Betrayal in Antara

Last updated
Betrayal in Antara
Betrayal in Antara Cover.jpg
Developer(s) Sierra On-Line
Publisher(s) Sierra On-Line
Producer(s) Steven Lee Miles
Designer(s) Peter Sarrett
Programmer(s) Rikki Cleland-Hura
Emmanuel Schilling
Artist(s) Jimmy Kowalski
Writer(s) Susan Frischer
Peter Sarrett
Composer(s) David Henry
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
ReleaseJune 30, 1997 [1]
Genre(s) Role-playing
Mode(s) Single player

Betrayal in Antara is a Windows 3.1 role-playing video game developed and published by Sierra On-Line in 1997, after the success of their previous RPG, Betrayal at Krondor . Sierra had lost the rights to produce another game based on Raymond Feist's The Riftwar Cycle , and therefore had to create the game world of Ramar. Although it is not a sequel, Betrayal in Antara uses an updated version of Betrayal at Krondor's game engine.[ citation needed ]

Contents

Plot

A ship, the Fair Current, is sailing from Januli to Pianda when it is attacked by pirates. With the ship on fire, the crew and its two passengers abandon ship. William Escobar finds himself in the same lifeboat as the other passenger, a joyman named Gregor. They make it to shore but are attacked by a magical griffin. Gregor is mortally wounded. While fishing, Aren Cordelaine sees William fighting off the griffin and, trying to help, unintentionally kills the creature with a blast of magic. Before he dies, Gregor gives William a medallion and warns him that the Imperial Consort is in danger. William asks Aren to accompany him home so Aren can learn how to control his powers from the Escobars' court mage Finch. Aren agrees and the two of them set out for Panizo. In the forest near town, they save a woman, Kaelyn Usher, from bandits. She decides to join them. When they reach Panizo, William informs his father of Aren's help as well as Gregor's message. Learning that Prince Farril will be traveling to Antara for his wedding to Princess Aurora, William wants to go to Ticoro and warn him.

William, Aren, and Kaelyn sneak out of Panizo early the next morning and head to Midova, where Aren starts his magical training with Finch. They arrive in Ticoro in the middle of the spring festival and learn that Prince Farril is in the city, though his location is a secret. William, Aren, and Kaelyn meet Kaelyn's friends, Raal and Fellich Marr, head of the church of Henne. They discover where Prince Farril is staying and attempt to warn him, but Lord Caverton and the guards ignore them. They return to their inn, but are awoken in the middle of the night by Caverton's guards, who inform them that Farril has been kidnapped. Having known about it beforehand, William, Aren, and Kaelyn are arrested as the primary suspects.

Raal springs William, Aren, and Kaelyn from prison and informs Kaelyn that wraiths are attacking people in the Ridgewood and her father Garvin has disappeared. Kaelyn leaves with Raal to find her father, promising to meet up with William and Aren when she is done. William and Aren suspect the Shepherds of kidnapping Prince Farril and follow their trail through Ticor and Chuno, eventually learning about their secret headquarters.

Kaelyn and Raal head to Kaelyn's home in the Ridgewood. Following a note from her father, they discover Garvin's magical workshop in a cave. Garvin informs his daughter that the wraiths in the forest are possessing humans and creatures and driving them mad. With Garvin's help, Kaelyn and Raal find and destroy all the wraiths.

William and Aren find Gar Warren, leader of the Shepherds. Warren says that Farril was taken by a traitorous Shepherd magician. Imperial soldiers storm the caverns and Warren escapes. William and Aren follow, but lose him in the tunnels. They discover that Farril has been taken by a band of Chinese mercenaries. Posing as new recruits, they are taken to the cabin where he is held, kept in a magical sleep. After Aren dispels the enchantment, the three of them escape and meet up with Kaelyn and Raal. Raal returns home while William, Aren, Kaelyn, and Farril continue on to Antara.

During the presentation of Prince Farril to the Emperor, a wraith appears out of Farril's body and attacks the Emperor. The Shadows, the Emperor's magicians, fight it off but the creature takes the souls of Farril and Princess Aurora and escapes from the palace. Farril and Aurora are placed in stasis. The Emperor asks William, Aren, and Kaelyn to save Farril and Aurora. Realizing that the attack on the Fair Current was meant for Gregor, they head to Januli to unravel the mystery behind Gregor's death and the assassination attempt on the Emperor.

Tracking down the Fair Current's crew as well as Gregor's mistress, William, Aren, and Kaelyn learn that Gregor spent much of his time in Havesly, the capital of Januli. In Havesly they discover that Gregor was a spy for Lord Caverton, whose entry into the salt trade was driving House Sheffield to the brink of bankruptcy. Desperate to save her family from financial ruin, Selana Sheffield employed pirates, allowing them harbor in Januli by forging her father's signature. Selana planned to kidnap Prince Farril and hold him for ransom, joining the Shepherds to carry it out. Gregor discovered her plans so she arranged to have him killed. William, Aren, and Kaelyn arrive at the Sheffields' castle to find it under attack by pirates. They find Lord Sheffield and Selana, pursued by an assassin named Petrov who is killed by Lord Sheffield. They learn that Petrov was sent by someone named Silver Hawk to cover their tracks by killing Selana and court mage Calvert Bryce. Questioning Selana, William learns that while she was responsible for the pirate attack, she knows nothing about the griffin. Several months earlier, a griffin had been sighted in Januli and Bryce had reportedly disposed of it. Realizing that Bryce sent the griffin to attack Gregor and the wraith to kill the Emperor, William, Aren, and Kaelyn enter the salt mines behind the castle and follow them to Bryce's workshop.

Bryce tells them that he tried to kill the Emperor out of revenge because the Shadows had humiliated him when they forbade his ethereal travel research. He continued anyway, but by traveling to the ethereal world to capture a wraith, Bryce allowed a few to escape into Ramar, where they appeared in the Ridgewood. Selana's plan to kidnap the Consort happened to provide a vessel for the wraith to strike at the Emperor. Before they can learn how to get Farril and Aurora's souls back, Bryce commits suicide. Using Bryce's notes, Aren summons the wraith. The wraith refuses to return the souls so Lord Sheffield and Selana, feeling responsible for the turmoil that has occurred, volunteer to give up their souls instead. The wraith takes the deal in exchange for the promise that humans will never disturb the wraiths again.

Two months later, William, Aren, and Kaelyn reunite in Ticoro for Farril and Aurora's wedding. William has been busy working for his father, Aren has become Finch's apprentice, and Kaelyn has been appointed ambassador to the Grrrlf in Antara. During the ceremony, William and Aren notice the silver hawk on Fellich Marr's staff. William realizes that Marr was Silver Hawk, but due to his political influence and lack of evidence, they are powerless to do anything. With those directly involved (Bryce, Selana, Petrov) in his conspiracy dead, Fellich Marr has little fear of being connected to the attempted murder.

Development

Betrayal in Antara on the cover of Interaction, a fan magazine by Sierra On-Line. Interaction-Magazine-1997-Summer.jpg
Betrayal in Antara on the cover of Interaction, a fan magazine by Sierra On-Line.

In 1994 Dynamix canceled sequel plans [2] and sold the Riftwar rights back to Raymond Feist due to poor floppy disc sales of Betrayal at Krondor, but after the game's re-release on CD-ROM sold exceptionally well, the company wanted to do a sequel. It thus attempted to create a game which evoked a very similar feel to Betrayal at Krondor without using the same game world. [3] To create the backgrounds, the development team took photos of different landscapes, then touched them up with 3D tools to make them appear like paintings. [3]

7th Level announced their fully licensed sequel to Betrayal at Krondor, Return to Krondor , just a few weeks after Betrayal in Antara was announced. [4]

Reception

Between January 1998 and July 1998 alone, Betrayal in Antara sold 52,309 copies and earned $674,058 in the United States. [5]

Next Generation rating the game three stars out of five, and stated that "Krondor was an excellent game, and Antara succeeds it in the fashion of Doom II. Not too much has been added, but a great game like Krondor doesn't need too many new features." [6]

GameSpot gave Betrayal in Antara a score of 6.6/10, commenting that despite being "one of the first RPGs to utilize high-resolution SVGA graphics, the graphics are, frankly, as ugly as an orc." Although they said the story is well-developed, they judged the game "perhaps one of the most linear RPGs ever made" with the gameplay "more than a little frustrating." However, they praised the interface and skill systems as being "topnotch." [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pope Innocent III</span> Head of the Catholic Church from 1198 to 1216

Pope Innocent III, born Lotario dei Conti di Segni, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 until his death on 16 July 1216.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sun Quan</span> King and founding Emperor of the Eastern Wu kingdom (r. 222–252)

Sun Quan, courtesy name Zhongmou (仲謀), posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of the Eastern Wu dynasty, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime established by his elder brother, Sun Ce, in 200. He declared formal independence and ruled from November 222 to May 229 as the King of Wu and from May 229 to May 252 as the Emperor of Wu. Unlike his rivals Cao Cao and Liu Bei, Sun Quan was much younger than they were and governed his state mostly separate of politics and ideology. He is sometimes portrayed as neutral considering he adopted a flexible foreign policy between his two rivals with the goal of pursuing the greatest interests for the country.

<i>The Chronicles of Amber</i> Fantasy book series

The Chronicles of Amber is a series of fantasy novels by American writer Roger Zelazny. The main series consists of two story arcs, each five novels in length. Additionally, there are a number of Amber short stories and other works. While Zelazny's will expressly forbade sequels by other authors, four posthumous prequels authorized by Zelazny's family were authored by John Gregory Betancourt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Five Forks</span> 1865 battle during the American Civil War

The Battle of Five Forks was fought on April 1, 1865, southwest of Petersburg, Virginia, around the road junction of Five Forks, Dinwiddie County, at the end of the Siege of Petersburg, near the conclusion of the American Civil War.

The concept of self-replicating spacecraft, as envisioned by mathematician John von Neumann, has been described by futurists and has been discussed across a wide breadth of hard science fiction novels and stories. Self-replicating probes are sometimes referred to as von Neumann probes. Self-replicating spacecraft would in some ways either mimic or echo the features of living organisms or viruses.

<i>Betrayal at Krondor</i> 1993 video game

Betrayal at Krondor is an MS-DOS-based role-playing video game developed by Dynamix and released by Sierra On-Line in the summer of 1993. Betrayal at Krondor takes place largely in Midkemia, the fantasy world developed by Raymond E. Feist in his Riftwar novels. The game is designed to resemble a book, separated into chapters and narrated in the third-person with a quick-save bookmark feature.

<i>Mighty Ducks: The Animated Series</i> American animated television series

Mighty Ducks is an American animated television series that aired on ABC and the syndicated programming block The Disney Afternoon, the last show produced by the block, in the fall of 1996. The show was loosely inspired by the live-action Mighty Ducks films and the eponymous National Hockey League team, the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, as well as the affiliate American Hockey League team, the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks. Unlike the films and the hockey teams, the show was about a team of anthropomorphic hockey-playing ducks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David North (character)</span> Mutant comic book character

David North is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He was originally known as Maverick, and more recently as Agent Zero. The character first appeared in X-Men #5 and was created by writer John Byrne and co-writer/artist Jim Lee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cersei Lannister</span> Character in A Song of Ice and Fire

Cersei Lannister is a fictional character in the A Song of Ice and Fire series of epic fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin, and its television adaptation Game of Thrones, where she is portrayed by actress Lena Headey. Introduced in 1996's A Game of Thrones, Cersei is a member of House Lannister, one of the wealthiest and most powerful families on the continent of Westeros. She subsequently appears in A Clash of Kings (1998) and A Storm of Swords (2000), and becomes a prominent point of view character beginning with A Feast for Crows (2005). Cersei will continue to be a point-of-view character in the forthcoming volume The Winds of Winter.

<i>Return to Krondor</i> 1998 video game

Return to Krondor is a role-playing video game set in Raymond Feist's fictional fantasy setting of Midkemia. A sequel to 1993's Betrayal at Krondor, it was released for Windows on the PC in time for the 1998 Thanksgiving and Christmas season. Within the game, the player commands a group of heroes with different attributes, strengths, and weaknesses which the player may upgrade over the course of the game.

<i>W.I.T.C.H.</i> (TV series) French animated television series

W.I.T.C.H. is an animated television series based on the Italian comic book series of the same name published by Disney Publishing Worldwide. It was produced by SIP Animation and The Walt Disney Company, with the participation of France Télévisions and Jetix Europe. The show follows five girls – Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, and Hay Lin – who have respective magical powers over the classical elements quintessence, water, fire, earth and air, which they use to fulfill their duties as Guardians of the Veil. It takes place in the fictional city of Heatherfield and various mythical worlds, primarily Meridian.

Characters of the <i>Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic</i> series

The video games Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (2003) and Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (2004) features a large cast of characters noted for its diversity and is the subject of significant discussion from gaming magazines and websites.

<i>Vandal Hearts II</i> 1999 video game

Vandal Hearts II, known in Japan as Vandal Hearts II: Tenjō no Mon, is a tactical role-playing game for the PlayStation and the sequel to Vandal Hearts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor</span> Holy Roman Emperor (r. 1111–1125) of the Salian dynasty

Henry V was King of Germany and Holy Roman Emperor, as the fourth and last ruler of the Salian dynasty. He was made co-ruler by his father, Henry IV, in 1098.

<i>Days Gone</i> 2019 video game

Days Gone is a 2019 action-adventure video game developed by Bend Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. The game was released for the PlayStation 4 in April 2019. A Windows port was released in May 2021.

Lord Viren is a fictional character from the Netflix animated fantasy television series The Dragon Prince. The character was created by the show's co-creators Aaron Ehasz and Justin Richmond, and is voiced by Jason Simpson.

The Story of Princess Zeineb and King Leopard is a French language fairy tale published in the 18th century. The tale belongs to the international cycle of the Animal as Bridegroom as a subtype, with few variants reported across Europe.

References

  1. ↑ "Sierra Ships Antara". PC Gamer . June 30, 1997. Archived from the original on February 18, 1998. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  2. ↑ Harmel, Dana (April 1994). "New Riftwar In Krondor?". Letters from Paradise. Computer Gaming World. p. 142.
  3. 1 2 "Antara". Next Generation . No. 15. Imagine Media. March 1996. pp. 50–51.
  4. ↑ "Return to Krondor". Next Generation . No. 16. Imagine Media. April 1996. p. 77.
  5. ↑ Staff (November 1998). "Letters; Mys-Adventures". Computer Gaming World . No. 172. p. 34.
  6. ↑ "Finals". Next Generation . No. 34. Imagine Media. October 1997. pp. 175, 177.
  7. ↑ Desslock. "Betrayal in Antara Review". GameSpot. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.