INDUSTRY NEWS MAJOR PLAYERS READY FIRST It features 90 different animated graphics featuring 3D shapes with color and QUARTER RELEASES! of characters/monsters and 85 different Newtonian physics (suggested $39.95). The spells. Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight latter, based on Egyptian mythology, is a January heralds the Consumer Elec- is nearing completion and features ranged mixed adventure/RPG which takes place tronics Show, so game manufacturers are combat. Also, creatures can be converted inside and outside of pyramids. pulling out all the stops to have their and made a permanent part of the adven- Strategic Simulations, Inc.: Gary software ready to display at the exposi- turer's team. They also plan to release Grigsby's War in the South Pacific should tion. Industry sources indicate that trans- Michael Stackpole's (Mercenaries, Spies be available on the Apple by the time you lations will take up much of the compa- and Private Eyes) new roleplaying game, read this and the C-64 version is expected nies' attention during the first quarter. Wasteland, which is similar to the Mad in late January. This is the only new re- Here are some of the items which are not Max films. lease definitely set for first quarter, 1987, translations which certain companies hope but there are over 26 conversions in the to release in the first quarter of 1987. Mindscape: The distributors of Master Designer Cinemaware and Balance of works, including Kampfgruppe for IBM Accolade: Expects to release their and Amiga and Rings of Zilfin, Shard of football game, 4th and Inches, at the show. Power aren't simply resting on their lau- rels. They are pinning positive hopes on Spring, and Wizard's Crown for the ST. The company also plans to release a mur- Strategic Studies Group: One thing der mystery entitled, appropriately their new Thunder Mountain Division (see below) of discount software, but aggres- which is as dependable as death and taxes enough, Killed Until Dead. Their is that SSG won't put out a game they're "Advantage Series" will be strengthened sively releasing other titles, as well. Paral- lax, a fast-paced space arcade game with a not pleased with. The good news is that by the addition of Power, loosely described Road to Appomatox will be an exciting as a space game. Almost ready for release, three dimensional effect leads the way, followed by a judo simulation (Uchi-Mata) and revolutionary product. The bad news but expecting to be retitled before Jan- is that it's not certain for the first quarter. uary, is a new adventure game using and a karate adventure. They are also ex- pected to preview Trailblazer, a bouncing Russia, an eastern front game, has been comic/cartoon situations. moved ahead of RTA on the production Avalon Hill: The microcomputer games ball arcade name with some new twists, at the Consumer Electronics Show. Also pos- schedule and should be available in early division is expecting to have Dark Horn 1987. ready for both Apple and C-64. This is the sible for the first quarter is the yet unti- long-awaited fantasy game by Tom tled, third issue in the Macventure series. Sir-Tech: The official position at Sir- BRAINWAVE CREATIONS FORMED! Cleaver, author of Galaxy. Guderian is Mike Berlyn, author of Suspended and still undergoing revision and would be a Tech is that there will be no official release date on Wizardry IV: The Return of other Infocom adventure games (as well as longshot for first quarter release. the recent Tass Times in Tonetown which Electronic Arts: EA's Interplay affili- Werdna or Wizardry V until they are ready to ship. The company does plan to he co-authored with Brian Fargo), and his ate is releasing a translation of The Bard's wife, Muffy, are rumored to be millimeters Tale for the Amiga which is much more release two other titles in January however: Space Combat Simulator and away from penning a deal with a major than a port. The new version has six dif- publisher for a line of text adventures that ferent songs (used in spellcasting) for the The Seven Spirits of Ra. The former will bard with four different instrumentations. be similar to Skyfox, but set in space and Continued on pg. 60 SNEAK PREVIEW: At first glance, the game looks like the Bard's Tale products (which should be no surprise since both produced are designed by Interplay). There is an WASTELAND animated "window" for viewing in the upper left hand corner of the screen and a description "window" on In January of 1987, Wasteland was described as a the right. The lower portion of the screen is devoted to potential Mad Max type adventure game to be writ- a quick reference sheet on the adventuring party itself. ten by Michael Stackpole (author of the Mercenaries, like its sister products, the game boasts crisp graphics Spies and Private Eyes roleplaying system and and limited, but effective, animation. The graphics "win- Mayfair Games' sourcebook on Batman for their DC dow" has over seventy different pictures. Heroes roleplaying game) and programmed by the CRPG experts at Interplay Productions. As this ar- Yet, the game is improved over its sister products. The ticle is being written, Wasteland has just passed its first game system in Wasteland is dynamic. Once some- week in "Quality As- thing on the map is changed, it is changed. Further, surance" at Electronic an old role-playing concept enters into the picture Arts with no major when players can "hire" non-player characters to fill problems encountered. out the party. Of course, they do not always do what This should mean [Ed.: they are ordered. Also, a new feature enables players Anyone who has observed to "Disband Party" into four different active parties. this industry very long This option enables ranged combat to occur and helps knows why we put a in the solution of some puzzles, but also means that "weasel word" in this sen- each party can have up to four encounters at a time. tence!] that the game is on Finally, this game features only one "Save Game" in- the shelves by the time this stead of the ability to have multiple saves. preview hits the stands. Nevertheless, the game is certainly superior to the original concept. Instead of being a "Mad Max" role playing game presented on the computer, this post- holocaust game has a unique plotline all its own. Players want to find out what the "Servants of the Mushroom Cloud" are up to, among other matters. In fact, the game contains 250K of text to present this plotline. However, at least 100K of the text which is vital for successfully com- pleting the adventure is "off- line" in a book which comes with the game and serves as a non-technologi- cal copy protection. The story itself is so huge that there are many possibilities which the player may not find, while still able to win the game. The story-line is non-linear and there are al- ways, at least, two ways to get around a problem. Interplay insists that the game should be rated PG-13 because of the personalized violence in the adventure, as well as the sexual hints. We must agree that there is an undeniable visceral response when the description window describes someone as being turned into "blood sausage," reduced to a "fine red mist," or pul- verized into "unrecognizable gore." However, it seems to fit the model of a post-holocaust society gone rabid with barbarism. their credit and it's been a while since you've been to the barber, hasn't it? You start the game with four pre-generated characters or create four characters of your own. Each character is rated for strength, intelligence, luck, speed, agility, dexterity, charisma, skill points, rank, constitution, money, sex and nationality. Each characteristic enables you to do certain things. Intelligence is the most important because it al- lows the characters to learn invaluable skills that are necessary to complete the various tasks in the by William "Biff' Kritzer game. Strength helps in opening closed doors, moving obstacles, hitting people, etc. Killing monsters gives you experience points as in most he moisture dripping from the subterranean role playing games. At certain experience point cavern's ceiling echoed eerily in the shrouded T levels you get promotions. Each promotional level distance that loomed ahead of Hell Razor and his gives you two intelligence points that can then be battered party. Retracing their path back up to cashed in to gain skills and raise skill levels. For ex- the surface was out of the question as long as An- ample, with two intelligence points you could add - gela Death two skills such as assault rifle and picklock, or you was still un- could raise your skill levels on forgery or medical conscious. from two to three. This is the heart of the charac- Snake Var- ter generation system and having the proper mix gas had of skills is absolutely necessary to overcome the used his many obstacles and problems in the game. The medical various other characteristics affect combat, skills to sta- negotiating ability, physical task solving, etc. The bilize her party of four the computer gives you initially is a condition well rounded group that I used to finish the game, but time but you have the ability to customize your own was the only group if you like. healer for An- gela now. Until she xploring dangerous catacombs was not came to, no EHell's idea of a good time, but being a one dared Desert Ranger was not the safest of jobs in this go forward post-holocaust world.