Archipelagos (video game)
Encyclopedia
Archipelagos is a 1989 first person
action and strategy video game developed by Astral Software and playable on Amiga
, Atari ST
, and MS-DOS
-enabled PCs. A remake of Archipelagos, called Archipelagos 2000 and developed by Anthill Studios was released for Windows
in 1999.
s). These islands were created by a mysterious race known only as the Ancients. The Ancients also created another race, the Visitors, who ended up being their downfall, as the Visitors rebelled against their creators, ultimately killing them. As the blood of the slaughtered Ancients soaked into the land, the worlds they had created became twisted and poisoned. This is the world the player now finds themselves in, with the task of restoring the islands to their former, uncorrupted glory.
view. The player is not a specific character, but rather a kind of disembodied consciousness. Each level consists of a landscape made up of one or more lost islands. Each level has a stone obelisk
, a number of egg shaped boulders, and various hazards, such as animated trees, souls, or other enemies. The aim of each level is to destroy all of the boulders. Once all of the boulders are destroyed a timer starts. The player then has 90 seconds to reach the obelisk and destroy it.
Various obstacles stand in the player's way. There are animated trees which spread the blood of the ancients from their roots as they move around. Moving into an area contaminated by the blood damages the player. Also, once the timer has been started by destroying all of the boulders the trees become enraged, and swarm towards the player. Later levels introduce other creatures and hazards, but the essential gameplay
remains the same throughout the game. As the game levels are procedurally generated
from seed numbers there are 9999 levels in total.
version received review scores of 92%, 84% and 9/10 respectively from The One magazine
(issue 7, Apr 89), ST/Amiga Format
magazine (issue 11, May 89), and Atari ST User
(unknown issue, Jun 89) The Amiga version scored 79% from CU Amiga (Jun 89) and 90% in Zzap
(Issue 51, Jul 89) Elements of the game highlighted in reviews included the 3D graphics, which were seen as very advanced for the time, the atmospheric nature of the game, and its originality.
The game was reviewed in 1991 in Dragon
#169 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars.
First person (video games)
In video games, first person refers to a graphical perspective rendered from the viewpoint of the player character. In many cases, this may be the viewpoint from the cockpit of a vehicle. Many different genres have made use of first-person perspectives, ranging from adventure games to flight...
action and strategy video game developed by Astral Software and playable on Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
, Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
, and MS-DOS
MS-DOS
MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
-enabled PCs. A remake of Archipelagos, called Archipelagos 2000 and developed by Anthill Studios was released for Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
in 1999.
Plot
The game takes place on a series of islands (the titular archipelagoArchipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
s). These islands were created by a mysterious race known only as the Ancients. The Ancients also created another race, the Visitors, who ended up being their downfall, as the Visitors rebelled against their creators, ultimately killing them. As the blood of the slaughtered Ancients soaked into the land, the worlds they had created became twisted and poisoned. This is the world the player now finds themselves in, with the task of restoring the islands to their former, uncorrupted glory.
Gameplay
The game is played from a first person 3D3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
view. The player is not a specific character, but rather a kind of disembodied consciousness. Each level consists of a landscape made up of one or more lost islands. Each level has a stone obelisk
Obelisk
An obelisk is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape at the top, and is said to resemble a petrified ray of the sun-disk. A pair of obelisks usually stood in front of a pylon...
, a number of egg shaped boulders, and various hazards, such as animated trees, souls, or other enemies. The aim of each level is to destroy all of the boulders. Once all of the boulders are destroyed a timer starts. The player then has 90 seconds to reach the obelisk and destroy it.
Various obstacles stand in the player's way. There are animated trees which spread the blood of the ancients from their roots as they move around. Moving into an area contaminated by the blood damages the player. Also, once the timer has been started by destroying all of the boulders the trees become enraged, and swarm towards the player. Later levels introduce other creatures and hazards, but the essential gameplay
Gameplay
Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and player's connection with it...
remains the same throughout the game. As the game levels are procedurally generated
Procedural generation
Procedural generation is a widely used term in the production of media; it refers to content generated algorithmically rather than manually. Often, this means creating content on the fly rather than prior to distribution...
from seed numbers there are 9999 levels in total.
Reception
Archipelagos received largely positive reviews upon release. The Atari STAtari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
version received review scores of 92%, 84% and 9/10 respectively from The One magazine
The One (magazine)
The One was a video game magazine in the United Kingdom which covered 16-bit home gaming during the late 1980s and early 1990s. It was first published by EMAP in October 1988 and initially covered computer games aimed at the Atari ST, Commodore Amiga, and IBM PC markets.Like many similar magazines,...
(issue 7, Apr 89), ST/Amiga Format
ST/Amiga Format
ST Amiga Format was a computer magazine that covered the Atari ST and Amiga computers. It was published by Future Publishing to cover the ever growing market for the, then-new, 16-bit home computers. At first, the issues were equally balanced with coverage for both Commodore Amiga and Atari ST...
magazine (issue 11, May 89), and Atari ST User
Atari ST User
Atari ST User was a British computer magazine aimed at users of the Atari ST range. It started life as a pull-out section in Atari User magazine...
(unknown issue, Jun 89) The Amiga version scored 79% from CU Amiga (Jun 89) and 90% in Zzap
Zzap!64
Zzap!64 was a computer games magazine covering games on the Commodore International series of computers, especially the Commodore 64 . It was published in the UK by Newsfield Publications Ltd and later by Europress Impact....
(Issue 51, Jul 89) Elements of the game highlighted in reviews included the 3D graphics, which were seen as very advanced for the time, the atmospheric nature of the game, and its originality.
The game was reviewed in 1991 in Dragon
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#169 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars.