Reviews by jgerrie

The Secret of Flagstone Manor by Brian Betts of Mountain Valley Software is reportedly Australia's first text adventure from 1981. Or so reports Renga in Blue.

Renga in Blue suggested that the game had similarities Scott Adams early games, but I'm pretty sure it's not like the Adventureland parser. The BASIC version of that program is very complex (and slow) and uses lots of numeric arrays, probably because it is meant to be a generalized "engine" for multiple adventures. This one uses a more standard and simple cascade of IF/THENs to parse input for different verbs. It also doesn't read its locations into an array. There are only 18. So it just uses a sequence of IFs to print specific room info. Lot's of ELSE statements used that I had to disentangle. I'd say this game does not have a parser engine at its core. It just applies some common approaches to programing adventures that had developed from 1979-1981.

On the whole it is a very well debugged, basically elegantly written, BASIC text adventure program. Although the room count is small it is fairly complex. There is a timer aspect that can result in death, but it is basically fair. The puzzles make sense and there is a pretty interesting dynamic HELP command. So don't just accept the first responses of "LOOK AROUND" from that command. They eventually do change according to progress and context. The other sources of death are also fair, and there are clues to help avoid them too.

There is a text adventure program that I have been wanting to complete for a long time. It's by Jason Dyer. The name of the game, "The Night of the Vampire Bunnies" is what intrigued me.

The game has the feel of being a creation of someone deeply inspired by the the classic early 80's BASIC games but who was creating games in the later part of the 80s. Bunnies is interesting because it plays like an early Greg Hassett, Scott Adams or Tim Hartnell adventure.

That being said, the original GWBASIC version has a parser that aims to go beyond simple two-word input. It is clear that Jason did not simply use a standard existing two-word parser example program like "Tower of Mystery" from Compute's Guide to Text Adventures (1984). He created his own unique system for parsing command input. He had a complex system for removing extra article words like THE and ON and TO. He has ways of breaking the sentences input not just into VERB NOUN, but also supplemental words. I commend the author for the ambition to have his players type in more complete English sentences and then to try to parse the input into coherent instructions that could be handled by the program.

This ambition appears to have bitten in the buttocks when it came to the reception of his program in more recent years. The reviews found here and other places on the Net tend to complain about its departure from the standards of two word VERB-NOUN parsing. Some of the puzzles involved having to figure out 4 word command sequences. (Spoiler - click to show)For example JUMP OVER THE RIVER rather than JUMP RIVER. To be fair, in the context of 80s hobby BASIC programming, this convention was not sacrosanct.

It was with a little regret that I had to strip this unique parsing engine and put in its place an extremely simple 2-word parser in order to port the program to my little 8-bit home computer system.

I now have a working version of "The Night of the Vampire Bunnies." I spiffed up the title page a little by adding an ASCII text graphic of a Vampire Bunny. I also added some screen flickering using to evoke lightning flashes on the title screen, which I think is in keeping with the B-horror movie feel Jason was attempting to evoke (along with Monty Python's Quest for the Holy Grail).

I have played it through to the end. It is whimsical and atmospheric. I enjoyed playing it.

The Basic source code from the Sinclair Spectrum that I worked from to port this game to the TRS-80 MC-10 was very buggy and unwinnable. I used a scan from The Computer & Video Games Year Book (1984) of the original Dragon 32 version to help with the debugging. I got the impression this version might be unwinnable too. If that's the case, the MC-10 version might be the only working version available online.

There is a BBC micro version you can play online. I tried it using a playthrough I developed and discovered that it did not seem to recognize the command PUSH BUTTON in the hanger, which which would prevent the possibility of winning. There were also a number of minor annoying but non-catastrophic bugs shared with the Speccy version. For example, despite there being a REMOVE command, you can drop wearable items while wearing them, which results in them being listed as being (WORN) even after they are dropped. The interactions with the captain and the spy in the captain's cabin also don't work.

All the bugs and typos are probably why this program has no playthrough online and why it seems to be "missing" from so many games collections for various machines (See this thread: https://stardot.org.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=12062&start=30)?-- It might have been unwinnable all these years on all the systems it was ported to from the original Dragon 32 version. And maybe even that version is too buggy to complete?

If so, this is a real shame because it is an incredibly rich and subtle puzzle, with neat NPC interactions, good story and evocative mood created through many little flourishes. Definitely not something you could finish in an hour. It would have kept me occupied for many days, if not possibly a week or two back in the 80s. That being said, it is pretty brutal in it treatment of even the most minor mistakes on the player's part, such as forgetting to close a door behind yourself!

Despite its brutality, with careful attention to all the in-game story elements you can discover, you can obtain all the clues necessary to complete the game. Still, I added some additional instructions and story background to the MC-10 version just to help get players off on the right track, if there ever are any additional players. I hope there is because this is a lost classic 8-bit space adventure, which deserves to be played.

I stumbled upon a text adventure in a PDF of a book on the Color Computer Archive. I couldn't find any information about it on any of the text adventure databases and forums I know about. Asked folks on Facebook if they had ever played "The Bianco Mansion" by Clive Gifford and had one response by Gareth Pitchford that it seemed similar to another game by Gifford for the Commodore 64 called "The Nielson Papers." He felt that some of puzzles were the same. Unclear which version came first, although Gareth felt the Dragon version, published in More Games for Your Dragon 32 by Virgin Books, might be first. He noted about Gifford that:

He did a few "enter & retrieve" type-in adventures... I imagine the Nielson Papers is probably the recycled version, if anything... fleshed out a little for the C64... Seems a smart move to use the same premise multiple times and just tweak things for books for different machines.

Garry over on the CASA Solution Archive also typed in the code, using a TRS-80 Color Computer and found it to be a pretty standard adventure for the time. In other words, difficult, not overly impressive and annoying. He noted in the "Classics" forum:

It's really badly written. There are lots of bugs. There are lots of guess-the-verb scenarios, at least two situations where you have to use multi-word input with the two-word parser and at least one situation where you have to refer to an object that is not mentioned. The game has potential, but suffers from juvenile inexperience and lack of testing. (The author was still at school when the book was written.)

In my MC-10 version I have fixed many of the bugs that Garry mentions. In debugged form it is a pretty fun game to play. The deaths are not completely arbitrary and there is a coherent set of puzzles that have to be worked through to achieve final victory. If you can get past the confusing illogic of its map, it is really quite enjoyable. In fact the illogic adds something to its challenge and it classic 8-bit charm. You are not given directions for exits to rooms, except for locked doors, so you must try all directions. It's certainly worth the effort if you are into 8-bit computer adventures written in BASIC. And it might be a particular obscure one for those craving lost treasures from that era.

This program, written in BASIC for the TRS-80 Color Computer (Coco) and now ported by me to the Coco's little brother system, the MC-10, is extremely simple. It probably would only be interesting for very young children. The most appealing aspect is that it has some very simple graphic images that go with the text descriptions. This was relatively rare for simple BASIC text adventures on early 8-bit computer systems. It might also be of interest for adventurers who are looking only to spend 20-30 minutes gaming. The puzzle is not extremely challenging, but is coherent and does require some care in terms of ones search for clues and interpretation of messages. There are a few possibilities of arbitrary death, but they are no too vexing given the size of map. It's easy to restart and get back to where you were and try again. If you wanted to give a young child a taste of what early 1980s type-in gaming was like on an 8-bit computer, this game could fit the bill.

I have read the other reviews and can't but wonder whether some of the frustrations result from the versions they are playing. The parser is not so problematic in the TRS-80 versions of the program. These machines often ran in all caps mode (the original TRS-80 didn't have uppercase characters and the TRS-80 MC-10 never had them). Apparently there were also changes made to the puzzles in many of the unofficial versions. The TRS-80 version I ported remains entirely true to the original TRS-80 16K version.

There are some intentional inconsistencies to the movement in the game. I didn't find them all that bad (especially compared to some other games from the era). For the most part I think they were carefully chosen and meant to enhance the effect of being "lost in the jungles and savannas" of central Africa. To a large extent, I think this technique works successfully in this adventure, where the setting makes it appropriate to use. Once I had some mapping in place, it wasn't all that problematic and there is a kind of logic to the backs-and-forths.

There are some really charming aspects to the game. The quicksand graphic is a wonderful piece of TRS-80 chunky pixel 8-bit animation. (Spoiler - click to show)If you die the program simulates a return to the basic command prompt, before surprising you with a resurrection to a restore point part way into the game (preventing a need for a complete restart.

The game is challenging and doesn't have any of the totally arbitrary deaths that are so common in games from this genre. I found the plot to be a nice balance between slightly humorous almost fantastical whimsy and and an attempt to remain true to the Victorian mythology of the quest for Dr. Livingston.

For fans of 8-bit Basic adventuring I would highly recommend this game. But for less hardy souls, it might be better to stay away from venturing into the dark heart of the Victorian imaginary.

This is a little adventure for the VZ-200/300 8-bit computer and the TRS-80 MC-10. It is not hard. It has some random elements that will bring about your demise in arbitrary ways, but if you simply looking for a about 20 minutes of 8-bit two-word parser nostalgia, you could do worse. As with many games of this type, the world can appear much larger than it is, until you get down to the business of real mapping. There are some very subtle clues to help you make guesses about the quirks of the limited vocabulary, which can help get you out of trouble. Or you can simply peek at the listing...

Oh and there's a cute little graphic title page. Nice work unknown author, and the person who revised it for the VZ-200. There are few few errors in the programs handling of the tunnel and the carrying of items, that I fixed in the MC-10 Version, but they won't necessarily stop you from winning. You start each game at a random location. I have added a link to the Virtual MC-10 Emulator (VMC10.exe) on the main page. Enjoy!

In a review I did of the game "The Temple of Apshai." I argued that the early TRS-80 version of this classic RPG should also be considered as a kind of interactive fiction. The reason I argued this was that the TRS-80 version was really so slow and the graphics so spartan, that the main focus of the game really was on engaging with the narrative of the prologue and the detailed room descriptions of the printed manual. The computer program just provided a structure for bringing that narrative experience to a satisfactory conclusion. The Mystery of Silver Mountain is a lot like that. It is a pure text adventure program, but it really cannot be played without the aid of the original book by Osborne Computing in which the source code was published. The reason is that that book contains graphic images (containing visual clues) of the various locations and additional written materials (codes and clues) that are necessary for completing the adventure. The BASIC program does provide a bare bones set of descriptions and it handles and responds to the input (it's a simple 2-word parser). But there would be little point in attempting to solve the mystery using the program alone. So if you want to play this game on one of its various 8-bit platforms (Commmodore, Atari, TRS-80, etc), you should also find a PDF of the original book. Alternatively there are many copies available on the regular used book sites. The puzzles and clues are very challenging, especially due to the added visual nature of some of them. This is not a simple adventure to solve. That being said, it was meant as an introduction to computer adventuring for 8-bit home computers, so it is not diabolical. It was such a popular program in the mid 80's that I would certainly recommend that anyone interested in surveying some of the greats of 8-bit BASIC IF gaming from that period should probably try it.

My only critical comment is that the parsing engine is a little on the slow side. This might just be my TRS-80 version that I played, but I suspect it is due in part to the program being written in as generic a form of BASIC as possible so that it could easily be modified for a bunch of different systems. In other words, it contains many program remarks and no special programming shortcuts (unique to any particular 8-bit computer) to speed up execution. However, the delay is not too bad--I recall some Scott Adam's BASIC IF games being worse!

For Retrochallenge 2015 I ported Will Crowther's original Colossal Cave "Adventure" source code to Microsoft Micro Color Basic. The new basic source code should be easily shifted to other Basics. I elaborated a few uncompleted elements and areas and changed a few things to create some new challenges for old players.

I also added some new commands such as SCORE, which will tell you how you're doing and if you have won. HELP will provide some rudimentary aid. UNLOAD will perform the same function as the more standard "drop all" command of other adventures. QUIT not only exits but prompts whether you would like to save the progress you have made so far. You are prompted each time the program is run if you wish to load a previous game. The same file name "COLOSDAT" is used for each save, but in the emulator (VMC10.exe) you can save the resulting virtual cassette file to any file name you like in order to differentiate between different saves.

I re-coded the program from the Fortran source code and data file of Will Crowther's original version of "Advent" for the PDP-10 recently recovered from an old back-up tape by Dennis Jerz. This is not the classic "350 point" version modified by Don Woods. So if you are interested in playing a new version of the original version of the "original" text adventure, you can try this one out. My version contains all the room movement info in numeric form and most of the text descriptions of rooms and events. I had to wedge it into 20K of my favourite 8-bit the TRS-80 MC-10, so some of the descriptions got "edited" a little, but I was able to transfer the map info from the data file into Basic DATA statements, so it's a largely accurate rendition of the original map. I only made a very few tweaks where directions were quite clearly messed up or to eliminate a few NE, NW, SE and SW directions.

Using various descriptions from the Net of the puzzles and other game challenges and by examining Crowther's original source, I was able to recreate what I believe is a reasonably accurate presentation of all the original game elements. However, as I worked on the rooms in the Bedquilt (“Under Construction”) area of Crowther's original code I really could sense where his patience with the project petered out (sometime in 1975 or 1976) so I also ended up adding a few unique elements of my own to “complete” what is obviously an unfinished work just begging for elaboration. I can understand what tempted Don Woods to make his additions in 1977 to create the classic version.

That being said, I do not like some of the more surreal fantasy elements that Woods added. Crowther's version has a more austere set of locations, but they have a feel of realism that is absent from the classic version's chaotic hurly-burly of branches. Also, there is clearly a sense that Crowther's fantasy elements (Hall of the Mountain King, nasty little dwarfs, finding a cave in the woods) were drawn from a single classic narrative source, such as the story of Peer Gynt, rather than a hodgepodge of fantasy cliche's. I tried to respect this integrity in the few additions I made to fill out Crowther's obviously abandoned work.

Don Woods helped Crowther overcome the problem of the game's unfinished nature by significantly expanding the complexity of the cave and by adding improved scoring and completion routines. It's this latter version which is normally referred to as "the original adventure" or the "350 point" version. In homage to this latter title I have also made my re-coded version worth 350 points, although these points only represent six 50 point treasures. Only five of these treasures are present in Crowther's original. I have added one treasure and one puzzle and a few new threats. I have also slightly changed the operation of some of the magic of the original to prevent old hands from simply applying their prior knowledge.

The following file contains the Virtual MC-10 emulator and the program file COLOSSAL.C10 for loading and running in the emulator:
http://faculty.cbu.ca/jgerrie/Home/VMC10_073D.zip

This game is not for serious gamers. It will be of interest only to those interested in BASIC programming and the modest programs that could be created on 8-bit home computers from the early 1980s. It might be worth a look for those with some nostalgia for such systems or with some acquaintance with the book it was published in.

"The Quest" is a very simple BASIC two-word parser text adventure meant to be an example of the programming techniques needed to create adventures of one's own. It was included in a book meant to teach those techniques to budding BASIC programmers using the early 8-bit computers. The code is very adaptable and fairly straightforward. Unlike more complex syntax parsing engines, such as the one created by Scott Adams (which was published in BYTE in December 1980), by the time Lampton was writing his book and sample program the conventions of text adventuring had become so formalized that undue complexities could be omitted. People were comfortable with the two word system and the basic vocabulary had become fairly standardized (GET,PUT,LOOK,EXAMINE,INV,GO, etc.). The program might be useful for someone wishing to write their own BASIC text adventure for an 8-bit computer. However, I would rate "The Tower" example program for Compute's Guide to Writing Text Adventures as more flexible and more feature rich. The Tower allows the use of single letter commands such as N,S,E,W for motion and I for inventory, while "The Quest" does not. Having to type "GO NORTH" continuously instead if simply "N" is a little tedious and annoying.

The game itself is simple. There is a small number of puzzles, only a couple ways to fail. The puzzles are coherent and so I would warn against giving up too quickly and sneaking a look at the code if you are stumped. This is not one of those BASIC adventures with incoherent puzzles requiring almost completely arbitrary acts to solve. I promise you, you will get there in the end with a little extra thought. If all you're looking for is an hour of reminiscence of what 8-bit computing was like when you were a kid, this game will fit the bill.

This game is very interesting, because, at least in my experience of Basic text adventures, this is the only multi-player game I have ever come across. Each player gets a number of turns to explore the world of the game, which is quite extensive. You can either be a baddie alien, in which case you go around trying to kill the humans you come across. Or you're a human character, in which case you have to collect various items and interpret various clues, in order to figure out how to thwart the alien invaders. The game allows you to play alone, but the story and puzzles are fairly simple (I've only played through as a human). I image the time pressure created by trying to complete your appointed tasks before the other player completes theirs (or "players"--it allows up to 5 to play), must add a nice element to the challenge. I can't imagine the game is much fun to play as just the alien character alone, as it would simply be an exercise in moving until you have run across all the human players and killed them. The combat seems somewhat random, although there are weapons that can be picked up at various locations in the game. I'm unsure if they affect combat. There might be opportunities as an alien character to interfere by seizing or moving objects with the other player's ability to complete the game. However, combat can make the players drop things, if you are willing to risk possible death, so there are ways for human characters to win objects back. I am unsure if, when played with others, it is recommended that they not be allowed to view the screen, but I suspect that this might be so (or an "option"). In that way, if you're an alien you can hide or move objects, and the other player will have a harder time finding them or knowing when they need to confront you to try to force you to drop them. If you're a human character, it would give you the opportunity to try to hide or use circuitous routes to get to objects unmolested. I suspect knowing the original book series would also add to game play (although I think names have been changed to protect the original author against a copyright challenge--for example the series is called "The White Mountains" series, not "High Mountains"). I played a version of the program ported to the TRS-80 MC-10 from a version for the VZ200. In the course of porting the program I slightly condensed some of the descriptions and fixed some grammar and spelling errors.

This 8-bit BASIC two-word parser provides a rich set of locations and a complex set of puzzles. It also avoids having (as far as I was able to determine) numerous completely arbitrary deaths, which is a common feature of games of this genre. However, it suffers from a typical fault of many 8-bit adventures. Many of the puzzles depend on the use of specific verb-noun phrases when what are essentially synonymous phrases fail to achieve the same result. I don't find this so glaring a fault when there is some way that this characteristic is clearly indicated, such as by the provision of extensive help/hints, humorous responses that indicate greater precision is required, etc., but these are largely lacking. It also suffers from the fault of inconsistent use of the SEARCH/LOOK/EXAMINE verbs, which means a lot of extra typing is required to make sure that all the clues are discovered. There also appear to be inconsistencies with the OPEN and UNLOCK verbs. The cassette label describes the game as "A Terrifyingly Difficult Adventure." I would describe it as "annoyingly difficult." However, if you are someone who doesn't mind typing and appreciates complex puzzles, especially one's that are informed by a rich understanding of the arcane folklore of European magic traditions, this adventure might be worth a try.

This simple adventure, written at a time when computers typically only had 16K of memory, is a classic. It was originally written for the tiny, ZX81 computer, a machine that many Brits got their first taste of computing from in the early 1980's, and was therefore one of the first experiences that many people in that country would have had of text adventuring. And because of the limitations of the machine, they would have had to endure a flickering black-and-white screen *every time* they typed something in. This fact when combined with the widely acknowledged fact that this program none-the-less initiated many Brits into a lifelong love of IF, stands as a testimony to the fundamental charms of this early adventure. The puzzles are not diabolical, and there are plenty of hints. If it may seem a little easy now, this is only because it had to blaze the trail in its own time of introducing people to the entire software genre. The outer space theme has a certain fantasy and even espionage tinge to it. None-the-less the story and world maintain a basic coherence, which is something that is often lacking from these early adventures. There is a nice mixture of the standard tropes (Maze of twisty passages) and some completely novel puzzles. I think this game deserves the honour of being considered the Adventure A" (much like Colossal Cave" is to the U.S.) of its country of origin.

One might normally classify this game as a kind of arcade variation of role-playing games, but it can be argued that the earliest version, written in Basic for the TRS-80 Model 1, at least if played with careful use of the manual (and a certain trick perhaps limited to the TRS-80 versions of the game that is described below) allows for a very satisfying IF experience.

In 1979 when the game was first created on the Model 1, 16K was considered an extremely generous amount of RAM for a personal computer to have. However, within the confines of such limited memory resources and before the advent of fast permanent storage devices written documentation was used by the authors to serve the role that would later be played by devices like CD ROM drives and the like. The slow speed and lack of graphics of the TRS-80 also meant that the arcade aspects of the game, that would become so prominent in the M/L versions later created for the second generation 8-bit computers (64, 800, Coleco Adam, etc.) was really not a significant element of game play, since the combat sequences unfolded more like the slow-motion tabletop dice throwing recreations of their RPG inspiration.

In the face of such limitations, the "room descriptions" of the manual were clearly not intended in this original version as mere window dressing (which in the later "arcade versions" could simply be ignored), but an integral part of the experience of the primary activity of the game, which was to explore the temple in an attempt to fill out one’s understanding of the narrative only hinted at in the carefully sketched "prologue" provided in the manual. These descriptions go far beyond providing "mood" for the otherwise dull linear graphic presentation of the rooms provided by the extremely limited graphic capabilities of the Model 1 (although they do that too, such as with their careful descriptions of the smells one encounters)—they actually provide clues for uncovering elements necessary for one’s continued survival (and thus are roughly equivalent to the puzzles and clues of more standard IF games). These clues include information about hidden passages, traps, the monsters one is likely to encounter and the possibilities of treasure and magic, all of which if interpreted correctly can greatly aid one's survival. But perhaps most important of all, they provide a set of narrative hints to the completion of the back story so as to achieve a satisfactory conclusion to the introductory narrative. So contrary to what is suggested in many standard descriptions of the game, the purpose of this early version clearly was not simply "to pillage the temple" by hacking and slashing one's way in arcade fashion through the various levels.

At least in the TRS-80 versions the purpose can be to seek by way of a carefully made set of choices conditioned by the room descriptions to progress through the four levels to discover the truth about the sinister force at the heart of Apshian civilization and defeat that force to end the "curse of Apshai." One essential aid to this way of playing the game is the SHIFT-@ key sequence of the TRS-80 machines that allows one to freeze the execution of any Basic program at any time. Using this key sequence one can halt play upon entering each room to consult the appropriate description and then use this information to help determine one’s subsequent actions. So one might decide, for example, that a room represents an unnecessary danger at a particular point given one's condition and choose to leave and return later after obtaining potential aids in other areas hinted at by other room descriptions. The authors, by combining the information storage of the existing technology of printed text with the novel (but limited) capabilities of an early 8-bit computer, were able to provide an immensely rich narrative experience that as a TRS-80 player always seemed radically different from the experiences of friends playing the game on other platforms.

Castle Adventure was created by David Malmberg on the PET computer using a BASIC adventure engine created by Scott Adams for the TRS-80. Adams published and explained his engine in Creative Computing Magazine (August 1979), Byte Magazine (Dec 1980) and Softside (July 1980). It is the same engine which underlies adventures like Adam's "Pirate Adventure." However, unlike Pirate Adventure, which only has a few treasures, there are many more treasures to be found in Castle Adventure. The world that Malmberg creates is also much more internally coherent than what one typically finds in Adams' early adventures. The dangers are much less arbitrary too and on the whole I found the experience much more satisfying and less frustrating than Adams' Adventure 1 or 2. That being said, Adams adventure "driver" software is what I found most interesting and how Malmberg was able to apply it to a new story. However, one annoyance is that there tends to be some lag between entering a command and receiving a response. This is, I think, a legacy of the complexity and flexibility of Adams' driver software, so players of modern IF might find the experience a little frustrating. However, if you are curious about how the art of IF Basic adventure programming was spread and can appreciate some of the slowness of an 8-bit Basic game, this adventure is certainly worth a try.

(Spoiler - click to show)In the version I played there seemed to be some quirks with the guard routine. I'm not sure if there is supposed to be only one guard, but it seems like this should be the case. For example, one can fight the guard and be defeated and thrown in the dungeon. After escaping the cell, one can defeat the guard who is rendered unconscious. Despite being unconscious you can still run into a (another?) guard and end up back in the dungeon cell, but the cell door remains open and one can still find the unconscious guard. Also, the unconscious guard has keys, but as far as I can tell, they are never mentioned and cannot be "searched" for. One must simply think to "get keys" after defeating the guard.

This text adventure in the 8-bit Basic program category is unique in several ways. First, its design permits multiple narrative pathways to the completion of the adventure (despite the limits imposed on these possibilities by the 8-bit machine hardware it was developed on--the Matra-Hachette 'Alice' computer). Second, its single key entry decision and navigation system is a refreshing departure from the much more standard two word parser system, and is very appropriate for its multiple attempt variable ending play format. Third, it is based (very roughly) on a classic work of fiction. Although its single keystroke system is somewhat similar to other extremely simple early Basic text adventures, the number of rooms, the multiplicity of narrative arches (in which randomness, decisions and the objects and paths selected make a substantial difference), and the playful and well crafted scenarios make for quite an enjoyable hour or so of distraction. Although a game like this will be of no interest to hard core modern players of interactive fiction, it certainly will be of interest to those curious about early 8-bit computer systems and the Basic programming efforts of coders grappling with the inherent limitations of such systems.

The Alice was a French introductory computer system somewhat akin to the Sinclair ZX-81 or even the Spectrum, which shared some hardware elements with the TRS-80 Micro Color Computer from Tandy, upon which it was based. The version of the game I played was ported and translated by me from the Alice original program by François Coulon.

Although possibly not a part of its original "type-in" published form there seem to be many versions out there (I used a GWBasic version for MS-DOS, which can be found on Web) that contain program errors that make the game unwinable. Some of the errors in the code, though, were put there on purpose by Ahl in a clever scheme to obscure the solution from those using the tried and true technique of reading the Basic source listing. The Basic code, in this respect, is part of the allure (and original purpose) of this game. It is well structured and and heavily commented so that aspiring Basic programmers could use it to learn how to program their own adventure games. However, beyond these pedagogical benefits, if you can find a version that has been debugged, and you like logical puzzles, I can highly recommend this game.

That being said, the logical puzzle at the heart of this game is absolutely diabolical. No simple truth tables will be adequate for this one, and Ahl's recommendation in the supporting documentation that an "hour or so" will be required to finish, actually seems somewhat optimistic. The adventure is structured along the lines of a game of Clue, but from my attempts at trying to figure it out, I would say that it is not simply a logical exercise. Some of the clues are, I think, red herrings. Others require knowledge of (or research into) European cultures in order to properly interpret (such as the elements that go into French cuisine and an understanding of the diversity that characterizes European cheeses). The game also has historical elements that are absent from a game of Clue and the use of some simple sounds and descriptive messages are highly effective in invoking the feel of a long train ride.

Also, this game is not a standard two word parser. Rather, single key strokes and options are all you get, and most of these, are largely irrelevant to the solving of the puzzle (although they help add to the atmosphere of the game). In fact, it is really just a clever and engaging way to reveal a long sequence of narrative clues, after which one must enter two selections (the defector and the murderer) that the computer then will judge as to whether you have deduced correctly.

As with many low K Basic IF games, the supporting written narrative material is essential to the full enjoyment of the game. Ahl provides a detailed history of the company behind the Orient Express. I think most of this material is now included in most of the online distributions of the program. If not, it might be worthwhile to obtain a copy of Ahl's book, which like the famous train, should be considered a classic from a bygone age.

This was the first text adventure program I ever played. I remember choosing it for the simple reason that its byte count looked about right for fitting into the text buffer of my little MC-10 computer (something like the ZX-81), which was connected to a BBS via 300 baud Modem (text flows in at the speed most people can read at) and simple terminal package. The terminal package was so simple, in fact, that it had no download protocols other than straight text into the buffer and with only 20K in total, that buffer wasn't very big. DeedYork was one of the few non-binary file offerings of a local TRS-80 Color Computer BBS. I downloaded it, then printed the buffer and the re-typed the whole program back in. If I recall correctly part of the program got garbled, and thus a 2nd text to buffer and print operation was required. Much debugging was also required. At the end of this process I was treated to a fairly simple text adventure, which wasn't even a real two word parser. What it really was, was a one word parser, which was so tolerant of additional words, that for a while I was actually fooled into believing it required two words for accomplishing tasks. There are not too many puzzles to solve. Just an old house to explore, some possible death scenarios to learn to avoid and one main intuitive leap to make based on a large number of clues pointing to your discovery of a specific secret word. I recall being so stumped by the main puzzle that I had to resort to the time-honoured recourse of reading the source code. Of course, none of these limitations mattered to a 15 year old kid living in the midst of the 8-bit computer revolution. It was all magic. You're a wizard Harry! The one thing I was left wondering was whether the "Chomiuks", the family who play the role of the bad guys in the scenario, actually represented a real family in the Grande Prairie region of Saskatchewan. If so, I would like to thank them for inspiring a wonderful little piece of my childhood. Enjoy.

Originally written for the TRS-80 Model 1/Dick Smith System 80 and published in an Australian magazine for those machines it can be difficult to get the game running, as many of the disk images out there contain versions of the code set only for cassette use. This is a problem because the program must load a data file before it can run (a space saving technique for systems with only 16K of RAM). The original Cassette based Basic source must therefore be modified for disk use to get it to run on a disk system/emulator. See the following for an archived version of the original Micro-80 magazine article for some help with these issues:
https://archive.org/details/MICRO-80_Vol._3_Issue_08_1982-07_MICRO-80_AU
I have ported a version of this program to TRS-80 MC-10 which avoids this complexity.

The mapping of this program is very odd. Moving is non-logical. Reverse paths don't always take you back the way you came. Paths also double back in all kinds of strange ways that don't make geometric sense either. I originally thought this may have been a programming error on the original author's part (or my own part in porting the code to TRS-80 MC-10) but since playing it to completion (with the help of some excellent materials provided by Alex Dijktra over at solutionarchive) I have come to appreciate how it is actually a clever way to recreate a little bit of the creepy and mysterious atmosphere of the TV series. You won't like this game if you can't get into the spirit of this counter-intuitive navigation.

You also wont like this game unless you're the kind of adventurer who doesn't mind dealing lots of random elements affecting your possibilities of success (in puzzle solving, dealing with the NPCs you meet, as well as other aspects).

There are some unique commands such as: ENTER (takes you into the Tardis)
RESET (moves the Tardis to a new planet). SEARCH can accomplish quite a lot in certain rooms, but it is one of the many elements in the game affected by randomness, so multiple tries are necessary.

There are lots of NPCs in this game in the form of aliens who/that you can interact with in various useful or lethal ways. This is quite rare for Basic IF games under 16K RAM. I have found so few Basic adventures (at least that have easily accessible Basic source code) based on the Doctor Who theme (most Dr. Who adventures seem to be professional machine language affairs), which is part of my own fascination with this game. However, if you are simply a fan of interactive fiction and Doctor Who and not of the history of Basic text adventuring as such, you might want to give this one a miss.

With the help of Alex Dijktra from the solution archive, I was finally able to complete this classic piece of 8-bit Basic code. This original story is one of the finer examples of Basic adventuring from the early 80s. The story is very compelling. Instead of just defeating aliens, you actually have to figure out how to befriend them, and overcome a war to boot. It's no easy task. There are plenty of puzzles and mysteries in this game but all of them make sense (in the end) and none of them involve completely arbitrary actions like pushing random objects in random rooms to reveal hidden passages, etc. However, there are some red herrings to keep you on your toes. There are also a few possibilities of death, but they make complete sense and can be avoided with some reasonable actions. The descriptions and vocabulary are on the slightly richer side for your typical early 80s game and when put together they manage to provide a very powerful narrative experience that is somehow much greater than the sum of its 16k's worth of limited parts. Kit Domenico is surely one of the greats of the early 8-bit Basic game phenomenon. I especially like the way he cleverly uses some of the standard tropes of Science Fiction to lay the traps of some of his more devilish red herrings. About my only complaint was a lack of a game save feature (not unusual for games of this type). I played the game on the TRS-80 MC-10 from code ported from the TRS-80 Coco. Perhaps the original TRS-80 Model 1 version had such a feature, but I am unable to confirm this. This game is well worth examining by anyone who is interested in early 8-bit Basic interactive fiction.

This simple two-word parser is a typical 8-bit Basic adventure. However, it is not one of the better games of this type and shares all the traits of the worst of its kind. The puzzles are very difficult and verge on the arbitrary. The deaths are largely arbitrary. The 7 item limit means you waste a lot of time shunting objects about to different locations. There are no other living characters except Fifi (who can hardly be described as living). And of course the entire premise is sexist and can only have appealed to the teenage boy who, like so many 8-bit Basic adventures, was probably its creator. The premise could have, perhaps, been redeemed by some subtle satire on the sterotypes it draws on--something Leisure Suit Larry managed to carry off. I had hoped that it might be an example of such for the 8-bit Basic adventure genre. Unfortunately, it basically plays its central premise straight up (lit), right to the bitter end. The best you can say about Madame Fifi's is, at least it's not a haunted house.

I found the source code for this on an Atari site that has archived a whole bunch of published materials for early 8-bit computers. There seems to be something about the Atari crowd that inclines them to programming activities. Their collective efforts to support this inclination are also helpful for the rest of us 8-biters. One interesting book they have maintained in digital form is Tim Hartnell's classic Creating Adventure Games on Your Computer. In the course of porting "Chateau Gaillard" to the TRS-80 MC-10 I found a few errors in the original listing. For example, the way the code originally worked the weapon you chose seemed to have no effect on combat. There were elaborate routines for reporting and selecting which weapon you would use, but when it came right down to it, the value entered was not used in the combat routine. There were also some other bugs, such as the interaction with the Dwarf (Spoiler - click to show)(misreported the objects he was willing to accept during negotiations) and the fact that you could simply "go up" back to the surface from the initial room you fall into, contrary to the message that "there is now no way back." On the whole, the combat routine just seemed overly punishing and I found the game difficult to complete, so I adjusted it. Also, when you moved an excessive number of points were randomly subtracted from your statistics. I changed it so that only your strength is randomly diminished as you explore, and at a much lower rate. Now you at least have a chance of finding the healing potion and replenishing your strength. I also added a routine to allow you to re-roll your character stats at the beginning of the game until you get a reasonably fair dispersal. As with most Basic two-word parsers there are some quirks. There is no shorthand N, S, E, or W for moving. The closest you can get is GO N, GO S, etc. Otherwise, three letters is all you need for either word to register. However, I added a single word "INVENTORY" command, because I didn’t like seeing an inventory automatically with every new screen. There are lots of arbitrary deaths in this game from traps, so you’ll just have to play it multiple times and map it enough to learn where not to go. That being said, some meager clues are given to help you avoid some of these deaths. (Spoiler - click to show)The basic object of the game is to find the two keys, which are needed to allow you to escape two rooms that otherwise lock you in. Once you get the right keys for the right rooms, you can use them to unlock all the doors in those rooms, which will allow you to find a stairwell back to the surface. On the whole, it is a fun little 8-bit Basic dungeon romp. The combat routine is quite unique in the way it allows you to choose which vital statistics you will draw on in your combat against the different creatures (which have some very creative names) and their distinctive vital stats. (Spoiler - click to show)In brief you should try to select your highest stats while selecting the lowest equivalent stats of your opponent. Various clues about how to overcome dangers are also sprinkled throughout the maze, which is a nice touch.

I was killed by an alien wielding a #4 refreshment! This fact alone should reveal some of the completely alluring whimsy of this classic from the 8-bit age of Basic computer adventures. Apparently the game started out as an overhead view maze quest on a ZX-81/Timex 1000, but the Klein brothers kept working at it until it had morphed into a 3D perspective dungeon crawl on the PC, with a unique science fiction twist. The Lumpies are at the same time cute and somewhat terrifying, as are their choices of weapons. These range from the already mentioned #4 refreshment to 5/16th wrenches, to the more traditional, but not necessarily more deadly bombs. The game requires some skill at navigating and mapping a maze of passages and selecting when and when not to engage in combat with the Lumpies (with their incredible ability to turn anything to hand into a weapon). In the end you must free as many prisoners as possible and discover where the communications room lies, and then figure out what you need to do to get a distress call out to the people back on Earth. Along the way you must also find weapons and enough food to replenish yourself for more run'ins with the Lumpies. The mazes can become a little monotonous, but they demonstrate some clever use of the limited graphics capabilities provided by Basic on early 8-bit machines. You'll feel a satisfactory sense of accomplishment when that distress call finally brings rescue from Earth.

It's been a while since I played this game, but my recollections are that it was one of the more interesting 8-bit two-word-parser-under-16K adventures. Several versions of this program seem to exist. I think there is an original TRS-80 version, a port to the TRS-80 Color Computer and the MC-10 port that I did from the Coco source and possibly some others I think I recollect being mentioned in other retro-computer forums.

The scenario is ostensibly medieval, but the feel is more of a dream state (and a weird Freudian dream state at that, or perhaps an Alice in Wonderland Carolesque variety). The presence of a handy cigarette lighter, gives away the unreality of the Medieval landscape. Surreal elements pepper the landscape, although I have to admit I am still unsure whether they are meant to be there or whether some of them are simply programming errors of the type which are so common in early 8-bit basic adventures. (Spoiler - click to show)For instance, when you dig a hole it always takes you to the same generic room, meaning that if you drop items there you can, wherever digging is possible, dig them up again other places.

Despite its quirks, or perhaps because of them, this simple early Basic text adventure seems to have endeared itself to many.

I think the single feature of note in this game is its use of some fairly interesting graphics images presented in the ultra low res grayscale block graphics of the ZX-81. However, we're not just talking simplistic cartoon images or figures. The images are quite elaborate (and perhaps even a bit terrifying for, say, a 6 or 7 year-old). I wouldn't go so far as to call them "art" but in terms of the limits of the ZX-81's graphics capabilities, they're really quite impressive achievements. Besides these occasional images the game is a fairly standard primitive parser dungeon crawl. You are playing against the clock (the rising of you-know-who), which adds an element of tension. Death can come quite suddenly and the combat is fairly arbitrary. The interesting block graphics are probably the reason it was ported to other beginner low-ram machines like the VZ200 and the MC-10 (which also had the ability to input such block graphics directly via the keyboard). If you wish to experience some of what the earliest forms of "graphic" adventuring were like, this one would be a worthwhile example to explore.

In the first installment of Loriciels' Citadelle series (which I ported from source code ported to the Sanyo PHC-25 from an Amstrad CPC port, which was taken from an Oric Atmos original, or so I believe) you will come up against a range of monsters, such as Bugbears and Orcs. The games is interesting in the way it combines the format of two-word parser with RPG combat. Not only must you figure out the puzzles--you must manage your dwindling strength in the face of the denizens of the (limited but coherent) world you are exploring. As mentioned, this is only the first part of a three part series. The next part is called "The Swordfish of Kranz" (if my French skills haven't failed me). I suspect the three part format is actually a legacy of the RAM limitations of the original platform that the game was developed on. I suspect that breaking the game into three parts allowed for a more comprehensive story to be "fit" into a machine with less than 16K. It's a creative solution.

Despite these limitations the author has managed to fit in quite a number of puzzles. Some of them are a bit tricky, but if you pay extremely close attention to every detail of the descriptions none of the solutions is completely beyond some possibility of recognition. All the rooms should be EXAMINED and SEARCHED and occasionally LOOKED at in detail.

The combat system allows for a number strategies in facing and, hopefully, defeating your opponents. (Spoiler - click to show)In the version I ported the monster's have a a random number of hit points, armour class and strength assigned at the beginning of each combat, so retreating might not be a good idea. Retreating takes you back to the previous room you were in. When you re-enter the room all the conditions for the monster will be reset. This might be a good thing if the monster is really strong and you’re getting pasted. Going and coming back in might make for a weaker monster. However, it might be worse! Choosing Defence rather than attack reduces your chances of being hit, but also reduces your chances of hitting the monster. Spells are powerful but fickle. The monsters are deployed in a fixed locations. (Spoiler - click to show)However, if they don’t "disappear" at the end of combat random monsters will be spawned at random in one of the rooms. If you have the sword and the armour, the monsters are pretty easy to defeat.

In terms of criticisms my only major one is that the "treasure hunt" component of the game seems a little underdeveloped. Also, there is little provided in the way of background to give the situation or characters (Oran?) much depth. I suspect, again, that this is likely a result of RAM limitations and was probably offset in the original by a helpful manual with background story. This game has a reputation as being a favourite of early French 8-bit basic adventurers. I can understand why.

The source code for this game seems to be standard Applesoft Basic code put up as an example program for a Javascript version of that Venerable 8-bit computer language. The source code is very well written and the game is very challenging. The parser is able to handle two-word commands and also some more complex sentences for more complex tasks. Some things to be aware of: It doesn't accept short-form commands except for the directions--So "INV" wont work for INVENTORY, for example. Also it uses the convention of "TAKE" instead of "GET" and does not support many synonyms, although "READ" and "EXAMINE" will do much the same things. The clues are very thorough and there are no instances of completely arbitrary deaths. All risks can be foreseen if clues and descriptions are read carefully. A very interesting concept that leaves you wondering--who exactly was uncle Tays?

A walkthrough is available at:
Basic Programming on the TRS-80 MC-10

This game lives up to its name "Teeny Tiny Text Adventure." Its size is probably due to the fact that it was developed on the TRS-100 Model 100, one of the first truly portable computers and a favourite of journalists around the world. Despite its size it provides a solid feeling of adventure. The main puzzle is a bit vexing, but can be solved with some diligent searching.

The Search for the Lost Dutchman's Gold, like so many Basic 8-Bit adventures relies heavily on stereotypes and clichés. Some of these are directed towards native people, but in the overall scheme of the well-worn plot and old-west scenario they are to be expected. Such concerns aside, the plot actually holds together quite well. The most appealing aspect of the adventure is the pseudo miner-49-speak that "yer" guide uses to convey information about your progress. It's kinda half way between pirate-speak and cowboy-lingo, both of which most people are proficient enough in such that it's not likely to present many problems of comprehension. There are no completely arbitrary deaths. You'll have to make some fairly obvious misjudgments to get yourself "dun'in." The puzzles are challenging and coherent. The game would definitely benefit from a game save feature. The MC-10 version I ported and played from a PC version didn't have one, but other versions apparently have them. My version fixes what I believe are some problems with the "mule" interactions of the PC version.

Greg Hassett was a prolific maker of 8-bit Basic text adventures. This entry into the category of "haunted house crawl" has some of Hassett's signature features, including a countdown timer which unleashes random appearances of some deadly adversaries. The game provides a wide variety of locations, which does provide a good sense of exploration, but there is such a disparate variety of plot elements drawn together that it becomes extremely difficult to maintain one's belief in the narrative.

The Treasure of Elgon Adventure is at the top range of your early 8-bit Basic two-word parser games. The puzzles are challenging but not diabolical. There is the possibility of death, but it is not sudden. Nor is it completely arbitrary. The setting is medieval fantasy, but it is hard to get a sense of reality from the various locations and one dimensional characters you run across. The feel is more one of a dream locale or mild nightmare, or perhaps something akin to Alice in Wonderland. If you're someone who can be content with a Basic two-word parser, this is one you should definitely try.

Escape from SSADB is a text adventure in the tradition of the great adventures of Scott Adams. This program isn't as complicated as an Infocom product--It only uses two word commands like GET KEY or HIT COMPUTER.

This was apparently David Meny's first adventure game written in Basic. It was very enjoyable and challenging to play. The Basic program listing provides much insight in the structure of adventure program writing. He apparently also made other adventures such as PIRATE TREASURE, which is supposed to take place on a pirate ship and a desert island.

The version I played for the TRS-80 MC-10 has been updated for the 2000s. Kim Jun Un and the North Koreans are the enemies and not the Soviets as in the original for the TRS-80 Model 1/3.