Archived from groups: rec.games.int-fiction,rec.arts.int-fiction (
More info?)
On or about 6/6/2004 7:37 PM, Nik Weaver did proclaim:
> This is a longshot ... but has anyone heard of a text
> adventure game called "Archon"? It is not related to
> the fantasy chess game of the same name.
>
> Archon was written around 1980 by an employee of a
> company called Timeshare --- I don't know the author's
> name --- and was privately circulated among other
> employees. As far as I know it was never commercially
> sold. The action took place at an archeological dig
> in the desert.
First, I'd try contacting some of the other employees. Was Timeshare a
St.Louis-based company? If so, there's a marginal chance that I might
recognize a name or two.
If you think that the game might have eventually been published, then it
probably didn't keep that name, since the other version was pretty
well-known. Here's a game reviewed in SPAG 9 that seems similar:
From: "Bozzie" <edharel SP@G eden.rutgers.edu>
NAME: Demon's Tomb PARSER: OK. Nothing fancy.
AUTHOR: Mastertonic PLOT: Stop ancient demon.
EMAIL: ??? ATMOSHPHERE: Nice.
AVAILABILITY: Commercial(Bargain bins) WRITING: Very good.
PUZZLES: Average, but logical SUPPORTS: PC
CHARACTERS: Very, very good (See below) DIFFICULTY: Medium
This is an old game, but nonetheless it is a very good one. It deals
with such important issues as fighting an ancient evil, sacrificing
yourself in order to save the world (don't worry, not a spoiler), and
how to keep a duck from quacking.
The game starts off with you as Professor Edward Lynton, famed
archaeologist, in an important site in England. Recently, some strange
things have occurred. Your partner has gone missing. You have
discovered things in the site which are both more amazing than your
wildest dreams, and more horrifying than your worst nightmares. You
awake in the middle of the night and smell smoke...
With no escape outside this recently discovered tomb, you must send a
message to the outside world, before the tomb becomes your own (and it
will, no matter what you do. That's made very clear throughout the
skimpy manual). You have only a short amount of time to do what you
must do before you are overcome by smoke. Despite your actions, after a
certain number of moves, the prologue ends and the game starts.
You are Richard, the professor's son, in a car lot near the
archeological site. You are here to talk to your father, but
unfortunately, he is in no condition to talk. As you learn more about
his death, depending on your earlier efforts, you will find a tale of a
centuries old rivalry, of evil about to be unleashed and that you are
the only one to stop it.
The story itself is nice, and immediately reminded me of a Doctor Who
story, Pyramids of Mars (also a text adventure game at /pc/mars.zip.
Somewhat rough about the edges, but is a fairly good AGT game) . The
story generally comes in spurts at a time in some wonderful prose.
Notes, letters, documents all give some great insights at several
interesting people who lived in the area. While most of these aren't
necessary for the game, it is well worth your time to read everything.
There are few, if any, "real" characters in Demon's Tomb that you can
interact with, and most of those that there are puzzles more than
anything. However, the descriptions, as I have said above, more than
make up for the lack of interacting agents. In fact, in some ways, it
makes it better. As recent debates on r.a.i-f have shown, there is no
easy way to make a good NPC in a text game, and indeed, even if you
manage to, there will still be problems with him/her. This way, the
author manages to show us some wonderful characterizations without
having to code a lot of time-eating code. This is not to say that the
game is simple. Indeed, the game tries to be flashy by offering a menu
system and some graphics, space which could have been used more
efficiently. Indeed, I would have liked there to have been a good
developed character. For example, how about a motorist I could flag
down and warn, and then find him dead later...
The Parser is sub-Infocom, but quite adequate for its purpose. The
puzzles themselves are fairly simple, but not overly simple, and they
are dynamic, so as not to bore experienced gamers. But that doesn't
deter from the game, it adds to it. There are no completely obscure
puzzles, and there are a few interesting ones. There are certainly no
unfair puzzles, and enough of an area to explore, so that should you get
frustrated at one problem, you'll be able to explore another area. And
if you really need some help, C. E. Forman has graciously made a hint
file of the game on ftp.gmd.de.
It is because the story doesn't try to serve complex problems, the
author is able to work on the story, and still throw in a new and
interesting puzzle or two. It also manages to allow freedom to explore,
although tends to be mostly linear in terms of solving problems. While
I could hope for better, in terms of problem solving and a few other
areas, over all, I enjoy this game, and it's certainly up there on my
list of favorite games.
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