┌──────────────────────────────┐
│ ─────── D E B U T ──────── │
└──────────────────────────────┘
Andrey Shkolnikov, 1995.
EMERALD ISLE
────────────────────────
Level 9. 1985
-The rich literature about life on uninhabited islands undeniably proves that a shipwrecked person inevitably finds axes, nails, fresh water, oil, sacred books, saws, pliers, guns, and many other useful things nearby. But if not, then not.
S.Lem. "Friend of Automate". "When landing, your parachute got caught on a gnarled branch. You are hanging, tangled in the straps, unable to move, and can only examine the underbrush of the jungle far below.
Two vultures descend onto a nearby branch and sit, waiting."
Isn't it a familiar scene? Of course, not in the sense that one often has to hang from parachute straps over a tropical island. But doesn't it remind you of the beginning of another island - Espionage Island?
Perhaps this resemblance is not accidental. The thing is that "Emerald Isle" is an unusual game for Level 9. It was written and released immediately after their famous trilogy "Silicon Dreams" (see ZX-Review 5-1995). It seems the company wanted to relax after the brilliant but extremely difficult trilogy.
The games of this trilogy, in particular, "Worm in Paradise," are so-called global adventures. They usually have several possible paths to victory; to successfully complete the game, actions are required across the entire territory.
On the other hand, "Emerald Isle" belongs to more traditional linear adventures. In them, as you solve tasks, new areas open up to you. Usually, there is only one path to victory, sometimes with minor variations.
Such is the vast majority of adventures. And it is possible that Level 9, turning to classical forms, couldn't resist and decided to parody a couple of widely known games. One of them, of course, is "Espionage Island" (even the names are similar!). And while wandering around Emerald Isle, you will stumble upon a skyscraper; to my mind, it strongly resembles its counterpart from the game "Aftershock." But, of course, these are just my speculations; perhaps all resemblance is purely coincidental.
Be that as it may, forget about espionage - this time you are quite a peaceful person. By chance, most likely due to an aviation accident, you have been thrown onto a "deserted" island, and naturally, you are trying to return to civilization.
However, it is still too early to think about civilization. It is better to quickly untangle yourself from the parachute; otherwise, wild animals are already starting to sneak up to your tree, trying to stay in the shade. And that panther over there seems to be preparing to step out of the shadows and get to know you better. So hurry up and untie the straps (untie parachute).
Once free, you, unable to hold on to the top of the tree, fall down. Fortunately, you are luckier than Winnie the Pooh was: catching onto a large branch, you manage to stop your fall. The animals disappointedly return to their business. Now it's time for you to look around and see where fate has brought you. Just don't forget to climb back to the top of the tree and grab the parachute - it might come in handy.
At first glance, it seems very easy to get lost in the jungle. But this is just an illusion: the terrible jungle consists of only two locations plus two tree tops. You are already familiar with the first location; and in the second, don't forget to pick up a silver coin dropped by someone unknown and head east.
And here before you are the first signs of some civilization: you are standing on a suspension bridge leading to treecity - a wooden city (and not just a city, but a city - almost a metropolis!). The entire city consists of several buildings on a wooden platform; however, one of these buildings is the royal palace, and of course, you want to see what is inside - maybe the king of the island will help you get off it. But first, let's take a little walk around the city. Actually, there is not much to see in the city: locked gates, bridges to the "second floor" of the jungle, the same palace, and a Victorian-style clock tower.
Climbing the tower, you find that the clock has stopped, and there is no way to wind it; however, this will allow you to discover one pleasant feature of the program.
By giving the command "start clock," you will receive a hint about what you are missing to do so - a small key. You will often remember this hint system instead of the usual "help" (which here only gives a few service commands). By the way, don't forget to grab the boat building manual (manual) from the tower.
So, after exploring the city, you head to the palace. Preparing to present yourself before the royal eyes, you don the ceremonial mantle made of animal skins found in the city - ermine robe (also grab a bottle of glue in the same location) and pass through the gates.
It seems the mantle here is like a tie when visiting a restaurant - the palace guard lets you through without question. By the way, the significance of the mantle does not end there. Note that when you command "examine robe," the program responds "seems valuable." Remember this phrase - over time, you will understand what it hints at; for now, just note that you earned 30 points for taking the mantle.
Passing by the guard, you set off to stroll through the palace. On the first floor, there is nothing particularly interesting, except perhaps for a seamstress who has run out of fabric, so the poor seamstress cannot finish sewing a dress.
Feeling sorry for her, you give your silk parachute for the dress; in gratitude, the seamstress gifts you a bronze coin. Another coin - a copper one - can be found in the "copper coloured chamber." But all this does not hint at how to get off the island. In search of any information, you go up to the second floor and finally find what rewards you for all your efforts - a sign on the wall.
It turns out that of all the island's population, only the king himself has the right to leave this island. But don't despair - the current king of the island has just announced a competition for the "position" of his successor.
So, you have just a little left: to become the king of Emerald Isle - and hello civilization! However, the joy is slightly overshadowed by the fact that the rules of the competition are not specified. Well, we will figure it out as we go. Moreover, the throne room is nearby: maybe the king will give you some hints?
If you were hoping for this, your hopes are doomed to disappointment: the king is very displeased that he has been disturbed. He shoves another coin (this time a gold one) into your hand and runs away, grumbling something about "cursed tourists." However, on the table in the king's study lies some official-looking paper, but it is printed in such small print.
So you leave the eye-straining paper for later and set off to find out more about the royal competitions.
Once in the palace courtyard, you notice through the gaps in the leaves below... a train station! Not bad for an almost uninhabited island? You have to descend to the station via a staircase carved inside the tree trunk. But alas - the natives did not bother to install a candle, torch, or at least a light bulb on the stairs. In due time, you will find something to illuminate the dark spaces, but for now, it's better to quickly run through them - if you stay in the dark for more than five turns, a local vampire will take an interest in you.
Having passed through the dark staircase, you find yourself at a small train station. I strongly advise - do not cross the tracks, no need to dirty the new steam engine! Maybe sooner or later you will manage to cross them some other way. For now, head to the ticket vending machine - you won't be able to ride for free. This machine will accept any of your four coins - just give a command like "insert copper"; but with a copper coin, you will only get a one-way ticket, while with a bronze one, you will get a "round trip." You can take my word for it - two trips will definitely not be enough for you. So don’t be stingy, spend the silver coin on a seasonal ticket (the machine also gives a seasonal ticket for the gold coin; therefore, it's better to save it - it will come in handy later).
With the ticket, you are allowed onto the train (you can simply get in with the command "in"), and you arrive at the second and last station of this line - the seashore. Head north and you will find yourself on the beach. But you don't feel like swimming, and you walk west, finding yourself near a small cozy cave, at the entrance of which thick threads are stretched. An immediate "exam" - and you realize that these are not just threads, but a huge web! It is logical to assume that the owner is waiting for you in the cave. But curiously, the threads differ from ordinary web not only in size: they are not sticky. Apparently, the poor spider is having great difficulty catching prey. Well, let's help him. No, no, no need for self-sacrifice!
After all, you have a bottle of glue; just place it on the web (pot on threads). The spider gratefully accepts the gift and scurries away, freeing your passage into the cave.
In the cave, it is absolutely dark; trying not to think about vampires, you feel your way forward. West, south, and again west - and you find yourself in a small volcanic cave. It is not difficult to escape into hilly terrain from there. After wandering through "the hills," "more hills," "the same hills," "boring hills," "tedious hills," "endless hills" (I'm not exaggerating!), you come to a river, from the bank of which you see a forest in the distance. Go into the forest - and on the edge, you discover an axe forgotten by woodcutters (hand axe).
For now, there is nothing else to do in the forest: you cannot go deeper due to a huge lumberjack machine. You hesitate to cross the river - its banks are very slippery and steep.
With your new acquisition - the axe - you return to the beach. Exiting the cave, you head south - and on the sand, you notice a huge gnarled log. What a perfect material for a future boat, and having read the manual, you already know the basics of boat building. With the axe, you skillfully carve a canoe from the log (make boat). Now all that remains is to drag it to the water, tie the anchor lying nearby (tie anchor to canoe), climb inside (in canoe) - and the sea is open to you!
Of course, you won't be able to sail to America on this boat. But you can easily cross the bay and explore previously inaccessible parts of the island.
These are the rules of the game - as you solve tasks, new areas of the game space open up to you. There are about 200 locations in the game. Almost every one of them has pictures.
Perhaps this information is enough to start the game. Walk around, figure things out, find out how to become king. The game has a huge number of items and stationary objects; their application is often quite non-trivial (for example, you will never guess in advance what the gaff is for!). Remember - although "Emerald Isle" seems easy compared to "Worm in Paradise," it was still written by Level 9; so at least a month of "brain-teasing" is guaranteed for you!
* * *
In conclusion, I would like to make a few remarks about the game:
1) After finding the lamp, you will quickly (I hope) get fuel for it. Just keep in mind that this fuel is soluble.
2) The pan is not an ordinary kitchen utensil, but something like a gold panning sieve. You can search for gold simply with the command "pan."
3) Sooner or later, you will find yourself in a marketplace where one of the shops sells a painting. The more money you have with you, the more they ask for the painting (strange customs they have on the island!). So buy it last!
4) The program understands the word "all." The command "get all" will be very useful to you in the dark.
5) When diving, don't forget to anchor the canoe; otherwise, it may be carried away by the current.
Good luck!
Contents of the publication: Spectrofon #14
- Expertise - Алексей Литвинов, Андрей Бусыгин
Analysis and Russian adaptation of the game 'Academy' by CRL Group, highlighting significant program modifications and the addition of a new game ending.
- Archive - Андрей Школьников
Analysis of the game Archon, its appeal, mechanics, and strategic elements. Detailed exploration of its characters and their battle properties. Overview of magical spells and game tactics.
- Debut - Андрей Школьников
Analysis of the game 'Emerald Isle' by Level 9, contrasting linear and global adventures. Describes gameplay, puzzles, and strategy for success. Concludes with tips for navigating challenges.
- Overview
Overview of new games on Moscow's radio market, including 'Star Legacy' with its full release, 'UFO: Enemy Unknown' conversion, and others.
- From World to Bit
This article provides guidance for several ZX Spectrum games, including tips for overcoming challenges and critiques on the influence of games on players.
- Championship - Matthias
The article covers the Open Virus Championship, detailing the selection cycle, changes in rules, and highlights of the matches. Participants from different cities and countries competed with their virus programs. Key winners have been determined for the Final League.
- System - Chung Software
Analysis of compatibility issues in ZX Spectrum models like ATM Turbo and others, detailing solutions for port #FF and INT signal. Emphasis on practical adjustments for various models, ensuring optimal compatibility with original ZX Spectrum 48k. Critical examination of DIY computer upgrades and potential issues with software compatibility.
- Premiere
Review of two software tools: Pro Sound Maker, a music editor by Denis Dratov, featuring solutions to technical challenges, and Visual Decompressor v1.2 by Timothy, offering visual effects during decompression.
- Advertisement
Advertisement of Spectrofon magazine, offering licenses and calls for collaboration. Contact details for buying games and software. Studio Logros promotes Russian programmers.
