Written in 1981, not published until 1983. Take your pick. I didn’t have this one on any of my lists but El Explorador de RPG recently pointed it out; since it was not preserved otherwise, gschmidl then put the source of the game on his Github.
It was printed in the magazine H & E Computronics, which has barely had any mention here at all, so a brief history–
From the first issue of the newsletter (July 1978) that would eventually be the magazine called H & E Computronics.
Howard Y. Gosman, former math teacher out of New York, ran one of the first personal computer magazines kicking off in July of 1978; their June 1979 issue specifically bragged they were “the first TRS-80 PUBLICATION to last a year” as well as “the largest publication devoted to a single computer (over 16,000).”
This is an oddly specific claim meant to work around existing alongside things like PCC’s newspaper/magazine which launched in the early 70s and Kilobaud launching in January of 1977 (“The Small Computer Magazine”). One of their main competitors was Softside which was still TRS-80-only from 1978 through 1979 although it launched later (October 1978). Softside has been mentioned here now quite a few times; they printed, for instance, Dog Star Adventure, the first full-parser adventure game in a magazine.
Softside tended to be quite game-friendly; with the exception of the tax software from the February 1979 issue, every issue from ’78 through ’79 featured a game on its cover.
While H & E included games once in a while, they tended to be a seller of “serious” software; their catalog was heavy on the business side and they even kept this going past their own magazine’s existence, selling their own VersaBusiness software into the late 80s on a variety of platforms.
They did have one gaming landmark worth noting, possibly a side effect of their “serious” positioning: they have the first ad I can find for an adult game. Back in that June 1979 issue the company Phase-80 includes a mention of their games Strip Dice and Strip Concentration. (“Each player must follow ALL directions of the computer … The game may be played by ‘CRT’ light if desired.”) H & E Computronics later sold the infamous “activity catalog” Interlude, which you might remember from City Adventure.
The Phase-80 ad notably beats out the first commercial adult game in Japan, Yakyūken, although Yakyūken is far more significant in being a single-player erogē rather than a “party game” facilitated by the computer. (Joey Wawzonek has a terrific essay here about the game, answering the question “why are we stripping while playing rock paper scissors in the first place?”)
After their August 1983 issue, the publication (not company) of H & E merged with Basic Magazine (formerly 80-U.S. Journal, another magazine founded almost exactly the same time as H & E). Today’s game, Sword of Raschkil by Mac Vaughn, came from one of their last issues, May 1983. Comments from the code identify Vaughn as being at Henderson High School in Georgia.
Our author is standing second from the right, clearly demonstrating that Math is Cool. Via one of his school yearbooks.
True to form, the magazine the game appears in has a super-serious cover. This seems to be why their games have generally been overlooked in the various TRS-80 archives, even though this isn’t the only game in this issue (although it is the only adventure). From a different issue, Castle Adventure is another game I need to loop back to that again seemingly was never archived.
Our objective is to find the long-lost sword of a warrior from the distant past.
Several hundred years ago, the warrior Raschkil was slain in battle. It was rumored that he had had a magical sword, but when it was not found on him, many assumed that it had never existed.
Just a few months ago, you were digging in a garden near your small house when you unearthed a small, unlocked iron box. Within it was a map giving the approximate location of the sword of Raschkil! How did it get under the soil of your garden? No one will ever know.
You decided to find the sword, and had little difficulty finding the area on the map: an area surrounding a small castle. Now, using your wits, you must find the sword within the area named. Any further instructions are included in the program. Good luck you’ll need it!
We start, as is tradition, in a forest.
The game fortunately does not start with a maze; the forest is tiny, and it leads to an even tinier castle. The starting area map first, though:
Just to the south is a “hole” where ENTER HOLE puts you on a ledge of a bottomless pit, with a staff you can take. You can only get out with CLIMB LADDER so you can’t take the ladder with you.
Heading further south, there’s a meadow followed by a large oak you can climb. Along the way you can pick up a “golden leaf” and the top of the tree has a jar because … squirrels need jars?
Back to the start, heading east you can find a pool; you can FILL JAR at the pool.
I was expecting the water to be toxic and kill you. I’ve been in too many death-every-corner games lately, I suppose. You can also POUR WATER in any room where it “makes a puddle on the floor.”
The game also lets you SWIM, and I was briefly worried I had a broken-code issue for a moment afterwards.
YOU ARE SWIMMING IN A POOL OF WATER.
AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POOL IS A KEY.
? GET KEY
I CAN’T DO THAT AT THIS TIME.
The reason for my concern is I had discovered by now the game has a bug: if you drop any item you can’t pick it up. DROP STAFF cheerfully gets the response of “O.K.” but then trying to GET STAFF yields the response I CAN’T DO THAT AT THIS TIME. I checked with gschmidl who assured me the game was beatable as is, before arriving at DIVE.
Just for reference, my verb list, based on typing in all my standard verbs:
CLIMB, SWIM, READ, DRINK, EAT, FILL, THROW, UNLOCK, LOCK, POUR, JUMP, GIVE, ENTER, DIVE
This was a bit fussy to get because typing CLIMB has the response
I DON’T KNOW HOW TO CLIMB SOMETHING!!!!
which is a touch deceptive. The command doesn’t work without a noun.
With all that taken care of (and shockingly, no DIG command used anywhere, not an understood verb!) let’s proceed on to the castle, which might seem a little underwhelming so far but I expect I’m missing a lot.
Heading into the NORTH WING indicates that you feel a DRAFT, indicating perhaps the author was familiar with Hunt the Wumpus, as to the east is a pit. If you’re holding the staff you’ll levitate; if you don’t have the staff you’ll fall.
Dropping the staff is accounted for.
From the east of the start is a wizard with a sign. I haven’t gotten anything to happen here.
Inside joke, maybe?
Finally, to the south is … nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Again, I’ve been assured the game is beatable, but I’m still starting to worry (given the drop bug) I’m running into some other code-related issue. I’ll take suggestions in the comments if anyone thinks there’s something I missed.
And very special thanks to Ethan Johnson for assistance with getting the picture of our author, Mac Vaughn.
Renga in Blue 