Released for the Atari ST a few days before the end of 1986 andconverted to the Commodore Amiga several months later, the original Dungeon Master was hailed as a masterpiece. The game contained a terrific interface, a series of brilliantly designed puzzles and is still widely regarded as the first computer role-playing game to feature real-time combat. Since its release, Dungeon Master became an obsession for hordesof ST and Amiga users, my own Amiga-lovin' self included.
Here we are, nine years later, and FTL is finally releasing the sequel. Turns out the company spent years porting the original DM onto every game platform on the market, and by the time they got around to finishing up DMII, the graphics and sound werebelow par by nineties standards. Interplay delayed the game for nearly a year while the company jacked up the graphics and sound, but their efforts have been only partly successfulΓÇöwhile the sound effects and music are excellent, the visuals are still lame (and in blocky 320 x 200 VGA).
DM II allows you to control of a party of Champions, a group of four adventurers you choose from a pool of 16 dudes and dudettes. The instruction manual sets up a detailed backstory, but the goal of the game is simply to reach the top of Castle Skullkeep and kill the big wizard, Dragoth.During the first half of DM II, you explore a vast outdoor areacalled The Thicket, gathering the four pieces of the Castle Key. Once you assemble the Key and gain entrance to the Castle, the gameplay shifts from an emphasis on combat to an emphasis on puzzle-solving.Puzzles were the original Dungeon Master's greatest strength, and they'reSkullkeep's as well. The designers intentionally chose step-based movement overDOOM-style free movement to allow them to implement trickier puzzlesΓÇöand the trade-off works.Skullkeep's puzzles are open-ended enough toallow you several solutions to each scenario, and this makes the game particularly cool.
As a big fan of the original DM, I don't mind the sequels weak graphics because the game is packed with the same features that made the original so popularΓÇöaddictive gameplay and devious puzzles. If you're a fan of more recent, technically advanced 3D adventures like Ultima Underworld or Arena, DM II might leave you cold. But if you like your games which really challenge you to think hard, Dungeon Master II is up to the task.
