Explore classic text adventure games from legendary publishers and authors including Magnetic Scrolls, Level 9, Infocom, Scott Adams, and Interplay. A podcast f...
Episode 19 - Monsters of Murdac and Behind Closed Doors (SAM Coupé Adventure Club #1)
Ben occupies the throne, attended by minions Jason and Nick this episode to plumb the depths of the text adventure archives. In the featured spot is the Phoenix/Topologika title Monsters of Murdac by Dr. Jonathan Partington (Episodes #12 and #16), a punishingly creative game. Up first, however, is the 1991 disk magazine SAM Coupé Adventure Club #1 and its featured free game... the toilet-escape simulator Behind Closed Doors by "Balrog" John Wilson.
Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.
Monsters of Murdac (playable online, BBC version)
SAM Coupé Adventure Club archive
Browser-readable version of SAM Coupé Adventure Club Disk #1
Behind Closed Doors #1 (playable online, ZX Spectrum version)
Ink Console
Classic articles on games by Jonathan Partington
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1:08:12
Episode 18 - Bored of the Rings / Calixto Island with Iain Lee
Iain Lee, "an old bloke who was popular in the Nineties" as well as counsellor, broadcaster, and I'm a Celebrity survivor joins Dave and Jason this episode. They discuss Tolkien sendup Bored of the Rings by Fergus McNeill and the Mark Data classic Calixto Island. Iain shares his love for the Dragon 32, memories of sneaking text adventure time on school BBC Micros, and Experienced Media Professional Image Advice with Jason.
Bored of the Rings (playable online)
Calixto Island (playable online, MS-DOS with graphics)
Calixto Island (playable online, "Play Now" button next to "Calixto Island (Text)", CoCo plain text)
Iain Lee's Random Access Memories podcast
Quill Adventure Guides (Bored of the Rings and other Quill games, deconstructed)
MST3K: Detective
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1:00:51
Episode 17 - Magazine Roundup #1
Jason, Nick, and the returning Tim Gilberts of Gilsoft dig into the magazines of the 1970s and 1980s that chronicled the rise of text adventures!
We look at two of the most significant Stateside issues of the early commercial period, the November 1979 issue of Creative Computing with a full (and unusual) implementation of Colossal Cave Adventure, and the December 1980 BYTE with articles by Dave Lebling, Jon Freeman, and of course one of the most significant events of the year in personal computer games: Scott Adams' release of the Pirate Adventure source code.
New Zork Times #3.1, early 1984
Micro Adventurer #1, November 1983
Creative Computing, November 1979
BYTE Magazine December 1980
Sinclair User #2, May 1982
Sinclair User #3, June 1982
Adventure Probe #1, June 1986
Be an Interplanetary Spy (Ron Martinez) discussion on IntFic
Mike Dornbrook (Infocom) oral history
Giant's Gold, Commodore 64 port
Atari Swordquest's Real-Life Treasures
Another Atari Swordquest overview
Treasure Quest
Treasure Quest prize winner mystery
Adventure (Colossal Cave) Family Tree
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1:53:58
Episode 16 - A Conversation With Jonathan Partington
Jason and Dave welcome classic text adventure author Jonathan Partington to the program. While studying at Cambridge University, he created and contributed to several memorable games including Avon (featured in Episode 12), Crobe, Sangraal, Fyleet, Monsters of Murdac, and Spy Snatcher.
We discuss how Jonathan got hooked into text adventures, how the pipeline between Cambridge mainframe creations and the broader commercial market worked, and the best time of day to play games on official campus computers without getting scolded. And for the first time, we ask a living author which of his games we should play next!
Special thanks to Mark Hardisty for helping connect us with Jonathan.
CORRECTION: The interview mistakenly credits L to Peter Killworth. The game in question was actually GiantKiller.
Jonathan Partington on IFDB
Topologika (The Digital Antiquarian)
Phoenix (mainframe operating system) on IFWiki
Mystic Wood (board game)
Sorcerer's Cave (board game)
Peter Killworth on IFWiki
How To Write Adventure Games by Peter Killworth on MOCAGH
L: A Mathemagical Adventure
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53:34
Episode 15 - Lancelot and G.F.S. Sorceress
Our first three-player episode since the premiere pits Ben, Jason, and Nick against challenges that span millennia! Learn the intricacies of long-lost Earth military law as Joe Justin fights for freedom in Avalon Hill's G.F.S. Sorceress before traveling way back to King Arthur's England in Level 9's Lancelot. Robots, colored objects, and companion knights (so, so many companion knights) stand ready to assist!
Lancelot on Level 9 Memorial
Lancelot on IFDB
Lancelot playable online (BBC Micro)
Lancelot documentation
Lancelot walkthrough (AppleAdventures)
G.F.S. Sorceress documentation
G.F.S. Sorceress walkthrough (AppleAdventures)
Avalon Hill computer titles (MobyGames)
The Visible Zorker
SAM Coupé Adventure Club
Crown of Arturo for Sharp MZ-700
Explore classic text adventure games from legendary publishers and authors including Magnetic Scrolls, Level 9, Infocom, Scott Adams, and Interplay. A podcast for fans of GET LAMP, Eaten By a Grue, The Classic Adventurer, Renga In Blue, and Quest For Clues.
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