Dungeonbuster

Shadowforge (1990) was a turn-based CRPG by John Carmack for the Apple II and his first RPG. Partly inspired by Ultima's aesthetics, leveling only improved hit points leaving it to gear to determine your power as you battled against the monstrous minions of Greymere Shadowsender! (a brief thread)

Ambermoon (1993) | RPG | Commodore Amiga | Thalion Software

A fiery intro sets up the sequel to 1992's Ambstar when the red moon imprisoning a great evil falls from the heavens and shatters the land. As the grandson of the hero that had saved it before, it's up to you to try and do the same!

According to David Kushner's Masters of Doom, Nite Owl paid Carmack $2k for Wraith that he used on his car, a "brown MGB". It also further validated his decision to be an indie (and create a few more RPGs), a choice that would eventually lead to a fateful team-up for 1992's Wolfenstein 3D!

Nite Owl published an e-zine that included apps including games which was a trend at the time during the 80s and early 90s. It also included text file articles and ads like this one for Wraith!

Like Shadowforge, Wraith was distributed by Nite Owl who published an e-zine on floppy disks that not only shared various apps to subscribers during the 80s and 90s but also games. This ad from one of their issues beckons players to send $14.95 for a chance to save the island of Araithia from evil!

Adventurers coming from Shadowforge found themselves back in a familiar space. Once more following in the footsteps of top-down peers, moving around and fighting are as easy as punching (gently) the associated command keys. Leveling rewarded you with more HP and gear determined your strength.

Wraith (1990) was a turn-based RPG by John Carmack for Apple II PCs. It was designed to be much bigger than Shadowforge featuring a larger land mass, multiple cities, more dungeons, all adding up to a longer quest in battling a demonic Wraith that has threatened the land! (a Doors of Doom thread)

Our brave hero stands front and center in this model display of characters as he seeks the Salamander Cross to undo his curse! The action packed gameplay had features that included the ability to change forms and the freedom to explore in any direction. Critics and fans found much to like with it in it's '89 release and it would later come to a number of different platforms including the Sega Game Gear seen here in the lower right with the TV tuner attachment!

A cool model display decorated with a colorful cast of characters fills this 1992 ad from Japan for Monster World II, an action adventure by Westone for the Sega Game Gear!

Originally launched in 1989 for the Master System, it was also known as Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap in NA.

"FIST is an exciting new concept in fantasy gaming! Simply pick up your Touch-Tone telephone, dial 540-FIST and experience a dungeon adventure which YOU control! YOU make the decisions which direct your adventure by dialing numbers, as you compete for REAL GOLD awarded monthly. The creatures and deadly traps which await you are brought to life with dramatic sound effects. Hear the ROAR of the FLESH EATER as you lock swords, the SIZZLE of the FIREBALL bursting towards you, the CHINKING of the GOLD PIECES you will find hidden in the Demon Prince's underground dungeon." * Keep a pencil and paper handy to track your choices * Dial 0 to hear the previous message * Dial 9 to store your character in LIMBO for your next visit. Limbo saves time and money! * Send in for your free starter pack for more information. This one page ad wasn't quite as awesome as the two-page one that ran in the United Kingdom and offers a lot less information. For the most part, players can dial into FIST and experience monthly competitions for prizes by adventuring through a scenario. Dialing into the service gave you a menu for options that described the rules, laid out the background for the scenario, connect with other adventurers to discuss the game, a shop to spend gold earned during the adventure, and even a training academy to get used to the combat. Players could mail in for a FIST starter pack and their characters could even be saved by the service for later adventures, all driven by your phone. Hope that no one else needs it while you're on a dungeon crawl! Also, there were TWO Steve Jacksons (hence the clarification). Steve Jackson in the United States was known for RPG systems like GURPS and his company still works on other RPG related materials today. Steve Jackson (in the United Kingdom) co-founded Games Workshop (of Warhammer miniatures fame).

It's 1988 and your phone became the gateway to an RPG adventure with Fantasy Interactive Scenarios by Telephone (F.I.S.T.) by Steve Jackson (the UK one!)

Originally launched in the UK, audiences in the USA could now join the adventure and romp through a Demon Prince's castle for "REAL GOLD PIECES!"

That sense of adventure is one of the reasons it's a favorite of mine, too! Building up the pirate base was fun, ship to ship battles were neat, but I always wanted to go out of my way to just explore and see what's out there.

The ad shows off two screenshots (one of which shows the menacing helmed visage of Lord Soth) beneath the charging hooves that dominate the upper half of the ad. The text at the top proclaims "DEATH KNIGHTS OF KRYNN, The incredible sequel to Champions of Krynn!" and below that, states "Lord Soth has thrown down the gauntlet of challenge!" in an all new adventure where a new threat casts a shadow over the temporary peace won in the last game (Champions of Krynn).

A 1991 ad for Death Knights of Krynn, an RPG for PCs by SSI based on TSR's AD&D and the second chapter in a series set in the TTRPG world of Dragonlance

The fierce, nighmarish backdrop depicting a charge of undead knights is from a piece called "Lord Soth's Charge" by artist, Keith Parkinson.

Shadowforge would not be the last CRPG that Carmack would develop and he would go on to build quite a few more in the years ahead before he, and a few friends, would spark a first-person revolution.

The gameplay followed in the popular footsteps of a few CRPGs. Fighting was as easy as punching (gently) the appropriate key to attack enemies while moving about the map with your usual collection of NPCs like merchants. Its simple gameplay beckoned players to explore Carmack's crafted dungeons!

According to Masters of Doom by David Kushner, the RPG became Carmack's first big sale earning him $1,000 from Nite Owl that he put towards an Apple IIGS. He peppered the game with small bits of humor, too, as players explored the map for what they needed to destroy the Shadowforge.

Shadowforge was published as part of a "diskmag" or "e-zine" distributed on floppies. In this case, an e-zine published by a "mom 'n pop publisher" that sold camera batteries. It was called "The Nite Owl Journal" and also carried a variety of other apps for subscribers like many other e-zines did.

Shadowforge (1990) was a turn-based CRPG by John Carmack for the Apple II and his first RPG. Partly inspired by Ultima's aesthetics, leveling only improved hit points leaving it to gear to determine your power as you battled against the monstrous minions of Greymere Shadowsender! (a brief thread)

This page shows several portraits of our good-hearted pirate, Vyse, with different titles beneath each one with the words "Yes, you can change your reputation" printed here. This hinted at the "Swashbuckler Rating" system in the game that's determined by certain replies in conversations and "brave actions" during the course of the game. As your rating improves, Vyse's title changes to reflect how "trusted" he comes off to everyone else.

This page says "No, you can't change your clothes" while showing off a few more portraits of our hero, Vyse, with different titles. Three screenshots from the game are shown on the right, displaying a few dramatic scenes (like a giant whale tail coming out from the cloudy ocean!). The text box briefly adds a bit of flavor to the ad while tempting readers to "sail the vast 3D sky in your killer airship" as well as "Discover unchartered floating islands" and "Fight evil pirates" with "70 weapons and 36 magic skills" as the captain of your own ship with "22 crew members" as you climb the reputation ladder to become a legend. That is, "Unless you don't fight. Then you're just a wuss."

A two-page ad for Skies of Arcadia, an RPG by Overworks that debuted on the Sega Dreamcast in 2000!

Players are cast as Vyse, a Blue Rogue pirate in a world where the skies are the oceans, far off lands float among the clouds, and airships rule the horizon setting the stage for an epic adventure.

Yes! From what I understand, TSR wanted to dip their toes into that market, too, with something aimed at newcomers after seeing Games Workshop do such a good job there.

I feel the same way about Grandia on the PS1. The English VA can be a bit scuffed around the edges but it's still one of my favorite RPGs. When the intro fires up and the music starts playing, and when the gameplay clicks, it just pulled me right into the adventure and never let go!

Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes (1989) | RPG | Various platforms | Nihon Falcom

Originally released on the PC-88, it was also ported to platforms such as the PC Engine CD in 1991 (and localized for NA) with an enhanced score and additional voice acting. Not seen: my head bobbing to the music.

As the motto below the Dungeons & Dragons seal in the lower left notes, "Always an Adventure!" At the top, the game also notes that it's "beyond video". It's the early 90s and VHS tape decks are everywhere. But with Dragon Quest, players can now experience an adventure of their own without worrying whether or not someone is going to burn the Jiffy Pop. Box illustration by Jeff Easley

A picture of the included items are shown in the lower part of this ad captioned with: "The DRAGON QUEST game is packed with 6 FREE die-cast metal figures, maps, cards, dice, a FREE T-shirt offer and adventuer booklet!" At the time, Ral Partha was one of the big names in miniatures, creating pewter figures for an incredible range of TTRPGs at the time from Iron Crown's Lord of the Rings to TSR's Dungeons & Dragons lineup. If there was a popular RPG (that wasn't by Games Workshop) that you were interested in, Ral Partha might have had a pewter figure line for it. Box illustration by Jeff Easley

It's 1992 and TSR's Dragon Quest introduces a slimmed down RPG experience to players!

Along with the game board acting as the dungeon, cards stepped in for monsters, spells, traps, treasure, and gear. Hero cards represented the characters players can choose from, each with their own stats.

Shadowrun (1994) | RPG | Sega Genesis | BlueSky Software

This adaptation of FASA's Shadowrun for the Sega Genesis took players to the year 2058 where cyberpunks and magic mix in a dystopian Seattle sandbox as you seek answers for your brother's death. Very different from its SNES cousin from 1993!

Deadly Towers (1986) | action RPG | NES | Lenar and Tamtex

The kingdom is in danger! As Prince Myer, players venture into a monster-filled fortress to prevent a vision of doom from coming true by destroying seven magic bells. The gameplay also had a reputation for being notoriously brutal.

The title, The Bouncer, is spray painted against a graffiti covered wall on which hang screenshots dressed up like posters. Words written with the title describe why your fists need to do the talking: "Sion, a man haunted by a tragic past. Within him lies strength, and kindness, but also great sorrow. All this will change when he meets a girl named Dominique. These are the residents of DOG STREET." Rated "T" for Teen! And animated violence.

The second page of the ad shows the character, Sion, spray painted on an extension of the graffiti covered wall from the first panel along with a small tiger poster. Sion is one of three "bouncers" that players can choose from at certain points in the story, sometimes revealing new story elements depending on who they fight with in certain scenes. The Squaresoft logo is in the lower right along with the words "PICK A WORLD. We'll take you there." The Bouncer was one of the earliest titles on the PS2, especially when it was only a few months old in North America, and there was some excitement over it because it was a Squaresoft published title which carried some cache based on their RPG rep.

A colorful, two-page 2001 ad for The Bouncer, a beat 'em up RPG by DreamFactory for the PS2

Three bouncers chilling at a bar on Dog Street are rudely interrupted by the brazen kidnapping of Sion's new friend, Dominique, and pursue her abductors across the city of Edge in a cinematic adventure!

Destiny (1985) | adventure with RPG elements | C64 and Apple II | Destiny Software

Something of a distant relation to hybrids like Sierra's Quest for Glory series a few years later, Jeff Pierce blended adventurous puzzles with light RPG elements driven by a cursor-driven menu for a grand quest!

According to participants over at BoardGameGeek that did some digging into this unpublished system, Ral Partha did release a series of "Space Knights" miniatures that were intended to be used for it. You can see them via this link: https://www.miniatures-workshop.com/lostminiswiki/index.php?title=Space_Knights BoardGameGeek's page for Hot Lead: Space Knights: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/446406/hot-lead-space-knights However, from the speculation at BGG's forum for the system, it seems that it was ultimately shelved by Steve Jackson (the American Steve Jackson) due to difficulties in balancing. One post noted that it seemed to aim at being the GURPS (Steve Jackson's universal RPG system) for miniatures, taking aim at Games Workshop's Warhammer empire. Steve Jackson Games addressed this with a brief notation in older versions of their FAQ. You can see mention of it here in a 1998 capture thanks to archive.org: https://web.archive.org/web/19980206184113/http://www.sjgames.com/general/faq.html#23

A late 1992 teaser ad for Hot Lead by Steve Jackson Games, an unpublished miniatures skirmish system

According to info dug up at @BoardGameGeek.com, it allowed players to use "fantasy skeletal troops to far-future warriors" without "being forced to buy only "official" miniatures".

It might but that's only a guess. The instructions say nothing about it and it seems to go up randomly after stretches of activity. At one point, I was buying items at the gear store when I was 16, and when I left, I turned 17!

This is the start of a typical game. The main window shows your first-person view. The right panel has a mini-map like feature (the green dots and shapes are solid areas), a compass, and gauges for your hit points and magic points. The lower panel displays dialogue for your actions (and what is attacking you!).

You start off with some decent stats, preset gear (randomly generated), and only one mission -- to slay as many dragons as you can.

A dangerous monster stands in your way! Time to bump into it and hope for the best.

Bob's Dragon Hunt (1992) by Neurosport for DOS PCs is a 3D, first-person dungeon crawl with roguelike elements using the"VirtualDungeon" engine and was distributed as a "free teaser". Players, as Bob, were incarnated as a random, leveled up hero, to do battle and slay dragons. (a hunting thread)

As Andretti grins in his part of the ad above the words "THE FUN STARTS NOW!", Christine readies her bow promising "125 levels to explore and master" in an "epic adventure for the entire family" as they "discover the powers of the elven treasures".

The 1990 ad for the North American release of Arkista's Ring sharing some page space with Michael Andretti's World GP. For players itching to fight ninjas and goblins in the same game as a heroic, bow-wielding hero, Arkista's Ring wasn't a bad adventure that helped answer the call.

Unlike Zelda, though, Arkista was a bit more linear. Players fought through a total of thirty two stages which represented a run through the adventure. When they "won" at the end by stopping the Evil Shogun, the game reset from the very start, and players could keep going for a total of 125 stages!

Sometimes compared to Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda because of its action, our hero mainly used a bow and an arsenal of items ranging from extra bag space to potions and wands to mete out justice. Armor added extra health in addition to your "hearts" and your score earned you extra lives.