RPG Spotlight #1: Dungeons of Daggorath

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Welcome to the first in what I hope will be a massive, long-running series of "RPG Spotlight" features here on GameBanshee. In short, my plan is to present a clip of the first 15 minutes from many of the lesser known role-playing titles in our ever-growing database of RPGs, along with a short summary of the game's mechanics and its impact on our favorite genre. Some of the games we'll be covering may have come out before you were born, others might not have been easily accessible for a purchase (or download, in the case of shareware) at the time of release, and, probably more often than not, a variety of titles will have been victims of overshadowing by another, more prolific game at the time. Whatever the case, we're going to give such titles a chance to stand out and earn your attention, if only for 15 minutes.

Anyway, let's move on to the very first entry in the series: DynaMicro's Dungeons of Daggorath, released in 1982 for the TRS-80 Color Computer. I first entered the Dungeons of Daggorath on my older brother's TRS-80 at just five years old, so, along with tabletop D&D, I credit this game for kick-starting my life-long interest and enthusiasm for CRPGs. It made a huge impact on me at the time, and was the main reason I tracked down a copy of Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overload (followed by the first three Ultima titles, Tales of the Unknown, and oh-so-many others) shortly thereafter.

Along with a few other early titles, you can credit Dungeons of Daggorath for inspiring the first-person dungeon crawling that we've partaken in over the last 30 years. Its three-dimensional wireframe level design and use of sound effects to convey monster position were unique and state-of-the-art at the time, as was the way it handled "character progression", if you can call it that. As the player defeats monsters inhabiting the dungeon, his or her character gains a small amount of power (or endurance, really) that's dependent upon the strength of the monster killed. For example, killing a spider might be barely noticeable, but defeat a couple of oozes/blobs inhabiting the dungeon, and you'll discover that future battles become increasingly easier.

The goal of the game is to reach the fifth level of the dungeon and defeat the powerful wizard residing there. Along the way, you'll come across a total of twelve different monster types (though this number includes the wizard and a couple of variants) and a small assortment of swords, shields, rings, scrolls, flasks, and torches. Any equipment lying on the dungeon floor will be picked up by a monster traveling over it, so you'll be forced to clear every dungeon level if you don't want to miss out on a single item.

Because every command had to be typed (fully or through a shortcut), combat required you to be fast and accurate with the TRS-80's keyboard. Winning a battle meant that you had to defeat the monster before you without sustaining enough damage to pass out or perish from your racing heartbeat. Even moving around the dungeon too fast (like when you're trying to evade a tough monster) could prove fatal, as passing out at an inopportune moment left you susceptible to any monsters who have given chase or happen to wander by during your incapacitated state.

I realize it's tough to imagine in the present day, but believe me when I tell you that this game was amazingly addictive, challenging, and outright terrifying as more and more tense moments were thrown your way while trying to survive in some of the lower levels. One wrong move meant death:

Interested in more RPG spotlights? Check out our next entry for Castle of Tharoggad.

RPG Spotlight #1: Dungeons of Daggorath

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