Palace of Magic
Encyclopedia
Palace of Magic is a computer game
released in 1987 for the Acorn Electron
and BBC Micro
by Superior Software
. Combining platform
elements with problem solving, it uses extremely similar gameplay
principles to that of the earlier and better known game, Citadel.
The game begins with your character
in a palace
, having been shrunk and taken out of your normal place and time by an evil
wizard called Caldeti (an anagram
of Citadel).
The overall objective is to magically restore your character to their original size
and to find the teleporter
to their home world. This involves guiding your character through the Palace and other external locations, such as a church, wood
s and a dungeon
, overcoming various obstacle
s and enemies along the way.
is not automatically killed if they come into contact with hazards; instead the player
is allocated a set amount of energy
(but this time measured by a bar
, subdivided into units), which is depleted through contact, and can be replenished by collecting objects shaped like top hats. As in Citadel, the game is divided into 'rooms' or screens and if the player continuously loses too much energy in a room, the screen turns red
and the player is transported back to where they entered the room. This prevents players from passing through a room
simply by walking through enemies and taking the damage.
Other similarities to Citadel include:
Personal computer game
A PC game, also known as a computer game, is a video game played on a personal computer, rather than on a video game console or arcade machine...
released in 1987 for the Acorn Electron
Acorn Electron
The Acorn Electron is a budget version of the BBC Micro educational/home computer made by Acorn Computers Ltd. It has 32 kilobytes of RAM, and its ROM includes BBC BASIC along with its operating system....
and BBC Micro
BBC Micro
The BBC Microcomputer System, or BBC Micro, was a series of microcomputers and associated peripherals designed and built by Acorn Computers for the BBC Computer Literacy Project, operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation...
by Superior Software
Superior Software
Superior Software is a video game publisher. It was established in 1982 by Richard Hanson and John Dyson, two graduates of the University of Leeds, England...
. Combining platform
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
elements with problem solving, it uses extremely similar 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...
principles to that of the earlier and better known game, Citadel.
The game begins with your character
Player character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...
in a palace
Palace
A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word itself is derived from the Latin name Palātium, for Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills in Rome. In many parts of Europe, the...
, having been shrunk and taken out of your normal place and time by an evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
wizard called Caldeti (an anagram
Anagram
An anagram is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce a new word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., orchestra = carthorse, A decimal point = I'm a dot in place, Tom Marvolo Riddle = I am Lord Voldemort. Someone who...
of Citadel).
The overall objective is to magically restore your character to their original size
Size
The word size may refer to how big something is. In particular:* Measurement, the process or the result of determining the magnitude of a quantity, such as length or mass, relative to a unit of measurement, such as a meter or a kilogram...
and to find the teleporter
Teleportation
Teleportation is the fictional or imagined process by which matter is instantaneously transferred from one place to another.Teleportation may also refer to:*Quantum teleportation, a method of transmitting quantum data...
to their home world. This involves guiding your character through the Palace and other external locations, such as a church, wood
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
s and a dungeon
Dungeon
A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably belongs more to the Renaissance period...
, overcoming various obstacle
Obstacle
An obstacle is an object, thing, action or situation that causes an obstruction. There are, therefore, different types of obstacles, which can be physical, economic, biopsychosocial, cultural, political, technological or even military.-Physical barriers:As physical obstacles, we can enumerate all...
s and enemies along the way.
Similarities to Citadel
The playerPlayer character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...
is not automatically killed if they come into contact with hazards; instead the player
Player (game)
A player of a game is a participant therein. The term 'player' is used with this same meaning both in game theory and in ordinary recreational games....
is allocated a set amount of energy
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
(but this time measured by a bar
Bar (unit)
The bar is a unit of pressure equal to 100 kilopascals, and roughly equal to the atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea level. Other units derived from the bar are the megabar , kilobar , decibar , centibar , and millibar...
, subdivided into units), which is depleted through contact, and can be replenished by collecting objects shaped like top hats. As in Citadel, the game is divided into 'rooms' or screens and if the player continuously loses too much energy in a room, the screen turns red
Red
Red is any of a number of similar colors evoked by light consisting predominantly of the longest wavelengths of light discernible by the human eye, in the wavelength range of roughly 630–740 nm. Longer wavelengths than this are called infrared , and cannot be seen by the naked eye...
and the player is transported back to where they entered the room. This prevents players from passing through a room
Room
A room is any distinguishable space within a structure.Room may also refer to:* Room , by Emma Donoghue* Room, Nepal* Room for PlayStation Portable, a social networking service* Thomas Gerald Room , Australian mathematician...
simply by walking through enemies and taking the damage.
Other similarities to Citadel include:
- Some areas of the game are not immediately accessible, but are blocked by coloured doorDoorA door is a movable structure used to open and close off an entrance, typically consisting of a panel that swings on hinges or that slides or rotates inside of a space....
s. In order to gain access the player needs to find a key with the same colour.
- Various objects are scattered throughout the game which must be collected to overcome obstacleObstacleAn obstacle is an object, thing, action or situation that causes an obstruction. There are, therefore, different types of obstacles, which can be physical, economic, biopsychosocial, cultural, political, technological or even military.-Physical barriers:As physical obstacles, we can enumerate all...
s and hazardHazardA hazard is a situation that poses a level of threat to life, health, property, or environment. Most hazards are dormant or potential, with only a theoretical risk of harm; however, once a hazard becomes "active", it can create an emergency situation. A hazard does not exist when it is not...
s.
- The location of a particular screenElectronic pageAn electronic page is a term to encompass the grouping of content between basic breaking points in presentations or documents that originate or remain as visual electronic documents. This is a software file and recording format term in contrast to electronic paper, a hardware display technology...
is provided by (x,y) co-ordinates, with (0,0) being the starting screen of the game.
- The player spriteSprite (computer graphics)In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
is not superimposed over objects that it walks "in front" of; rather, the colour of the pixelPixelIn digital imaging, a pixel, or pel, is a single point in a raster image, or the smallest addressable screen element in a display device; it is the smallest unit of picture that can be represented or controlled....
s of the character sprite is overlaid, using an XOR bitwise operation, with the colour of the superimposed object, resulting in a completely different colour.