BladeMaster
BladeMaster is a 1990 game for bulletin board systems. According to the instruction file, the program was written by Don Arnel and the creatures/treasure design was by Adam Horowitz. It was known to have run on The Gaming Center BBS, which utilized Galacticomm's Major BBS/Worldgroup software. It was not a door but a Worldgroup module.
Summary
BladeMaster is labeled "an arena combat simulation." It is akin to a role-playing game, in which you have items and gain experience through killing enemies to gain levels. However, unlike traditional RPGS, you do not travel around a world; instead you only inhabit an arena. The game has a real-time environment, in which you only possess a few lives per day. Wise players exert self-control, only letting themselves die once or twice a day, avoiding permanent death. Much of the thrill of BladeMaster comes from this aspect of it as it is tempting to keep playing and progressing despite the increasing risk.
BladeMaster is unique in its execution. The game can only be won by learning its 'tricks.' There are certain weapons that enable you to progress rapidly if used against the right enemy. The 'trick' to BladeMaster is to get a weapon in a lower-class of enemies that is super-effective against a higher-class enemy. This also emphasizes the thrill of it, as you will have to face higher-level enemies that could easily kill you in one attack, hoping to flee until you find the right one without death.
Other versions
A group lead by Eric Newton started to develop a game called Blademaster 2, based on BladeMaster, but the project was never completed. This project can be found onSourceForge.
See also
- The Pit (BBS door) - a similar BBS door game