| Hellfire Warrior | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Automated Simulations |
| Series | Dunjonquest |
| Platform(s) | Apple II, Atari 8-bit, TRS-80, PET |
| Release | 1980: TRS-80, PET, Apple II 1982: Atari 8-bit [1] |
| Genre(s) | Dungeon crawl RPG |
Hellfire Warrior is a dungeon crawl video game for the Apple II, Commodore PET, and TRS-80 published by Automated Simulations in 1980. An Atari 8-bit family port was released in 1982. [1] Hellfire Warrior is the direct sequel to 1979's Temple of Apshai .
Hellfire Warrior leads players into the ruins that are unearthed below the Temple of Apshai. The levels are "The Lower Reaches of Apshai", "The Labyrinth" of the minotaur, "The Vault of the Dead" and "The Plains of Hell". [2] Only the first and third levels have room numbers and descriptions. The game is meant for expert players and characters who already explored all the levels of Temple of Apshai; [3] advertisements warned that "newcomers to Dunjonquest should begin with something easier". [4] The complexity is also increased, with more shops and several new strengthening potions, some of which can give the player character an addiction. [5] While the focus is still mostly on becoming stronger and richer, the last level also has the secondary objective of rescuing a princess from hell, who is represented as a particularly heavy treasure. [6] There is still no ending trigger related to this goal, though. [5]
Forrest Johnson reviewed Hellfire Warrior in The Space Gamer No. 38. [7] Johnson commented that "I won't forget my last view of Sanson - badly wounded, crawling desperately towards the exit, with sweet-but-cumbersome Brynhild in tow and an outraged fiend at his heels. If you enjoyed the earlier games, Hellfire Warrior is a must." [7]
Computer Gaming World in 1993 stated that Hellfire Warrior was "better than Apshai, but not by too much", criticizing the outcome of rescuing the princess. [8]
The first expansion pack to Hellfire Warrior is The Keys of Acheron by designer Paul Reiche III. In it, the player attempts to recover four magical gems (the eponymous keys) for the wizard Abosandrus in order to prevent the immortal demon Kronus from invading the Earth. Kronus pursues the player through the four levels: "Abode of the Dragon", "The Temple in the Jungle", "The Crystal Caves", and "The Shadowland of Kronus." [10]
The second expansion pack for Hellfire Warrior is Danger in Drindisti by designer Rudy Kraft. In it, the player attempts to defeat four enemies of the wizard Yoturni, the Wizard King of Drindisti. Since a lack of room descriptions in level 6 and 8 are a restriction of the Hellfire Warrior program, the dungeons were built around that fact and are suggested to be played out of order: "The Glass Wizard" (level 7), "The Abode of the Illusionist" (level 6), "The Temple of the Demonmaster" (level 9), and "The Realm of Mist" (level 8). [11]
The Temple of Elemental Evil is an adventure module for the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, set in the game's World of Greyhawk campaign setting. The module was published by TSR, Inc. in 1985 for the first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules. It was written by Gary Gygax and Frank Mentzer, and is an expansion of an earlier Gygax module, The Village of Hommlet. The Temple of Elemental Evil is also the title of a related 2001 Thomas M. Reid novel and an Atari computer game.
Epyx, Inc. was a video game developer and publisher active in the late 1970s and 1980s. The company was founded as Automated Simulations by Jim Connelly and Jon Freeman, originally using Epyx as a brand name for action-oriented games before renaming the company to match in 1983. Epyx published a long series of games through the 1980s. The company is currently owned by Bridgestone Multimedia Group Global.
Temple of Apshai is a dungeon crawl role-playing video game developed and published by Automated Simulations in 1979. Originating on the TRS-80 and Commodore PET, it was followed by several updated versions for other computers between 1980 and 1986.
The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight is a fantasy role-playing video game created by Interplay Productions in 1986. It is the first sequel to The Bard's Tale, and the last game of the series that was designed and programmed by Michael Cranford.
Wizard's Crown is a 1986 top-down role-playing video game published by Strategic Simulations. It was released for the Atari 8-bit, Atari ST, IBM PC compatibles, Apple II, and Commodore 64. A sequel, The Eternal Dagger, was released in 1987.
Rescue at Rigel is a 1980 science fiction role-playing video game written and published by Automated Simulations. It is based on a modified version of their Temple of Apshai game engine, which was used for most of their releases in this era. The game was released for the Apple II, IBM PC, TRS-80, Commodore PET, VIC-20, and Atari 8-bit family.
Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord is the first game in the Wizardry series of role-playing video games. It was developed by Andrew Greenberg and Robert Woodhead. In 1980, Norman Sirotek formed Sir-Tech Software, Inc. and launched a beta version of the product at the 1980 Boston Computer Convention. The final version of the game was released in 1981.
The Eternal Dagger is a top-down role-playing video game published by Strategic Simulations in 1987. It is a sequel to Wizard's Crown from 1986. Demons from another dimension are invading the world, and the only item that can seal the portal is the titular dagger. Players can transfer their characters over from Wizard's Crown, minus whatever magical items they had on them.
Gateway to Apshai is an action-adventure game for the Commodore 64, ColecoVision and Atari 8-bit family, developed by The Connelley Group and published by Epyx as a prequel to Temple of Apshai. It is a more action-oriented version of Temple of Apshai, with smoother and faster graphics, streamlined controls, fewer role-playing video game elements, and fewer room descriptions.
Telengard is a 1982 role-playing dungeon crawler video game developed by Daniel Lawrence and published by Avalon Hill. The player explores a dungeon, fights monsters with magic, and avoids traps in real-time without any set mission other than surviving. Lawrence first wrote the game as DND, a 1976 version of Dungeons & Dragons for the DECsystem-10 mainframe computer. He continued to develop DND at Purdue University as a hobby, rewrote the game for the Commodore PET 2001 after 1978, and ported it to Apple II+, TRS-80, and Atari 800 platforms before Avalon Hill found the game at a convention and licensed it for distribution. Its Commodore 64 release was the most popular. Reviewers noted Telengard's similarity to Dungeons and Dragons. RPG historian Shannon Appelcline noted the game as one of the first professionally produced computer role-playing games, and Gamasutra's Barton considered Telengard consequential in what he deemed "The Silver Age" of computer role-playing games preceding the golden age of the late 1980s. Some of the game's dungeon features, such as altars, fountains, teleportation cubes, and thrones, were adopted by later games such as Tunnels of Doom (1982).
Star Warrior is a 1980 science fiction role-playing video game written and published by Automated Simulations for the Apple II, TRS-80, and Atari 8-bit family. The game is branded as part of the Starquest series, consisting of Star Warrior and the otherwise unrelated Rescue at Rigel.
Dandy is a dungeon crawl maze game for the Atari 8-bit family published by the Atari Program Exchange in 1983. It is one of the first video games with four-player, simultaneous cooperative play. Players equipped with bows and unlimited arrows fight through a maze containing monsters, monster spawners, keys, locked doors, food, and bombs in search of the exit leading to the next level. If a player dies, they can be revived by finding and shooting a heart. The game includes an editor for making new dungeons.
Temple of Apshai Trilogy is a remake of three games from the Dunjonquest series, Temple of Apshai, Upper Reaches of Apshai, and Curse of Ra.
Dunjonquest is a series of single-player, single-character fantasy computer role-playing games by Automated Simulations. Temple of Apshai was the most successful and most widely ported game in the series. The games relied on strategy and pen & paper RPG style rules and statistics.
The Datestones of Ryn is a role-playing video game released in 1979 for the Apple II, Commodore PET, and TRS-80 by Automated Simulations. The Datestones of Ryn was the second title in the Dunjonquest series, but was actually a prequel to the first game, Temple of Apshai. Like its predecessor, this game was written in BASIC.
Dragon's Eye is a 1981 fantasy role-playing video game published by Automated Simulations for the Apple II, Atari 8-bit family, and Commodore PET.
Sorcerer of Siva is a 1981 video game published by Automated Simulations for the Apple II and TRS-80. The last standalone Dunjonquest game, Sorcerer of Siva is not as large as the major releases in the series, but also not as small as the MicroQuests.
Phantasie is the first video game in the Phantasie series.
Questron is a 1984 game from Strategic Simulations, the first fantasy title from a company known for computer wargames. It was written by Charles Dougherty and Gerald Wieczorek and released for the Apple II, Atari 8-bit family, and Commodore 64. A sequel, Questron II, was released in 1988.
Fortress is a video game published by Strategic Simulations in 1983 for the Atari 8-bit family and Apple II. It was written by Jim Templeman and Patty Denbrook. A Commodore 64 port followed in 1984.