This all started two months ago, when I happened to find nine forgotten copies of the original game boxed together with some other video games in my cellar at the regional junk clearance in my district of my hometown Budapest. This is the game I wrote and released in Hungary 1993-94, and now having found it again, there was quite a good turnout by those retro collectors who would like to buy such items at the online auctions. Thus, instead of just simply selling them, I decided to make a new release, so that everyone might have it at their will. And if so, I thought… why not: that should include the English version, too. Only then I realized that it was the 25^th anniversary of the game right now. Back in the day, it was quite popular in Hungary, but unfortunately the English version has never been officially released, since I could not find a publisher, and so stayed mostly unknown worldwide. Therefore it is the actual debut (still after those long decades).

One of the most difficult adventure games ever made

A very complex graphic/text adventure game, developed for the main Commodore platform (C64/128) in style and manner reminiscent of the Level 9 and Melbourne House adventures (sometimes even referred to as the “Hungarian Magnetic Scrolls” today). It contains an intelligent parser (applying a vocabulary of about 1400 words and inflexion for the twisted Hungarian grammar as well as the English translation of them), more than 250 rooms (with detailed descriptions and a few dozens of pictures), nearly 100 living creatures and nearly 140 moveable objects. Moreover, it is a unique multi-protagonist one: you need to play it with two player characters at the same time (a young magician and a barbarian who are brothers on an island) constantly switching over between them and working together as a team. It has even got some minor MUD-like and RPG elements (like spell power or trading treasure, dark labyrinths and random events etc.).

One of the longest adventure games ever made

When the longplay and the solution appeared in the yearbook of a contemporary gaming journal one or two years later, it was almost 30 pages long (already shortened from my original article of 37 pages, although even at its most solid synopsis it can be condensed into 6 pages after all). The actual net gameplay until the end covers about 10-12 hours at least, or even a whole day. (Coming soon on YouTube… one day, if possible.)

If you would like to know more about the game itself (or download it and try it out), please follow this link upon my own personal website.

Note for the American users: the official game is PAL-only. Nevertheless a cracked version exists out there (on CSDB by Chromance) which is NTSC-fixed. So this version can be played instead.

The pictures show the old release

The original publication consists of a carton box, a floppy disk, the covering art and a little handbook (or user manual) as can be seen on one of the photos.

The new release will look like quite different. The new cover has not been designed yet (so it is a surprise or a secret even to me myself at the moment, but I shall post an update when I can). It must be slightly smaller and the box made of better quality. It will contain two diskettes (of both versions, the English and the Hungarian). The cover should say “The Galleon 25^th Anniversary Edition” or so (may be also bilingual) right above the same picture. However, it is not planned to have a handbook any more (that can still be changed).

It is planned to produce about 100 copies probably (unless you ask for more).

I still have some old handbooks

Yes, there are some that had remained. Just a limited number (one or two dozens or a little more, I don’t know how many exactly at present). All produced boxes will be numbered (e.g. from #00 to #99 or so), but only the very first few ones of them can include the original handbook as an extra bonus or a gift. Thus, if you also want to get a handbook, hurry up.

A scanned version of the handbook can be downloaded in PDF from here.

If you choose the perks of 20 or 50 Euros (or more)…

…then it automatically allocates one (in case of the minor) or two pieces (in case of the major sum or more) of the first ones for you (so likely including the old handbook, too, but only while the stocks last! See above). These perks are meant to include delivery if possible (if you don’t have any further special requirements and the costs are not too high).

If you choose the perks of 5 or 10 Euros (or any)…

…then we thank you, too (see below). Once you later decide to order the item from our webshop (but only while the stocks last, again!), then you will be able to discount this money out of the total amount if you want. So might you even consider that as a kind of deposit or pre-order in this case as well (but running some risk).

There will be a printed paper, too, in every box…

…which contains the list of names and amounts of all those contributors that we know of (except if you do not want to be there, or do not give us enough information about it) as acknowledgement. I shall also publish the same list on my personal website where I would like to write some nice words about the new release.

And that list will contain the names in order of the amount and the appearance, as so will the numbering of boxes be assigned to them.

The remaining pieces can be sold later (if there are any) at this webshop.

More extras?

If there were nearly (or even some more than) 100 contributions coming in, I would seriously consider to produce some more copies, of course (in order to guarantee for everyone to get one). And/or if there were at least (or even some more than) 1000 Euros coming in, I might also consider to think about some further little surprises (e.g. printing out some kind of graphical artwork like a map or poster… or even a new handbook, or something alike).

Arok Party 20^th

This well-known, good old 8-bit demo scene and retro computing gathering of Hungary also celebrates this year: their 20^th jubilee (on 17-19^th August in Ajka). Independently of this campaign here, I would be very glad to present my new release at first there. Yet, it is not guaranteed at all, since we can’t be sure of having enough time and money to start production until then… If still: just see you there! (If so, I post an update about it.)

About the author

I have already written an article about my former game development career (between 1987-2001 on C64 and PC) once before, which can now be read in PDF (in English) here.

I am speaking about it, too, albeit only a few minutes in Hungarian in this werk video made for the Moleman 4 documentary three years ago.

The synopsis of the above can be downloaded in PDF in English and in Hungarian.

Hungarian speakers please also read this blog entry and like my Rosetta Interactive Fiction Facebook page.

And don't forget to always check the updates to stay informed!