SilverLoad
Encyclopedia
SilverLoad is the title of a graphic adventure video game produced by Vic Tokai
in 1996. In this single-player game, you control, via a first person perspective, a Wild West cowboy
as he ventures into a haunted town in order to save two children that were taken from their parents. The U.S. based Entertainment Software Ratings Board gave the game a "M" rating for its graphic violence, blood and gore, and bits of profanity. The game was released for the personal computer
in Europe, and the original PlayStation edition was given an international release.
, who ended up stealing a man's only son. As the Clint Eastwood inspired anti-hero
cowboy you agree to go to the town, find the child and return him to his father. As you venture into the town picking up various objects, interacting with the locals, and finding a safe place before the werewolves come to eat you, you soon realize that this once God-fearing and prosperous silvermining town has become a cursed den of vice
, ghouls, vampires and werewolves after the original town's residents decided to slaughter an American Indian tribe. The tribesmen, as it just so happens, were the cowboy's long-lost ancestors.
As is the case with other graphic adventure games, progress in SilverLoad involves finding and interacting with various "hot spots" in order to pick up objects, solve puzzles and interact with (or kill) the various characters in the town. Picking up certain objects will cause the game's (and town's) clock to move forward, and thus, the trick to success is to pick up the right items in the precise order. Otherwise, you have to restart the game from the beginning, or from wherever you saved the game.
writing for Computer Gaming World
gave the game 2 stars. Not only do the voices in the game not match up well with the characters' mouths, they often had accents or mannerisms stereotyping various ethnicities. The town barber was also widely considered a stereotypical homosexual. http://www.justadventure.com/reviews/Silverload/Silverload_Review.shtm
Vic Tokai
is a telecommunications company in Japan providing cable and DSL services as well as network solutions. The "Vic" in Vic Tokai's name stands for Valuable Information & Communication while the "Tokai" is simply the name of its parent company TOKAI, a Japanese natural gas utility founded in 1950...
in 1996. In this single-player game, you control, via a first person perspective, a Wild West cowboy
Cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of...
as he ventures into a haunted town in order to save two children that were taken from their parents. The U.S. based Entertainment Software Ratings Board gave the game a "M" rating for its graphic violence, blood and gore, and bits of profanity. The game was released for the personal computer
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
in Europe, and the original PlayStation edition was given an international release.
Storyline
The game begins just after a wagon caravan has been attacked by werewolvesWerewolf
A werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...
, who ended up stealing a man's only son. As the Clint Eastwood inspired anti-hero
Anti-hero
In fiction, an antihero is generally considered to be a protagonist whose character is at least in some regards conspicuously contrary to that of the archetypal hero, and is in some instances its antithesis in which the character is generally useless at being a hero or heroine when they're...
cowboy you agree to go to the town, find the child and return him to his father. As you venture into the town picking up various objects, interacting with the locals, and finding a safe place before the werewolves come to eat you, you soon realize that this once God-fearing and prosperous silvermining town has become a cursed den of vice
Vice
Vice is a practice or a behavior or habit considered immoral, depraved, or degrading in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a defect, an infirmity, or merely a bad habit. Synonyms for vice include fault, depravity, sin, iniquity, wickedness, and corruption...
, ghouls, vampires and werewolves after the original town's residents decided to slaughter an American Indian tribe. The tribesmen, as it just so happens, were the cowboy's long-lost ancestors.
As is the case with other graphic adventure games, progress in SilverLoad involves finding and interacting with various "hot spots" in order to pick up objects, solve puzzles and interact with (or kill) the various characters in the town. Picking up certain objects will cause the game's (and town's) clock to move forward, and thus, the trick to success is to pick up the right items in the precise order. Otherwise, you have to restart the game from the beginning, or from wherever you saved the game.
Critics
Most video game critics panned the game for being a port of an unsuccessful computer game. Arinn DemboArinn Dembo
Arinn Dembo, born , is an American author currently living and writing in British Columbia, Canada. Dembo is best known for her work with Vancouver-based Kerberos Productions, where she is Lead Writer and has worked on the background fiction for the Sword of the Stars series and Fort Zombie...
writing for Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
gave the game 2 stars. Not only do the voices in the game not match up well with the characters' mouths, they often had accents or mannerisms stereotyping various ethnicities. The town barber was also widely considered a stereotypical homosexual. http://www.justadventure.com/reviews/Silverload/Silverload_Review.shtm