Temple of Apshai is a dungeon crawl role-playing video game developed and published by Automated Simulations (later renamed to Epyx) in 1979. Originating on the TRS-80 and Commodore PET, it was followed by several updated versions for other computers between 1980 and 1986.

Temple of Apshai is considered one of the first graphical role-playing games for home computers,

Temple of Apshai consists of two programs: the Innkeeper and the Dunjonmaster. The game starts with the Innkeeper and the choice to either generate a new character or input an existing one. Early tape versions of the game had no means to save progress. The player was prompted to write down all statistics when quitting the game and had to type them in when resuming play. The player gains experience points while adventuring, which raise a number of hidden statistics.

Temple of Apshai was the first computer role-playing game with room descriptions. Detailed descriptions of all the rooms in the game's manual complement the sparse graphics and provide vital information. Pen-and-paper games like Dungeons & Dragons frequently make use of verbal depictions given by dungeon masters to suggest to players what is of interest in a setting. Similarly, in Temple of Apshai the player matches an on-screen room number to its entry in the manual that accompanies the game. One sample entry reads: "The aroma of vanilla makes the senses reel and the floor of the room is covered with the shiny stuff previously observed. Bones lie scattered across the floor and the clicking sound grows fainter from within. Gems stud the south wall." A vanilla scent is used in the game to suggests the presence of Antmen, the dominant monster type in the temple.

When beaten by a monster, the player character may be rescued by one of several non-player characters. Depending on the rescuer, a portion of the player's inventory is removed as payment.

According to Connelley, his motivations to create Temple of Apshai were "the popularity of noncomputer role-playing games" and the opportunity "to create a graphics-oriented adventure game". An advertisement for Temple of Apshai called the game a "version of Dungeons and Dragons" and described Connelly as an experienced "Dungeon Master, running continuous D & D campaigns". The game's documentation included instructions for importing pen-and-paper role-playing game player characters. but a version for the Apple II followed in 1980. while Epyx announced a version for IBM PC compatibles to be released in March 1982. Aric Wilmunder coded the Atari program, while Connelley himself is credited for the IBM PC version. In 1983, the game was released for the VIC-20 and Commodore 64, sold at $39.95. Connelley identified Steve Bryson as the programmer of the Commodore 64 version. Both the game and manual were translated entirely, kept in a French Canadian writing style.

in 1984, a Version was made for the Mac Classic under contract with Applied Computer Technology, Inc. located in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was authored by Louis Castle.

Legacy

thumb|Later versions have more visual detail.

Temple of Apshai was the first game in Automated Simulations' Dunjonquest series, Upper Reaches of Apshai contains four new dungeon levels for beginning characters, and conveys a more humorous tone

In 1983, Epyx released the action-oriented Gateway to Apshai, a prequel to Temple of Apshai whose story is set at a time before the Temple of Apshai, where the original game took place, was rediscovered.

In 1985, Epyx published the remake Temple of Apshai Trilogy.

Reception

Temple of Apshai was very successful. Automated Simulations reported that it had sold 20,000 copies of the game by 1981, and 30,000 copies by June 1982. It remained a best-seller for at least four years, with sales reached 400,000 copies by 1986. After the Commodore 64 Version was released in 1983, it appeared on top of the Compute! Gazette list of best-selling Commodore 64 Entertainment programs, generated from surveys with retailers and distributors. It constantly remained among the five best-selling Commodore 64 games according to that list until the column was discontinued after March 1984. The VIC-20 version also appeared on the list of best-selling games for that system from December 1983 onwards. At the middle of June 1983, the wholesale software distributor Softsel International placed Temple of Apshai seventh in a list of best-selling computer games, compiled from sales to 4,000 retail outlets in 50 states and 30 countries. By that time, the game had been in the distributor's top 50 chart for 38 weeks. Temple of Apshai was Epyx's third best-selling Commodore game as of late 1987.

Early reviews of Temple of Apshai praised the game's graphics and unusual complexity, while criticizing long loading times and slow screen build-up for the dungeon graphics. Compute! stated that Temple of Apshai for the PET "is for anyone who is tired of simple 'video games' ... [it] is quite an experience". It advised readers to be aware that "this is a serious game. Be prepared to THINK". Jerry Pournelle in BYTE called it "an excellent real-time dungeon game", and later reported that his sons had "nearly worn out the Dungeons of Apshai". Kilobaud Microcomputing criticized the long load times, but liked the game's graphics and "excellent" documentation. PC Magazine stated that the IBM PC version did not fully exploit the computer's graphics capability, but that players "will find excitement and entertainment ... it's certainly worth the silver to grab this game for the PC". The magazine was also favorable towards Upper Reaches of Apshai, which it called "better than Temple of Apshai in some ways". Popular Science called Temple of Apshai "a good example of a graphic adventure game", but also stated that in it and other games like it "the play seems to drag" because "it takes time to draw the pictures". The Addison-Wesley Book of Atari Software 1984 gave Temple of Apshai an overall B rating, concluding that it was "an excellent game, one that's very involving", and gave the same grade to Hellfire Warrior and Curse of Ra.

Robert Plamondon reviewed Temple of Apshai for Different Worlds magazine and stated that "I found both Datestones of Ryn and Temple of Apshai highly enjoyable. Temple of Apshai is more expensive, but well worth the extra cost because it is so much bigger than Datestones of Ryn."

In 1991 and 1993 Computer Gaming Worlds Scorpia stated that the graphics "caused a sensation when it first appeared", but also criticized a lack of polish in the programming and slow speed due to the use of BASIC, issues which were improved upon in the Atari 8-bit version. A 2012 overview of TRS-80 games described it as "slow, clunky and crash-prone ... this early attempt at an action role-playing game managed little of either", and inferior to later Atari and Commodore versions, but "quite clearly compelling" as an early dungeon crawl.

Temple of Apshai was awarded the Origins Award for "Best Computer Game of 1980", the first to receive this distinction.

References

  • Temple of Apshai at Lemon64
  • Temple of Apshai at Commodore 64 Boxed Sets