Silverload

Last updated
Silverload
Silverload cover.png
European DOS cover art
Developer(s) Millennium Interactive
Publisher(s)
Producer(s) Chris Elliott
Ian Saunter
Designer(s) Jason Wilson
Programmer(s) Keith Hook
Artist(s) Jason Wilson
Mark Rafter
Writer(s) Jason Wilson
Composer(s) Richard Joseph
Platform(s) DOS, PlayStation
Release1995 (DOS)
1996 (PS)
Genre(s) Adventure
Mode(s) Single-player

Silverload is a graphic adventure video game developed by Millennium Interactive and published by Psygnosis in Europe and Vic Tokai in North America. The game was released in 1995. The player controls, via a first person perspective, a Wild West cowboy as he ventures into a haunted town in order to save a child that was taken from his parents. The U.S.-based Entertainment Software Rating Board gave the game a "M" rating for its graphic violence, blood and gore, and bits of profanity. The game was released for the personal computer in Europe, and the original PlayStation edition was given an international release.

Contents

Plot

In 1879, a half-Native American bounty hunter known as "The Gunslinger" is hired by a travelling settler to rescue his son, Ben, who was kidnapped by supernatural raiders. Following the raiders' trail, the Gunslinger arrives in Silverload, a mysterious silver mining town that the settlers had previously visited. In the town's hotel, he meets Leo Remmington, an archeologist hired by the town; Leo explains that his partner, Carl Whitehead, believed the town to be cursed and has now disappeared. Meanwhile, the Sheriff is ordered by Silverload's Preacher to find Whitehead, and eliminate the Gunslinger.

The Gunslinger goes on to explore the town the next day, gathering items, meeting the townsfolk and having more strange encounters. In the tavern, he meets Sheila, the Sheriff's mistress, who offers her assistance in saving Ben. In an abandoned blacksmith's shop, he comes across Carl Whitehead, slowly losing his mind and undergoing transformation into a vampire. The Gunslinger manages to subdue Whitehead with a bucket of pig's blood, allowing him to flee; reading his journal, he learns that the archeologists were hired to remove the Native American remains underneath the hotel, before Whitehead was infected by one of the townsfolk while exploring.

Entering the town hall, the Gunslinger witnesses the Mayor's transformation into a werewolf. Reading his journal, he learns that the Mayor, Sheriff and Preacher orchestrated the massacre of a nearby Native American tribe. The sole survivor of the massacre, a Native shaman, then cursed the townsfolk to be unable to leave Silverload and transform into monstrous creatures harmed by silver; in response, the Preacher formed The Order, a satanic cult seeking the means by which to escape the town. By examining the remains underneath the hotel, the Gunslinger acquires a skull holding a Native spirit, which asks to be buried at a shrine. At the graveyard, the Gunslinger discovers the bodies of his adoptive parents; the spirit explains that they were killed by the Sheriff while they were visiting Silverload, and the Gunslinger swears vengeance.

Reuniting with Sheila, the Gunslinger learns that the Sheriff captured her father to force her compliance and sire her into a vampire. He agrees to help Sheila and spends the night with her; if not wearing the silver pendant, Sheila will sire him as well, forcing the Gunslinger to use a temporary cure to the transformation. The Gunslinger travels with Sheila to Silverload's mining camp, where captured humans are being forced to work, and rescues Sheila's father. Within the mines, he acquires dynamite and silver to use against the townsfolk. By burying the skull at the mountain shrine, he meets a powerful spirit named Wolfstar, and convinces him to destroy Silverload for good.

The Sheriff attempts to capture the Gunslinger by threatening Sheila and her father, but is deterred by dynamite. In response, he kills both Sheila and her father with silver bullets. Using a train boiler and a bullet mould, the Gunslinger fashions silver bullets of his own, and defeats the Sheriff in a final showdown. He then infiltrates Silverload's church, where the Preacher attempts to free himself from the town by offering Ben as a sacrifice. Instead, the Gunslinger rescues Ben, kills the Preacher and his minions, and demolishes the church using the leftover dynamite. Wolfstar destroys Silverload, while the Gunslinger and Ben escape.

Gameplay

As is the case with other graphic adventure games, progress in Silverload involves finding and interacting with various "hot spots" in order to pick up objects, solve puzzles and interact with (or kill) the various characters in the town. Picking up certain objects will cause the game's (and town's) clock to move forward, and thus, the trick to success is to pick up the right items in the precise order. Otherwise, the player must restart the game from the beginning, or from the last save point.

Reception

The initial European PC release was universally panned by critics. Just Adventure gave it an F grade, and listed it as one of the five worst adventure games of all-time in their Dungeon of Shame feature. [3] The review stated that the "few minor details" of "jerky animation, incoherent puzzles, bad interface and horrendous lip-synching ... separate Silverload from the gaming classics," and attested the one redeeming factor was its plot. [3]

The PlayStation release, however, was not a direct port, but an entire reworking of the title that actually received a few positive reviews. [4] Scary Larry gave it a heavily mixed review in GamePro . He lambasted the graphics and sounds, citing poor illustrations for the static graphics and offensive ethnic stereotypes in the voice acting, but said the gameplay is more interesting than most point-and-click adventures. He recommended that players rent the game rather than buy it. [5] Unlike Scary Larry, a reviewer for Next Generation was actually pleased with the illustrations, saying they "give even the relatively 'normal' scenes in the game a strange, ethereal glow." He also praised the dialogue, challenge, and generally chilling atmosphere, though he criticized that the hot-spot based interface makes the control difficult even when using the PlayStation Mouse. He summarized Silverload as "a game that, while following a genre's conventions, simply does everything smashingly well." [2] IGN was also positive, claiming "Great graphics and a compelling horror story set in the Old West make for a truly remarkable game." Like Next Generation, they found the game's one major flaw to be the hot-spot based interface, concurring that using the PlayStation Mouse does not help the problem. [1]

In a 2012 retrospective feature, John Szczepaniak of Hardcore Gaming 101 claimed the "PSOne update, has a number of clever ideas to separate itself from the adventure game pack" and praised its "good ideas, fantastic setting, great script and suitable voice acting", also stating "the 3D shooting sections are very slick and extremely awesome." [6] The game is also occasionally listed for being one of the weirdest western works ever created, [7] [8] and the PlayStation version is also considered a collectable for being one of only a handful of titles released in the bumpy-cased longbox packaging. [6] [9] [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gunfighter</span> Gun wielders in the American Old West

Gunfighters, also called gunslingers, or in the 19th and early 20th centuries gunmen, were individuals in the American Old West who gained a reputation of being dangerous with a gun and participated in gunfights and shootouts. Today, the term "gunslinger" is more or less used to denote someone who is quick on the draw with a pistol, but can also refer to riflemen and shotgun messengers. The gunfighter is also one of the most popular characters in the Western genre and has appeared in associated films, video games, and literature.

<i>Red Dead Revolver</i> 2004 video game

Red Dead Revolver is a 2004 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar San Diego and published by Rockstar Games. It is the first entry in the Red Dead series, and was released for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in May 2004. Set in the 1880s, during the American frontier, the single-player story follows bounty hunter Red Harlow's quest for revenge after the murder of his parents. A local multiplayer mode allows up to two players to face off against each other or AI-controlled bots in free-for-all battles.

<i>Freddy Pharkas: Frontier Pharmacist</i> 1993 video game

Freddy Pharkas: Frontier Pharmacist is a comic Old West adventure computer game created by Al Lowe and Josh Mandel and published by Sierra On-Line in 1993. It was dubbed "the Blazing Saddles of computer games" by Computer Gaming World.

<i>Gun</i> (video game) 2005 video game

Gun is a Western-themed action-adventure video game developed by Neversoft and published by Activision for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, and Xbox 360 in 2005. The PlayStation Portable version was released a year later under the title Gun: Showdown, this version features new side-missions, a multiplayer mode, and other additions that were not available in the console versions.

<i>Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon</i> Adventure game 2003 on Windows, Xbox, and PlayStation 2

Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon is an adventure game released on Windows, Xbox, and PlayStation 2 in November 2003. It is the third installment in the Broken Sword series, released six years after the previous instalment, The Smoking Mirror. The Sleeping Dragon moved the series to 3D graphics, and is the only game in the series not to use a point and click interface. The player assumes the role of George Stobbart, an American patent lawyer who flies to the Congo to write a patent for a scientist who claims to have found a source of unlimited energy.

<i>Mad Dog McCree</i> 1990 Western-themed arcade video game

Mad Dog McCree is the first live-action laserdisc video game released by American Laser Games. It originally appeared as an arcade game in 1990.

<i>Support Your Local Gunfighter</i> 1971 film

Support Your Local Gunfighter is a 1971 American comic Western film directed by Burt Kennedy and starring James Garner and Suzanne Pleshette. The screenplay was written by James Edward Grant. The picture shares many cast and crew members and plot elements with the earlier Support Your Local Sheriff! but is not a sequel. It actually parodies Yojimbo and its remake A Fistful of Dollars, using the basic storyline of a stranger who wanders into a feuding town and pretends to work as an enforcer for both sides. The supporting cast features Jack Elam, Harry Morgan, John Dehner, Marie Windsor, Dub Taylor, Joan Blondell and Ellen Corby.

<i>The Lone Ranger</i> (video game) 1991 video game

The Lone Ranger is an action-adventure video game released by Konami for the Nintendo Entertainment System exclusively in North America in 1991. It is based on The Lone Ranger radio and TV franchise, the latter which was still rerunning in syndication when the game was released. The player takes the role of the Lone Ranger himself as he engages against outlaws in side-scrolling, overhead, and even first-person segments. The Lone Ranger theme music is played prominently during the game, which includes a DPCM-coded voice clip of the ranger shouting his catch-phrase "Hi Yo Silver".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan White (actor)</span> American actor (1908–1980)

Dan White was an American actor, well known for appearing in Western films and TV shows.

<i>Johnny Reno</i> 1966 film by R. G. Springsteen

Johnny Reno is a 1966 American Western film made by A. C. Lyles Productions and released by Paramount Pictures. It starred Dana Andrews and Jane Russell. It was directed by R. G. Springsteen, produced by A. C. Lyles, with a screenplay by Andrew Craddock, Steve Fisher and A.C. Lyles.

<i>Ride to Hell: Retribution</i> 2013 video game

Ride to Hell: Retribution is an action-adventure game developed by Eutechnyx and published by Deep Silver. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures is an episodic graphic adventure game based around the characters of Wallace and Gromit created by Nick Park and Aardman Animations. The game was developed and published by Telltale Games. It consists of four episodes, which were released to Microsoft Windows from March 23 to July 30, 2009 and to Xbox 360 from May 27 to November 4, 2009.

<i>Gunless</i> 2010 Canadian film

Gunless is a 2010 Canadian Western comedy film directed by William Phillips and released by Alliance Films.

<i>Rango</i> (video game) 2011 video game

Rango is a 2011 action-adventure video game developed by Behaviour Interactive and published by Electronic Arts and Paramount Digital Entertainment for the Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, Wii, & Xbox 360. It is a video game sequel to the film of the same name.

<i>10,000 Bullets</i> 2005 video game

10,000 Bullets, known in Japan as Tsukiyo ni Saraba, is a third-person shooter video game developed by Blue Moon Studio with Metro Corporation and published by Taito for the PlayStation 2 console. It was released in Japan in 2005, and distributed in Europe by 505 GameStreet later that year. 10,000 Bullets follows an elite hitman named Crow, who works for an Italian mob family and has the innate power of the "gunslinger", allowing him to manipulate the flow of time in battle. The gameplay of 10,000 Bullets focuses on this ability, in which the player must slow down the action in order to avoid the waves of enemy assaults and other hazards.

El Diablo is a 1990 American Western comedy television film directed by Peter Markle. It stars Anthony Edwards and Louis Gossett Jr. The film was co-written by Tommy Lee Wallace, John Carpenter and Bill Phillips, and produced by Carpenter and Debra Hill.

<i>Call of Juarez: Gunslinger</i> 2013 first-person shooter video game

Call of Juarez: Gunslinger is a first-person shooter developed by Techland and originally published by Ubisoft. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 in May 2013. In March 2018, the publishing rights for the game passed from Ubisoft to Techland. In December 2019, the game was ported to the Nintendo Switch by Techland. It is the fourth game in the Call of Juarez series, although narratively, it is unrelated to the three previous titles.

<i>A Day of Fury</i> 1956 film

A Day of Fury is a 1956 American Western film directed by Harmon Jones and starring Dale Robertson, Mara Corday and Jock Mahoney.

Retro Engine Multiplatform game engine

The Retro Engine is a multiplatform game engine developed by Australian programmer Christian Whitehead, best known for its use in Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog series.

<i>Piper</i> (video game) 1995 educational video game

Piper is a 1995 educational interactive movie video game developed by Splash Studios. The game is essentially a Western take on the legend of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, albeit with a less spiteful Piper.

References

  1. 1 2 "Silverload - IGN". November 25, 1996. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  2. 1 2 "Motherlode". Next Generation . No. 18. Imagine Media. June 1996. p. 114.
  3. 1 2 Sluganski, Randy. "Silverload Dungeon of Shame Entry #3". Just Adventure. Archived from the original on June 11, 2004. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Silverload (Game) - Giant Bomb" . Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  5. ↑ "ProReview: Silverload". GamePro . No. 92. IDG. May 1996. p. 60.
  6. 1 2 "Hardcore Gaming 101: Silverload" . Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  7. ↑ "The Top 7 Weirdest Westerns". 18 May 2010. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  8. ↑ Paul Green (2009-10-14). Encyclopedia of Weird Westerns. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN   9780786458004 . Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Playstation 1 Rarity Guide" . Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Game-Rave.com Presents: PlayStation LongBox Project" . Retrieved May 20, 2014.
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.