Moonstone: A Hard Days Knight

Last updated
Moonstone: A Hard Days Knight
Moonstone cover.png
Developer(s) Rob Anderson
Publisher(s) Mindscape
Programmer(s) Rob Anderson
Kevin Hoare
Artist(s) Rob Anderson
Dennis Turner
Composer(s) Richard Joseph
Platform(s) Amiga, DOS
Release
  • EU: 1991 (Amiga)
  • EU: 1992 (DOS)
Genre(s) Action role-playing
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Moonstone: A Hard Days Knight is an action role-playing video game by Canadian [1] independent developer Rob Anderson and published by Mindscape for the Amiga in 1991 and one year later converted to DOS with different sound and music. The title is a play on A Hard Day's Night .

Contents

Moonstone's gameplay blends several different genres, allowing up to four players to participate in a basic turn based game with real time combat for any encounters. It is also notable as one of the goriest games of its time, with some particularly bloody fight and death scenes.

Magazine advertisements for Moonstone purported 'nearly' a thousand frames of animation for two megabytes of monsters, and over 60 different painted backdrops. [2]

Development

In interview Todd Prescott discussed game's concept he stated the game was "a combination of Dungeons & Dragons and the board games, Talisman and Dark Tower." The game's combat was heavily influenced by the action game Barbarian. [3]

Gameplay

The player takes on the role of a chosen knight who is sent by druids to return the mystical 'moonstone' to Stonehenge. The game supports between one and four players at once, with the computer controlling any knights not controlled by human players as rival NPCs. Gameplay consists of two distinct modes: turn-based exploration and real-time combat.

In turn-based mode each player can move a limited distance on the game's world map and visit various locations. Players will mostly visit the many dolmens that are scattered across the map. These places represent areas guarded by monsters. Visiting these dolmens will trigger the second main gameplay mode: real-time combat. Players take control of their chosen knights and attempts to defeat the monsters using sword combat similar to Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior or Sword of Sodan .

Defeating the monsters rewards the player with treasures from that location. Success will also result in gaining one experience point (XP). These then can be distributed in one of the three abilities: Strength, Constitution and Endurance. The required amount of XP needed to advance varies according to the number of human-controlled characters. This, combined with some powerful weapons that can be discovered or bought, can boost the player's combat abilities. However, the difficulty of the game increases to compensate.

The game's objective is to find the lair that holds one of the four keys. The player who gathers together all four keys (either by finding them or by stealing them from rivals) will have access to the Valley of the Gods at the center of the map. The knight will have to fight against the Guardian in order to win a 'moonstone'. The moonstone corresponds randomly to a lunar phase, and grants the knight more power during that phase. The moonstone must be returned to Stonehenge for the game to be completed.

After some days, a dragon will appear and make regular sweeps across the land. In the event that an unskilled player is unfortunate enough to encounter the dragon early on in the game, defeat is almost inevitable.

Reception

When the game was released, it got quite positive reviews from some magazines while some reviewers did not like it at all. Moonstone was banned in Germany due to gameplay being conceived as extremely violent at the time and failed to find a distributor for the US market as well. These days the game has a large cult following among vintage gamers. [15] The game is highly sought after as a collectible. The game was put on the German index by the BPjS. [16]

The One gave the Amiga version of Moonstone an overall score of 82%, praising its graphics and sound effects, calling the introduction "wonderfully animated" and the game's sprites "beautifully animated", furthermore stating that Moonstone is "pleasing to the eye and the ear". The One criticises the hack-and-slash gameplay as somewhat repetitive, but praises the special combat moves, expressing "they open up a good deal more options than the slash 'em up fan is usually presented with". [17]

Related Research Articles

<i>Wonder Boy in Monster Land</i> 1987 video game

Wonder Boy in Monster Land, known by its original arcade release as Wonder Boy: Monster Land, is a platform video game developed by Westone Bit Entertainment and released by Sega in Japanese arcades in 1987 and for the Master System in 1988, with a number of other home computer and console ports following. The game is the sequel to the 1986 game Wonder Boy and takes place eleven years after the events in the previous game. After enjoying over a decade of peace on Wonder Land following the defeat of the evil King by Tom-Tom, later bestowed the title "Wonder Boy", a fire-breathing dragon called the MEKA dragon appeared; he and his minions conquered Wonder Land, turning it into "Monster Land". The people, helpless due to their lack of fighting skill, call for Wonder Boy, now a teenager, to destroy the monsters and defeat the MEKA dragon. Players control Wonder Boy through twelve linear levels as he makes his way through Monster Land to find and defeat the MEKA dragon. Players earn gold by defeating enemies and buy weapons, armor, footwear, magic, and other items to help along the way.

<i>Space Hulk</i> (1993 video game) 1993 video game

Space Hulk is a 1993 real-time tactical video game for MS-DOS, Amiga and PC-98. The game was based on Games Workshop's 1989 board game of the same name. Set in the fictional Warhammer 40,000 universe, the player directs squads of Space Marines, genetically enhanced armoured soldiers, in their missions to protect the human race from deadly aliens. Space Hulk was developed and published by Electronic Arts, with support from Games Workshop.

<i>Might and Magic II: Gates to Another World</i> 1988 video game

Might and Magic II: Gates to Another World is a role-playing video game developed and published by New World Computing in 1988. It is the sequel to Might and Magic Book One: The Secret of the Inner Sanctum.

<i>Aaargh!</i> 1987 video game

Aaargh! is a single-player action video game in which the player controls a giant monster with the goal of obtaining eggs by destroying buildings in different cities across a lost island. It was designed for Mastertronic's Arcadia Systems, an arcade machine based on the custom hardware of the Amiga, and was released in 1987. It was ported to a range of other platforms and released on these across 1988 and 1989. Electronic Arts distributed the Amiga version of the game.

<i>Switchblade II</i> 1991 video game

Switchblade II is a 1991 side-scrolling action-platform run and gun video game originally developed and published by Gremlin Graphics in Europe for the Amiga home computers. It is the sequel to the original Switchblade, which was solely created by Simon Phipps at Core Design and released earlier in 1989 across multiple platforms. Despite being primarily developed in the UK, its graphics had a distinctly Japanese style similar to anime or manga.

<i>Epic</i> (video game) 1992 video game

Epic is a space combat simulation game developed by Digital Image Design and published by Ocean Software for the Commdore Amiga and Atari ST in early 1992. A port to MS-DOS also appeared in the same year, followed by a version for the NEC PC-9801 in 1993. A sequel, titled Inferno, was released in 1994 for PCs only.

<i>Heimdall</i> (video game) 1991 video game

Heimdall is an action role-playing game developed by The 8th Day, published by Core Design, and released in 1991 for the Amiga and for the Atari ST and DOS in 1992, with a console version created for the Sega Mega-CD in early 1994. The game features a mixture of puzzle-solving, exploration, and dynamic combat mechanics, in which players must explore various islands in the search for the fabled weapons belonging to the gods of Norse mythology. The game received favourable reviews upon its release, though the console version was given mixed feedback by reviewers.

<i>Joe & Mac</i> 1991 video game

Joe & Mac, also known as Caveman Ninja and Caveman Ninja: Joe & Mac, is a run and gun platform game released as an arcade video game by Data East in 1991. It was adapted for the Super NES, Mega Drive/Genesis, Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy, Amiga, Zeebo, Nintendo Switch, and IBM PC compatibles.

<i>Jaguar XJ220</i> (video game) 1992 video game

Jaguar XJ220 is a pseudo-3D racing game released by Core Design for the Amiga in 1992 and Mega-CD in 1993. The car featured is the eponymous Jaguar.

<i>Legend</i> (1992 video game) 1992 video game

Legend, also known as The Four Crystals of Trazere in the United States, is an isometric fantasy role-playing game released in 1992 for the Amiga, Atari ST, and DOS. It was developed by Pete James and Anthony Taglione for the then UK-based Mindscape, and published by The Software Toolworks. In the game, the player controls four adventurers on a quest to save the land of Trazere from an ancient, re-awakening evil. In 1993, Mindscape released a sequel, Worlds of Legend: Son of the Empire. The copyrights for both "Legend" and "Worlds of Legend" are currently owned by Ubisoft, who bought them from Mattel Interactive with the rest of the Mindscape library in 2001.

<i>Bomberman</i> (1990 video game) 1990 video game

Bomberman, also known as Dyna Blaster in Europe, is an action-maze video game originally developed and published by Hudson Soft for the PC Engine in Japan on 7 December 1990 and later in North America for the TurboGrafx-16 by NEC in 1991. Belonging to the Bomberman franchise, it is a re-imagining of the first game in the series starring White Bomberman on a quest to rescue Lisa, the kidnapped daughter of his inventor Dr. Mitsumori, from the castle of Black Bomberman while defeating evil monsters and villains that work for him. The game was later ported to home computers, each one featuring changes compared to the original version. Conversions for other platforms were in development but never released. The title garnered positive reception from critics since its initial release on the PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 and later on home computers.

<i>Myth: History in the Making</i> 1989 video game

Myth: History in the Making is a 2D platform game developed and published by British publishing house System 3 for the Commodore 64, Amiga, Amiga CD32, Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum. It was also released on the NES as Conan: The Mysteries of Time. It was officially announced for Atari ST and a preview version was available, but the full version was never released.

<i>Lionheart</i> (video game) 1993 video game

Lionheart is a platform game for the Amiga developed and self-published by German video game developer Thalion Software in 1993. Using a fantasy motif, the game takes place in the land of the Cat People, a race of feline humanoids, who are threatened by the evil Norka. The player assumes control of Valdyn, an outlaw swordsman who is also known as "Lionheart". Players have to fight their way through 14 levels filled with monsters and environmental hazards. Most of the gameplay is melee combat and precision platforming.

<i>Liverpool</i> (video game) 1990 video game

Liverpool is an association football video game released in 1990 for the Amstrad CPC. In 1992, versions were released for the Atari ST, Amiga and MS-DOS platforms. A Commodore 64 port was released in 1993. The game was developed by Arc Developments and published by Grandslam Entertainment. Liverpool is based on the Liverpool F.C. football team. One or two players can play Liverpool.

<i>Barbarian II: The Dungeon of Drax</i> 1988 video game

Barbarian II: The Dungeon of Drax is a video game first published in 1988 for various home computers. It was released as Axe of Rage in North America. The game is the sequel to Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior, which was published in 1987. In Barbarian II, the player controls a princess or barbarian character, exploring the game world to locate and defeat an evil wizard. The game's plot is an extension of its predecessor, although the gameplay is different. While the first game offers two players the opportunity for virtual head-to-head combat, the second is a single-player beat 'em up with fewer fighting moves. It uses a flip-screen style instead of scrolling.

<i>Kingdoms of England II: Vikings, Fields of Conquest</i> 1992 video game

Kingdoms of England II: Vikings, Fields of Conquest is a computer game developed by Realism Entertainment in 1992 for the Amiga and DOS.

<i>Shadowlands</i> (video game) 1992 video game

Shadowlands is a 1992 video game developed by Domark for DOS, Amiga, and Atari ST.

<i>Brutal Sports Football</i> 1993 video game

Brutal Sports Football is a 1993 sports video game developed by Teque London and originally published by Millennium Interactive for the Amiga. It was re-published for MS-DOS and Amiga CD32, and later became the first third-party title published for the Atari Jaguar. The first entry in the Brutal Sports series, the game is a fictional style of football played against human or computer-controlled opponents. It features a different take on american football by emphasising the violent aspect of the sport.

<i>Deathbringer</i> (1991 video game) 1991 video game

Deathbringer is a 1991 side scrolling action game developed by Oxford Digital Enterprises and published by Empire that was released for the Amiga, DOS, and Atari ST.

<i>Ghost Battle</i> 1991 video game

Ghost Battle is a 1991 action-platform video game developed by Interactive Design and published by Thalion Software for the Amiga and ported later to the Atari ST. After finishing Ghost Battle as freelancers, Austrian programmer Erwin Kloibhofer and Dutch graphic designer Henk Nieborg got an in-house job at Thalion. They went on to design another side-scrolling platform game, Lionheart (1993). It received a higher critical reception. Nieborg cited influences for Ghost Battle as Ghosts 'n Goblins, Green Beret, and various horror films.

References

  1. ↑ "Moonstone: A Hard Day's Knight Remake in the Works".
  2. ↑ "Moonstone: A Hard Days Knight Advertisement". The One. No. 40. emap Images. January 1992. p. 29.
  3. ↑ http://www.moonstonetavern.co.uk/legends.htm [ bare URL ]
  4. ↑ "Review". Amiga Action (29). Feb 1992.
  5. ↑ "Review". Amiga Computing (46). Mar 1992.
  6. ↑ "Review". Amiga Force (5). May 1993.
  7. ↑ "Review". Amiga Format (32). Mar 1992.
  8. ↑ "Review". Amiga Format (46). May 1993.
  9. ↑ "Review". Amiga Power (9). Jan 1992.
  10. ↑ "Review". Amiga Power (26). Jun 1993.
  11. ↑ "Review". CU Amiga. Oct 1991.
  12. ↑ "Review". CU Amiga. May 1993.
  13. ↑ "Review". The One (56). May 1993.
  14. ↑ "Review". The One (40). Jan 1992.
  15. ↑ Appears on Top 100 list on LemonAmiga.com website where users rate games
  16. ↑ "BPjS / BPjM indexed games" . Retrieved 2010-12-30.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  17. ↑ "Moonstone: A Hard Days Knight Review". The One. No. 40. emap Images. January 1992. pp. 65–66.
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.