oystein_dungeon

The Bards Tale Trilogy is on of the grandfathers of RPG. When it was released it was considered on of the hardest RPGs ever, and in the original version there were more than enough challenges: No automapping, and manual mapping was made difficult by areas of darkness, spinners and invisible teleporters. Saving was only possible by checking into the Adventurer’s Guild, which means many a long session was ruined by an impossible encounter. And some of the encounters were really hard -- it was quite common to find the whole party wiped out before they could even attempt to strike their first blow. But even so, or perhaps just because, the game was popular, and I still love it. In 2018, the game was revamped and distributed anew. Now with improved graphics, better balance, automapping, save anywhere and other improvements. In this walkthrough I compare the old and new versions of the game.

SSI’s AD&D (Advanced Dungeon & Dragons) series never really appealed to me. The concept of having to memorize spells is cumbersome, and I seem to never have memorized the spells I need in a given situation. But the biggest drawback is the lack of balance in all these games. For some reason or other, SSI appears to think that “fun” means having to reload umpteen times for each battle. Fortunately they have included the “edit character” option, which allows me to set all stats to max before playing (but it’s a pity that this should be necessary). And what’s the reasoning behind these stats not improving during play? Obviously a character hauling 200 lbs of equipment around will gain strength by this, or? That said, the overall playability of some of these games weren’t bad. I played most of the Gold Box series (Pool of Radiance, Curse of the Azure Bonds, Secrets of the Silver Blades,...) and all the Eye of the Beholder games. Two of them presented here. Didn’t want to spend any more time than that on these games.

Pool of Radiance was the first of the Gold Box games. Although it suffers from the general drawbacks of the AD&D games, it does have some qualities that makes it worth playing. The combat system (3-D isometric) was a change from what I was used to at the time, and allowed for some different battle tactics. Warning: Some of the battles in this game can go on for several hours (I’m talking about real-time), so don’t start a session right before you’re planning to go to bed. If you do like me and maximise all characters’ stats at creation time, the game is not so badly balanced. (The first Troll-fight is going to be a challenge anyway...)

Eye of the Beholder is an “AD&D Dungeon Master clone”. The graphics are similar to DM, the puzzles are easier, and the battles are standard AD&D. The plot is a traditional one, with some sub-quests and the big “kill Fozzle” at the end. The ending is generally regarded as an all-time low in RPGs, a title the game is likely to hold for a while, as no-one opened-eyes is going to challenge it..

Might and Magic has been around for a long time, and more or less the game engine has improved for each new game in the series. An entertaining side- issue in the series is that the person gallery and game world bears some elements of recognition between games (and also in Heroes of MM-series). MM (1) and MM 2 were of the errand boy variety - go there, fetch that, but also with an underlying grander story. MM 3 was the starting point for the skill development system that has been ever expanded in later games. It’s a pretty good one -- giving you some skill points to spend at each level-up -- consider it as which skills you decide to train, then it’s a bit more logical... Also stats continuously improve, by using or equipping certain items. Experience is awarded either by winning battles or solving quests. So it’s kind of the traditional setting: We know what we must do, but as we’re not experienced for that quite yet, lets build up stats before the final encounter. The story is generally good, and the games enjoyable and addictive

MM6 is the first game in the second MM-trilogy. The game engine was significantly upgraded from MM5 to MM6, and also a more advanced skill system was introduced. All character classes can learn almost all skills (some exceptions for magic users and armor / weapons), and everyone can learn the skills to Master level. (Basic - Expert - Master.) The story in MM6 is very good, although one may question the point of some of the side-quests. The biggest negative issue in this game is the fights -- stay away if you prefer few and small battles! The monster supply in this game appears infinite, and many of the areas can be downright tedious to clear. Downsizing the battles somewhat would have made this game top-notch. Now it’s only almost there.

In my (and many other’s) opinion the best of the Might and Magic games. The skill system has been developed further since MM6; you can now become Grandmaster in some skills, and how far you can advance in a skill is dependent on your class, which adds more realism to the system. Apart from that difference and improved graphics, the game plays very similar to MM6, but with an interesting twist: About midways in the game you have to choose whether your characters will be “good” or “evil” for the rest of the game. The choice influences both the quests you get, and the skills / magic you get to learn. (Great replay-value, as obviously you have to try both paths...) Encounters are well balanced (great improvement from MM6!), and the story is an interesting continuation from MM6. Strongly recommended.

MM8 is built on the same game engine as MM7, which was one reason it got some negative reviews. But more-of-the-same can be enjoyable when “the same” was as good as MM7. In MM8 you start with only you, the main player character. The rest of the party will be recruited during the game, and most probably exchanged a few times. The races/classes are also non-standard -- the party can include Trolls, Minotaurs, even Dragons (that’s a first one for me). Like in MM7 you have to make some moral considerations -- support good or evil, and what is good or evil anyway? All said and done, I thoroughly enjoyed this game, the only reason it’s not on the Hall of Fame is that it was too similar to MM7, and although there’s no clearcut winner between these two, I landed on giving my vote to MM7.

In MM9 the game engine, class / skills, and spell system was completely redesigned. You no longer select a class to live with, but choose only between fighter-type and magic-user-type at character creation. Then during the game you have to choose paths of perfection. Spells are based on knowledge in different realms (each spell pulls power from two different realms), such that good skills in these realms are needed for powerful spells. There are some “arcade”-sequences that I despised -- stay away from the Ranger path unless you’re a great fan of “Prince of Persia”! The graphics have been improved, but at the cost of more restricted movement (you have to stay in predefined areas of each map). There are some references to earlier games (e.g. you meet Nicolai who rambles about previous events in MM6 and MM7), but mostly it’s a completely new world and story. In spite of many improvements, I’m not sure if it’s a better game than its pre- decessors. But all in all -- I liked it. (Reckon on struggling with some bugs too...)

MM10 is a Might and Magic game, but it’s developed and distributed by Ubisoft, not New World Computing who made the previous M&M games. There are however similarities but also some differences. Noticeably, whereas M&M VI - IX let you maximise more or less all your skills, skill development in MM10 is really slow -- and you need to think carefully about which skills to develop, as the game is hard or impossible if you do a bad choice. And that’s another difference, which has received a lot of (deserved or undeserved) dislikes from users: There are no random encounters or treasures, and the game is very linear. So say you’ve made a suboptimal choice of skills (and are also out of gold) at the time you meet Grelkor. You have to defeat him to proceed the game, but that may prove impossible. And then there’s nowhere you can earn experience or find more gold before you have defeated him. Often that means restart as a wiser adventurer -- and hopefully get it right this time. But although different I really loved this game, and have played it through umpteen times, with different chars / class combinations, which really gives you quite different games.

Wizardry was one of the first computer RPGs. This first in what later became a series was a revolution at the time, but had its questionable “features”. E.g., when you leveled up, statistics changed, but not necessarily to the better. (I had a fighter who started out with Intelligence 16, and by level 5 he was down to 3!). Already in the first Wizardry-games the foundation of the Wizardry class system was there, with basic and advanced classes -- it’s typically close to impossible to “roll” good enough stats for an advanced class at creation time, so you start basic, improve stats, and change class. This allows for some tactical planning. But the first Wizardries have lost to time -- I no longer find much enjoyment in playing these pre-Wiz6-games. Wizardry 6 was a much needed complete redesign from Sir-Tech (needed not to fall off the RPG-bandwagon), with new ... well everything. The skill system is what I see as the only logical one -- skills develop with use (except academic skills, which can only be improved by learning). The trilogy Wiz 6, 7, 8 is a true trilogy ... #6 and #7 don’t have “satisfying” endings - you might actually feel cheated, as the ending just point towards the next game in the series. But the overall story presented and uncovered in Wiz 6, 7, 8 is excellent, and the final explanation to life, the universe and everything revealed at the end of Wiz 8, very satisfying.

Wizardry 6, being the first and oldest in the trilogy, has somewhat coarse graphics and sound, its strength is primarily the story as it unfolds during the game. The setting is eerie, and the battles relatively balanced, a little on the hard side. The class system encourages frequent change of class. Each time you change, the stats are set to the minimum race/class requirements, but all skills are kept, and you start the new class at level 1, allowing for rapid advancement. That way skills can be built quickly to high level. The illogical part here is, why should a character forget all he knew in his previous class when he changes? Playing this game is just as much a preparation for Wiz 7, such that in the end game you should have characters and equipment which you want to start Wiz 7 with. The game has several endings, and which ending you choose (or end up with) determines how and where your imported party starts in Wiz 7.

Wizardry 7 continues where Wiz6 left off. It’s more or less the same game system, with improved graphics and sound. I’d say it’s a big advantage to play this game with a party imported from Wiz6 - - and just as Wiz6 had several endings, Wiz7 has several beginnings, one for newly created characters, and one for each of the Wiz6-endings. This walkthrough is based on starting the game in Umpani-territory, which is neither typical nor the easiest. (But after a tougher start, you get good armor and weapons much earlier than in other beginnings.) “New” features include vital swimming and climbing skills, and communication is more important than in most RPGs -- low communications skills often result in NPCs attacking party, and essential knowledge may be lost or harder to find. Mapping is a skill, and the higher the skill, the more is shown on your automap. It’s a big game, and includes some of the hardest encounters in RPG history (not needed to complete the game). Highly recommended.

Wizardry 8 is the final game in the trilogy -- here you get to meet many of the NPCs from especially Wiz 7, and all pending questions from Wiz 6 and 7 are resolved. In total I’d describe it as an immensely satisfying conclusion to the trilogy. {The chief designer of Wiz 6 and 7 left SirTech shortly after Wiz 7, which is one reason Wiz 8 was severely delayed. With the plot in Wiz 8, I’d say either he must have left some pretty good notes on his plans, or the remaining team has done a great job on inventing a round-up based on events in the first two games.} I don’t recommend starting Wiz 8 with an imported party from Wiz 7. There are many new classes and skills, and the best characters are made by developing them from the start. Also, in Wiz 6 and 7 your party had to consist of 6 characters, while Wiz 8 allows for any number. If you want to play with fewer than 6 (you do), you can’t use an imported party. All in all this game is a winner -- I’ve probably played it some 10 times, which should signify it has great replay value. The only (but big) drawback is the part from the “starter dungeon” to the first city, which can be immensely hard, close to impossible. I actually gave up after several attempts, but was urged by net-friends to give it a new try, as the rewards were huge once you succeed. I couldn’t agree more. The game engine has been completely rebuilt, the spell system and character classes remain faithful to the Wizardry series, though. Class change is different from earlier Wiz-games, no longer that big advantage to change class, but more logical (you get to remember all you’ve learnt so far, and keep your XPs / level). All in all near the top of the list.

Wizards &Warriors is made by the creator of Wizardry V - VII, D.W. Bradley, who left Sir- Tech before Wizardry 8 was created. Some say that Wizards & Warriors is the game Wizardry 8 should have been, which is a bit negative on Wiz8, which is one of my favorites... But D.W. Bradley has made an excellent game in the spirit of the Wizardy series. Wizards and Warriors have a lot in common with Wizardry, primarily the class development and skill system, with class change and development actually a necessity in the game. The game is extremely linear, perhaps too linear, but the story and general build-up of the quest is good. A different, perhaps innovative system, with lots of familiarities; not top-of -the notch graphics, but it serves. All in all a ”modern” RPG in an “old” setting. Some quirks and bugs were a little annoying, but nothing you can’t get around. And some strange replay value: If you want to replay the game without challenging encounters, you can reset the world but keep the characters who just saved the world, including their end- game equipment.

Chaos Strikes Back is the continuation of Dungeon Master -- definitely More Of The Same. Game engine and system is almost identical to DM, which means if you enjoyed DM sit down for more fun, else stay away. The puzzles are harder than in DM, and mostly related to mapping and finding your way around (if you don’t like mapping this isn’t a game for you.) The game probably has the hardest beginning in any RPG ever. If you don’t have a high level party (or character) from DM to start with you won’t last many seconds... And even if you do, you’ll need many attempts before being able to breathe normally and hit the SAVE button. But as said -- if you’re a fan of DM, this one is MOTS, bigger and better.

The first in The Elder Scrolls series -- Arena -- was a hate / love affair when it came. On the one hand most reviewers agreed that this was the or at least one of the best RPGs that had been made (at the time). On the other hand it was so bug-ridden that you didn’t get far between each crash. Some years later all (most) bugs had been fixed, so that today it remains as a change-shifter in RPG history. First person view, real-time combat with a “realistic” fighting system, and one of the best skill-development systems around (and leveling up based on skill development, not on traditional XPs). The story is a traditional one with a series of quests to perform, and in addition to the main story endless subquests. The world is huge, so no-one will explore it all (but as expected for such a large world, there’s a lot of copy-and-paste in the dungeon generator.)

The second game in The Elder Scrolls series -- Daggerfall -- was simply too big. Some improvements of the game engine, and an infinitude of dungeons to explore. However, after a while all dungeons were of the “been there done that” kind, as they were simply merged from some basic building blocks. Moreover the progress had some severe weaknesses (in one case I needed to defeat an imp to finish the starter dungeon, but the imp could only be harmed by magical weapons, which of course were not available there. So had to restart. Another time on a crucial quest, the quest item was simply not there. So had to abort game, and gave up.) But Morrowind shines. Here the skill system, graphics, interface, “game mood”, everything is top-notch. The story is good, and you’re also faced with all sorts of moral dilemmas. (Should you kill the guild leader to take his profession?) As in all the Elder Scrolls games, the world is huge, and exploring everything is close to impossible -- just following the main quests keeps you occipied for a long time. The balance between story and interface makes this as close to Virtual Reality as you get with the limitations of a PC... This may be my all-time favorite!

All the Ultima games are actually worth playing, although the first three are rather “primitive”. Ultima 4 was the first (only?) RPG where you had to build your main character’s statistics in areas as Honor, Humility, Valor,... This was obtained by actions like giving to the poor, never run from battle, never kill a fleeing opponent and so forth. The visuals and combat is overhead (main map) or 3-D (dungeons), but it’s not the visuals or combat / spell system that make Ultima stand out from the crowd -- it’s the character interaction system. To complete this game (and other Ultimas) you must talk to everyone, and take lots of notes. As such it’s very rewarding to be able to uncover the overall plot, and all the subquests needed to complete it. On Ultima 5: Pretty much the same game system as U4, in some respects improved, overall a larger game than U4. But the “gain recognition as Avatar”-part of U4 makes it stand out of the crowd, and hence one of my favorite games. I also liked Ultima 6, completely new 3-D isometric game engine, but after that I didn’t see the games as anything special.

Ultima Underworld stunned the gaming world when it came. The 3-D real time smooth- flow movement was a quantum leap compared to anything that had been seen before. Later obviously lots of games claim the same kind or improved game engines, but I’d say UUW still is one game with big (re-)playability. Spell casting (based on runes) and fighting is real-time. Level-up is earned by fighting and allows for improvement is various areas. Sounds traditional, and it is, but it’s the overall mood of the dungeon (lighting, sounds, interaction) that makes this so addictive and playable. Definitely one not to miss. The follow-up UUW II is based on more or less the same engine and system, the game world is larger (actually many worlds), but mostly More Of The Same. Which means, if you loved Ultima Underworld and are longing for more, look no further than UUW II.