Adventureland (video game)
Text adventure game searching for thirteen lost artifacts.
Adventureland is a text-based adventure game released for microcomputers in 1979 by Scott Adams. Rather than following a story, the player explores a fantasy world to locate thirteen lost artifacts. The game’s popularity prompted Adams to found Adventure International, which later released thirteen more games in the same series, each set in a different environment.
Players control the game by typing commands, which can be single movement words like "north" or two-word verb-noun phrases such as "climb tree." The parser recognizes about 120 words but only checks the first three letters, so it sometimes misreads inputs—for example, "lig lam" is understood as "light lamp." To win, the player must collect all thirteen artifacts: a jeweled fruit, a golden fish, a dragon's egg, a golden net, a magic carpet, a diamond necklace, a diamond bracelet, a pot of rubies, "royal honey," a crown, a magic mirror, a "firestone," and a statue of Paul Bunyan's blue ox Babe.
Adams created Adventureland as his first program, inspired by the earlier *Colossal Cave Adventure* though much smaller in scope. The source code was published in *SoftSide* magazine in 1980, and its database format was later used by other interpreters, including Brian Howarth’s Mysterious Adventures series. Originally written for the TRS-80, it was ported to many systems that didn’t exist in 1979: Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, TI-99/4A, PET, VIC-20, Commodore 64, IBM PC, ZX Spectrum, BBC Micro, Acorn Electron, Dragon 32/64, and Exidy Sorcerer. A reduced version with only three treasures, *Adventure 0: Special Sampler*, was also sold at a lower price. In 1982, a graphical re-release allowed players to see images of the scenery and objects.
Reviewers were enthusiastic. Mark Herro wrote in *Dragon* that he couldn’t recommend any version of the Adventure series highly enough, urging readers to find a way to play. *Micro Adventurer* noted that the VIC-20 version came on cartridge to avoid long loading times, calling the screen format and parser “standard” while criticizing minor controls, an inconsistent map, and seemingly random treasure placement. *InfoWorld’s Essential Guide to Atari Computers* recommended it as “the best of the early” adventures.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Adventureland
- Publisher
- Creative Computing Software / Adventure International
- Designer
- Scott Adams
- Series
- Adventure
- Released
- 1978
- Genre
- Interactive fiction
- Platforms
- TRS-80, Apple II, Atari 8-bit, TI-99/4A, PET, Commodore 64, IBM PC, VIC-20, ZX Spectrum, BBC Micro, Acorn Electron, Dragon 32/64, Exidy Sorcerer
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Adventureland, Adams' first program, was inspired by the earlier Colossal Cave Adventure, though it is not on the same scale. The source code for Adventureland was published in SoftSide magazine in 1980 and the database format was subsequently used in other interpreters such as Brian Howarth's Mysterious Adventures series. Adventureland was written for the TRS-80, then ported to other systems, most of which didn't exist in 1979: Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, TI-99/4A, PET, VIC-20, Commodore 64, IBM PC, ZX Spectrum, BBC Micro, Acorn Electron, Dragon 32/64, and Exidy Sorcerer. A cut-down, three treasure version entitled Adventure 0: Special Sampler was also sold at a lower price. In 1982, Adventureland was re-released with graphics, thus enabling the player to view visible representations of the scenery and objects.
Reader's Guide
Adventureland is controlled through the use of written commands. These can consist of a single word, such as those used for player character movement, including north, south, east, west, up, and down. They can also take the form of simple, two-word verb/noun phrases, such as 'climb tree'. Although the game can recognize about 120 words, the parser only takes the first three letters into account. This means not only that the parser occasionally misidentifies words, but also that commands can be truncated: 'lig lam' would be interpreted as 'light lamp'. In order to complete the game, the player has to collect the thirteen lost artifacts: a jeweled fruit, a golden fish, a dragon's egg, a golden net, a magic carpet, a diamond necklace, a diamond bracelet, a pot of rubies, 'royal honey', a crown, a magic mirror, a 'firestone', and a statue of Paul Bunyan's blue ox Babe. Mark Herro for Dragon commented that 'I can't recommend ANY version of Scott Adams' Adventure series highly enough. Beg, borrow, or steal a chance to play Adventure!' British print magazine Micro Adventurer praised the VIC-20 version was released as a cartridge as the loading times would be too long otherwise. The screen format and parser were 'standard' according to the magazine. It criticized minor controlling features, the non-consistent map and the seemingly random placement of treasures. InfoWorld's Essential Guide to Atari Computers recommended the game as 'the best of the early' adventures.
Did You Know?
- Adventureland was Scott Adams' first program.
- The parser only takes the first three letters of each word into account.
- A cut-down version called Adventure 0: Special Sampler was sold at a lower price.
- The game was re-released with graphics in 1982.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Adventureland (1979)?
Adventureland is a text-based adventure game created by Scott Adams and released in 1979 for early microcomputers. It was his very first published program and drew direct inspiration from the earlier Colossal Cave Adventure.
What is the goal in Adventureland?
Rather than following a linear narrative, the player's objective is to explore a fantasy world and track down thirteen scattered artifacts. There is no traditional story ending to resolve—collecting all thirteen items is the win condition.
How do you control the player in Adventureland?
All input is typed as plain text, ranging from single direction words like "north" to two-word commands such as "climb tree." The parser recognizes roughly 120 vocabulary words but only reads the first three letters of each, so partial typing works fine.
Why is Adventureland considered important in gaming history?
It marked Scott Adams' entry into the industry and proved popular enough that he went on to found Adventure International. That company then produced twelve additional titles in the same series, each set in a distinct environment.
What platforms was Adventureland released on?
The game shipped across a wide range of 1970s and early-1980s microcomputers, including the TRS-80, Apple II, Commodore 64, IBM PC, ZX Spectrum, and several others. Its broad porting helped it reach a large audience during the early personal-computer era.
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