The Adventures of Indiana Jones in Wenceslas Square in Prague on January 16, 1989 by Zuzan Znovuzrozený, Jaroslav Švelch, Martin Kouba, and Jana “Yuffie” Kilianová Humor 1989 Web Site

About the Story

This satirical game was released anonymously in 1989 as a response to police brutality during the Palach Week protests. In January 1989, several opposition groups organized demonstrations to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of the self-immolation of Jan Palach, a student who set himself on fire to protest the post-1968 political developments in the country. On January 15, thousands of people gathered on Wenceslas Square, a traditional site of public events. Citizens’ efforts to pay respects to Palach and protest the oppressive regime were met with a disproportionate police response, including the use of tear gas and water cannons against peaceful protesters and curious bystanders. Undeterred by the police, people continued to gather for the following four days. The game takes place on the second day of the protests.

By 1989, Indiana Jones had become a popular character in Czechoslovak text adventure games, in part thanks to the popular series of unlincesed homebrew titles by the influential programmer František Fuka. As a result, the famous archeologist appeared even in this activist title. While geographically faithful, the game portrays Wenceslas Square as a battlefield where every careless move is punished by death; where tear gas, water cannons and policemen await on every corner. The game revels in spectacular game over scenes, which serve to highlight and exaggerate police violence. The game was released for the ZX Spectrum platform in the Czech language and spread among the users on cassette tapes, which were the default storage medium for 8-bit computers. Although its author remains unknown, it is possible that they were a participant in the actual demonstration.

Game Details