Bloodwych

Did You Know?

• Computer Gaming World criticized the IBM version's 'weak graphics' but concluded that 'Bloodwych scores very solidly on game-play and deserves serious consideration from dungeon fanatics'.
• CU Amiga-64 gave the game a CU Screen Star, stating it had even more varied gameplay than Dungeon Master and that puzzles could be solved by pure logic.

Development

Bloodwych began development on the Commodore 64 while Anthony Taglione was at university in Reading, where his interest in Dungeons & Dragons grew. After playing FTL's Dungeon Master, Tag, Pete and Philip Taglione proposed a C64 version to Mirrorsoft; without obtaining rights, this became a two-player split-screen game titled The Crystal Maze, later renamed Bloodwych after the Channel 4 television programme of the same name. Mirrorsoft funded the game after seeing development screens, with lead versions pushed to the Atari ST and Amiga. Tag handled the 68000 machines, while his brother Philip developed the z80 8-bit versions for the Amstrad and ZX Spectrum; the C64 version followed with Tag's help. Chris Achilleos was given complete creative freedom for the box artwork; his painting of a 'crystal guardian' was later incorporated into the game as the Lord of Entropy (also referred to as 'The Entity') in the final level of Zendik's tower. The IBM PC conversion, created by Walking Circles, included in-game music by David Whittaker but contained bugs that made the game impossible to complete.

Gameplay

All champions belong to one of four classes: Warrior, Mage, Adventurer, or Thief (called 'cutpurse' in game). Each class offers four characters, each with a colour—Red, Blue, Green, or Yellow—representing a magical alignment. These colours are a consistent theme: green spells are for the 'Serpent' (physical), blue for the 'Moon' (mind and illusion), red for the 'Dragon' (fire and energy), and yellow for 'Chaos' (magic and entropy). The four Towers navigated by the characters and the Crystals collected from each follow this colour scheme, as do coloured wands that magnify spell-casting effects later in the game. Rings allowing 'free' spell casting and certain weapons also align with these colours. A notable feature is the ability to hold simple conversations with traders, other champions, and enemies during combat using a menu of stock pseudo-medieval phrases such as 'Truly my courage is remarkable' and 'Begone, thou oaf'. These phrases can flatter a companion, aggravate an enemy, or lower an item's price; for example, a long sword (RRP 10 gold pieces) can drop to 6 or 7 after flattering the shopkeeper with 'Thou seems fine', especially when combined with the Beguile spell (a blue/moon spell most effectively cast by Megrim).

Expansion

An add-on pack called Bloodwych: Data Disks Vol 1 (also known as Bloodwych: The Extended Levels) was released for the Atari ST and Commodore Amiga. It added the ability to persuade some enemy creatures to join the player's party. The expansion required importing a saved game from the original Bloodwych, and featured stronger opponents; the recommended experience level for imported adventurers was level 14, and characters below that level would have their experience progress temporarily accelerated. The release also included a free hints and tips booklet for the original dungeons.