Pool of radiance is the first RPG (role playing game) in a long series from SSI. You begin the game by creating up to six player characters from a vareity of races like human, elf and dwarf. Each race has different abilities as regard to the classes in the game for instance halflings are small and have higer max dexterity than other races.
As a conventional isometric dungeon crawl, Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor is not a terrible game. But as a computer translation of role-playing's most important and familiar system, which also brazenly claims the heritage of the original 'Gold Box' Pool of Radiance, this release fails soundly. While Ruins of Myth Drannor arguably follows the official 3rd Edition Dungeons & Dragons rules, it tends to bring out the weaknesses of pen-and-paper play instead of enhancing or simplifying the experience for a single computer gamer. Most significantly, Ruins of Myth Drannor does not accomplish the depth of story, the detail of character customization, or the engulfing campaign world that made the original Pool of Radiance such a memorable adventure.
When the game is running smoothly, it does have some appeal. The graphical technique is oddly reminiscent of The Sims, featuring 3D-modeled characters and objects against an essentially 2D backdrop. The characters look quite good, fluidly animated and delicately shaded, and their appearances change according to the armor and weapons equipped. Ruins of Myth Drannor also features several impressive visual spell effects, with colorful bursts of light and tumbling, wispy fogs. The quality of the backdrops is mixed, as some of the overland locations show careful craftsmanship while many of the underground areas are inorganically angular and feel very computer-generated. The audio is decent, with some excellent monster noises and good ambient sounds. Unfortunately, like other aspects of this game, the various graphical and audio styles don't always mesh and the overall presentation often feels disjointed.
By its very title, this game demands comparison to the Gold Box original. Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor is not blatantly irreverent in its renovation, but it never approaches the unified experience of the late-'80s classic. This newer game is set about ten years after the events of the original adventure, in which the soul-stealing evil of the first Pool of Radiance was silenced and the city of New Phlan set free from its power. A new Pool of Radiance has appeared now, far away in the deserted ruins of Myth Drannor. Most of the adventure takes place in these ruins, removed from the city and any sense of cultural depth it might provide. Though the story has a few bright spots, plot development is linear, sparse, and often awkward. Gamers may find themselves paying attention to the text simply to figure out where to go next, instead of truly playing the roles of their characters in the adventure.
It is also appropriate to compare this official Dungeons & Dragons game to contemporary releases, in terms of its mechanics if not its narrative elements. Baldur's Gate (1998) and other D&D-based games fashioned on the Infinity engine use a computer-enhanced yet ultimately more accurate method of translating the Dungeons & Dragons combat system to video gaming. Though diligent in its adherence to the twisting arithmetic that drives the D&D rules, Baldur's Gate allows the player to break down party combat into the smallest possible time units and it simultaneously applies the actions of all characters and monsters in a real-time stream. Baldur's Gate can be paused to give the player an opportunity to think through each character's actions, allowing for coordinated group attacks and thoroughly believable defensive strategies. Of course, most tabletop D&D gamers don't play through their battles instant by instant. Such an approach would require so much time and effort that it would distract from the reality of the experience instead of enhancing it.
Ruins of Myth Drannor features a more traditional application of the D&D combat rules than Baldur's Gate does, offering a style of play complete with all of the unfortunate compromise found in the battles of many pen-and-paper D&D sessions. Combat actions in Ruins of Myth Drannor are discrete and sequential. Each character and monster takes his or her turn, one at a time. While this is indeed very similar to the way that groups of friends play at kitchen tables with dice and miniatures, it looses a crucial sense of immediacy and drama when translated to the single player's computer monitor. Done well, turn-based combat can be extremely rich and involving but this particular system is shallow, flawed, and inferior to that of the original Pool of Radiance. The combat design in Ruins of Myth Drannor occasionally produces some interesting situations, but it also encourages tactics that would seem impractical or impossible in a 'realistic' fantasy combat situation. Characters can cast spells with no real threat of a ranged attack interruption. Monsters approach one at a time, making it easier to take strong positions and concentrate on the greatest threats.
There are additional factors that may push one to play this game 'by the numbers' instead of 'by the story.' Wounded or spell-spent characters face no penalty in resting for a complete recovery after each and every encounter. A distractingly handy color-changing icon even indicates the many areas in which a few hours of sleep or meditation will be completely safe and, no matter how badly they are wounded, characters seem to heal to their full hit points after each rest period. Other elements of movement and party management are more frustratingly unrealistic. When not engaged in combat, all of the characters in the party are forced to remain relatively close to one another. This prevents the rogue from scouting ahead down a dark hallway or the sorceress from positioning herself at a comfortable distance when a possibly trapped treasure chest is examined. The field of view is unnaturally determined by how far the player can scroll around the backdrop while the characters remain visible on screen.
Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor boasts that it is the first computer game to use the 3rd Edition Dungeons & Dragons rules. If there is an overall theme to the 3rd Edition's amendments, it is of customization. The core rulebooks feature many alternate statistics systems, disparate variations of possible character types, and insightful advice for balancing play in non-traditional games. Instead of listing immutable details such as which races can be of which classes and which of those are available to players (as earlier D&D editions do), the 3rd Edition lays out a more theoretical foundation and then offers suggestions as to how to build upon it. Balance and purpose are emphasized over statistical or topical specifics. The books preach that while no single campaign is suitable for every variation of play, a good game can be built around any variation of the rules as long as it's done in the proper spirit.
It is in abuse of this authorization that Ruins of Myth Drannor haphazardly interprets the D&D system, making substantial allowances in some regards while completely forbidding other, more established options. The half-orc race is available for play but gnome characters are not a choice. Certain race and class combinations offer character models of only one gender. The game allows for no traditional mage characters at all, squelching any chance for arcane study or spell book development. Just one relatively conservative method of attribute generation is supported in spite of the aggressively paced campaign. Most importantly however, little or no explanation is given in the context of the game world as to why these particular limitations and allowances are made.
- Pool of radiance is there a patch so it can be used with windows 10, self built, does so automatally, game - Answered by a verified Tech Support Specialist We use cookies to give you the best possible experience on our website.
- Pool of Radiance is an old DOS fantasy rpg game set in the Dungeons & Dragons universe, developed by SSI Strategic Simulations Inc., designed by Jim Ward, David Cook, Steve Winter, Mike Breault and published by SSI Strategic Simulations Inc. Pool of Radiance is.
- Pool of radiance Ruins of Mythdranor will not start When I attempt to start Pool of radiance, nothing happens with the compatibility trouble shooter, just never launches at all, the only way I've got anything from launching the game is changing the compatibility to windowed mode with a lower resolution, changed to a black screen a few times.
- Composed of RPG classics that premiered the Forgotten Realms to video gamers, The Forgotten Realm Archives - Collection Two contains the following titles: Pool of Radiance, Curse of the Azure Bonds, Hillsfar, Secret of the Silver Blades, Pools of Darkness, Gateway to the Savage Frontier, Treasures of the Savage Frontier, Forgotten Realms.
- A system report or other file containing a description of your computer's technical specification is required to submit this technical support request. When submitting a system report, please be aware that it may contain your personal information, like your computer name. Please consider reviewing and removing any personal information from the system report before submitting this file.
Theoretically, any combination of the basic Dungeons & Dragons rules could be applied with success, but only when done with an honest, encompassing rationale. The interpretation of D&D offered by Ruins of Myth Drannor is a mishmash, seemingly governed more by what would and wouldn't work within the game's programming limitations as opposed to any consideration of theme or setting. Good or bad, the elements of play that emulate the tabletop experience are held forth with pride, while aspects that do not live up to the game's lofty aspirations are clumsily hidden or ignored altogether. It is true that this release uses the 3rd Edition Dungeons & Dragons rules, but it uses them poorly. The result is a game that focuses almost entirely on combat with no truly compelling elements of history, story, or character development. Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor is most disappointing not for what it is, but for what it could have and should have been.
Graphics: Character animations are quite good and some of the aboveground backdrops show a lot of artistic attention, but the style has been better done by earlier games and the graphics here demonstrate nothing worthy of the required 3D acceleration.
Sound: Sound effects are directional and believable. Some background noises are subtle and moody. In the initial unpatched version of the game, music and sound effects seem to contribute to occasional slow-down or other technical difficulties on some systems.
Enjoyment: Very little is done to encourage the gamer to actually role-play his or her characters. The game is best enjoyed through some abstract appreciation of the traditional combat system. Numerous battles lack variety and urgency.
Replay Value: Though multiplayer games can be randomly generated, there is not enough diversity to inspire continued play. The game is monotonous enough the first time through.
People who downloaded Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor have also downloaded:
Pool of Radiance, Pools of Darkness, Planescape: Torment, Dungeons & Dragons: Dragonshard, Temple of Elemental Evil, The, Eye of The Beholder 3, Diablo 2, Prince of Qin
Pool of Radiance, Pools of Darkness, Planescape: Torment, Dungeons & Dragons: Dragonshard, Temple of Elemental Evil, The, Eye of The Beholder 3, Diablo 2, Prince of Qin
Pool of Radiance | |
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Developer(s) | Strategic Simulations, Inc. Marionette (NES) |
Publisher(s) | Strategic Simulations, Inc. Pony Canyon (Japan) FCI, Inc. (U.S.A.) |
Director(s) | Chuck Kroegel |
Designer(s) | George MacDonald |
Programmer(s) | Keith Brors Brad Myers |
Artist(s) | Tom Wahl Fred Butts Darla Marasco Susan Halbleib |
Composer(s) | Wally Beben (Amiga) David Warhol (C64) Seiji Toda (NES/PC-9800) Masayuki Kurinaga (PC98) |
Engine | Gold Box |
Platform(s) | Amiga, Apple II, C64, MS-DOS, Apple Macintosh, NES, PC-9800 |
Release | June 1988 1989 (Mac) April 1992 (NES) |
Genre(s) | Role-playing video game, Tactical RPG |
Mode(s) | Single player |
Pool of Radiance is a role-playing video game developed and published by Strategic Simulations, Inc (SSI) in 1988. It was the first adaptation of TSR's Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D) fantasyrole-playing game for home computers, becoming the first episode in a four-part series of D&D computer adventure games. The other games in the 'Gold Box' series used the game engine pioneered in Pool of Radiance, as did later D&D titles such as the Neverwinter Nights online game. Pool of Radiance takes place in the Forgotten Realms fantasy setting, with the action centered in and around the port city of Phlan.
Just as in traditional D&D games, the player starts by building a party of up to six characters, deciding the race, sex, class, and ability scores for each. The player's party is enlisted to help the settled part of the city by clearing out the marauding inhabitants that have taken over the surroundings. The characters move on from one area to another, battling bands of enemies as they go and ultimately confronting the powerful leader of the evil forces. During play, the player characters gain experience points, which allow them to increase their capabilities. The game primarily uses a first-person perspective, with the screen divided into sections to display pertinent textual information. During combat sequences, the display switches to a top-down 'video game isometric' view.[1]
Generally well received by the gaming press, Pool of Radiance won the Origins Award for 'Best Fantasy or Science Fiction Computer Game of 1988'. Some reviewers criticized the game's similarities to other contemporary games and its slowness in places, but praised the game's graphics and its role-playing adventure and combat aspects. Also well-regarded was the ability to export player characters from Pool of Radiance to subsequent SSI games in the series.
- 2Plot
- 3History
Gameplay[edit]
Pool of Radiance is based on the same game mechanics as the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rule set.[2] As in many role-playing games (RPGs), each player character in Pool of Radiance has a character race and a character class, determined at the beginning of the game. Six races are offered, including elves and halflings, as well as four classes (fighter, cleric, wizard, and thief).[2] Non-human characters have the option to become multi-classed, which means they gain the capabilities of more than one class,[3] but advance in levels more slowly.[citation needed] During character creation, the computer randomly generates statistics for each character, although the player can alter these attributes.[4] The player also chooses each character's alignment, or moral philosophy; while the player controls each character's actions, alignment can affect how NPCs view their actions.[3] The player can then customize the appearance and colors of each character's combat icon.[2] Alternatively, the player can load a pre-generated party to be used for introductory play.[5] These characters are combined into a party of six or less, with two slots open for NPCs.[6] Players create their own save-game files, assuring character continuation regardless of events in the game. On an MS-DOS computer, the game can be copied to the hard-disk drive. Other computer systems, such as the Commodore 64, require a separate save-game disk.[7]
The game interface. Clockwise from upper left: conversation with a dragon; the party in combat; exploring the graveyard; sample character view
The game's 'exploration' mode uses a three-dimensional first-person perspective, with a rectangle in the top left of the screen displaying the party's current view; the rest of the screen displays text information about the party and the area.[8] During gameplay, the player accesses menus to allow characters to use objects; trade items with other characters; parley with enemies; buy, sell, and pool the characters' money; cast spells, and learn new magic skills. Players can view characters' movement from different angles, including an aerial view.[9] The game uses three different versions of each sprite to indicate differences between short-, medium-, and long-range encounters.[10]
In combat mode, the screen changes to a top-down mode with dimetric projection, where the player decides what actions the characters will take in each round. These actions are taken immediately, rather than after all commands have been issued as is standard in some RPGs.[8] Optionally, the player can let the computer choose character moves for each round.[9] Characters and monsters may make an extra attack on a retreating enemy that moves next to them. If a character's hit points (HP) fall below zero, he or she must be bandaged by another character or the character will die.[8] The game contains random encounters, and game reviewers for Dragon magazine observed that random encounters seem to follow standard patterns of encounter tables in pen and paper AD&D game manuals. They also observed that the depictions of monsters confronting the party 'looked as though they had jumped from the pages of the Monster Manual.'[7]
Different combat options are available to characters based on class. For example, fighters can wield melee or ranged weapons; magic-users can cast spells; thieves have the option to 'back-stab' an opponent by strategically positioning themselves.[8] As fighters progress in level, they can attack more than once in a round. Fighters also gain the ability to 'sweep' enemies, effectively attacking each nearby low-level creature in the same turn.[11] Magic-users and clerics are allowed to memorize and cast a set number of spells each day. Once cast, a spell must be memorized again before reuse. The process requires hours of inactivity for all characters, during which they rest in a camp; this also restores lost hit points to damaged characters.[8] This chore of memorizing spells each night significantly added to the amount of game management required by the player.[12]
As characters defeat enemies, they gain experience points (XP). After gaining enough XP, the characters 'train up a level' to become more powerful.[2] This training is purchased in special areas within the city walls.[3] In addition to training, mages can learn new spells by transcribing them from scrolls found in the unsettled areas.[8] Defeated enemies in these areas also contain items such as weapons and armor, which characters can sell to city stores.[7]
Plot[edit]
Setting[edit]
Once the party reaches the outer confines of Phlan, they can enter the external environment and move about this map. Phlan is located at the outlet of the river near lower center.
Pool of Radiance takes place in the Forgotten Realms fantasy world, in and about the city of Phlan. This is located on the northern shore of the Moonsea along the Barren River, between Zhentil Keep and Melvaunt.[10] The party begins in the civilized section of 'New Phlan' that is governed by a council. This portion of the city hosts businesses, including shopkeepers who sell holy items for each temple's worshipers, a jewelry shop, and retailers who provide arms and armor. A party can also contract with the clerk of the city council for various commissions; proclamations fastened to the halls within City Hall offer bits of information to aid the party. These coded clues can be deciphered by using the Adventurer's Journal, included with the game.[7]
There are three temples within Phlan, each dedicated to different gods. Each temple can heal those who are wounded, poisoned, or afflicted, and can fully restore deceased comrades for a high price. The party can also visit the hiring hall and hire an experienced NPC adventurer to accompany the party.[7] Encounters with NPCs in shops and taverns offer valuable information.[13] Listening to gossip in taverns can be helpful to characters, although some tavern tales are false and lead characters into great danger.[3]
Plot summary[edit]
The ancient trade city of Phlan has fallen into impoverished ruin. Now only a small portion of the city remains inhabited by humans, who are surrounded by evil creatures. To rebuild the city and clean up the Barren River, the city council of New Phlan has decided to recruit adventurers to drive the monsters from the neighboring ruins. Using bards and publications, they spread tales of the riches waiting to be recovered in Phlan, which draws the player's party to these shores by ship.[14][15]
At the start of the game, the adventurers' ship lands in New Phlan, and they receive a brief but informative tour of the civilized area.[11] They learn that the city is plagued with a history of invasions and wars and has been overtaken by a huge band of humanoids and other creatures. Characters hear rumors that a single controlling element is in charge of these forces.[13] The characters begin a block-by-block quest to rid the ruins of monsters and evil spirits.[6]
Beyond the ruins of old Phlan, the party enters the slum area—one of two quests immediately available to new parties. This quest requires the clearing of the slum block and allows a new party to quickly gain experience. The second quest is to clear out Sokol Keep, located on Thorn Island.[7] This fortified area is inhabited by the undead, which can only be defeated with silver weapons and magic.[7] The characters' adventure is later expanded to encompass the outlying areas of the Moonsea region.[6] Eventually, the player learns that an evil spirit named Tyranthraxus, who has possessed an ancient dragon, is at the root of Phlan's problems.[8] The characters fight Tyranthraxus the Flamed One in a climactic final battle.[6]
History[edit]
Development[edit]
Pool of Radiance was the first official game based on the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules.[2] The scenario was created by TSR designers Jim Ward, David Cook, Steve Winter, and Mike Breault, and coded by programmers from Strategic Simulations, Inc's Special Projects team.[16] The section of the Forgotten Realms world in which Pool of Radiance takes place was intended to be developed only by SSI.[15] The game was created on Apple II and Commodore 64 computers, taking one year with a team of thirty-five people.[2] This game was the first to use the game engine later used in other SSI D&D games known as the 'Gold Box' series.[10][17][18] The SSI team developing the game was led by Chuck Kroegel.[3] Kroegel stated that the main challenge with the development was interpreting the AD&D rules to an exact format. Developers also worked to balance the graphics with gameplay to provide a faithful AD&D feel, given the restrictions of a home computer. In addition to the core AD&D manuals, the books Unearthed Arcana and Monster Manual II were also used during development.[2] The images of monsters were adapted directly from the Monster Manual book.[19] The game was originally programmed by Keith Brors and Brad Myers, and it was developed by George MacDonald.[20] The game's graphic arts were by Tom Wahl, Fred Butts, Darla Marasco, and Susan Halbleib.[20]
Pool of Radiance was released in June 1988;[15] it was initially available on the Commodore 64, Apple II series and IBM PC compatible computers.[17] A version for the Atari ST was also announced.[5] The Macintosh version was released in 1989.[17] The Macintosh version featured a slightly different interface and was intended to work on black-and-white Macs like the Mac Plus and the Mac Classic. The screen was tiled into separate windows including the game screen, text console, and compass. Graphics were monochrome and the display window was relatively small compared to other versions. The Macintosh version featured sound, but no music. The game's Amiga version was released two years later.[4] The PC 9800 version 『プール・オブ・レイディアンス』 in Japan was fully translated (like the Japanese Famicom version) and featured full-color graphics. The game was ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System under the title Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: Pool of Radiance, released in April 1992.[21] The NES version was the only version of the game to feature a complete soundtrack, which was composed by Seiji Toda, as he was signed to the publisher, Pony Canyon's record label at the time.[citation needed] The same soundtrack can be found on the PC-9801 version.[citation needed] The Amiga version also features some extra music, while most other ports contain only one song that plays at the title screen.[citation needed]
The original Pool of Radiance game shipped with a 28-page introductory booklet, which describes secrets relating to the game and the concepts behind it. The booklet guides players through the character creation process, explaining how to create a party. The game also included the 38-page Adventurer's Journal, which provides the game's background. The booklet features depictions of fliers, maps, and information that characters see in the game.[3] The package also included a translation decoder wheel.[3] After the title screen, a copy protection screen was displayed consisting of two pictures and a line.[citation needed] The player was required to use the decoder wheel to line up the pictures, then enter the word revealed on the decoder wheel. After three unsuccessful attempts, the game automatically shut down.[citation needed]
Sequels and related works[edit]
Cover of the Pool of Radiance novel
Pool of Radiance was the first in a four-part series of computer D&D adventures set in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. The others were released by SSI one year apart: Curse of the Azure Bonds (1989), Secret of the Silver Blades (1990), and Pools of Darkness (1991).[8] The 1989 game Hillsfar was also created by SSI but was not a sequel to Pool of Radiance. Hillsfar is described instead, by the reviewers of Dragon, as 'a value-added adventure for those who would like to take a side trip while awaiting the sequel'.[22] A player can import characters from Pool of Radiance into Hillsfar, although the characters are reduced to their basic levels and do not retain weapons or magical items. Original Hillsfar characters cannot be exported to Pool of Radiance, but they can be exported to Curse of the Azure Bonds.[22] A review for Curse of the Azure Bonds in Computer Gaming World noted that 'you can transfer your characters from Pool of Radiance and it's a good idea to do so. It will give you a headstart in the game.'[23]
GameSpot declared that Pool of Radiance, with its detailed art, wide variety of quests and treasure, and tactical combat system, and despite the availability of only four character classes and the low character level cap, 'ultimately succeeded in its goal of bringing a standardized form of AD&D to the home computer, and laid the foundation for other future gold box AD&D role-playing games'.[6] Scott Battaglia of GameSpy said Pool of Radiance is 'what many gamers consider to be the epitome of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons RPGs. These games were so great that people today are using MoSlo in droves to slow down their Pentium III-1000 MHz enough to play these gems.'[11] In March 2008, Dvice.com listed Pool of Radiance among its 13 best electronic versions of Dungeons & Dragons. The contributor felt that 'The Pool of Radiance series set the stage for Dungeons & Dragons to make a major splash in the video game world.'[24]
The 1988 Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game moduleRuins of Adventure was produced using the same adventure scenario as Pool of Radiance, using the same plot, background, setting, and many of the same characters as the computer game. The module thus contains useful clues to the successful completion of the computer missions.[25]Ruins of Adventure contains four linked miniscenarios, which form the core of Pool of Radiance.[26] According to the editors of Dragon magazine, Pool of Radiance was based on Ruins of Adventure, and not vice versa.[27]
Novelization[edit]
In November 1989 a novelization of Pool of Radiance the video game, also called Pool of Radiance, was written by James Ward and Jane Cooper Hong, published by TSR. The novel is set in the Forgotten Realms setting based on the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Dragon described the novel's plot: 'Five companions find themselves in the unenviable position of defending the soon-to-be ghost town against a rival possessing incredible power.'[28] This book was the first in a trilogy, followed by Pools of Darkness and Pool of Twilight.
Re-release[edit]
GOG.com released Pool of Radiance and many Gold Box series games digitally on August 20, 2015, as a part of 'Forgotten Realms: The Archives - Collection Two'.[29][30]
Pool Of Radiance Pc Game
Reception[edit]
Reception | ||||||||||||||||
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SSI sold 264,536 copies of Pool of Radiance for computers in North America, three times that of Heroes of the Lance, an AD&D-licensed action game SSI also released that year. It became by far the most successful game in the company's history; even the hint book outsold any earlier SSI game.[31]Pool of Radiance also outsold competitors Ultima V and Bard's Tale III
In Computer Gaming World's preview of Pool of Radiance in July 1988, the writer noted a sense of deja vu. He described the similarity of the game's screen to earlier computer RPGs. For example, the three-dimensional maze view in the upper-left window was similar to Might & Magic or Bard's Tale, both released in the mid-1980s. The window with a listing of characters was featured in 1988's Wasteland; and the use of an active character to represent the party was part of Ultima V. The reviewer also noted that the design approach for game play was closer to SSI's own Wizard's Crown than to the other games in the genre.[32]
Pool of Radiance received positive reviews. G.M. called the game's graphics 'good' and praised its role-playing and combat aspects. They felt that 'roleplayers will find Pools is an essential purchase, but people who are solely computer games oriented may hesitate before buying it [..] it will be their loss'.[2] Tony Dillon from Commodore User giving it a score of 9 out of 10. The only complaint was a slightly slow disk access, but the reviewer was impressed with the game's features, awarding it a Commodore User superstar and proclaiming it 'the best RPG ever to grace the C64, or indeed any other computer'.[13] Issue #84 of the British magazine Computer + Video Games rated the game highly, saying that 'Pools is a game which no role player or adventurer should be without and people new to role playing should seriously consider buying as an introductory guide'.[3] Another UK publication, The Games Machine, gave the game an 89% rating. The reviewer noted that the third-person arcade style combat view is a great improvement for SSI, as they had traditionally incorporated simplistic graphics in their role-playing games. The reviewer was critical that Pool of Radiance was not original in its presentation and that the colors were a little drab, but concluded that the game is 'classic Dungeons & Dragons which SSI have recreated excellently'.[5] A review from Zzap was less positive, giving the game a score of 80%. The reviewer felt that the game required too much 'hacking, slicing and chopping' without enough emphasis on puzzle solving. The game was awarded 49% for its puzzle factor.[9]
Three reviewers for Computer Gaming World had conflicting reactions. Ken St. Andre—designer of the Tunnels & Trolls RPG—approved of the game despite his dislike of the D&D system, praising the art, the mixture of combat and puzzles, and surprises. He concluded, 'take it from a 'rival' designer, Pool of Radiance has my recommendation for every computer fantasy role-playing gamer'. Tracie Forman Hicks, however, stated that over-faithful use of the D&D system left it behind others like Ultima and Wizardry. She also disliked the game's puzzles and lengthy combat sequences.[33]Scorpia also disliked the amount of fighting in a game she otherwise described as a 'well-designed slicer/dicer', concluding that 'patience (possibly of Job) [is] required to get through this one'.[34][35] Shay Addams from Compute! stated that experienced role-playing gamers 'won't find anything new here', but recommended it to those who 'love dungeons, dragons, and drama'.[36] In their March 1989 'The Role of Computers' column in Dragon magazine #143, Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser (often called 'The Lessers') gave Pool of Radiance a three-page review. The reviewers praised Pool of Radiance as 'the first offering that truly follows AD&D game rules', calling it a 'great fantasy role-playing game' that 'falls into the must-buy category for avid AD&D game players'. The reviewers advised readers to 'rush out to your local dealer and buy Pool Of Radiance'. They considered it SSI's flagship product, speculating that it would 'undoubtedly bring thousands of computer enthusiasts into the adventure-filled worlds of TSR'. The Dragon reviewers criticized the 'notoriously slow' technology of the C64/128 system but added that the C64/128 version would become nearly unplayable without a software-based fastloader utility which Strategic Simulations integrated into the game. Conversely, the reviewers felt that the MS-DOS version was extremely fast, so much so that they had to slow the game operation down in order to read all the on-screen messages. They found that the MS-DOS version played at twice the speed of the C64/128 version when using the Enhanced Graphics Adapter (EGA) graphics mode.[7]
Alex Simmons, Doug Johns, and Andy Mitchell reviewed the Amiga version of Pool of Radiance for Amiga Action magazine in 1990, giving it a 79% overall rating. Mitchell preferred the game Champions of Krynn, which had been released by the time the Amiga version of Pool of Radiance became available; he felt that Pool of Radiance was 'more of the same' when compared to Champions, but was less playable and with more limited actions for players. Simmons felt that Pool of Radiance looked primitive and seemed less polished when compared with Champions of Krynn; he felt that although Pool was not up to the standard of Champions, he said it was still 'a fine little game'. Johns, on the other hand, felt that Pool of Radiance was well worth the wait, considering it very user-friendly despite being less polished than Champions of Krynn.[4]
Pool of Radiance was well received by the gaming press and won the Origins Award for Best Fantasy or Science Fiction Computer Game of 1988.[37] For the second annual 'Beastie Awards' in 1989, Dragon's readers voted Pool of Radiance the most popular fantasy role-playing game of the year, with Ultima V as the runner-up. The Apple II version was the most popular format, the PC DOS/MS-DOS came in a close second, and the Commodore 64/128 got the fewest votes. The primary factor given for votes was the game's faithfulness to the AD&D system as well as the game's graphics and easy-to-use user interface to activate commands.[38]Pool of Radiance was also selected for the RPGA-sponsored Gamers' Choice Awards for the Best Computer Game of 1989.[39] In 1990 the game received the fifth-highest number of votes in a survey of Computer Gaming World readers' 'All-Time Favorites'.[40]
Allen Rausch, writing for GameSpy's 2004 retrospective 'A History of D&D Video Games', concluded that although the game 'certainly had its flaws (horrendous load times, interface weirdness, and a low-level cap among others), it was a huge, expansive adventure that laid a good foundation for every Gold Box game that followed'.[41] In 1994, PC Gamer US named Pool of Radiance the 43rd best computer game ever.[42]
IGN ranked Pool of Radiance No. 3 on their list of 'The Top 11 Dungeons & Dragons Games of All Time' in 2014.[43] Ian Williams of Paste rated the game #5 on his list of 'The 10 Greatest Dungeons and Dragons Videogames' in 2015.[44]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^'Top 100 RPGs of All Time'. IGN. Retrieved 9 April 2013.
- ^ abcdefghi'Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'. G.M. The Independent Fantasy Roleplaying Magazine. Croftward. 1 (1): 18–20. September 1988.
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External links[edit]
Pool Of Radiance Windows 10 Free
- Pool of Radiance at MobyGames
- Pool of Radiance can be played for free in the browser at the Internet Archive
- Dragonbait's Pool of Radiance page, screenshots, info and pics of the original Pool of Radiance (1988)
- Pool of Radiance at Game Banshee - Contains a walkthrough and many in-depth specifics about the game
- Images of Pool of Radiance package, manual and screen for Commodore 64 version
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