Tafl games, also known as hnefatafl games, are a family of ancient Northern European strategy board games played on a checkered or latticed gameboard with two armies of uneven numbers. Most probably they are based upon the Roman game Ludus latrunculorum. Names of different variants of Tafl include Hnefatafl, Tablut, Tawlbwrdd, Brandubh, Ard Rí, and Alea Evangelii. Games in the tafl family were played in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Britain, Ireland, and Sápmi. Tafl gaming was eventually supplanted by chess in the 12th century, but the tafl variant of the Sámi people, tablut, was in play until at least the 18th century. The rules for tablut were written down by the Swedish naturalist Linnaeus in 1732, and these were translated from Latin to English in 1811. All modern tafl games are based on the 1811 translation, which had many errors. New rules were added to amend the issues resulting from these errors, leading to the creation of a modern family of tafl games. In addition, tablut is now also played in accordance with its original rules, which have been retranslated.
Gothic is a 2001 action role-playing video game developed by Piranha Bytes for Microsoft Windows. It was released for Microsoft Windows on 15 March 2001 in Germany, on 30 October 2001 in Europe, on 23 November 2001 in North America and on 28 March 2002 in Poland. A Nintendo Switch port, titled Gothic Classic, was released worldwide on September 28, 2023.
Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem is a 2002 action-adventure video game developed by Silicon Knights and published by Nintendo for the GameCube. It was produced and directed by Denis Dyack. The game follows the story of several characters across a period of two millennia and four different locations on Earth, as they contend with an ancient evil who seeks to enslave humanity. The gameplay distinguishes itself with unique "sanity effects", visual and audial effects that confuse the player and often break the fourth wall.
The word cryptex is a neologism coined by the author Dan Brown for his 2003 novel The Da Vinci Code, denoting a portable vault used to hide secret messages. It is a word formed from Greek κρυπτόςkryptós, "hidden, secret" and Latin codex; "an apt title for this device" since it uses "the science of cryptology to protect information written on the contained scroll or codex". The first physical cryptex was created by Justin Kirk Nevins in 2004.
Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat is a single-player fantasy real-time tactics computer game based upon the Warhammer Fantasy Battle table-top game and miniatures. It was developed and published by Mindscape, and released in November 1995 for Microsoft Windows, and on PlayStation in November 1996. The game's story takes place within the Warhammer Fantasy world setting, and focuses on players managing a group of mercenaries, who take on work for various clients but become involved in stopping a plot by the Skaven. The game's main focus is on battles that feature a mixture of medieval warfare and fantasy elements, using a variety of units based upon those from within the Warhammer setting.
Legends of the Hidden Temple is an American action-adventure television game show that broadcast from 1993 to 1995 on Nickelodeon. Created by David G. Stanley, Scott A. Stone, and Stephen Brown, the program features a fictitious temple, "filled with lost treasures protected by mysterious Mayan temple guards." Kirk Fogg is the show's host, while Dee Baker is both announcer and voice of a stone head named Olmec who "knows the secrets behind each of the treasures in his temple." Six teams of two children compete to retrieve one of the historical artifacts in the temple by performing physical stunts and answering questions based on history, mythology, and geography. Contestants trying out had to compete in several physical tasks, including rope climbing and running, as well as a written test. The majority of the contestants were picked from the surrounding Orlando, Florida, area.
Aliens Versus Predator 2 is a science fiction first-person shooter video game developed by Monolith Productions and co-published by Fox Interactive and Sierra On-Line for Microsoft Windows in October 2001, and for Mac OS X in July 2003. The game is a sequel to Aliens Versus Predator (1999); both games are based on the characters of the Alien and Predator media franchises as well as the Alien vs. Predator crossover series. It is set on the fictional planet LV-1201, which houses a vast series of ruins infested with Aliens that is routinely visited by a clan of Predators who hunt the creatures for sport.
Perplex City was an alternate reality game (ARG) created by Mind Candy, a London-based developer in 2005. Adrian Hon was the producer, designer and director of the game's first and only completed season, in which players searched for "The Receda Cube", an artifact of spiritual significance to the inhabitants of a fictional metropolis known as "Perplex City" which had great scientific value. In the game, "The Cube" had been stolen and buried somewhere on Earth.
Rugrats: Scavenger Hunt is an interactive board video game developed by Realtime Associates for the Nintendo 64. It was published by THQ in 1999. The game is based on the Nickelodeon animated television series Rugrats, which aired on the network from 1991 to 2004. It features the original voices from the Rugrats cast reprising their roles as Tommy Pickles, Chuckie Finster, and Phil and Lil DeVille as well as supporting characters Grandpa Lou, Didi and Stu Pickles, Reptar, and series antagonist Angelica Pickles.
Bismarck is a board wargame published by Avalon Hill in 1962 that simulates the hunt for the Bismarck.
X-Blades is an action-adventure game for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. The player assumes the role of Ayumi who wields two pistol-blades. The game was developed by Gaijin Entertainment and was published by SouthPeak Games and TopWare Interactive. It was later released for macOS and Linux on 20 January 2017. The game was originally released in November 2007 by 1C Company in the Russian language for Microsoft Windows, under the title Oniblade (Ониблэйд).
Ripley's Believe It or Not!: The Riddle of Master Lu is a point-and-click adventure game based on Ripley's Believe It or Not! creator Robert Ripley. It was developed and published by Sanctuary Woods in 1995.
Dungeons & Dragons Computer Fantasy Game is a handheld electronic game released by Mattel in 1981. Designer Peter Oliphant claims that it was one of the more basic projects he worked on during his career.
Richard John Denning is an English author of historical novels and fantasy novels. Currently he has published seven novels. The genre of his books are historical fiction, horror, and fantasy. Denning also is a board game designer.
Pierrot, born Tamás Zoltán Marosi is a Hungarian pop singer, computer and tabletop game designer, musician and producer, best known internationally for his video game series AGON and Yoomurjak's Ring. He is also well known in Hungary as a musician, singer-songwriter and producer of several music albums. His own music style is primarily acoustic “adult pop”, while as a producer, he has a colorful portfolio of various styles ranging from world music to alternative rock to reggae and hip-hop. He has also been involved in edutainment and tourism projects such as an interactive sight-seeing game network Kaland&Játék (Adventure&Game). He is author of a book on Asian gastronomy, a series of novels and a story-book for children. The name Pierrot had originally been his nickname. He has been using this alias both as musician and game developer since 1986.
Risen 2: Dark Waters is a fantasy-themed action role-playing game published by Deep Silver as the sequel to Risen by Piranha Bytes. It is a pirate themed game set in a fantasy world where monsters, ancient gods, and voodoo magic exist.
The Amazing Spider-Man is a 2012 action-adventure game. It was developed by Beenox and published by Activision. Based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man and the 2012 film of the same name. It was released on June 26 in North America and on June 29, 2012 in Europe for the Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Nintendo 3DS, Android, iOS, and Microsoft Windows. A version for the Wii U was released in March 2013 in North America and Europe known as The Amazing Spider-Man: Ultimate Edition in both regions. A PlayStation Vita version was released in November 2013.
The Curse of Oak Island is a multi-season reality television series that chronicles a team of treasure hunters run by brothers Marty and Rick Lagina and its search for legendary treasure on Oak Island off the shore of Nova Scotia. The American television production delves into the Oak Island mystery, featuring efforts to search for historical artifacts and treasure.
Syndrome is a science fiction survival horror video game developed by Camel 101 and Bigmoon Entertainment for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Mac, Linux and Nintendo Switch. It takes place inside the "Valkenburg", a drifting spaceship where something has gone wrong, killing most of its crew. The player controls a character that wakes up in the spaceship with no memory of what happened. The player's actions are not limited to running and hiding; in Syndrome the player can also engage in combat, although the available weapons and ammunition are limited. The game also plays heavily with psychological horror: the main character is constantly plagued by visual and auditory hallucinations, never knowing what is real and what is not.
