Old-school dungeon crawls - post your favourite, and why!

[mirrorshades]

Getting into extreme old-school, anyone else remember playing Dungeons of Daggorath on the Tandy Color Computer:

http://www.mobygames.com/game/trs-80-co ... -daggorath

 

[mondblut]

You need to extract them in the emulator, running System. For this you need to find a diskette with an expander program on it, like Aladin Expander. I think there's one on the site. Then, when you extract the .sit file, you fill get a folder like M&M 1 and it contains a single icon, or two, or three; just click that to play the game.

Setting this up is a pain; took me half of a Saturday.

I tried using mac StuffIt 4 from within the emulator, but apparently the .sit archives are made with newer stuffit versions and old stuffit doesn't even see them (strangely, it sees txt files).

Ended up reading the vmac site further, extracting sits to bins via special mode in windows StuffIt 11, then dropping them into disk image using that disk tool mentioned in "disk images" article and loading said disk into emulator. Duh.

...and in day's end, I decided to try again the Amiga version instead =) Black and white just hurts my eyes.

 

[Jasede]

lol
M&M 2 and 3 have colour! So you might want to play 2 on what set you up.

 

[Saxon1974]

Yeah! It's like MM 1, except everything bad has been fixed so you're left with a game that's good in every single damn regard.

Honestly, getting to play MM 1-8 for the first time... it's the Christmas present I gave myself.

Im gonna play through MM3, then IV and V combined after this. Then I might go back and play MM1, but the no automap is hard to handle now.

 

[Jasede]

You could always use the maps available online, or play the NES version which comes with an automap.

 

[Andhaira]

Try out anvil of dawn; it teh sweetz.

 

[SkeleTony]

Getting into extreme old-school, anyone else remember playing Dungeons of Daggorath on the Tandy Color Computer:

http://www.mobygames.com/game/trs-80-co ... -daggorath

I played that game until my fingers bled when I was like 13 or 14(That and the original Zork). I remember it had a complicated real-time attack method. Like you had to hit three separate keys in rapid succession to attack things. And had old school vector graphics.

 

[mirrorshades]

I played that game until my fingers bled when I was like 13 or 14(That and the original Zork). I remember it had a complicated real-time attack method. Like you had to hit three separate keys in rapid succession to attack things. And had old school vector graphics.

Well, it had a text parser and you had to type in your commands (not unlike Zork or other text adventures). To attack a monster, you had to type in "attack" and then "right" or "left" depending on which hand you had your sword in. The game allowed shorthand, "A" for attack and "L" or "R" for left or right. (This can be seen in the second screenshot I posted.)

I found that I could type "A L" and hit Enter faster than "A R", so I always kept my weapon in the left hand. And you didn't want to go TOO fast, since your heart rate would increase and you might pass out. An interesting real-time twist on the game... right up there with Zyll as one of the first real-time RPGs out there.

Oh yeah... Zyll is another fun dungeon crawl RPG.

 

[mondblut]

You could always use the maps available online, or play the NES version which comes with an automap.

Speaking of which, how exactly is NES version dumbed down? And what about graphics and interface for both 1 & 2 there?

(I've been trying to play them for over 10 years now, but graphics, interface and that 80's design always killed me before I went outside the first city. So I am curious which version is the least unplayable. Preferably one with an emulator which allows to save snapshots anywhere).

...Having launched winuae, I recalled a wonderful "little" thing called Fate: Gates of Dawn, and restarted it instead. Now that is one monster of a game. I hate the interface though. It takes like 30 point-and-clicks or keystrokes to check stats of an item, transfer it to another character and equip it. Goddamnit.

 

[Jasede]

Well, in the NES version, fights are generally easier and it is possible to run from every battle before it starts with 100% success, so you can pick your fights. There's also some minor misspellings.

The automap might make up for that!

The most playable "true to the original" version is the Mac one; the interface in the Apple and PC version is just too horrible while Mac one is nice, clean and mouse-driven. But if you want a map and the ability to savestate, NES is the way to go.

Besides, the MM 2&3 versions on the Super Nintendo are very good I hear; I only tested 3 and it seems snazzy and it got a good review 100 years ago, when I read about it in a video game mag.

 

[Saxon1974]

Well, in the NES version, fights are generally easier and it is possible to run from every battle before it starts with 100% success, so you can pick your fights. There's also some minor misspellings.

The automap might make up for that!

The most playable "true to the original" version is the Mac one; the interface in the Apple and PC version is just too horrible while Mac one is nice, clean and mouse-driven. But if you want a map and the ability to savestate, NES is the way to go.

Besides, the MM 2&3 versions on the Super Nintendo are very good I hear; I only tested 3 and it seems snazzy and it got a good review 100 years ago, when I read about it in a video game mag.

Hmm, I hate playing RPG's on consoles, but I do have a working NES so I might consider.

Been playing MM2 so much lately that my girlfriend said to me "how much longer are you going to sit at your pc?" So we had a little discussion about how she didn't understand how I could spend that much time playing a game.

Then she went in the other room and started watching her Full House reruns Not sure how many of you are in the USA, but if you know this TV show, my god watching reruns is like Nails on a Chalkboard.

 

[Saxon1974]

I have a question on some of the quests in MM2.

Might be a slight spoiler if your going to play it don't read it if you dont want to.





The class specific quests say you can only bring characters of that class to the quest plus Robber's. That is going to be pretty hard. Should I take hirelings that I have found that are of the same class? For the knight class, I dont think I have found any NPC's yet. Is that how I am supposed to do those quests?

 

[mirrorshades]

The class specific quests say you can only bring characters of that class to the quest plus Robber's. That is going to be pretty hard. Should I take hirelings that I have found that are of the same class? For the knight class, I dont think I have found any NPC's yet. Is that how I am supposed to do those quests?

Yup.

And don't worry, you're nowhere near ready to do the quests yet. You'll have some hirelings about when its time.

Ideally you have a total of 4 -- 2 characters (class and robber) and 2 hirelings (class and robber) -- to go on each quest. So it isn't quite a full party, but it can be done.

 

[Saxon1974]

The class specific quests say you can only bring characters of that class to the quest plus Robber's. That is going to be pretty hard. Should I take hirelings that I have found that are of the same class? For the knight class, I dont think I have found any NPC's yet. Is that how I am supposed to do those quests?

Yup.

And don't worry, you're nowhere near ready to do the quests yet. You'll have some hirelings about when its time.

Ideally you have a total of 4 -- 2 characters (class and robber) and 2 hirelings (class and robber) -- to go on each quest. So it isn't quite a full party, but it can be done.

Ok, thanks for the advice. With as greatly opened ended as this game is, I wasn't sure if I should be thinking about that yet. I will continue exploring places until I cant find anything else and then do those quests.

 

[SkeleTony]

I played that game until my fingers bled when I was like 13 or 14(That and the original Zork). I remember it had a complicated real-time attack method. Like you had to hit three separate keys in rapid succession to attack things. And had old school vector graphics.

Well, it had a text parser and you had to type in your commands (not unlike Zork or other text adventures). To attack a monster, you had to type in "attack" and then "right" or "left" depending on which hand you had your sword in. The game allowed shorthand, "A" for attack and "L" or "R" for left or right. (This can be seen in the second screenshot I posted.)

I found that I could type "A L" and hit Enter faster than "A R", so I always kept my weapon in the left hand. And you didn't want to go TOO fast, since your heart rate would increase and you might pass out. An interesting real-time twist on the game... right up there with Zyll as one of the first real-time RPGs out there.

Oh yeah... Zyll is another fun dungeon crawl RPG.

Yeah...A, L, Enter was what I used too(Or was it 'a', SPACE, 'L' then 'enter'?). I never got very far in the game and may not have even been aware of the heart rate thing. I used to play at this local Radio Shack store managed by this old guy named "Dave" who was always being REAL nice to me and letting me play the games on those Tandys even after kicking out the other kids who wandered in to try "Canyon Climber" or some such.

One day he ended up asking me if I "knew anyone" who might want to make $20 by posing for some pictures in the nude. I never went back after that but later found out that one of my(very naive) best friends had posed for those pictures fro the twenty bucks.

Woah...creepy tangent there.

 

[Au naturel]

Hopefully your friend was pleased with his new size 11 asshole.

 

[SkeleTony]

Hopefully your friend was pleased with his new size 11 asshole.

He said that all that happened was he had to drop his pants and bend over Dave's lap while he posed as if he were spanking him and that was all that happened. Dave told him that the pictures were to deter shoplifters or some such.

 

[mirrorshades]

Okay, this thread has gone from cool to absolutely disturbing in a very short time now.

 

[Saxon1974]

This is a bit of an obscure question, but if anyone has played MM2 lately.....

Where is the entrance to Hoardall's dungeon below Castle Woodhaven? I have searched every single space and don't find it.

I have found maps online, but they just show the layout and are not marked with the dungeons. It has to be there somewhere.

 

[Au naturel]

He said that all that happened was he had to drop his pants and bend over Dave's lap while he posed as if he were spanking him and that was all that happened. Dave told him that the pictures were to deter shoplifters or some such.

Well, that is what you would say after being cored out by some old pedo. I couldn't see him saying "Oh yeah man, he asked me to bend over and gave me a MacJacko".

Where is the entrance to Hoardall's dungeon below Castle Woodhaven? I have searched every single space and don't find it.

I don't remember a dungeon there. I know you get quests from the Lord there if you have a certain class, but is there really a dungeon below that castle? Have you checked any walkthroughs?

 

[mirrorshades]

Where is the entrance to Hoardall's dungeon below Castle Woodhaven? I have searched every single space and don't find it.

I don't remember a dungeon there. I know you get quests from the Lord there if you have a certain class, but is there really a dungeon below that castle? Have you checked any walkthroughs?

All the castles have dungeons. (Likewise, all the towns have caverns beneath them.)

According to a walkthrough I found, the stairs down are at 11,9 in Castle Woodhaven. I think the way it works, though, is that you have to be "facing" the stairs before you can see them (i.e. just being in the same square won't do it). Try standing in that square and turning to face each direction.

Walkthrough I found is here, don't look at it unless you want to have most of the fun of exploration sucked out of the game for you: http://www.gamefaqs.com/computer/doswin ... 7197/12139

It is very comprehensive and goes into great amounts of detail.

Now, damn you, all this talking about the game has got me wanting to play it again.

 

[Saxon1974]

Where is the entrance to Hoardall's dungeon below Castle Woodhaven? I have searched every single space and don't find it.

I don't remember a dungeon there. I know you get quests from the Lord there if you have a certain class, but is there really a dungeon below that castle? Have you checked any walkthroughs?

All the castles have dungeons. (Likewise, all the towns have caverns beneath them.)

According to a walkthrough I found, the stairs down are at 11,9 in Castle Woodhaven. I think the way it works, though, is that you have to be "facing" the stairs before you can see them (i.e. just being in the same square won't do it). Try standing in that square and turning to face each direction.

Walkthrough I found is here, don't look at it unless you want to have most of the fun of exploration sucked out of the game for you: http://www.gamefaqs.com/computer/doswin ... 7197/12139

It is very comprehensive and goes into great amounts of detail.

Now, damn you, all this talking about the game has got me wanting to play it again.

Excellent, thank you. I only look at a walkthrough when completely stuck and spinning my wheels.

You should play it again, its worth it! Funny I played this game for months as a kid and playing it now I am having so much fun with it that I put the Witcher and MOTB on hold. I honestly think its more fun to play then both of those. It's not as pretty though.

 

[Xi]

Nostalgia is your friend! These old games are so fantastic. It's amazing how some(a lot) of them stand up game-play wise to modern games. Many of them just take it the distance while modern ones get caught up in all that technological bullshit.

Given the current generation of gamers, I doubt they will have as much nostalgia for the games they play. I say this because most of these gamers play games because of Graphics, Bells and Whistles. They don't understand what good game-play is. So, because of their weak immrshun seeking willpowers, they won't have any older games they can go back to, or if they do they will load them up and go "this game looks like shit" and turn it off.

HAhaha! A turd may look like chocolate until you smell it. Too bad you cannot smell video games...

 

[Saxon1974]

In MM2, there are various places in dungeons that will increase your base stats. For example, I found a statue with a book and if you read it it says your supposed to have increased intelligence. When I check the stat it doesn't appear to have increased. Does this sound normal? Im wondering if works, but just doesn't reflect it in the base stat.

 

[mirrorshades]

If I recall correctly, most statistic increases are temporary (e.g. they remain only until you rest). Some are permanent... but you'll find that a lot of stuff about your characters will change as you play the game: alignment, age, gender, stats, etc.... It's a bit disconcerting at first ("Holy crap! My good male knight is now a neutral female!"), but it's kind of interesting as the game goes on.