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║ Good manners in adventures. ║
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This article will discuss two aspects of good manners in adventures. The first is mandatory, the second is desirable. So, in any adventure there must be commands like "explore," "examine," "inspect," and even "feel," if you discover something in the process. There must also be an "inventory" command (in "Star Legacy," this command is "What do you have?"). Next, there must be "save" and "load" commands. Graphics should not overpower the text; otherwise, it is not an adventure but an arcade adventure. And the most important! The command recognized by the program must consist of at least two words. The commands "take" and "put" must be present, preferably with items not disappearing after the "put" command. However, these conditions do not necessarily mean that the adventure will be considered good. There must also be several "desirable" conditions. Here is the list:
1) The program must recognize commands of more than 2 words. This condition is fulfilled in almost all masterpieces of the adventure genre. I advise you not to forget about this when writing your adventure (just don't make communication longer than 2 words, as it is done in SPIDERMAN when shooting webs!!).
2) The program must have changing text, i.e., either the program must provide different text upon reappearing in this location ("Star Legacy"), or the program must provide a shortened version of the text upon reappearing in the location ("HOBBIT," "SHERLOCK"), and various texts can be used when repeating the same command or action. The text of the location can also increase with long waiting ("REBEL PLANET").
3) There must be a memory save and a "BOM" command (Back One Move — return one move back).
4) The save must be to the same device from which the adventure was loaded, and the program must allow an unlimited number of state saves on any diskette! Unfortunately, both the "Star Legacy" program and many programs translated from tape to disk ("WORM IN PARADISE," "REBEL PLANET") do not comply with this point.
5) The description of items and locations must be clear, and after reading it, questions like "what does 'looks kind of strange' mean" should not arise.
6) The program must give different responses to all more or less logical actions, rather than responding with one or two phrases, as is done in HE-MAN.
7) Naturally, there should be an interesting scenario without "glitches," gaps, etc. An example of such glitches in the scenario can be observed in almost any adventure made in the former USSR. For example: in one text-based adventure, you find yourself in a cell without windows or doors. And you SEE that there is a tray lying here, and when you examine it, you can even read the inscription! Questions arise: "Where is the light in the cell?" "How did the prisoner get there?" considering that the hero has to dig the ground with that very tray to find the exit from the cell!
8) It is preferable not to limit the main character by time, and if this is done, there should be "BOM" and "memory save" commands. This condition is not fulfilled in the "SHERLOCK" program.
9) There should be small hints for the player if some action is not very obvious. For example, in the game "Ivan Tsarevich," to get rid of a locked door, you need to type the command "help," after which Ilya Muromets will appear and kick down the door. I only figured this out by opening the program, thank goodness its creators wrote the program in A.B.S.
10) The program should automatically add words to commands, recognizing commands with and without errors. Example: the program recognizes the command FILLL BOTTLE (fill (the word is misspelled) the bottle) as FILL GREEN BOTTLE WITH WATER FROM RIVER (fill the green bottle with water from the river) if you are carrying a green bottle and standing next to the river, and FILL RED BOTTLE WITH WINE FROM BARREL if you are standing next to a barrel of wine and have a red bottle with you. This aspect is very well implemented in the adventure "LORD OF THE RINGS."
12) The program contains "unused" verbs, i.e., verbs that, although recognized by the program, are not used anywhere in the game. This is usually done for two reasons: the set of verbs is designed not only for this program, and 2 — for more interesting communication with the program, i.e., you are not just closing the loophole "find the verbs and think about how to use them."
13) If there are pictures in the program, it is better to have a command to turn them on. It can also be done like in HOBBIT — when first appearing in a location, the picture is displayed, and upon reappearing, only after the LOOK command.
14) The program should have unnecessary items, actions, locations that only distract attention, and various branches in the scenario. Deceptive paths may also be present. A clear example is the adventures "HE-MAN" and "WORM IN PARADISE."
15) It would be nice if the program contained a large vocabulary and some actions could be performed by typing different commands. An anti-example: to ROLL the stone in HE-MAN, you have to give the command PULL BOULDER (pull the stone), if you give the command ROLL BOULDER (roll the stone), nothing will happen.
16) You should be able to have a dialogue with characters. Example: the adventure SHERLOCK.
17) The use of the words ALL (all) and EXCEPT (except). Example: GET ALL — take all, GET ALL BOTTLE EXCEPT GREEN — take all bottles except the green one. In WORM IN PARADISE, they went further. You can write "take helmet, suit," and the program will perceive it as "take helmet, take suit."
Honestly, one could list the elements of good manners in adventures for a long time, but it would be nice if 2-3 of the above elements were found in any Russian-language adventure. So far, this condition is satisfied only by LAST RAIDER (with a stretch) and "Star Legacy."
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Contents of the publication: Micro #04
- AD&D
Exploration of character alignments in AD&D, focusing on law vs chaos and good vs evil dichotomies. Detailed combinations describe the moral and ethical spectrum in gameplay. Key character types illustrate complex dynamics within the AD&D universe.
- Взгляд в будущее
Discussion on the evolution of ZX Spectrum enthusiasts amid PC price drops, advocating for professional unification and creative use of other platforms.
- Игры - Максим Вишневский
The article reviews the game 'Operation R.R.', comparing it to '48 Irons'. Highlights positives like graphics and negatives like incomplete plot.
- О разном
Pricing and availability of AMIGA 1200 and software in Sevastopol and Zaporizhzhia, pre-release of MIRROR game, and the guide to Spectrum magazines.
- Прохождение - Максим Вишневский
Walkthrough for the game 'Operation R.R.' with detailed steps and actions to complete various tasks and solve puzzles. Includes item usage and specific instructions for each stage of the game. Compiled by Maxim Vishnevsky in a semi-sleepy state.
- Севастополь - Максим Вишневский
Sevastopol hosts a thriving Spectrum community with active development of games and software. Various platforms like IBM, AMIGA, and SPECTRUM coexist and collaborate there. The article refutes claims of Spectrum's decline, highlighting inactivity as the real issue.
- Хороший тон в адвентюрах
Discussion of essential and desirable features in adventure games, focusing on command structure, graphical balance, and immersive storytelling.
