The Golden Voyage

Micro Adventurer

Ken Matthews

SAVAGE ADVENTURES Ken Matthews concludes his series of reviews of Scott Adams' Classic Adventures by looking at Savage Island Two, Golden Voyage and The Sorcerer of Claymorgue Castle. The end is nigh! This article rounds off our in-depth look at the Scott Adams classics with hints for, probably, the three most difficult adventures. Before I begin though, I will correct last month's review of Savage Island 1, where I suggested "there is no safe place to sleep". Not so! A young adventurer, Damien Meadows of Nutley, Sussex, playing on the Texas, informed ADVENTURELINE that you can sleep on the secluded ledge near the lake. I stand corrected! This makes things a lot simpler - well less hurried anyway. And so to the reviews. SAVAGE ISLAND PART TWO You begin in deep trouble! The correct password from Part I is needed which will give you an item to cover your nudity and may suggest a sharp intake of breath. Breath is the last thing you need in a vacuum of course so make sure you get rid of it if you want to survive the next few moves. Time is short, so don't stop to look at things just yet, get to somewhere you can breathe. Now you'll be able to examine things at your leisure. A little exploration and examination will be a great help towards getting some idea of what to do next and a bloom so beautiful you'll get a crush on it will solve a very old problem. If you remember that lung size is proportional to body size, psychotransfiguration may not seem so much of a drag - if you keep your head covered. You can move on with open eyes. Once you've seen me, if you see what I mean, you should reach that blinking field, at last, to be confronted with yet another problem. Don't worry, put it out of sight and mind for a moment and take a bit of exercise. Life is a treadmill? Sounds like a clue to me! Of course you'll have to unravel another mystery to tie this one up. If you can push through this location and still hold on, you'll have made a very significant 'move'. Things should really be dropping into place now and so should you, providing you have tied up all those loose ends. Clutching an alien device and a few threads of information to suggest a purpose to the whole game you should be able to rid yourself of a paradox - one that's blocking your progress. The last move is probably the most difficult in that it seems to need inspiration to suggest it. After struggling for hours to use some of the superfluous objects in the game, I finally gave up until meeting Scott at the PCW show - he told me I was only two moves from the end! To push you in the right direction all I'll say is that your two friends in Part I are your friends in Part II as well, so don't be too annoyed at one of them - he's just doing his job and helping you do yours! The final touch will yield a burst of gibberish - but, with the aid of the card in the software pack, everything will become clear and the awesome scope of the task you've just completed will be revealed. Of course, if you've got a pirate copy, everything will be as clear as mud - but the Americans have a term for that too - Tough*?!@ GOLDEN VOYAGE The second of this month's games boasts a rather outré theme - the King has lost his virility and both he and the Queen will be eternally grateful if you can seek out the elixir that will restore his vigour. Flush with Royal gold it is a simple matter to gather the items needed for your quest, weigh anchor and set sail for foreign parts. All you need is on the ship and, providing you keep a sharp look out, you'll soon find a safe landing place. Careful not to leave yourself stranded, you will be able to equip yourself completely for the rest of the game and seek out the mysterious cave shown on the tablet from the bazaar. It doesn't seem you can do too much there yet, but careful and repeated excavation will pay dividends. A rocky strand could give you a hard time but a gentle shove will put most of your troubles behind you - there really is no need for violence - but don't forget to rummage in the remains. Stepping up to the altar you might cleanse your soul to find what is missing and complete the inventory of essential small items. It might seem odd, but dropping what you've recovered could solve a puzzle and ,indicate that a little back-tracking is necessary. The right place to say a word is clearly shown so don't go too high. Don't imagine things are over yet - but you can rid yourself of a burden before sailing once again to lose the second. The world is at your feet - or nearly if you look for it! At last. you can return to the gods with a good idea of what to do next if the way is no longer 'blocked'. The cyclops is probably your worst problem - just throw everything you've got at him but be prepared for a visual shock. The rest is quite straightforward if you don't get trodden on - be assured, your reward will make it all worthwhile. THE SORCEROR OF CLAYMORGUE CASTLE The latest of Scott Adams' series is a little unusual too. To me, it bears more similarity to Infocom's Enchanter and Sorcerer than to the previous 12 adventures, in that you must find and use spells to complete your quest. The aim is simply to recover 13 lost stars from Claymorgue Castle but, as ever with Scott, this is easier said than done. Most spells work in more than one place so you must not only obtain them but also find the correct place to use them. The easiest way is to experiment but remember to save often. "Open Sesame" is not the way in, so don't go by the book - be a little more imaginative. Don't hold your breath while worrying about a monster just get down out of his way. If you've found the kitchen, I won't need to say much except that 'cabinet' is probably the noun you've been racking your brain for. A way out is simple to find but the more baffling items are certainly best left until later. Your energy might be better spent on the confines of the plain room! You should by now have unravelled a few problems, used your seed spell etc. You could see things a lot more clearly if you remember Snow White - it might help get you out of a hole - or into one! 'Raptures(?) of the Deep' is a danger to all divers but a little experimentation will get you out of trouble quite happily. If you are still content, you could move up in the world and let Mr. Newton help you crack the case. A little drink will clear the dust from your throat and help you brave one potentially fiery demise. Careful not to blow it (?) you should be no less than three stars 'the richer. Happier still, a fakir's trick would do you a favour to make you dizzy with delight. A close look at the battlements should give you something to aim at and set you up to finish the adventure. To round things off you'll need to go outside the castle. A bit of pyromania could see you glowing with pride and really getting into things (?). Having stored some stars it's time to end it all with yet another dip but this time a nice dry towel should help once you've reached the centerpiece of things. Don't Panic! You should only have one (and a half?) spells left so the last bit will be plain sailing. Regular readers of this series will notice that the clues this month are a little vaguer and more cryptic than usual. There are two reasons for this. Firstly these three are probably the most difficult of the adventures Scott himself has penned to date. It is very difficult to strike a balance between giving too much away and leaving you none the wiser for reading the hints. Secondly, I would suggest that none of these games be tackled as an introduction to Scott Adams' work - arm yourself with an early game and some back issues of Micro Adventurer. This will give you a good background in these adventures (and my writing style) and let you tackle any of the above with more confidence. Well, sadly, this series of hint-reviews closes here but, with Adventure 14 Return to Pirate Island - and Questprobe Three due for release this month I'm sure it'll be a long time before we hear the last of Scott Adams' games. Finally, thanks to you, the readers, who've called ADVENTURELINE or written in about the series. Knowing the articles have helped so many of you has made it all very rewarding. Happily, I've not been put out to grass just yet and next month I'll embark on another mammoth task - complete hintreviews of the brilliant Infocom series! In the meantime, for your Scott Adams, Infocom and many other problems try ADVENTURELINE on [redacted].