Bloodwych

Infobox VG| title = Bloodwych


developer = Anthony Taglione, Peter James, Philip Taglione
publisher = Image Works, Konami
released = 1989
genre = Role-playing game
modes = Single Player and Two Players
platforms = Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, ZX Spectrum

"Bloodwych" is a computer dungeon role-playing game developed for the Amiga, Atari ST and MS-DOS as well as the major 8-bit home computer platforms. It was developed by Image Works from 1989.

The plotline identifies the player as a champion of Trazere who after recruiting three of your fellow champions has to travel through dungeons and mazes fighting creatures along the way to find and destroy the evil Zendick, and banish the Lord of Entropy.

All of the champions fall into the four classes of Warrior, Mage, Adventurer or Thief, each with their own particular capability. Within each class there are four characters available, each with their own colour of Red, Blue, Green or Yellow. Each colour also has its own particular advantage, largely with respect to the families of spells the character will be most adept at casting and developing. However, that colour is also important when it comes to matching up coloured rings later in the game to magnify the effects of spell-casting.

One particularly memorable quirk of the game is the ability granted to players to hold simple conversations with traders, other champions, and even enemies during combat. Stock pseudo-medieval phrases such as "Truly my courage is remarkable" and "Begone, thou oaf" are selected using a menu, and can be used in combination to flatter a desired companion, aggravate an enemy, or lower the price of an item which the player wishes to purchase. Many gameplayers have found that the price of a long sword (RRP 10 gold pieces) can fall to as little as 6 or 7 after the shopkeeper has been buttered-up with phrases such as "Thou seems fine" - particularly when this strategy is used in conjunction with the Beguile spell (most effectively cast by Megrim).

Bloodwych is also remarkable for the sheer scale of its maps. Gameplay can easily last weeks until the player eventually navigates his way though mazes and past monsters to the start of the enormous and fiendish "towers", in which the gameplay becomes focused into the task of collecting crystals with a view to destroying Zendick and his associates.

The game had an add-on pack released called "Bloodwych: Data Disk". Among the features of the add-on pack was the capability to persuade some of the enemy creatures to join your "merry band".

Similar games of the time included "Eye of the Beholder" and "Dungeon Master".

"Hexx: Heresy of the Wizard"

"Bloodwych" was followed in 1994 by Psygnosis' "Hexx: Heresy of the Wizard" (working title "Wizard"). "Hexx" was basically the same game with updated graphics, a slightly modified cast of champions, and a greatly expanded magic system.

External links

*" [http://www.mobygames.com/game/bloodwych Bloodwych] " at MobyGames
* [http://www.alanchapman.org/bloodwych/ "Bloodwych" Resource Guide]
* [http://bloodwych.classicgaming.gamespy.com/mambo/ The Unofficial "Bloodwych" Website]