''Imogen'' is a

computer game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device to gener ...

released in 1986 for the

BBC Micro The British Broadcasting Corporation Microcomputer System, or BBC Micro, is a series of microcomputers and associated peripherals designed and built by Acorn Computers in the 1980s for the BBC Computer Literacy Project. Designed with an emphas ...

. It was written by Michael St Aubyn and published by

Micro Power Micro Power was a British company established in the early 1980s by former accountant Bob Simpson. The company was best known as a video game publisher, originally under the name Program Power. It also sold many types of computer hardware and so ...

. It was reissued as the lead game of

Superior Software Superior Software Ltd (also known as Superior Interactive) is a video game publisher. It was one of the main publishers for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron computers in the 1980s and early 1990s. It currently releases games for Microsoft Windows ...

Acornsoft Acornsoft was the software arm of Acorn Computers, and a major publisher of software for the BBC Micro and Acorn Electron. As well as games, it also produced a large number of educational titles, extra computer languages and business and util ...

's ''Play It Again Sam 5'' compilation in 1988 when it was also converted for the

Acorn Electron The Acorn Electron (nicknamed the Elk inside Acorn and beyond) was a lower-cost alternative to the BBC Micro educational/ home computer, also developed by Acorn Computers Ltd, to provide many of the features of that more expensive machine at a ...

. It is a

platform game A platform game (often simplified as platformer and sometimes called a jump 'n' run game) is a sub-genre of action video games in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are charac ...

featuring

puzzles A puzzle is a game, problem, or toy that tests a person's ingenuity or knowledge. In a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together ( or take them apart) in a logical way, in order to arrive at the correct or fun solution of the puzzle ...

Gameplay

The player takes the role of a wizard named Imogen who, according to the backstory,for a detailed description of the backstory, see http://8bs.com/elecgame/imogen.htm lost his mind and forgot his identity as a result of transforming himself into a dragon to save his town from another dragon. He is placed into a dungeon within a mountain and in order to escape he must use magic and puzzle-solving abilities. He will only be able to free himself once he is back to his old, sane self and no longer a danger to the townsfolk. The game features sixteen levels, which are played in a random order. To complete a level, Imogen needs to obtain a spell fragment which will warp him to the next level or, after all sixteen have been collected and the spell completed, to the outside world, thus completing the game. The spell fragments are always placed somewhere inaccessible at the outset of the level, and obtaining the spell fragments requires some

lateral thinking Lateral thinking is a manner of solving problems using an indirect and creative approach via reasoning that is not immediately obvious. It involves ideas that may not be obtainable using only traditional step-by-step logic. The term was first ...

by the player. Imogen himself is able to transform into three different forms, each with an ability unavailable to the other two: * His natural form as a human wizard, which can use various objects he picks up along the way (which are as varied as a

revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...

watering can A watering can (or watering pot) is a portable container, usually with a handle and a funnel, used to water plants by hand. It has been in use since at least A.D. 79 and has since seen many improvements in design. Apart from watering plants, it ha ...

and tulip bulb.) * A cat, which can leap long distances * A monkey, which can climb ropes * A bird, which can fly (available only in one particular level) Each level (consisting of a sealed cavern four screens in size) requires transforming back and forth between the forms to complete it. While it is impossible for the player to actually die during the game, the number of transformations is limited to 150, and using them all before the game is complete renders it unwinnable. ''Imogen'' has cartoon-style graphics, with many of the non-player characters being cute versions of animals like rabbits, monkeys, parrots and frogs. One recurring character is a baby-like imp who impedes the progress of the player and is usually dispatched in a terminal way.

External links

Micro Power
at bbcmicrogames.com
Windows port
2003

2019

References

{{Micro Power Imogen BBC Micro and Acorn Electron games BBC Micro and Acorn Electron-only games Platform games Puzzle video games Superior Software games Video games about birds Video games about cats Video games about primates Video games about shapeshifting Video games about witchcraft Video games developed in the United Kingdom Windows games Micro Power games