![]() I recall that reLINE had to test the game on a special IBM PC compatible machine manufactured by Tandy, which had both a significant market share in the U.S. How you programmed the graphics hardware varied greatly by manufacturer, and since there was no operating system to help you along, you had to use low-level operations to get it to do something useful. Back in 1988/1989 the term 'compatible' in "IBM PC compatible" had claws and teeth. The PC development platform itself was by no means uniform or stable either. ![]() Not only did Holger have to port a game which was not intended to be portable, he also had to learn programming the system from scratch. Holger Heinrich at reLINE software took on the challenges of porting Legend of Faerghail to the PC, and from what I recall this was an exceptionally difficult task. The development tools in particular were immature: the Atari ST had an excellent Turbo 'C' compiler, but the 'C' compiler used on the PC by reLINE software had so many quirks that porting code from the Amiga almost always amounted to a rewrite. By comparison to the Atari ST and certainly the Amiga, the PC was not a mature platform, because it lacked an operating system. ![]() reLINE software had already acquired a development system, with AdLib sound card and EGA graphics. This was at a time when the IBM PC compatible platform started to become relevant as a gaming platform, both in Europe and internationally. This proved to be challenging on many levels: the game was not intended to be ported when designed, game design was still evolving and ongoing, and at reLINE software nobody had the necessary experience in programming the PC in the 'C' programming language. The game itself was designed and "prototyped" on the Amiga, and at some point had to be ported both to the Atari ST and the "IBM PC compatible" platform. We all were hobbyists/amateurs, who were self-taught and learned the craft through writing software for and painting on the C64. Legend of Faerghail was the first, only and last big commercial game the three of us collaborated on. What originally started out as a more modest product evolved into a multi-platform game (Amiga, Atari ST, PC), in two different languages, using unproven technology (reLINE software wrote all their games in assembly language Legend of Faerghail was written in 'C'), by an unproven designer/programmer team. Not only were the three of us pressed for time, as the final exams were approaching (we passed - working on the game did not have a negative effect on our marks), our producers and collaborators at reLINE software must have been tearing their hair out, given the complexity of the game. In retrospect, that type of approach must have made it harder for everybody who was involved in making the game. The game's presentation was also praised, with its atmospheric sound effects.At that age you can move the world, just by sheer force of ignorance and sticking to your guns. Zzap!64 awarded an overall of 90%, highlighting game mechanics such as the language system, different ways of tackling locked doors, and wearing effects on weapons and armour. She criticized the IBM PC version's graphics, documentation, and combat as "poor" and "absurd", and "a mediocre effort at best". The magazine's Scorpia was much more negative, describing the game as a "German import that should never have crossed the Atlantic". The magazine praised the Amiga version's graphics and audio, but criticized the lengthy load times, poor play balance when starting with new characters, and errors in the translation. Peter Olafson of Computer Gaming World in 1991 described the game as "a Bard's Tale cousin with a horde of bells and whistles". It also offered the player the opportunity to continue their characters from previous games such as Phantasie I, III, The Bard's Tale and The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight, although Faerghail does not take place in the same fictional world as these games. The game world includes an overworld split by a mountain range, and eight dungeons. The game is viewed from first-person perspective. Characters have attributes (such as wisdom, strength and constitution), skills (such as pick-pocketing and various languages) and hit points. ![]() The player first creates a character by selecting race and class. Legend of Faerghail is set in a medieval fantasy world.
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