''Hillsfar'' is a role-playing video game for

MS-DOS MS-DOS ( ; acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System, also known as Microsoft DOS) is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft. Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and a few ope ...

compatible operating systems, Amiga, Atari ST, and Commodore 64. It was developed by Westwood Associates and published by

Strategic Simulations Strategic Simulations, Inc. (SSI) was a video game developer and publisher with over 100 titles to its credit from its founding in 1979 to its dissolution in 1994. The company was especially noted for its numerous wargames, its official compu ...

in 1989. It combines real-time action with randomly generated quests and includes elements of the ''

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Several different editions of the '' Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game have been produced since 1974. The current publisher of ''D&D'', Wizards of the Coast, produces new materials only for the most current edition of the ...

'' fantasy role-playing game. A port to the Nintendo Entertainment System was released in 1993. ''Hillsfar'' received mixed reviews from critics.

Gameplay

Players start their game by creating a character. The game provides three choices: players may select a pre-made character, create their own, or import characters from previous

Dungeons & Dragons computer games, such as ''

Pool of Radiance ''Pool of Radiance'' is a role-playing video game developed and published by Strategic Simulations, Inc (SSI) in 1988. It was the first adaptation of TSR's ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' (''AD&D'') fantasy role-playing game for home computer ...

'' and '' Curse of the Azure Bonds''. When creating a character, players may determine the character's race (dwarf, elf, human or gnome),

character class In tabletop games and video games, a character class is a job or profession commonly used to differentiate the abilities of different game characters. In role-playing games (RPGs), character classes aggregate several abilities and aptitudes, ...

(cleric, fighter, magic-user or thief), and alignment. Various characteristics of the new character, such as strength and intelligence, are assigned a random value by the computer. There are two aspects to the game:

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware ** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board * Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games * ...

action, where the player performs tasks (expressed as

mini-game A minigame (also spelled mini game and mini-game, sometimes called a subgame or microgame) is a short game often contained within another video game. A minigame contains different gameplay elements, and is often smaller or more simplistic, than th ...

s) such as searching for treasure and traveling between locations, and

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme ...

, where the player completes quests. The choice of character class affects the available quests, with three for each class. While the quests need to be completed in a set order, "what you do in your time off is up to you", and thus the player is free to explore other aspects of the game. The game is presented in three modes. When traveling, the scene is presented using a side-on view; once in the town of Hillsfar, the game converts to a " bird's-eye view" of the map; a

first-person perspective A first-person narrative is a mode of storytelling in which a storyteller recounts events from their own point of view using the first person It may be narrated by a first-person protagonist (or other focal character), first-person re-teller ...

is employed within the caves. Interaction is handled through what Leslie Eiser of ''

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'' magazine described as a "bump interface", which allows the player to trigger interaction with objects by bumping into them.

Plot

The game takes place in the fictional town of Hillsfar. There are guilds for each class; Fighter, Cleric, Mage, and Thief. Depending on the class chosen by the player during their character's creation, the player must go to the appropriate guildmaster, who assigns them several missions. Upon completing all missions issued by the guildmaster, they will increase the player's gold and experience points, and the character then retires.

Reception

''Hillsfar'' was successful for SSI, selling 78,418 copies. Reviews tended to be mixed. On the positive side, the combination of arcade action and adventure was generally well received. Andy Smith of ''

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'', in giving the game a rating of 72%, stated that SSI succeeded in producing "a good game that is a distinct mix of two very different styles", while Bob Guerra of ''

'' magazine praised the arcade-style sequences, writing that ''Hillsfar'' "does a much better job of integrating these high-quality sequences into the story than many others do". Roe Adams of '' Computer Gaming World'' gave much praise for the thief's lockpicking sequence, but noted the game otherwise failed to live up to expectations; in particular, Adams criticized both the repetitive horseback travel sequence, and the fact that magic-users and clerics cast no magic during the game. Other reviewers were less impressed with the overall effect. Lucinda Orr of ''

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'' criticized the overall gameplay, while she was impressed with some of the mini–games, describing them as "quite entertaining and graphically effective", she found the game generally boring, writing, "there is not too much to keep the interest above critical boredom level". The game was reviewed in 1989 in '' Dragon'' No. 147 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in their "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game three out of five stars. The reviewers compared ''Hillsfar'' to ''

''. They felt that the adventure of ''Hillsfar'' lacked depth and was less absorbing than ''Pool of Radiance'', but they considered it "a nice adventure to while away the hours while waiting for SSI to release he sequel to ''Pool of Radiance'' nicknamed'' Azure Bonds''". The reviewers also concluded that "If you enjoyed ''Pool of Radiance'', you'll like ''Hillsfar''". The NES version was more negatively received. Brent Walker's review in ''

VideoGames & Computer Entertainment ''VideoGames & Computer Entertainment'' (abbreviated as ''VG&CE'') was an American magazine dedicated to covering video games on computers, home consoles and arcades. It was published by LFP, Inc. from the late 1980s until the mid-1990s. Offe ...

'' assessed, "The majority of your time is spent gathering gold, which has limited use, and either picking locks or bashing them open. There is also little adventure or strategy required, and I felt more like I was just wading through the game, rather than being pulled into it. Graphically unexciting and mentally uninteresting, I can't find anything in particular to recommend it." The magazine's team of four editors gave it an average score of 4 out of 10. According to '' GameSpy'', ''Hillsfar'' was considered "a failed experiment" by a lot of players.

Reviews

*''

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'' #18 (Nov./Dec., 1989) *''

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'' #1 (Jan., 1990)

References

External links

*
''Hillsfar''
at the Hall of Light
Review
in

Compute!'s Gazette ''Compute!'s Gazette'' (), stylized as ''COMPUTE!'s Gazette'', was a computer magazine of the 1980s, directed at users of Commodore's 8-bit home computers. Announced as ''The Commodore Gazette'', it was a Commodore-only daughter magazine of the ...

Review
in

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