Arthur!

Praise

I really enjoyed playing this small scenario. It fits very well into the style of EMR. Although there are minor concerns here and there, I found nothing about the map that I did not like. I particularly enjoyed the wide-openess of the map. Although there are numerous tight places, most of the map allows the player to freely move around. I also like the exploration nature of the map. Although there is a somewhat linear feel to the map, the author leaves enough freedom to explore virtually any part of the map at any time. The ammo is a bit tight for Champion setting (especially the second level), but I was able to finish it nonetheless. It is the kind of map that I would love to play again and again.

Having played Arthur! back in the early days of Mac OS, I still have fond memories of this text adventure game, and so it’s a pure delight to see it evolved into an EMR world. I thoroughly enjoyed the game, the storyline, the fights, the non-linear layout. I really like the additions for the 3.0 version of EMR, especially the wand library.

My favorite entry. I pick this as the winner.

I liked the expansive shape, the many areas, and the battle with the black knight in the first level. The second was much shorter, although the battles were pretty intense. The ability to exchange scrolls indirectly gave me a great ammo source, but it was a unique stunt that I enjoyed. I flooded the kraken with skeletons.

Generally beautiful map, with complex, layered objectives, and a great deal going on. The revision of this older map for v3 is handled well – the new game features only add to the map.

Another fun game. I have spent numerous hours playing the original game so I guess I’m locked into this game and am familiar with it. I think the sound effects and music are very good and the game is very challenging. I especially like the story line and the continuous changing levels. The lay out of weapons, health, and enemies are very good.

The story’s fairly good, and the overall design of the quest is well-done.

Suggestions for Improvement

Although I do not want this to sound like a beta-test report, I feel I should enumerate several things I found concerning. All of these deal with the first level Arthur. I found nothing of concern about the second level other than the amount of ammo, as well as maybe needing a few more recharge canisters. On Champion setting, this second level is really quite tough.

  1. At the very beginning of the secenario, right after the first level has loaded, but before the scenario actually begins, there is a short sound sequence (sounds like the noise the Evil Cleric makes when it is attacking). It quickly goes away and the opening scene appears. Odd.
  2. While the player is talking to the tavern keeper, but before he is freed from his prison, “maintenance talk” can be heard. However there is no one in the room but the player and the tavern keeper. Just seemed a bit strange.
  3. While you are recharging at the cross in the church, I found the constant flashing light annoying.
  4. In the “Hot Room”, there is a teleporter in a small alcove with four small fires. I thought that was an odd place to have a teleporter. It never would occur to me to step into that alcove and stand there, especially with four fires in there that can cause damage. I wandered around aimlessly looking for a way to exit this section of the level.
  5. One side of poly 997 is not textured.
  6. Twice when I was saving the game at a save terminal, I had the game quit. I am not sure if it was a memory problem, or something with the map. The game reloaded fine each time, so it might have been my computer.
  7. There seems to be a lack of consistency between the two levels as to the immunities of the monsters. All of the Knights in the first level are not immune to the Axe or the player’s fists, while in the second level they are all immune to both. I can understand that when it comes to King Lot. But there shouldn’t be any reason for the other Knights being immune to the Axe or fists.
  8. I found going back and forth from the Dragon’s Lair to the first part of the level to be very tedious. There is no way a player on Champion setting is going to survive one trip through the Lair without having to recharge (assuming they want to defeat all enemies). Having to go through the underground maze each time in order to reach the Lair was most annoying. I think it would have been better to make it easier to go back and forth once the player reached the Lair the first time, or perhaps once the Black Knight or the Fire Beast was defeated.
  9. There are initially 11 Water Vials in the first level. They are set to a maximum of 6 and regenerate infinitely often. Four of the 11 Vials appear in the secret area of the Ivory Tower. The player has access to that area only one time. Thus if at the end of the level the player has used all 11 Vials, it is possible to have 4 of the 6 Vials that should regenerate, actually regenerate in the secret area. But that area is no longer accessible once you leave it.. That means the player would be leaving the level with only two Vials at most. On Champion setting that is not a good way to begin the second level. I would have made that area open to the player constantly ***IF*** they managed to make it there at all. Fortunately, I was able to leave the level with 5 of the 6. But it was annoying missing out on that 6th Vial. The second level is very tough on Champion setting. The player needs to enter that level with maximum ammo.

As others have stated, the new additions of Lua appear to have introduced a new bug with regards to exiting the first level before completing all the tasks. Also, the architecture still suffers the lack of lighting effects from the original.

The biggest problem was that, when Merlin told me that the cover to the castle door's keyhole had been opened, I went straight there and was teleported to the second level, without collecting all of the scrolls or Excalibur, and with no way back. I did manage to kill King Lot and “finish” the game, but I don't think that was what the author had in mind... it should be impossible to leave the top level early, or there should be some way back from the second level.

Terminal texts should change on repeat visits. For instance, Merlin should say something different on the second visit to the cave.

Grammar and spelling need some attention.
The fiddle music gets really annoying after the first hour.

I didn't find there was much use of lighting and sound effects, and with a few exceptions the areas didn't feel very different from me going through them. Just some more additional level design features would be recommendable.

A walkthrough is almost a necessity for player who aren’t willing to spend a great deal of time here – the level is so complicated, and the goal paths not always obvious. It’s almost like the Excalibur equivalent of a sandbox RPG game, which is both strength and weakness.

Cut down a little bit on the messages or communications.

Unfortunately, it’s seriously buggy—I was able to get the key without ever collecting more than one or two scrolls and make it to the second level without even seeing Excalibur. Perhaps it’s the weapon combination I ended up with, but the battles in the second level also seemed a bit too hard.