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| Mandragore | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) |  Marc Cecchi |
| Publisher(s) | Infogrames |
| Year released | |
| System(s) | Thomson MO5, Thomson TO7, Amstrad CPC, MSX, ZX Spectrum, Apple II, Commodore 64 |
| Followed by | Oméga, planète invisible |
| Series | Drakkhen |
| Genre(s) | Adventure, Role-Playing Game |
|---|---|
| Modes | Single player |
Mandragore was developed and released in France in 1984 and then localized in English for the European market. It is a computer Adventure game with some cosmetic elements reminiscent of role-playing games; thus, it is considered the first open-world role-playing game made in France. Also, it is a precursor of Drakkhen, that is a full-fledged role-playing game.
"Mandragore" is French for "mandrake".
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Story
In a nutshell: the bad guy has to be defeated in his castle on an island. A party of adventurers should first explore nine other castles and earn enough money to purchase a boat and reach that island castle.
Gameplay
- Interface: apart from movement, all actions are controlled by a simple text parser; since there are a few more commands than letters on the keyboard, for some commands the player should type two letters. The player should specify the acting character (numbered 1 to 4), the action, and the object (A to D or 1 to 9). Combat is neither turn-based nor in real-time, but controlled by the same text parser, thus depending on the player's typing speed.
- Character progresson: although each hero in Mandragore has six attributes borrowed from role-playing games, they are constant throughout the game and they have no real effect on any action; the experience points are just each character's score. Thus, the game is better categorized as Adventure.
- Dialogue: although the villagers have nothing to say about your quest, every dungeon/castle hosts several creatures and even enemies who will give clues about the puzzles in the same dungeon.
- Freedom of exploration: the first nine dungeons/castles can be explored in any order. Their structure will be used in Drakkhen, too: instead of corridors, large fixed-screen rooms with doors to the adjacent rooms.
Versions
All the versions of the game play the same. The main difference is in the graphics.
| Thomson MO5 Thomson TO7 Amstrad CPC ZX Spectrum |
The original 1984 version and its ports. Colors are very limited. |
| MSX | The main difference from the original is the graphics of the overworld. |
| Apple II | This version was made for the unique Apple II graphics. |
| Commodore 64 | The version with the most advanced graphics. |
Table of Contents
Appendices