''Leander'' is a

video 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, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

for the

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers introduced by Commodore in 1985. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256 KB or more of RAM, mouse-based GUIs, and significantly improved graphi ...

developed by

Traveller's Tales Traveller's Tales is a British video game developer and a subsidiary of TT Games. Traveller's Tales was founded in 1989 by Jon Burton and Andy Ingram. Initially a small company focused on its own content, it grew in profile through developing ...

and published by Psygnosis in 1991. It was the first game developed by Traveller's Tales. The game was developed on the Amiga, then converted to the

Atari ST The Atari ST is a line of personal computers from Atari Corporation and the successor to the Atari 8-bit family. The initial model, the Atari 520ST, had limited release in April–June 1985 and was widely available in July. It was the first pers ...

by Philipp Wyatt for W.J.S Design. A year later it was published for the

Sega Genesis The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master Syst ...

as ''Galahad'' by

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the d ...

Plot

The player assumes the role of the legendary knight

Leander Leander is one of the protagonists in the story of Hero and Leander in Greek mythology. Leander may also refer to: People * Leander (given name) * Leander (surname) Places * Leander, Kentucky, United States, an unincorporated community * Le ...

(changed in the Genesis port to Galahad, son of

Lancelot Lancelot du Lac (French for Lancelot of the Lake), also written as Launcelot and other variants (such as early German ''Lanzelet'', early French ''Lanselos'', early Welsh ''Lanslod Lak'', Italian ''Lancillotto'', Spanish ''Lanzarote del Lago' ...

) and rescue the princess Lucanna from the wizard Thanatos (Miragorn in the Genesis port, who kidnapped Lucanna in an attempt to get

King Arthur King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a ...

to come to him).

Gameplay

Leander collects coins through three sprawling worlds, each composed of seven levels, with which he can purchase

armour Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or fr ...

, potions and new

sword A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...

s in a shop which appears infrequently during the game. The ultimate aim of each level is to find a certain object named at the start of a level (with instructions where to find it). When Leander finds it, he must find a portal which will lead him on to the next level. If he does not find the object, he cannot enter the portal. Enemies encountered during the game range from

dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

s and

elves An elf () is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology and folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology. They are subsequently mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's Icelandic Prose Edda. He distinguishes "ligh ...

snake Snakes are elongated, Limbless vertebrate, limbless, carnivore, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales. Ma ...

s and giant

otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which also includes wea ...

s. At the end of each world, Leander faces a gargantuan

boss Boss may refer to: Occupations * Supervisor, often referred to as boss * Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier * Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization * Fire boss, a ...

, whom he must defeat to enter the next world.

Cameos from other games

In the final world, there is a secret ''

Lemmings A lemming is a small rodent, usually found in or near the Arctic in tundra biomes. Lemmings form the subfamily Arvicolinae (also known as Microtinae) together with voles and muskrats, which form part of the superfamily Muroidea, which also include ...

''-styled area and the main character from ''

The Killing Game Show ''The Killing Game Show'' is a run and gun shooter game developed by Raising Hell Software for the Amiga and Atari ST. It was released in 1990 and published by Psygnosis. It was re-released later under the name ''Fatal Rewind'' for the Sega Gene ...

'' appears as an enemy as well as a larger version of him. In the game '' Puggsy'', originally made for the Sega Mega Drive, and also published by Psygnosis, an "extra-secret" level called "Lee and Errr", which can only be accessed by working out a math equation given during the credits after completing the story game, contains the following message written in large print in the background: "Leander is Galahad on the Megadrive".

Reception

'' The One'' gave the Amiga version of ''Leander'' an overall score of 93%, calling it "classy" and "graphically amazing", making note of "additional touches" such as detailed waves, waterfalls and rain. ''The One'' praises ''Leander'''s colourful graphics, 'smooth' scrolling, and gameplay, stating that "''Leander'' has captured the console concept perfectly ... Control over ''Leander'' quickly becomes second nature, but is sophisticated enough to allow high jumping and ladder climbing."

Anti-piracy

An anti-piracy measure was tested during development which required punching a hole into the disk with a laser. If implemented, the game would freeze and refuse to load without the punch being present. Should the physical check be removed, the game will load fine then, but with one catch. The player will be unable to get past level four as one of the platforms needed to progress has its collision removed. Further levels have no terrain whatsoever, resulting in the player falling through the platforms. Not only this, but the damage the player deals is halved. The copy protection method was ultimately unused.

References

External links

''Leander''
at Lemon Amiga

at Atari Mania {{Authority control 1991 video games Amiga games Atari ST games Electronic Arts games Psygnosis games Sega Genesis games Video games based on Arthurian legend Video games based on Greek mythology Video games scored by Matthew Simmonds Video games scored by Tim Wright (Welsh musician) Fantasy video games set in the Middle Ages Single-player online games Side-scrolling platform games Action-adventure games Video games developed in the United Kingdom