Defender of the Crown

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Defender of the Crown
Studio Cinemaware
Publisher Mirrorsoft
Senior Developer Kellyn Beck
Erstveröffent-
lichung		 1986
platform Amiga , Atari ST , C64 , DOS , Windows , Apple IIgs , NES , CPC , Mac OS Classic , CDTV , CD³² , Intellivision , mobile phone , Game Boy Advance , iOS , ZX Spectrum , CD-i
genre Computer strategy game
Game mode Single player
control Keyboard , mouse , game controller
medium Floppy disk , cartridge , CD-ROM
language English

Defender of the Crown is a computer game released in 1986 .

description

Defender of the Crown was one of the most elaborately designed strategy computer games of the home computer era at the time it was released. The game was conceived, programmed and created by Jim Sachs as the first product of the recently founded company Cinemaware . It was marketed by the British publisher Mirrorsoft . Defender of the Crown set new standards in the area of ​​graphics in particular . The first to appear was the Amiga version, which exploited the leading graphic possibilities of this system at the time. However, the game was brought onto the market prematurely, so that some options like shooting with bad luck and Greek fire were only possible in the PC , C64 and Atari ST versions.

The game is set in medieval England . Thematically and graphically, it is based on the 1952 film Ivanhoe - The Black Knight, based on Sir Walter Scott's novel Ivanhoe . In the tournament scene , according to Jim Sachs, even an (albeit pixelated) Elizabeth Taylor can be recognized.

The player can choose from four characters with specific skills:

  • Wilfred of Ivanhoe
  • Cedric of Rotherwood
  • Geoffrey Longsword
  • Wolfric the Wild

England is in an uproar after the assassination of King Richard and the theft of the royal crown. In this situation three Norman and three Saxon feudal lords fight for supremacy in the country. The player sees himself in the role of one of the four Saxon knights available to choose from, who has to conquer lands and cope with different, mostly action-heavy tasks. In addition to freeing a virgin through sword fighting, the player can expect tasks such as jousting and shooting with the catapult . Robin Hood , also on the side of the Saxons, can be asked for support in battles.

The game was later successfully ported to many different platforms. In 2002 the revised Digitally Remastered Edition came onto the market, which also contains the data of the original on different systems ( emulator must be downloaded separately). In 2003, the heavily expanded successor Robin Hood - Defender of the Crown, had a 3D display . The well-known frame story with Little John , Maid Marian , the Sheriff of Nottingham and the usurper Prince John is integrated into the strategy game .

The mixture of role play , strategy game and action game gave Defender of the Crown a wide target audience, similar to the relaunched Sid Meier's Pirates! .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Classics for free. Defender of the Crown. PCWorld, 2001