Yesterday, I discussed Jumpman, a member in good standing of the exclusive club of “classic” video games that are still just as enjoyable - and original - today as they were when they were first released around a quarter-century ago. In reality it was just par for the course for Epyx, one of the best-remembered makers of games for that ancient but still serviceable Model T of the 1980s home computer revolution, the Commodore 64.

Many Epyx games have withstood the test of time remarkably well indeed, defying their simple blocky graphics and limited memory sizes to be considered among the immortals of the genre. Jumpman was one such classic. Another, indeed one of the very first games to demonstrate the practicality of home computers to simulate the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing experience, was The Temple of Apshai, a prehistoric dungeon-crawler of surprising complexity for its age, that made the rounds of the 8-bit computer culture during the early ’80s.

Of course, when I make that qualification, I am in no way implying that Apshai can hold its own in terms of what modern CRPGs can offer. There is very little character micromanagement compared to even the Final Fantasies of today, and the plot is virtually nonexistent. It’s just: enter dungeon (or “dunjon,” as the game dialectically puts it), explore, find treasures, battle monsters, and escape back to town to repeat the process ad infinitum. There isn’t even a final boss or ultimate goal, something even Rogue could offer!

So what is it about Apshai that, somehow, keeps me coming back for the proverbial “just one more play” despite its obvious shortcomings? Perhaps it’s the sense of accomplishment when I hack my way past a large room of enemies to get to the treasure chest they guard, only to be replaced by frustration when it’s revealed to contain just more worthless junk. Or maybe it’s the creepy feel of the “dunjons” themselves, rendered as they are in dingy gray colors and an ominous black background… proof, perhaps, that graphics don’t need to necessarily be photorealistic in order to create a sense of foreboding.

(…Ack! I’m being attacked by Hank Pym! Ahem…)

But maybe it’s also because Temple of Apshai actually was an innovative game, beyond even earlier (and less successful) attempts to digitally replicate the D&D experience. By which I mean, room descriptions and so forth are right in line with what a human DM would come up with for his own dungeon crawls. Clues to secret passages, hints as to what (if any) enemies are lurking about, and areas that may contain devious traps are all obliquely provided in the text descriptions of each room you encounter…

…What’s that? You don’t see any description in that screenshot? Well, actually, you don’t… and you do. Note, if you will, the “Room no. 17″ at the top of the status display in the rightmost third of the screen. This appears to serve no purpose within the game itself, but if you had the Apshai manual handy, you could use it to look up the room description I refer to, just as if this were a solo D&D adventure book. (If you don’t have a manual and are playing the game via emulation, don’t worry - the manual with the helpful text is provided in HTML format here.) For instance, here’s what it has to say about Room 17:

“Only the floor has been smoothed in this chamber, the walls and ceiling having been left in the natural state. The air smells of decaying vegetable matter. A small mound of stones against the west wall in the north end of the passage partially blocks the way to the north.”

The “decaying vegetable matter” is a clue that scavengers - such as the giant ants my character is battling above - might be skulking nearby. It also indirectly advises you that the item in this room may in all likelihood be just useless trash… as, indeed, it turned out to be. However, the fact that the northern passage is partially blocked may mean that it’s less likely to have been already ransacked by an earlier adventurer, so you might decide to continue your search in that direction… Again, this is very much the way a “real” D&D session would go, and the added dimension of (more or less) real-time battles with creepy crawlies elevates Temple of Apshai several levels beyond the Zorks and Colossal Caves of the contemporary computer-adventure crowd.

Temple of Apshai was a huge success in those halcyon days of computer gaming, and it spawned two sequels - Upper Reaches of Apshai and The Temple of Ra - which weren’t really “sequels” so much as “expansion packs” that utilized the same engine, but provided new mazes to explore, new monsters to slay, and new treasures to collect. In 1986, during a period when older publishers were re-issuing their back catalog with enhanced features (you could even call this the first example of a “retrogaming” craze in the industry), Epyx provided this treatment for the three Apshai games, upgrading their graphics and sound in the process, and re-releasing the whole thing as Temple of Apshai Trilogy. As you can see above, the new graphics go a long way toward making the game easier on the eyes, and they display a lot faster (with none of the draw-in of the older game)… but some purists still feel that the brighter colors detract from much of Apshai’s essential “creepiness,” and prefer to play the older and uglier game. Doesn’t really matter, as (IMO) the game is just as much fun in both incarnations.

I am not kidding or exaggerating when I say that I can barely stand to play many modern RPGs for more than an hour at a stretch, but I have just recently spent the better part of my morning gleefully navigating the blocky and primitive world of Apshai for no greater reward than the sheer, unadulterated fun of it all. And really, when you get right down to it… isn’t that what all gaming, video or otherwise, is all about?

By the way… If you enjoyed this or my Jumpman observations, let me know. I’ll see about making them a regular WotG feature if there’s enough positive feedback.

If you liked that, try...

1. Retro-Active, Part I: Jumpman
2. Retro-Active: Impossible Mission
3. Retro-Active: Wizard
4. Retro-Active: The Five Worst Wrestling Games Ever
5. Retro-Active: Top 10 Retro Puzzle Games NOT Called “Tetris”

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