Goblin Sword

[satyrsfaction]

Here's a game I've been working on for a while -- finally done! It's an oldschool-style RPG similar to games like Wizardry.

 

Goblin Sword

 

An evil goblin sorcerer has chased the goblins out of their caves, and summoned all manner of monsters to protect the vast goblin wealth. You, the hero of the goblins, must enter the caves, and put an end to the sorcerer and his countless minions.

 

Hit reset to exit the title screen, then you'll be taken to character creation. hit the button for each stat to generate a number. The stats are strength, dexterity, and aura. Strength helps you do damage and block attacks. Dexterity helps you hit, avoid being hit, and dodge traps. Aura is for casting spells. When you cast a spell, your aura is reduced, but will be restored when you rest. Your hit points are the average of strength and dexterity, and your gold pieces are determined based on your stats. The better your stats, the less gold you will start with -- an attempt to balance things out. If you roll a lousy character, hit reset to start again. If you're satisfied, press the button and you will be taken to town.

 

In town, your stats are displayed. If your level number is yellow, you are ready to train to the next level. If your HP are green, you are poisoned. The more poison in your system, the greater the chance of randomly losing HP. press the button to be taken to the guild. When in the guild, move the joystick to the right to scroll through the various items to buy. Rest will restore your HP and aura, Cure cures poison, Train will advance you to the next level when you have earned enough experience, Magic will train you in casting spells. Each time you train in magic, you will receive two new spells. The rest are weapons and armor you can buy to aid in combat. When you reach level 3, magic weapons and armor will become available. In the guild screen, you may also move the joystick down to enter the maze.

 

When in the maze, move the joystick forward to move forward. Move it left or right to rotate. Move it back to make use of stairs, which are indicated by an up or down arrow. Press the button to display your possible actions/spells, and move the joystick to the right while still pressing the button to display your character. To perform an action, move the cursor down until it is next to the action, then release the button. The maze has 4 levels. You must find the down stairs to access the next level. Level 2 and below are dark, and you will need to cast a light spell in order to see. Some walls are illusionary. They look like normal walls, but you can pass right through them. On level one, there is only one illusionary wall which hides the stairs down. As you go down in levels, the monsters will become more powerful. On level two and below, chests are also trapped. Casting an open spell will avoid traps. Otherwise you will have to hit the chest to break it open, and rely on your dexterity to avoid the trap. If you don't avoid the trap you will lose one HP. Inside chests you will find gold -- the amount of gold will become greater as you go down deeper into the maze. You might also find better weapons and armor or potions that restore your HP, cure poison, or restore your aura. Hidden somewhere in the maze is the legendary goblin sword, which is the most powerful weapon available.

 

If a monster appears, you may use actions to deal with it. You may hit it to attack, or flee to run away. Successfully running away depends on your dexterity. Once you perform your action, the monster will attack. If you hear a buzzing sound, that means the monster hit you. Be sure to watch your HP. If your HP is reduced to zero, you will be transported back to town, and lose all gold you have accumulated. If you kill the monster, you will gain experience, and sometimes a chest will appear. Hit the chest or cast open to collect its contents. If you don't want to open the chest, simply move on. Some monsters have special abilities. Spiders and wraiths will poison you, vampires will drain your aura, and the red blobs will damage or destroy your weapons or armor.

 

Some of your actions will be greyed out, which means those actions aren't available until you train in magic. Each time you train in magic, you will learn two new spells. Light enables you to see in the dark. Open opens chests and avoids traps. Bolt hits the monster with a magical attack. Heal will restore your HP and reduce the amount of poison in your system. Port will take you back to town. Bless allows you to sacrifice 500 GP in order to restore your aura to maximum. Casting spells reduces your aura by one point. The bless does not spend aura.

 

The evil goblin sorcerer is hidden on the 4th level. Find him and kill him in order to win the game.

goblinsword.bas.bin

[LatchKeyKid]

It's obvious that you put alot of effort into this game and it shows with how equally impressive and ambitious it is!  Is it common for games to start with the reset instead of the joystick button?  I had to refer back to your post and then back into the guts of stella to find the key combo for that as it was basically just a title screen until then.  Admittedly, that isn't an issue for those playing on physical hardware but I was curious as to the reasoning for the choice.   Honestly, I only played a little bit as I found the interface at first play confusing and had to constantly switch back to your post to understand basic things.  For example, I also don't know if the flash means I hit or missed the monster as there isn't any onscreen indicator other than the flash when playing.  I fully admit that this might just be me but I had a similar issue with the equally ambitious Grizzards rpg.   Regardless, congrats on the completion of such an impressive genre port to the hardware!

Edited May 13 by LatchKeyKid

[Living Room Arcade]

@ZeroPage Homebrew 

[Living Room Arcade]

What a gem!  Thank you, @satyrsfaction, for sharing your wonderful creation with us!  

 

How does GOBLIN SWORD fit into the Atari 2600 library?  By the numbers...

 

Spoiler

MANY  GAMES WITH ENDINGS - AFAIK, GOBLIN SWORD joins Adventure and Raiders of the Lost Ark and many other games for Atari 2600 that end when the story ends.  

1. Adventure
2. Apollyon
3. Catacombs of Chaos
4. Chuck Norris Superkicks
5. Course Blade
6. Double Dragon
7. E.T. (Completely Fixed Version2 Final)
8. Fatal Run
9. Fathom
10. Ghostbusters
11. Goblin Sword (game ends when you defeat the Evil Goblin Sorcerer)
12. Haunted House
13. James Bond 007
14. Pole Position
15. Porky's
16. Raiders of the Lost Ark
17. Rescue Terra I
18. Riddle of the Sphinx
19. Secret Quest
20. Sentinel (Light Gun)
21. Solaris
22. Star Strike
23. Superman
24. SwordQuest - EarthWorld
25. SwordQuest - FireWorld
26. SwordQuest - WaterWorld
27. and more!  

9 3D MAZES - AFAIK, GOBLIN SWORD become one of 9 games for Atari 2600 with 3D mazes or tunnels.  

1. Alien versus Predator 2600
2. Apollyon
3. Crypts of Chaos
4. DOOM 2600 (de-make)
5. Escape from the Mindmaster
6. Goblin Sword
7. Survival Island (the Maze of the Secret Temple)
8. Survival Run
9. Tunnel Runner

6  TURN-BASED RPG'S - AFAIK, GOBLIN SWORD becomes one of only 6 turn-based RPG's for Atari 2600.  We define RPG to mean your player must have numerical stats that can increase (or decrease) depending upon your successes (or failures) during the game.  

1. Dragonstomper
2. Dungeon
3. Dungeon 2
4. Goblin Sword
5. Grizzards
6. Penult

1 3D TURN-BASED RPG'S - AFAIK, GOBLIN SWORD stands alone as being the first and only game of this kind for the Atari 2600!  

1. Goblin Sword

Welcome, GOBLIN SWORD, to the Atari 2600 library of games!  

Edited May 14 by Living Room Arcade

[satyrsfaction]

Aww. Thanks. 

[Living Room Arcade]

1 hour ago, satyrsfaction said:

Aww. Thanks. 

It's my pleasure!  Would you care to say a few words about some of the more interesting or difficult challenges that await in GOBLIN SWORD?  Any advice for for brave adventurers?  No spoilers, please, of course!    

Edited May 14 by Living Room Arcade

[+swlovinist]

Cant wait to check out.   I want to mention that Catacombs of Chaos is a Dungeon Crawler that does indeed have an ending.   

[satyrsfaction]

10 hours ago, Living Room Arcade said:

It's my pleasure!  Would you care to say a few words about some of the more interesting or difficult challenges that await in GOBLIN SWORD?  Any advice for for brave adventurers?  No spoilers, please, of course!    

Well, one of the hardest parts is finding the secret doors. You might want to actually map out the dungeon on graph paper. Also, watch out for the red blobs on level four. They damage your weapons and armor, and could leave you standing there in your boxer shorts if you're not careful.

[satyrsfaction]

On 5/12/2024 at 10:14 PM, LatchKeyKid said:

It's obvious that you put alot of effort into this game and it shows with how equally impressive and ambitious it is!  Is it common for games to start with the reset instead of the joystick button?  I had to refer back to your post and then back into the guts of stella to find the key combo for that as it was basically just a title screen until then.  Admittedly, that isn't an issue for those playing on physical hardware but I was curious as to the reasoning for the choice.   Honestly, I only played a little bit as I found the interface at first play confusing and had to constantly switch back to your post to understand basic things.  For example, I also don't know if the flash means I hit or missed the monster as there isn't any onscreen indicator other than the flash when playing.  I fully admit that this might just be me but I had a similar issue with the equally ambitious Grizzards rpg.   Regardless, congrats on the completion of such an impressive genre port to the hardware!

The red flash means you've been hit. As for the Reset...I think a lot of games start with the reset. Not sure -- to me it was just easier and required less memory since the next screen uses the fire button.