Dark Ages I: The Continents
by Michael Hoopmann
RPGs in Qbasic usually aren't that great, but Hoopmann is a name and an authority, as far as I am concerned.
| "They're coming again!" You drop your tools and rush back to the farmhouse to get your dagger. Another orc raid. Your whole life has been spent defending your farm and your cattle from orc raids. Orcs have been around since Greyor broke the world into two continents. They seem almost common place, or they did at one time. For almost a year now, these raids have become near fierce battles. Each time the orcs come in greater numbers and each time they are more daring. At one time, merely the presence of an armed human would send them fleeing, but now they stand and fight to the death. "Hurry up! It looks to be a big group this time!" "I'm on my way!" you shout as you grab your foot-long dagger and rush out the door to confront the raging beasts. "Five of them, just over that hill," you father explains while pointing with his wood axe. "Not too bad, we can handle five." The orcs rush over the hill and the two of you charge, trying to meet them as far as possible from the farmhouse where your mother and sister are hiding. The impact of your charge sets the orcs off balance. With a quick swing, your father reduces one of the foul creatures by a head. Your swipe cuts an orc deep in the arm. It screams and staggers away. A moment later and the two of you even the odds. Suddenly, a human scream pierces the air. You turn just in time to see a second raiding party crash through the door of your farmhouse. This was a trap! With utter horror, you see an orc exit with your sister's limp body slung over his shoulder. Your father, terrified, turns and runs toward the house. He never gets there. With his back turned, he is easily taken down by a marauding orc. "Nooo!" you cry while fatally stabbing the orc in facing you. With the opening in front of you, you dash for a small grove of trees about a quarter mile away. The orcs put up a token chase, then turn back to their victory feast. Well hidden in the trees, you sink down and faint from fear and exertion. * * * You place the first shovel-full of dirt over your father's corpse. He now lies next to your mother and sister. You cover his face first, the empty sockets of where his eyes were clawed out being harder to bear than the jagged hole in his torso that used to house his vital organs. What they did to your mother and sister was a thousand times worse. No tears in your eyes, though you feel like you could cry for eternity. All that is there is a cold, dark hatred and a desire for revenge. Greyor's evil magic has ruined your family and your life. There is no reason to remain at the farm. You finish the graves, throw down the shovel, and without a last look, head north in the direction of Meadow. You have a few gold pieces left, hidden by your father under the floorboards. The orcs had not found them. With these you will begin your quest. The birds chirp playfully, yet the wind blows cold, and Meadow is visible in the distance. | |
| This is an RPG based on the Dragon Warrior engine. One hero who walks around, talking to people, gathering clues, and gaining experience. There are spells, weapons, armor, towns, caves, etc, etc, etc. This game is quite detailed. This game reminds me very much of Dragon Warrior. Basically, quests are created whenever you talk to the right people. I have not thoroughly played the game yet, but for what I did play, I know that I will be playing for awhile. The main pet peeve I will ever have is misspellings. There are few, but they exist. Nothing too much though. | |
| This game has some beautiful graphics. The tile based system is very nicely done. Movement does not seem jerky at all. The animation of the main hero is almost seemless, even though there are not too many frames of animation. I found it interesting to see the enemies actually showing damage after hitting them for awhile! The game is actually pretty good in this category. | |
| Controls seems simple at first. Pressing the arrow keys sends the hero moving in a certain direction. Pressing Space Bar is to talk. Simple. Unfortunately, the problem is with speaking. Sometimes, to answer a question, you press (Y) or (N). Other times you press (1) or (2). It did not feel very intuitive to me. Also, I would have liked to be able to press a certain key for default actions. For example, pressing Enter would allow me to talk to people in town, but in battle it would allow me to attack. Of course, I am just suggesting some improvements. Other than that, the controls are easy enough to use. | |
| There is music in this game...but again, there is a problem. Sometimes all I get is a few thumps, like drums. Other times, it seems like a little MIDI comes through. The documentation says that there might be a problem using the sound since there is a need for the driver, but that is included in the game. It also said that it might not work anyway. So I am guessing that the not so great sound is through my computer's fault. Still, it would be nice to see a game that has no problem using the sound cards on most computers. | |
| There is a great amount of challenge in this game, and it all comes from the game itself. There is no challenge in finding out what the heck someone is saying or where a certain North Cave is (I HATE WHEN THERE IS A NORTH CAVE, AND IT ENDS UP BEING TO THE WEST!). The game is detailed. The enemies are not overly aggressive at first. Saving is important of course. I had to restart this game 3 times for this review cause I forgot to save. | |
| Very fun! I will enjoy this game a lot. I have enjoyed it since I first played it months ago, and I will enjoy it for a long time. This is a must have for any serious QBasic RPG player. The story and the details are just too good to not play through this game once! | |
| This game was made around 1997-1998. While it is old, it is still a very good example of what some persistance, imagination and inspiration can do with QBasic. Very fun, with few problems. A good job. | |
| .zip file: 382K download | |
| V Planet |