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ALTERNATE REALITY: THE DUNGEON ($29.95, by K. Jordan & D. Pinal, from DataSoft/Electronic Arts)
Requires: 64K Apple II series, one 5.25" drive; joystick optional
Rating:***
As you may recall, in the "Alternate Reality" 'origins' edition ("The City") you were snatched by aliens and dumped in The City of Xebec's Demise. With "The Dungeon" your quest to regain Earth and/or exact vengence upon your kidnappers continues, though, for now, you must be content with mastering the city's labyrinthine underground. Whether new to "Alternate Reality" or a City veteran, the stronger you become here, the better your chances in "The Palace" ("Alternate Reality" III!) and some four or five additional scenarios sure to follow.
Unless transferring from "The City", you begin with randomly assigned Strength, Endurance, Skill, Hit Points, etc. plus some food, water, and enough money to purchase a second-rate weapon at the nearby shop. A little further, just around the bend, is a "well-lighted area" where you will find a bar & grill and the Retreat, just the place to rest your weary bones and recoup some lost hit points.
While all of this can seem very large and dangerous to a beginner; you are actually in a small relatively 'safe' corner of the 64x64 upper level. (Below are other, 32x32 and 16x16, levels.) Accessed via extensive City Sewer passages are uncounted mazes, strange "blink mine" fields, the goblin realm, poisoned ice caves, and other challenging hazards. Curative fountains, a Weapons Enchantress, guild halls, and the like are here too, but, naturally, harder to find.
Playing very much like a single-character version of "Bards Tale" or "Realms of Darkness", "Dungeon" offers a well-drawn 3-D perspective forward view showing brick walls, doors, arches, etc., plus any Dungeon denizens encountered. Combat entails trading blows with partially-animated opponents via menu commands; but, unlike most such adventures, you are well-advised to at least attempt non-hostile interchange on many occassions. The Healer, for example, can cure a host of ailments, several characters are satisfied with offering advice, paupers are looking for a handout, etc.. Whoever (or whatever), such dealings almost always impact your Good or Bad "orientation". (Yes, you CAN prosper as a 'dark side' type.) Depending upon orientation, involvement in feuds, and guild membership, one adventurer's "monster" will frequently be anothers good buddy. "Neutral", of course, is the least healthful status possible.
Running the gamut from 'easy' giant bats and slime mold, through valkyries, ice demons, and enemy arch mages, Dungeon monsters are well differentiated according to kinds of attact and vulnerabilities (air, fire, water, cold, etc.), goodies carried, and certain special attributes. The mighty Flame Sword, for instance, is worthless against a Phoenix, thieves often carry cursed weapons, and wolfbite transfers nasty diseases. Slurping up valuable possessions during combat is the devourer's forte'; and (hint!) the dangerous doppleganger will always attack with a duplicate of your current primary weapon. (BUT, he can't switch during combat; you can!)
Monster killing yields better weapons, assorted wands, scrolls, "eyes" and other magical implements plus "experience"-- the latter being your sole route to permanent attribute improvements. Death or QUITting without a SAVE (e.g. when you become lost) carries only a mild penalty. You are "rejoined" with all your stuff (as of the last SAVE), but minus a few points on some attribute. Winning through to the Dungeon's exit is, to be sure, a rough, long-play proposition. Yet, with carefully maintained maps, a character who has progressed beyond "beginner" status has good prospects for success.
Offering an extaordinarily rich adventuring environment, the sequal is a vast improvement over "' City", with larger hires script, more detailed graphics, and smoother, easier access to status/information displays. Speed and sound are adequate; and, all in all, I doubt that a more entertaining collection of adversaries or situations exists anywhere. Notable weaknesses are SAVE, which ends play (forcing a restart to continue a session), and the handling of new characters. Even given first class documentation, the game is MUCH TOO ROUGH on new guys-- bordering, to put it bluntly, on "defective". If, once you 'get into it', "The Dungeon" were not so emmensely enjoyable, I'd recommend that newcomers simply forget it; but it is, so don't!
Jeff Hurlburt, 1988