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Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession

January 07, 2023

Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession is a 1994 fantasy role-playing video game developed by DreamForge Intertainment for Strategic Simulations for DOS. Ravenloft: Stone Prophet is a sequel to this game.

Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession
Developer(s)DreamForge Intertainment
Publisher(s)Strategic Simulations
Designer(s)Thomas J. Holmes
Christopher L. Straka
Programmer(s)Don Wuenschell
Composer(s)Jamie McMenamy
Platform(s)
Release1994 (DOS)
1995 (FM Towns, PC-98)
Genre(s)Role-playing video game
Mode(s)Single-player

Plot

The game is based on the Ravenloft campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. The game is set in the domain of Barovia.

The player characters are servants of the Lord Dhelt, leader of the land of Elturel. After an assassin assaults the Lord and steals his Holy Symbol of Helm, the PCs are sent in pursuit of the thief. Instead of catching the criminals, however, they somehow manage to transport the entire party to the mist-shrouded land of Barovia, ruled over by the vampire Count, Strahd von Zarovich.

As Barovia is surrounded by an impenetrable poison mist, the PCs have no choice but to explore the dark land of Barovia, which is crawling with undead and many more nasty things. Strahd, himself, seems interested in the characters' quest for the stolen amulet and invites the party to his castle. The characters' quest is to survive this hostile land long enough to unravel the mystery of the stolen amulet and somehow arrange safe passage out of Barovia.

Gameplay

 
Meeting Strahd. Typical gameplay of Strahd's Possession.

The game used 3D computer graphics and used a game engine identical to the later SSI title Menzoberranzan. Generally, the keyboard or mouse-driven directional arrows were used to move around or change perspective. As an early 3D game engine, it moved slowly and could appear cumbersome. However, there was an omnipresent map in the top corner which helped gamers from becoming too disoriented by the slow and cluttered progress of the game.

The fighting system involved using the mouse to pinpoint enemies and click to attack, at which point party members would take turns attacking. This unique combat system presented some logistical problems for gamers, and seemed to involve quite a learning curve.

A review in Game Bytes Magazine said: "Characters with weapons in hand will use them one by one [...] However, since the characters have a go one at a time from left to right, and they take a varying amount of time to ready their weapon again after using it, depending on their dexterity, one often finds that characters who are ready to use their weapons cannot do so because the computer is waiting for the character whose turn it is to ready and use his weapons before going to the next one. Hence, one may be anxiously clicking away but no one is using their weapons."[1]

Sound

Voice acting was used in some versions of the game and the Eastern European accent of the central characters did much to improve its believability. The acting was generally well received. But, in the case of Strahd, as Game Bytes Magazine stated "The attempt to make him sound suave yet menacing (which is as it should be) didn't quite come off."[1]

The music of Strahd's Possession was highly atmospheric and was critically acknowledged as a vast improvement of SSI's previous offerings. Game Bytes Magazine said "The music superbly brings out the mood and atmosphere, and is reminiscent of those found in gothic horror movies, with the organ being the central instrument."[1]

Publication history

This game was later included in the 1996 compilation set, the AD&D Masterpiece Collection.[2] On October 27, 2015, the game was re-released on GOG.com with support for Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Linux pre-packed with DOSBox, bundled with the sequel.[3][4][5]

Reception

In PC Gamer US, T. Liam McDonald wrote that Strahd's Possession was "one of SSI's best AD&D-based releases, packed with character, featuring just enough novelty, and being very nicely put together."[6] Barry Brenesal of Electronic Entertainment called it "a strong step forward for SSI's epic role-playing fantasies", and found the game to be "cleverly designed, well-plotted, and atmospheric".[7] Kevin Perry of Computer Game Review felt that Strahd's Possession failed to capture the Ravenloft campaign setting, and he described its interface as an exercise in "despair and frustration". He summarized, "Some of [the game's] ideas will help usher along the next generation of CRPGs, but it doesn't." Conversely, the magazine's Ted Chapman called it "a decent enough game" and recommended it to fans of the genre.[8] Computer Gaming World's Petra Schlunk approved of the game's "insidiously credible atmosphere". She disliked the real-time magic system, buggy enemy spawning and pathing, and erratic movement speed, and reported frequent crashes, but liked the graphics, sound, dialogue, and character creation system. Schlunk concluded that "Aside from a few technical problems and a somewhat cumbersome interface, Ravenloft is a solid, thoughtfully designed and enjoyable game", not so long as to discourage a replay to finish it again more efficiently.[9]

Strahd's Possession was nominated for Computer Gaming World's Role-Playing Game of the Year award in May 1995. The editors remarked that the game's "subject matter and new 3-D look enhance the solid background universe created by TSR's AD&D team".[10]

According to GameSpy, "Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession was a welcome return to form for SSI".[11]

References

  1. ^ a b c Sir Launcelot du Lake (1994), "AD&D RAVENLOFT: STRAHD'S POSSESSION CD from SSI", Game Bytes Magazine, vol. 21
  2. ^ Butcher, Andy (January 1996). "Games Reviews". Arcane. Future Publishing (2): 80.
  3. ^ "Release: Dungeons & Dragons: Ravenloft, Dark Sun, Krynn Series". GOG.com. CD Projekt. 27 October 2015. from the original on 29 October 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  4. ^ Shearer, Stew (28 October 2015). "GOG Crits Again: Adds Seven More Dungeons & Dragons Classics". The Escapist. from the original on 29 October 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  5. ^ Sykes, Tom (27 October 2015). "GOG adds D&D: Ravenloft, Dark Sun and Krynn". PC Gamer. from the original on 29 October 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  6. ^ a b T. Liam, McDonald (June 1994). "Ravenloft". PC Gamer US (1): 72.
  7. ^ a b Brenesal, Barry (June 1994). "Ravenloft". Electronic Entertainment (7): 101.
  8. ^ a b Honeywell, Steve; Perry, Kevin; Chapman, Ted (June 1994). "Things Get Eerie When the Sun Goes Down...". Computer Game Review. 3 (11): 32.
  9. ^ Schlunk, Petra (June 1994). "Exorcising The Madness Of Strahd's Possession". Computer Gaming World. pp. 74–78.
  10. ^ Staff (May 1995). "The Computer Gaming World 1995 Premier Awards". Computer Gaming World. No. 130. pp. 35, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44.
  11. ^ Rausch, Allen (2004-08-17). "A History of D&D Video Games - Part III". Game Spy. Retrieved November 17, 2012.

External links

January 07, 2023
ravenloft, strahd, possession, 1994, fantasy, role, playing, video, game, developed, dreamforge, intertainment, strategic, simulations, ravenloft, stone, prophet, sequel, this, game, developer, dreamforge, intertainmentpublisher, strategic, simulationsdesigner. Ravenloft Strahd s Possession is a 1994 fantasy role playing video game developed by DreamForge Intertainment for Strategic Simulations for DOS Ravenloft Stone Prophet is a sequel to this game Ravenloft Strahd s PossessionDeveloper s DreamForge IntertainmentPublisher s Strategic SimulationsDesigner s Thomas J HolmesChristopher L StrakaProgrammer s Don WuenschellComposer s Jamie McMenamyPlatform s DOSFM TownsPC 98Release1994 DOS 1995 FM Towns PC 98 Genre s Role playing video gameMode s Single player Contents 1 Plot 2 Gameplay 3 Sound 4 Publication history 5 Reception 6 References 7 External linksPlot EditThe game is based on the Ravenloft campaign setting for the Dungeons amp Dragons fantasy role playing game The game is set in the domain of Barovia The player characters are servants of the Lord Dhelt leader of the land of Elturel After an assassin assaults the Lord and steals his Holy Symbol of Helm the PCs are sent in pursuit of the thief Instead of catching the criminals however they somehow manage to transport the entire party to the mist shrouded land of Barovia ruled over by the vampire Count Strahd von Zarovich As Barovia is surrounded by an impenetrable poison mist the PCs have no choice but to explore the dark land of Barovia which is crawling with undead and many more nasty things Strahd himself seems interested in the characters quest for the stolen amulet and invites the party to his castle The characters quest is to survive this hostile land long enough to unravel the mystery of the stolen amulet and somehow arrange safe passage out of Barovia Gameplay Edit Meeting Strahd Typical gameplay of Strahd s Possession The game used 3D computer graphics and used a game engine identical to the later SSI title Menzoberranzan Generally the keyboard or mouse driven directional arrows were used to move around or change perspective As an early 3D game engine it moved slowly and could appear cumbersome However there was an omnipresent map in the top corner which helped gamers from becoming too disoriented by the slow and cluttered progress of the game The fighting system involved using the mouse to pinpoint enemies and click to attack at which point party members would take turns attacking This unique combat system presented some logistical problems for gamers and seemed to involve quite a learning curve A review in Game Bytes Magazine said Characters with weapons in hand will use them one by one However since the characters have a go one at a time from left to right and they take a varying amount of time to ready their weapon again after using it depending on their dexterity one often finds that characters who are ready to use their weapons cannot do so because the computer is waiting for the character whose turn it is to ready and use his weapons before going to the next one Hence one may be anxiously clicking away but no one is using their weapons 1 Sound EditVoice acting was used in some versions of the game and the Eastern European accent of the central characters did much to improve its believability The acting was generally well received But in the case of Strahd as Game Bytes Magazine stated The attempt to make him sound suave yet menacing which is as it should be didn t quite come off 1 The music of Strahd s Possession was highly atmospheric and was critically acknowledged as a vast improvement of SSI s previous offerings Game Bytes Magazine said The music superbly brings out the mood and atmosphere and is reminiscent of those found in gothic horror movies with the organ being the central instrument 1 Publication history EditThis game was later included in the 1996 compilation set the AD amp D Masterpiece Collection 2 On October 27 2015 the game was re released on GOG com with support for Microsoft Windows OS X and Linux pre packed with DOSBox bundled with the sequel 3 4 5 Reception EditReceptionReview scoresPublicationScorePC Gamer US 82 6 Electronic Entertainment 7 Computer Game Review82 8 In PC Gamer US T Liam McDonald wrote that Strahd s Possession was one of SSI s best AD amp D based releases packed with character featuring just enough novelty and being very nicely put together 6 Barry Brenesal of Electronic Entertainment called it a strong step forward for SSI s epic role playing fantasies and found the game to be cleverly designed well plotted and atmospheric 7 Kevin Perry of Computer Game Review felt that Strahd s Possession failed to capture the Ravenloft campaign setting and he described its interface as an exercise in despair and frustration He summarized Some of the game s ideas will help usher along the next generation of CRPGs but it doesn t Conversely the magazine s Ted Chapman called it a decent enough game and recommended it to fans of the genre 8 Computer Gaming World s Petra Schlunk approved of the game s insidiously credible atmosphere She disliked the real time magic system buggy enemy spawning and pathing and erratic movement speed and reported frequent crashes but liked the graphics sound dialogue and character creation system Schlunk concluded that Aside from a few technical problems and a somewhat cumbersome interface Ravenloft is a solid thoughtfully designed and enjoyable game not so long as to discourage a replay to finish it again more efficiently 9 Strahd s Possession was nominated for Computer Gaming World s Role Playing Game of the Year award in May 1995 The editors remarked that the game s subject matter and new 3 D look enhance the solid background universe created by TSR s AD amp D team 10 According to GameSpy Ravenloft Strahd s Possession was a welcome return to form for SSI 11 References Edit a b c Sir Launcelot du Lake 1994 AD amp D RAVENLOFT STRAHD S POSSESSION CD from SSI Game Bytes Magazine vol 21 Butcher Andy January 1996 Games Reviews Arcane Future Publishing 2 80 Release Dungeons amp Dragons Ravenloft Dark Sun Krynn Series GOG com CD Projekt 27 October 2015 Archived from the original on 29 October 2015 Retrieved 5 November 2019 Shearer Stew 28 October 2015 GOG Crits Again Adds Seven More Dungeons amp Dragons Classics The Escapist Archived from the original on 29 October 2015 Retrieved 5 November 2019 Sykes Tom 27 October 2015 GOG adds D amp D Ravenloft Dark Sun and Krynn PC Gamer Archived from the original on 29 October 2015 Retrieved 5 November 2019 a b T Liam McDonald June 1994 Ravenloft PC Gamer US 1 72 a b Brenesal Barry June 1994 Ravenloft Electronic Entertainment 7 101 a b Honeywell Steve Perry Kevin Chapman Ted June 1994 Things Get Eerie When the Sun Goes Down Computer Game Review 3 11 32 Schlunk Petra June 1994 Exorcising The Madness Of Strahd s Possession Computer Gaming World pp 74 78 Staff May 1995 The Computer Gaming World 1995 Premier Awards Computer Gaming World No 130 pp 35 36 38 40 42 44 Rausch Allen 2004 08 17 A History of D amp D Video Games Part III Game Spy Retrieved November 17 2012 External links EditRavenloft Strahd s Possession at MobyGames Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ravenloft Strahd 27s Possession amp oldid 1110721852, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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