 4-9.
2. your quest and overall plot of the game are finally revealed here on this level

If we’re being honest, dungeon levels 5-9 don’t contain any special encounters or hidden items necessary to win the game. Each level gets progressively harder than the last and they are there for you to grind through so that you can build up enough experience in order to tackle Werdna, the big bad on dungeon level 10.

Dungeon levels 5 & 6 are great for gaining experience because the mapping of each of the levels is pretty straightforward and there are no traps to worry about. The 7th dungeon level might be a level you want to avoid for one very important reason: none of your spells will work on this level. If you’re a completionist like myself you’re going to steadfastly want to map it out anyway but you’ve been warned.

The 8th dungeon level has a very unique layout. If you look closely you can see one of the author’s initials within the labyrinth: there is an R and a J surrounded by a much larger W.

The 8th dungeon level is not one to skip in my opinion because this level has it’s own version of the Murphy’s Ghost. If you keep revisiting this level you will encounter Earth Giants as random encounters. They are not difficult to beat in combat compared to many other foes on this level and for some reason you receive an obnoxious amount of experience points for beating them. This is a great level to push your characters from 10th level to 11th or 12th level so take advantage of the encounters here.

The express elevator that you found on the 4th dungeon level only takes you down to level 9. The only way to reach Werdna’s lair on level 10 is by way of a chute located on the 9th dungeon level.

Werdna’s lair on the 10th level is setup like a gauntlet. There are a series of teleporters that you have to find and six different groups of guardians that you have to beat before you encounter the evil wizard himself. There is a square at the beginning of the gauntlet that will teleport you back to the castle if you step on it. You can backtrack to that spot and always escape Werdna’s lair if things are going badly for you. Once you teleport past the sixth group of guardians however there is no going back.

The battle with Werdna is extremely difficult. It usually involves Werdna, a Vampire Lord or two, and lastly one to three groups of Vampires. You want to hope that you gain surprise when this battle begins. You also want to hope that Werdna chooses not to unleash a magical blast on his very first turn. Things can go badly for you very quickly in this fight. You want to make sure one of your spellcasters is holding back at least two Zilwan spells to quickly take care of the Vampire Lords. Werdna’s vampire minions can very quickly decimate the entire party. You will find as you play this game that there is a specific strategy you can use with the higher level opponents that increases your odds of success. If you merely walk around like a bull in a china shop you’re likely not going to survive to the end.

This is the 3rd time I’ve beaten Wizardry I: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord. I knew I was in for the fight of my life on level 4 so this time I was prepared for it however my entire party was destroyed in Werdna’s Lair – TWICE – and I had to start all over so I’ve been playing this game straight for three to four weeks. You want to talk about frustration? The second time my party was wiped out in Werdna’s Lair, I had actually defeated Werdna. I equipped his amulet and then I couldn’t figure out how to get back to the castle. I invoked the power of the amulet and Werdna appeared again with more minions and utterly destroyed me. The key to ending the game is to equip the amulet and wander around that small area of the dungeon until you have a random encounter. If you USE the amulet during the encounter you will be teleported to somewhere on the 1st level of the dungeon and you can then make your way out.

My original goal as I had outlined in a previous post was to change classes to a Lord and a Ninja as my characters progressed. However a glitch in the Wizardry Archives version causes your stats to decrease over time, not increase. I then had to throw that plan out the window and so I won the game with 2 fighters, a samurai, a priest, a bishop, and a wizard. If I were to start again, now that I am aware of the Wizardry Archives problem, I would form a party of 2 fighters, a samurai, a priest, and 2 wizards. If you’re not going to play with a thief then you don’t really need the bishop’s identify ability. I skipped every single chest I came across, obtained no magic items at all, and still won the game.

This is the game that still really does it for me. It is an instant classic in my opinion and a MUST PLAY game if you’re interested in the history of CRPGs. It was the home computer game that was responsible for a whole slew of FIRSTS as I outlined in my first blog post. Wizardry would lay the groundwork for all future multi-party dungeon crawls. In my mind it is the granddaddy, the king, the progenitor of all the others that would follow. Long live the king!

Wizardry Series Part I: The Legacy of the Series

When you begin Wizardry I, you find yourself in the Castle, with no party formed yet. From the Castle you can visit the following places:

• Gigamesh’s Tavern
• Adventurer’s Inn
• Temple of Cant
• Boltac’s Trading Post
• Edge of Town

The Edge of Town is your gateway to areas beyond the castle. These include the Training Grounds and Maze. You may also return to the Castle, use the Utilities, or simply Leave Game.

The Utilities are a collection of options that you may find useful. One is to Change Name to rename your character. Another option is to Restart an Out Party. If you happened to have quit your game while in the maze or somehow didn’t properly leave the game, your character might be then designated as OUT and unplayable. This utility will restore the character back to the Castle when he or she was last in good standing.

The Training Grounds are where you’ll generate your characters. Once you enter the training grounds you can: Create a Character, Inspect a Character, view a Roster of Characters, and Leave.

Wizardry I: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord broke the mold and set the standard for character generation in future computer role-playing games. This was the first time that the computer user could control six different uniquely detailed characters and control how they progressed.

When you create a character you start by choosing a name for the character, then the character’s Race and Alignment. Having the freedom and capability to make these kinds of choices was a marvelous achievement in 1981. Robert Clardy’s Odyssey: The Compleat Apventure allowed you to command a group but each individual was not distinct and were only really representations of hit points. This is the first time that you are tracking experience point progression, equipment, and spells for six unique individuals.

When you choose a Race the computer assigns base attributes, and a random number of bonus points that you may assign to the attributes. Your attributes drive the character classes that are available and help to determine what class you can play. There are six particular attributes:

• Strength – augments the amount of damage that you can inflict upon an enemy
• I.Q. – the higher your IQ the better you are at casting spells
• Piety – the more Pious you are the more likely the Gods will grant your prayers
• Vitality – affects your hit points and likelihood of being resurrected
• Agility – this makes you faster and harder to hit
• Luck – influences the other attributes in various ways. A high luck is good

The race that you select has a large influence on the classes which are likely available to you at the start of the game. Each race has a different set of initial attributes. Humans are the most balanced but have the lowest initial attribute total. Hobbits start with a very high luck of 15.

There are three choices for alignment: Good, Neutral, or Evil. Certain classes require a particular alignment Alignment comes into play when forming your party and can cause problems for you during the game. Good characters will not travel with Evil characters and vice versa. If you encounter a friendly group of creatures in the maze and attack them anyway; after doing this a few times it will affect your alignment and you can change from good to evil. The opposite is true as well and it is possible for an Evil character to become good by showing mercy.

These are the Basic Classes that you have to choose from:

• Fighter – a warrior that excels in combat and typically can withstand more damage
• Mage – I.Q. is the primary attribute and they tap in the ability to wield spells. Terrible in hand to hand combat and cannot take much damage
• Priest – a holy warrior. Piety is the primary attribute. They pray for spells, can wear any armor, but can only use blunt weapons. They have the special ability to Dispel undead.
• Thief – Agility is the primary attribute. They are capable of detecting traps hidden in chests and may disarm those traps as well. No other class can do this. They can only wear leather armor.

There also Prestige Classes:

• Bishop – a cross between a Mage and Priest and can learn spells from both classes however at a much slower rate. They do get a weapon and armor advantage over a regular Mage and they have the special skill of being able to Identify magic items.
• Samurai – cross between a Fighter and a Mage. They have the skills of a fighter but can eventually cast spells too but at a slower rate.
• Lord – a cross between a Fighter and a Priest. They can cast spells at higher levels but they do not have the ability to Dispel undead.
• Ninja – an advanced fighter on steroids. It has the highest restrictions of all of the Prestige Classes so it is difficult to attain. They can fight much better without armor and can inflict a higher percentage of critical hits that can instantly behead or kill a foe. Ninjas can only be Evil.

It is possible to become a Bishop when creating a new character particularly if you select Elf as your Race. If you choose an Elf or a Gnome you have about a 10% chance of having high enough rolls to create a Samurai. There is less than a 1% chance of having high enough attributes to create a Lord or Ninja.

I am playing the MS-DOS Wizardry Archives version of the game. I recommend that you are patient and take your time creating your group of characters. You can keep refusing to keep a character until you are happy with your random bonus point roll. I would keep rerolling a character until you get 18-25 bonus points to spend. It is possible but requires a lot of patience.

This brings up the topic of what is considered to be the perfect party to explore the game’s dungeons. Most would probably recommend that you at least include two fighter-type classes (Fighter, Samurai, Lord), one thief for disarming traps on treasure chests, and two to three spell casters with at least one Mage and one Priest.

When I was in my late teens I remember beating the game with a stereotypical party construct like the one outlined above. Years and years later I would beat the game gain with a similar party makeup. This time around however I decided that the only thing the thief is really good for is opening treasure chests and disarming traps. Albeit that IS an extremely important reason to include a thief, I thought this time around I would avoid the treasure chests and I went with the following:

1. Dwarven Fighter
2. Dwarven Fighter – my thinking here was that I was going to change classes late in the game – something I had never done before – and change one fighter into a Lord – and then make the entire party evil and change the second fighter into a Ninja. Unfortunately, this plan went right out the window, more on that later
3. Elven Samurai
4. Elven Bishop
5. Elven Priest
6. Elven Mage

I was excited to challenge myself with this party lineup because I knew my funds would be meager due to no thief in the party. I knew money and loot would be scarce and that I was sacrificing the opportunity to find magic items. The powerful trade off was that I felt this lineup was very strong for a combat intensive game. If you are not familiar with the term grinding, Wizardry I is the epitome of a grinder. Grinding is the time spent doing repetitive tasks within a game to unlock a particular item or to build experience needed to progress smoothly through the game. There are ten total dungeon levels in Wizardry I and each level is progressively harder than the last. While a thief is awesome for acquiring loot and magic he causes a weak spot in the lineup and often times you’re resurrecting the thief in question or the priest fighting in his stead.

Unfortunately, much to my chagrin, I came to realize that there is a “bug” in the Wizardry Archives version of Wizardry I. When the characters gain a level, they can gain new spells, additional hit points, and their abilities might gain or lose in value. What usually happens is that over time, after having gained many levels, your attributes are high enough that you can make a class change to possibly a Lord or Ninja. The “bug” in the Wizardry Archives version however causes the character’s attributes to more likely LOSE points rather than GAIN points. So my plan to change classes is simply not going to happen and I’m too invested in this particular game and party to change versions or systems.

There are many different theories as to what makes the perfect party make up for Wizardry I and I’d love to hear yours if you have one. In my next blog installment we’re going to look at the overall plot of Wizardry I as well as a detailed look at the first level of the game’s dungeon. I am leaving for a much needed vacation tomorrow and my wife and I are going to be hiking in Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon over the weekend and then exploring Sedona, Tucson, and Phoenix Arizona the following week. I will be doing no gaming during this week however you can expect the posts to continue when I get back, unless I accidentally find a WayGate…

Wizardry I: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord was the very first computer role-playing game that I had ever played and it was also the first game that I had ever purchased. I was already a huge Dungeons & Dragons fan which was at the height of its popularity in North America when Wizardry I was released in 1981.

Wizardry was written by Andrew C. Greenberg and Robert Woodhead when they were students at Cornell University and published by Sir-Tech. The game was influenced by earlier games from the PLATO system, most notably Oubilette. There is a history of the PLATO games available on Cyber1 and dnd contributor Dirk Pellet had this to say:

“Sometime around 1977, Robert J. Woodhead (who was non-affectionately known on PLATO as “Balsabrain”) through means unknown to the dnd authors, obtained a copy of the source code to the current version of dnd (probably 6.0 or 7.0). He “created” “his” own game from it, in a file called “sorcery.” It had essentially all the same features of dnd except the messages, monsters, and magic items had different names and pictures (although identical functions). Apparently the illicit copy hadn’t included the charset. The elven boots were socks, among other alterations.”

“When the dnd authors were informed of the existence of Woodhead’s copy, and took a look at it (including looking at the source code in a monitor mode with a concerned sysop), the copy was promptly deleted, and Balsabrain learned that if he wanted to plagiarize PLATO games, he would have to do it OFF of PLATO. He put that lesson to use by plagiarizing Oubliette when he “created” “his” game of Wizardry and began to market it.”

You can certainly see the influences that Oubliette had on Wizardry. The overall structure is the same from the shops down to the wireframe dungeon. Basic combat is the same and even some of the spell names are exactly the same in both games. Dumapic is one such spell that is found in both games and has the exact same affects. There are, however, a lot of things that are different between the two games. Wizardry I has an actual plot and there are special encounters sprinkled throughout the ten levels of the dungeon. Wizardry also has more spells, a way to identify items, and a single player controls all six characters that make up the party. Oubliette was a multi-user game on PLATO and each individual only controlled only one character.

Wizardy I: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord was highly influential in the evolution of computer role-playing games that would follow. It was the very first time, on the home computer, that a single player controlled multiple party members. It was the very first time that experience points and levels were earned in a game that closely mimicked that of the tabletop game Dungeons & Dragons. The game also sported a complex magic system with different spells for wizards and priests. There were numerous magic items that needed to be identified and many of them were even cursed which was another first! The player could choose between multiple races and classes and the classes were restricted by ability scores. It was the first time that alignment was chosen AND COULD CHANGE based on your actions in the game. You also had the ability to change classes in the game. Many of these things were heavily influenced by the game Dungeons & Dragons.

I remember seeing the Wizardry box displayed on the shelf when I was purchasing my first computer system. Frederick Siroteck, the father of Norman, who owned Sir-Tech, and the company’s financier insisted that the packaging and documentation for Wizardry be professional. This greatly distinguished Wizardry from the other CRPGs of the same period. Many of them were sold in Ziploc bags! Mr. Sirteck made the right call because the pull of that box upon me was akin to the gravitational pull of the sun. The box was extremely hard, glossy, and had weight to it. It added to the mystery and allure of what might be contained within the box. I purchased it on the same day that I purchased my Apple IIC in 1984.

Wizardry defined an entire sub-genre of computer role playing games that exist today. There are many individuals who would classify themselves as dungeon crawler enthusiasts and Wizardy I is the grandfather of the dungeon crawler for home computers and has inspired an entire culture centered around the celebration and enjoyment of these games.

Wizardry was a commercial blockbuster. It shipped in September of 1981 and immediately became a hit. By June of 1982 it had sold 24,000 copies. In comparison, Temple of Apshai (1979) had sold 30,000 copies and Ultima (1981) had sold 20,000 copies at one time. Wizardry sold 300,000 copies in its first three years, outselling the original Ultima during that time. By November of 1985 Wizardry had sold over 500,000 copies. Within months after it’s release two commercial game-trainers for it appeared which Sir-Tech immediately denounced. The game also had, to my knowledge, the very first strategy guide called the Wizisystem.

In 1984 Sofline readers named the game the most popular Apple program of all time. The game was the top-rated adventure for five years running in Computer Gaming World’s reader poll, until Ultima IV replaced it in 1986. In 1993 Scorpia wrote; “while mainly hack-and-slash, it’s still a grand expedition, even today. In 1996 Computer Gaming World magazine named Wizardry the 16th best game ever. The editors wrote, “The seminal dungeon romp, this RPG sent AD&D fans scrambling to buy Apple IIs.” Oh so true.

Wizardry spawned seven sequels. The original Wizardry series is comprised of eight total titles. All of the titles were first released in North America, and then ported to Japanese computers. The first three games are a trilogy, with similar settings and plots, and gameplay mechanics. A second trilogy is formed by installments 6 through 8 – with settings and gameplay which differ greatly from the first trilogy. The fourth game, The Return of Werdna, was a significant departure from the rest of the series. In it, the player controls Werdna (“Andrew,” one of the game’s developers, spelled backwards), the evil wizard slain in the first game, and summons groups of monsters to aid him as he fights his way through the prison in which he had been held captive.

A spin-off was released in North America in 1996 called Wizardry Nemesis. It is a solo adventure involving one character only, with no supporting party.

The popularity of Wizardry in Japan was enormous and inspired several original sequels, spinoffs, and ports with the series long outliving the American original. Thirty-nine different spin-offs have been released in Japan with four of them making their way to North America. The latest, Labyrinth of Wizardry, was officially released in North America in 2017 and is the last original game produced in the series.

I cannot stress enough the importance of Wizardry’s legacy and innovation of gameplay in 1981. Wizardry, together with Ultima, completely established the conventions of role playing video games going forward. Later games such as Bard’s Tale, Dragon Quest, and Final Fantasy all owe their emulation to Wizardry. The notable Might & Magic series traces it’s look and feel back to Wizardry. The specific Wizardry formula, that of a turn based RPG taking place primarily in a dungeon via first person exploration is referred to as the dungeon crawl.

The popularity of the game in Japan also inspired various light novels, manga comics, pen and paper role-playing games and an original video animation produced by TMS Entertainment. A popular light novel series titled Sword Art Online also had a character who stated that his inspiration came from this game.

Wizardry I: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord is too grand in scope and has too large a legacy to cover in only one blog post. I will be dedicating the next several blog posts to this game covering it in as much detail as I can.

In my next blog post we’ll discuss character generation, character classes, and what constitutes the best party construct for the foray into the Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord.

The Great Pyramid was written by John O’Hare who wrote three text adventures for the Commodore PET in 1980. I have now completed all three in the series:

1. Cavern of Riches
2. The Great Pyramid (which we’ll review together now)
3. Haunted Mansion

All three of the games are stand alone titles and need not be played in any order. The Great Pyramid has you begin play in a desert and the opening puzzle reminds me of Scott Adam’s Pyramid of Doom. The initial problem of trying to get into the pyramid forced me to shut the game down in consternation and approach it with a fresh mind the following evening.

You’ll have to do some digging out in the desert in order to acquire items which you’ll need for your foray into the pyramid.

I must say that I enjoyed The Great Pyramid more than I did the other two titles in the series. If I had to rank them I would place The Great Pyramid at the top followed by Haunted Mansion and lastly Cavern of Riches.

The Great Pyramid is another treasure hunt however the game contained some interesting puzzles and original situations. Both Cavern of Riches and Haunted Mansion seemed more like snatch and grab experiences or walking simulators disguised as treasure hunts whereas I felt the Great Pyramid had more meat on it’s bones.

I particularly enjoyed having to deal with the animated armor, opening the vault, and discovering the secret passages. There is also a cobra that you have to deal with in “stereotypical egyptian fashion”. The object is to collect 12 treasures and then deposit them in the designated area for points.

The flashlight that you have only gives you a limited number of moves within the pyramid and it is your only light source. So you are consciously trying to economize your actions as you play. I was almost finished with the game and then my flashlight ran out and I had to begin the game again and become more efficient in my movements.

There was a disappointing glitch in my version of this game. When I deposited the 12 treasures in the designated area I was never awarded any points. No matter what I did my score always remained zero however I did completely finish the game.

You can play The Great Pyramid at this location with no problems other than that it does not score your treasures correctly however the complete game is there. If you have a passion for text adventures and have not played O’Hare’s The Great Pyramid I strongly suggest you do so. It was my favorite game of the three that he published and in my opinion his best work. I do not believe that John O’Hare went on to make another game so these three are the only ones that exist of his work.

I will now be jumping ahead to 1981 and I am going to tackle Wizardry I: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord.

Temple of the Sun was written by Jack Powers and I played it on a TRS-80 emulator. This was a game where the introduction had me excited to play the game.

I read this and thought ‘what a novel plot device’ and my mind immediately went to Voodoo Castle. Scott Adams had broke away from the treasure hunt trope and created a puzzle box in Voodoo Castle. In order to finish Voodoo Castle and win the game you had to acquire the proper objects and literally go through the steps to complete a ritual. The introduction of Temple of the Sun led me to believe that Powers was taking a page out of the Scott Adams playbook and that we would have to acquire objects to complete a ritual.

I was wrong.

It’s a treasure hunt.

I was coming off of a short term high; elated at having discovered the hidden gems of Gargoyle Castle and Reality Ends; believing that I was on the cusp of discovering yet another hidden gem from 1980; only to be crushed. My disappointment turned to frustration as I had to deal with the parser, a very frustrating map, and an irritating game mechanic.

The Temple of the Sun instructions highlight how the map of the game is unique in that any location can have eight compass directions to move in. N, S, E, W, NE, NW, SE, SW. I sat up a little straighter in my chair and thought to myself; ‘ok…ok…..perhaps the puzzle is actually the map as we saw in Treasure Hunt by Lance Micklus.’

I was wrong.

The map is merely a grid. A grid with duplicate location names and descriptions meant to confuse and create greater game length. Why the author created an octahedral map possibility for a simple grid is beyond me.

I spent much of my time confused and deleting and editing within Trizbort. I finally gave up on appearances and switched to good old fashioned graph paper so I could easily erase and make things right.

So let’s cover my three points of frustration:

1. The parser had a hard time recognizing the nouns and verbs I wanted to use. Many of the items could not be taken or used or manipulated in any way other than to type WEAR <item name>. Rather than creating a feeling of “uniqueness” which I think the author was going for it instead made the program seem primitive.
2. The map. There are two Jackal Rooms and two Obsidian Mirror rooms if you look closely. Both with the same descriptions. It is only through trial and error that you learn which rooms are deadly and which are useful. It is only after the realization or the “aha moment” that there are TWO Jackal Rooms and TWO Obsidian Mirror rooms that your map begins to make much more sense and you can realign everything. I think I probably sat in stupefaction for a few moments staring at the map when I realized the whole thing was just a simple grid. Eight compass directions seemed a bit of an overkill to create a simple grid. I was a bit embarrassed that I had such a hard time with it initially.
3. Once I realized the game was just a simple treasure hunt albeit with an irritating map to boot it really let the wind out of my sails. To make matters worse, it was only after the fourth play through that I discovered that you literally had to type EXAMINE ROOM in EVERY SINGLE ROOM LOCATION in order to get objects to appear. Once you typed those two magic words suddenly items would appear.

So once I was emboldened to move past my parser, map, and game mechanic issues I rallied myself to begin the treasure hunt in earnest. There are a few choices you can make which result in instant death. I believe that I discovered all of them. I chose to swim in the pool and explore the underwater tunnel.

I was then eaten by a giant turtle. It hurt.

I chose to explore an old well which had something glittering at the bottom of it. I fell in and was eaten by piranhas. It hurt.

There are false robes, false ceremonial masks, and fake crowns you can choose to WEAR which will all cause you to fall asleep and become entombed forever. INSTANT DEATH.

It hurt……myy psyche.

So on about my 8th or 9th play through I had all of the correct items that I needed for the ritual and I was then told by a mysterious voice that I needed to race to the temple steps before it is too late. I quickly made my way towards the temple steps and found yet another way to reach the SHRINKING ROOM. This is a room with no escape where the walls close in on you and slowly crush you.

It hurt.

On my 9th play through I had all of the correct items, knew a path to properly circumvent the shrinking room and make my way to the steps, was almost there, when an earthquake randomly hit, crushing me under piles of rock.

It hurt. Emotionally. At this point I wanted to go into my bedroom, pull down the blinds, make the room extremely dark, listen to some emo music like Dashboard Confessional or Matthew Pryor, and cry softly into my pillow. However I persevered and started once again.

On my 10th play through I had all of the correct ritual items, knew the correct path back to the steps, and avoided any earthquakes.

There certainly was a “uniqueness” to Temple of the Sun. I am sure that there are some who enjoyed it. I enjoyed that I avoided medicating myself during my experience and proud that I did not take up drinking.

In our next blog installment I am going to look at another offering from John O’Hare called The Great Pyramid which I’ve already recently finished and I am currently preparing myself to embark on a massive Wizardry I dissection. Wish me luck and happy gaming!