The Arborell gamebooks have been brought to my attention through the gamers'
list, so I went to the website and checked the game out, never having played a
gamebook before. I downloaded it, (two zip files,) put them on my Pac Mate
and, upon discovering it needed stats sheets and combat resolution sheets and
dice, I starting an Excel spreadsheet. It keeps track of everything and rolls
two dice whenever any variable is changed. For example, in the first phase, it
adds the points from your strength, agility and so on, and shows the total
underneath the last attribute. (You can't go over 50.) It calculates your
combat value as well. It will also have a complete list of all equipment you
can buy with the second set of 50 points, the cost of each, with running points
total under that. You'll just erase the variables of any unwanted items. It
still needs a bit of work, and I'm sure someone with more Excel experience
could do a lot better than I, but if anyone wants the file I'll send it to
Arborell's development team, and perhaps someone else could host it as well in
the meantime. I haven't looked at the maps yet but perhaps there's a way to
write one for the PM or a Braille embosser, much like the maps in NetHack for
the PM--dashes for horizontal walls, dot 4-5-6 for vertical ones, and so on.
As for the game itself, it's totally usable on the PM. In my usual addicts'
style, I spent an entire game playing it--about three hours on the Excel
programming. It's a great game--as I told my daughter, it's a choose-your-own
adventure for grown-ups, and as I told my brother, it's a d&d game when you're
by yourself.
Ken Downey
DreamtechInteractive
---
Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org
If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org.
You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at
http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org.
All messages are archived and can be searched and read at
http://www.mail-archive.com/gam...@audyssey.org.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list,
please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org.
