Continuing a series of articles looking at games which have left a memorable impression in my life, in this post I’ll be looking at the seminal classic RPG game Dungeon Master from FTL Games. First released to critical acclaim for the Atari ST (1987) and subsequently ported to a host of other platforms, but of most importance to me was the Amiga version (1988).
The Holy Grail
I first remember seeing this game running on an Atari ST roundabout the year of its release. Back in those days I lived and breathed fantasy worlds; whether it was playing Dungeons & Dragons, watching fantasy movies, or burying my head in a novel I was always on the lookout for new and interesting worlds which would feed my imagination.
Dungeon Master epitomised my perfect fantasy dungeon. It looked stunning and oozed an evocative atmosphere just as if it had been lifted directly from the minds of Dungeons & Dragons creators Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. Here before me was an impressively realistic digital 3D dungeon using a first person perspective and all played in real-time, unlike most other RPG games at that juncture which were typically more turn-based affairs.
Unfortunately the Atari ST in question belonged to a friend’s older brother and access to the game was severely restricted to the occasional glance, or a few tense moments whenever the opportunity arose to sneak into said brother’s room. It would be another few years before I finally got the chance to play through the game completely when I eventually cobbled together enough money to purchase a Commodore Amiga 500. At last the quest was on!
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Posted in Memoirs
When I was a young whipper snapper, at the grand old age of eleven, my father went on a business trip to the land of the Rising Sun. I remember on his return he brought back lots of gifts for the family. One that was intended for yours truly, and something I still hold dear to this very day was Nintendo’s Mario Bros . One of the Game & Watch series of LCD games featuring a dual screen, clock with alarm, and all contained within a protective clamshell design that eventually became the inspiration for the Nintendo DS.
Although Mario Bros. was born in a time where technological limitations dictated the constraints of game design, where playability was distilled into one great idea, it is still as enjoyable to play today as it was back in 1983. It retains that Nintendo charm and there’s something fascinating about reveling in its unashamed simplicity.
The player controls both Mario on the right, and Luigi on the left, working in a bottling factory using the simple “up / down” switches to move the brothers between the different levels. As empty pallets roll off the machine at the bottom right Mario moves them onto the first conveyor belt where at the other end Luigi should be waiting to receive the pallet and move it up on to the next level where it heads back towards Mario. The brothers must “catch” and move the pallets up five levels of conveyors where eventually at the end of the machine Luigi, exhibiting a smile the “Cheshire Cat” would be proud of, throws the full box onto the back of a waiting truck. When fully loaded the truck zooms off into the sunset, earning the boys a well earned few seconds break until the supervisor tells them to get back to work.
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Posted in Memoirs
