Conan: Hall of Volta

Conan: Hall of Volta
Cover art of Conan: Hall of Volta (Apple II version)
Developer(s)	SE Software[1]
Publisher(s)	Datasoft[1]
Designer(s)	Eric Robinson and Eric Parker
Platform(s)	x86 (MS-DOS), Apple II series, Amiga, Atari 8-bit, Atari ST, Commodore 64
Release date(s)	NA 1984[1]
Genre(s)	action[1]/platform
Mode(s)	Single-player
Media/distribution	5¼" Floppy disk

Conan: Hall of Volta is a 1984 action/platform computer game, designed by Eric Robinson and Eric Parker, and published by Datasoft.^[2] It is based on the character Conan created by Robert E. Howard.

Released in 1984, this game's launch coincided with the debut of the sequel to the popular feature film, 1984's Conan the Destroyer. The game's box even featured a painting of Arnold Schwarzenegger as the muscle-bound warrior with his new costume for Destroyer. Despite this attempted tie-in, the game has little to do with the movie series except for the fact that it features the Cimmerian in the title role. This is due to having originally been designed without the Conan tie-in, as a boomerang throwing game titled Visigoth. One of the screenshots on the back of the packaging is from a prototype version, and shows a boomerang instead of a sword.

Description

The player controls Conan as he attacks the evil Volta in his castle fortress. Conan is armed with 10 boomerang swords. From time to time, Conan may be aided by an "Avian Ally" as he attempts to defeat Volta's sinister hordes, which included bats, scorpions, giant ants, fire-breathing dragons and floating eyeballs.

The game includes seven diverse levels requiring the player to navigate lava pits, geysers, spike pits, and floating platforms. Along the way the player often needed to collect magic gems or keys in order to progress.

In the game, Conan doesn't simply jump, he somersaults. If he falls, he launches into a full-scale dive. These effects, along with the diverse levels, made this game popular.

Though seven levels is considered sparse by today's standards, since the game didn't include any facilities to save throughout the course of the game, the seven levels usually kept most players occupied for some time. The players needed to conquer each level anew while attempting to defeat Volta.

One original feature of the game's time was a close-up picture that would be shown upon the player's last death. For example, dying in the first level might show a close-up picture of a bat with the caption "bats in the belfry". Deaths in other levels would yield a picture of a hazard unique to that level.

Ports

This game was originally written for the Apple II and ported to the Commodore 64 and Atari 400/800.^[2] The Apple II original offers more control (thanks to its 2-button joystick), though lacks the soundtrack found in the ports.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} "Conan: Hall of Volta". http://www.gamefaqs.com/appleii/577826-conan/data.  at GameFAQs
2. ^ ^{a b} Conan: Hall of Volta at MobyGames