Knight Lore
Webpages concerning "Knight Lore"
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Wikipedia-Article "Knight Lore"
| Knight Lore | |
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| Developer(s) | Ultimate Play The Game |
| Publisher(s) | Ultimate Play The Game |
| Designer(s) | |
| Engine | |
| Latest version | {{{version}}} |
| Release date(s) | 1984 |
| Genre | Arcade adventure; Maze |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | N/A |
| Platform(s) | ZX Spectrum, BBC Micro, Amstrad CPC, MSX |
| Media | tape |
| System requirements | |
| Input | keyboard, joystick |
Knight Lore is a video game developed and released by Ultimate Play The Game in 1984. The game is the third in the Sabreman series, following on from his adventures in Sabre Wulf and Underwurlde. Unlike the earlier games in the series it used isometric projection. In the game Sabreman has to find the ingredients for a magic potion. The game was written by Tim Stamper and Chris Stamper.
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Introduction
Typically for an Ultimate release, players are given a tantalising and cryptic introduction :
- "THE WEREWULF
- My journey's end is near; as the last few ebbs of daylight dance fleetingly in the cooling twilight, and then suddenly dart off to chase the red sinking sun.
- Behind me I feel night's dark icy fingers slither up long looming shadows, hiding behind large mounds and boulders, watching my every move... silently waiting... For days I have journeyed from the realms of the junglewulf to "KNIGHT LORE" castle to seek the old dying wizard and ask for his help to free me from this deathly curse... For countless nights I have slept chained to trees to keep my deathly curse at bay, but now I am here...
- My footsteps echo around the damp mossy walls of the large chamber, as I enter through the open main gateway, colossal doors judder open in an untouched groaning symphony, beckoning me forward on my quest.
- I sense the old wizard's gaze playing upon me, encapsulated within the labyrinth of traps and tests, to keep out all but the most persistent of unwanted guests who seek an audience with the great wizard MELKHIOR.
- Suddenly a cool blue mist starts to ebb forth from the cracks in the ancient stone-work. As it does so it begins to take form and become a powerful swimming swirling vortex of energy. Over all the noise can be heard the chanting and singing of long forgotten tunes, all sung in a blur of forgetfulness.
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- THE MIST TUNES
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- THE WIZARD'S OLDER NOW THAN ALL
- HIS HELP YOU SEEK WITHIN THIS WALL
- FOR FORTY DAYS YOUR QUEST MAY LAST
- LOCATE THE POTION, MAKE IT FAST
- THIS HIDEOUS SPELL UPON YOUR SOUL
- TO LOSE ITS HOLD MUST BE YOUR GOAL
- BEWARE, THE TRAPS FROM HERE BEGIN
- THE CAULDRON TELLS WHAT MUST GO IN
- TO BREAK THE CURSE AND MAKE THE SPELL
- TO SAVE YOURSELF AND MAKE YOU WELL.
- The mist suddenly ceases its action and dissipates as quickly as it came.
- I drop to the floor and with full knowledge of the old wizard I begin my quest. Dimly lit torches light the massive stone walls, their tired flickering flames never seeming to penetrate the inky darkness for more than a few feet... crystalline Merkyls, hideous Hobgoblins, stand frozen on huge monoliths, glittering in the cool trembling moonlight.
- Encapsulated by the old wizard long ago, they await their fate in an un-ending task of defence, silent and stony. This is to be their last everlasting fate as guardians of KNIGHT LORE castle, until the ultimate death of the old sorcerer... The moon has risen quickly and in the fullness of its cool blue light, I become a Werewulf...
- My fate is now all too clear, I have but forty days and forty nights to find the old wizard and seek his help and magical instruction, before my tormented soul becomes forever a werewulf."
Gameplay
Again taking the role of Sabreman, the player must find the wizard Melkhior, then scour Knight Lore castle to retrieve the objects successively requested by his cauldron. Once collected, the objects must be returned to Melkhior, and dropped into the waiting cauldron. Successfully following all of the cauldron's requests within a forty day period frees Sabreman from the curse of lycanthropy cast upon him by the Wulf encountered in Sabre Wulf.
The curse itself plays an important role in gameplay. While beginning the game as Sabreman, the player is periodically transformed into a werewulf as day turns into night (see the sun / moon dial in the bottom right of the screenshots below). At the point of transformation (either to, or from, the werewulf), Sabreman experiences a short, but humourously animated, seizure, and is vulnerable to enemies or hazards. Certain enemies (including Melkhior's cauldron itself) will attack Sabreman when a werewulf, making the timing of certain actions crucial.
In what was revolutionary for its time, the castle is presented as a series of isometric, flip-screen rooms. Negotiating many of these rooms requires good platform skills, especially since some platforms disappear or move when stepped on. In some rooms, objects such as tables or treasure chests (or even the objects collected for the cauldron), need to be used to reach carefully positioned goals (see screenshots below).
Aside from platform-hopping, Sabreman must avoid a series of enemies and hazards. Static beds of spikes and falling spiked metal balls are among the simplest hazards. Malevolent portcullis gates guard many thoroughfares, and are often accompanied by slow-moving, but lethal, guards. Faster moving enemies, such as ghosts and Melkhior's cauldron spirit, provide more dangerous company.
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