The Runes of Zendos

Last updated
The Runes of Zendos
The Runes of Zendos cover.jpg
Developer(s) Dorcas Software
Publisher(s) Dorcas Software
Platform(s) ZX Spectrum
Release1984
Genre(s) Action-adventure

The Runes of Zendos is a 1984 video game published by Dorcas Software. It is the sequel to The Oracle's Cave.

Contents

Gameplay

The Runes of Zendos is a game in which the merry principality of Dorcasia is conquered by the evil wizard of Zendos, and the player must rescue the twelve months that the wizard has trapped in a hidden hourglass. [1]

Reception

D J Robinson reviewed The Runes of Zendos for Imagine magazine, and stated that "Runes of Zendos is one step beyond Dorcas' last release. By incorporating traditional adventure features with their own unique ideas, they have managed to produce a very good game." [1]

Reviews

Related Research Articles

<i>Dungeons & Dragons</i> Fantasy role-playing game

Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally created and designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TSR). It has been published by Wizards of the Coast, later a subsidiary of Hasbro, since 1997. The game was derived from miniature wargames, with a variation of the 1971 game Chainmail serving as the initial rule system. D&D's publication is commonly recognized as the beginning of modern role-playing games and the role-playing game industry, and also deeply influenced video games, especially the role-playing video game genre.

<i>Star Frontiers</i> Science fiction tabletop role-playing game

Star Frontiers is a science fiction role-playing game produced by TSR from 1982 to 1985. The game offers a space opera action-adventure setting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TSR, Inc.</span> Former company, publisher of "Dungeons & Dragons"

TSR, Inc. was an American game publishing company, best known as the original publisher of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D). Its earliest incarnation, Tactical Studies Rules, was founded in October 1973 by Gary Gygax and Don Kaye. Gygax had been unable to find a publisher for D&D, a new type of game he and Dave Arneson were co-developing, so he founded the new company with Kaye to self-publish their products. Needing financing to bring their new game to market, Gygax and Kaye brought in Brian Blume in December as an equal partner. Dungeons & Dragons is generally considered the first tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG), and established the genre. When Kaye died suddenly in 1975, the Tactical Studies Rules partnership restructured into TSR Hobbies, Inc. and accepted investment from Blume's father Melvin. With the popular D&D as its main product, TSR Hobbies became a major force in the games industry by the late 1970s. Melvin Blume eventually transferred his shares to his other son Kevin, making the two Blume brothers the largest shareholders in TSR Hobbies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave Arneson</span> American game designer (1947–2009)

David Lance Arneson was an American game designer best known for co-developing the first published role-playing game (RPG), Dungeons & Dragons, with Gary Gygax, in the early 1970s. Arneson's early work was fundamental to the role-playing game (RPG) genre, pioneering devices now considered to be archetypical, such as cooperative play to develop a storyline instead of individual competitive play to "win" and adventuring in dungeon, town, and wilderness settings as presented by a neutral judge who doubles as the voice and consciousness of all characters aside from the player characters.

<i>Chaos: The Battle of Wizards</i> 1985 video game

Chaos: The Battle of Wizards is a turn-based tactics video game released for the ZX Spectrum in 1985. It was written by Julian Gollop and originally published by Games Workshop. Based on Gollop's 1982 design for a board game / card game hybrid, Chaos received a positive reception and went on to influence various games, including Darwinia and King's Bounty, and spawned a sequel, Lords of Chaos, in 1990.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">System Reference Document</span> Set or subset of role-playing mechanics available under an open license

In the open gaming movement, a System Reference Document (SRD) is a reference for a role-playing game's mechanics licensed under a public copyright license to allow other publishers to make material compatible with that game. In 2000, Wizards of the Coast pioneered this by releasing a SRD for Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition under their Open Game License (OGL).

Several different editions of the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) fantasy role-playing game have been produced since 1974. The current publisher of D&D, Wizards of the Coast, produces new materials only for the most current edition of the game. However, many D&D fans continue to play older versions of the game and some third-party companies continue to publish materials compatible with these older editions.

<i>Unearthed Arcana</i> AD&D supplement by Gary Gygax

Unearthed Arcana is the title shared by two hardback books published for different editions of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Both were designed as supplements to the core rulebooks, containing material that expanded upon other rules.

<i>Ranarama</i> 1987 video game

Ranarama is a top-down Gauntlet-like action game developed by Graftgold and published by Hewson Consultants in 1987. It was released for the Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum home computers. The title appears to be a pun on rana, a genus of frogs. The game concept is similar to a previous game by Steve Turner for the ZX Spectrum called Quazatron, which was itself inspired by Paradroid, created by Turner's Graftgold colleague Andrew Braybrook.

<i>Dragons of Autumn Twilight</i> 1984 novel by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman

Dragons of Autumn Twilight is a 1984 fantasy novel by American writers Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, based on a series of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) game modules. It was the first Dragonlance novel, and first in the Chronicles trilogy, which, along with the Dragonlance Legends trilogy, are generally regarded as the core novels of the Dragonlance world. Dragons of Autumn Twilight details the meeting of the Companions and the early days of The War of the Lance. The novel corresponds with the first two Dragonlance game modules, Dragons of Despair and Dragons of Flame, but with a different ending. It introduces many of the characters that are the subject of later novels and short stories.

The Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) fantasy role-playing game has been adapted into many related products, including magazines, films and video games.

<i>To Find a King</i> Dungeons & Dragons adventure module

To Find a King is an adventure module for the first edition of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It was written by Bob Blake and published in 1985 by TSR. As part of the Competition, or C-series of modules, it contains material that was first used as a tournament adventure at Gen Con XVI. The module is designed for a party of ten characters at levels 4–7 and can be run as either a competition module or as part of a campaign.

<i>Dragons of Despair</i> 1984 book by Tracy Hickman

Dragons of Despair is the first in a series of 16 Dragonlance adventures published by TSR, Inc. (TSR) between 1984 and 1988. It is the start of the first major story arc in the Dragonlance series of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) role-playing game modules, a series of ready-to-play adventures for use by Dungeon Masters in the game. This series provides a game version of the original Dragonlance storyline later told in the Dragonlance Chronicles trilogy of novels. This module corresponds to the events told in the first half of the novel Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Its module code is DL1, which is used to designate it as the first part of the Dragonlance adventure series.

<i>Journey to the Rock</i> Dungeons & Dragons adventure module

Journey to the Rock is an adventure module written by Michael Malone and published by TSR, Inc. in 1985, for the Basic Rules of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It is intended for player characters of level 1-3.

<i>Dungeons & Dragons Expert Set</i> Tabletop role-playing game supplement for Dungeons & Dragons

The Expert Set is an expansion boxed set for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It was first published in 1981 as an expansion to the Basic Set.

<i>The Wrath of Magra</i> 1984 video game

The Wrath of Magra is a role-playing video game published by Carnell Software for the ZX Spectrum in 1984. It is a sequel to 1983's Volcanic Dungeon.

<i>Phantasie</i> 1985 video game

Phantasie is the first video game in the Phantasie series.

<i>The Curse on Hareth</i> Role-playing game supplement

The Curse on Hareth is a generic role-playing game adventure published by The Companions in 1982, the first in the five-part "Islandia Campaign" series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures</span> Role-playing game accessory

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures is a line of miniatures produced under license by a number of companies and published by TSR for use with the fantasy role-playing game Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D).

<i>Clueso</i> 1985 video game

Clues'o' is a 1985 murder mystery video game developed and published by Imperial Software.

References

  1. 1 2 Robinson, D J (March 1985). "Micro Reviews". Imagine (review) (24). TSR Hobbies (UK), Ltd.: 39.
  2. Game review, Crash issue 12, January 1985, page 124
  3. "Crash - No. 12 (1985-01)(Newsfield)(GB)". January 1985.