Ancient Domains of Mystery

The development of ADOM began in 1994 and in the same year the first release of the game took place. Later, until November 2002, the game was regularly updated ^[10] . Subsequently, development was frozen for approximately 9 years. In July 2012, Thomas Biskup launched the IndieGoGo fundraising campaign for the rebirth of ADOM ^[11] , which ended successfully ^[12] . Later, during the development, tile graphics, music and sound were added, and the overall result was the release of the game on Steam on November 16, 2015. ^[6]

Game development began on July 12, 1994 and continues to the present ^[13] .

Classic ADOM

The classic version of the game was regularly supplemented and developed until November 20, 2002 ^[13] .

Initially, ADOM is written in C using the GNU make build system, compilation of the game manual was a single Perl script, and the NCurses library was used for printing ^[14] . The original assembly was created on Linux ^[14] .

The author of the game was compiled for DOS using DJGPP and the PDCurses library ^[14] . Porting to Amiga was done using the GCC compiler and connected to the work of Jochen Terstiege. Jochen was later responsible for the porting, which was carried out including with the help of enthusiasts. As a result, the game was available on many platforms, which include OS / 2, Unix, Solaris / SPARC, BeBox , Falcon, Windows 95 , Windows NT , HPUX / DEC ALPHA, Macintosh , Nextstep, SGI, SunOS / Solaris 1.x / 2.x, Archimedes, UnixWare , IBM AIX, MacLinux, MVS, AIX 4.1.x, 4.2.x, 4.3. Moreover, further support was not guaranteed for them ^[14] .

Initially, ADOM was not designed for multiplayer. In this regard, its support is difficult and is absent, including to the present ^{[2] [14]} .

The game uses only English and is not prepared to support many languages. This author substantiates the difference in language grammars , the lack of support for character encodings (only 7-bit ASCII is used), the need for the constant availability of a high-quality translation (due to regular updates to the game), and the source code is closed ^[14] .

JADE / ADOM II

A continuation of the ADOM game is the Java -written ADOM II game (previously called JADE (Java based Ancient Domain Domain Engine) ^[15] but the author decided to change the name for better recognition) ^[16] . Although the first JADE announcements appeared in 1998 ^[17] , Thomas Biskup released the first test release only on July 2, 2011 ^[18] . The documentation on jade-classes of the Jade engine ^[19] is published, its source code ^[20] may be published. Currently implemented as a Java Web Start application. The current version of ADOM II is 0.3.2 ^[21] .

ADOM Deluxe

ADOM Deluxe is a version distributed via Steam . In terms of gameplay functionality, it largely coincides with the classic version ( ADOM Classic ).

At the time of the release of ADOM Deluxe, ADOM Classic had the following differences ^[2] :

• The presence of achievements .
• The appearance of the souls of deceased players (you can meet the deceased player and fight with him for his property) and the exchange of souls of players (migration of deceased characters to other Steam players' computers and there they appear as enemies).
• Setting difficulty levels (damage, monster difficulty, number of treasures, etc.).
• Story mode (the ability to download and record a game with disabling irreversible death ; that is, in ADOM Classic, recording always records only the last moment, and loading only from it).
• Challenge mode (every week fixing in the records of the highest earned points, while every week the starting parameters are recorded again).
• Exploration mode (allows you to explore various features of the game: the character is given the wand of wishes object (magic wand), with which you can wish to receive new artifacts, change the properties of existing items, etc.).
• Crowd Mode (simultaneously playing friends on Steam help each other, but without direct interaction) ^[22] .
• Improved graphical user interface.

After the release, the author announced the further development and addition of ADOM Deluxe ^{[23] [24]} .

ADOM Deluxe is considered the first Roguelike game released on Steam , which has a classic Roguelike interface (two-dimensional ASCII graphics without graphic elements) ^[25] .

Gameplay

The player has to stop the forces of Chaos , terrorizing the world of Ancardia (Ancardia). In his journey, the player will visit many dungeons and complete many quests . In each quest, the player’s choice will be reflected in the character’s worldview, which changes along the axis of the law-chaos. Worldview can influence the favor of the gods and the attitude of some NPCs towards you. ADOM has a structure that focuses more on quests than on the extermination of monsters, so the worldview plays an important role, for example, opening access to one quest and closing to another.

Character Generation

At the beginning of a new game, it is reported under which sign of the zodiac ^{[b] a} new character was born - and in accordance with this some of its characteristics change: for example, those born under the sign of Raven receive a speed bonus, and under the sign of Candles - they are healed faster. In addition, the beginning of the game is the only moment when the system calendar date is taken into account. It is very good to start the game on the birthday of the creator of the game, and very badly on Friday, 13 .

Next comes the turn of the player who will create a hero for himself, choosing the gender, race and character class . Each race has certain advantages. The choice is great: a person, several types of elves, gnomes, traditionally "evil" types of creatures, etc. The class can be selected from a list containing 2 dozen professions, both quite traditional for this kind of games, and very unusual, like a farmer, a blacksmith or a merchant. The race and class chosen determine a set of skills, some of which are guaranteed for this combination, some are not, and some are not guaranteed to be given. Skills have different relative values: from almost useless "gardening" to almost mandatory "literacy." Some of the skills that were not provided during character generation can be acquired during the game. An important role is also played by the level of development of a skill that trains successful application. In addition, when creating a character, a player can influence his initial characteristics by answering a number of questions.

Starting with version 1.1.0, a system of talents has been added to the game - special abilities that a player can choose every three levels of experience: increasing speed, increasing damage dealt, tendency to use a certain type of weapon, the ability to lift more cargo, it is better to pray, etc. P.

Game World

During the game, the character moves along a valley with hills, plains, roads, a river, and at the edges there are impassable mountains. In the valley there are a couple of villages, several fixed "flat" locations, and also in different places of the valley there are descents into separate caves of a classic kind for the genre. Some caves are not immediately accessible, but appear only after receiving information about their location. Most of the valley is characterized in the game as "wilderness."

The valley map has a fixed view, but most of the caves are regenerated for each game, and after generation remain unchanged. A character traveling in the valley, and not at the entrance to the cave or to any special location, can “enter” the cell on which it is located - and end up in the same place, but with a different scale. Individual trees, or stones, or puddles become visible, depending on the type of terrain where the character is located. The player can enter this mode to relax, conjure, sort things out and throw away the unnecessary - or maybe be forcibly dragged into this area by some monsters who ambushed him. Despite the connecting role of the “wilderness”, the main actions of the game take place in caves.

Corruption

While the forces of Chaos are not stopped (that is, until the end of the game, in fact), the character constantly accumulates “damage”. The rate of its accumulation depends on the location of the character and on his actions. When certain levels of “damage” are accumulated, the character has random mutations that, in the general case, work against the player, and ultimately kill him. This effect indirectly limits the maximum playing time. In this regard, the means to combat corruption, which are extremely rare and inaccessible, become of special value in the game.

Although most mutations are harmful, they usually have a positive component. For example, hoofs grown on the legs reduce dexterity, but increase the damage done by kicking.

Inventory

The number of items in the inventory is not limited quantitatively, but has restrictions on weight. When the load increases beyond the permissible, it begins to have negative effects on the character. A hero may even die under the weight of his belongings.

Most of the items received during the game will initially have vague characteristics - for weapons and armor the exact values ​​of damage and protection are not known, for scrolls, potions and magic wands, the effect of their use is not clear. Often enough to use such an item to find out its characteristics, but the armor and weapons can be “damned” (they work worse than usual, or cause obvious harm, and, when put on, they cannot be removed), and the potion, spell and magic wand - prove to be dangerous for the player, and even spend money. To solve this problem, as in many other such games, an “identification spell” is used, which, however, is not always easily accessible at the beginning of the game.

All items can be “normal,” “blessed,” or “cursed.” Initially, the status of an item is determined randomly, but the player can influence it in various ways. Blessed objects work much better than ordinary ones, and cursed ones are noticeably worse, and cannot be removed after they are put on or picked up. Fortunately, the “status” of items can easily be checked on the altar of the deity the character worships.

In some cases, the character’s things can die from heat, water, acid and other factors (even when in a backpack). Only “artifacts” are insured from this - indestructible, immutable objects that exist in a single copy, which usually have improved characteristics. Possession of artifacts, therefore, is an important tool for the passage of particularly dangerous locations.

Tactical Battle Modes

During the game, the player can choose one of seven tactical battle modes for his character, changing the balance between attack power and the effectiveness of character protection. For example, in the "berserk" mode, the character will inflict maximum damage to the enemy, ignoring his own defense, and in the "coward" mode, he will concentrate on avoiding the enemy’s attacks, but almost does no damage to the enemy. The mode does not affect the effectiveness of attacking spells - only on “physical” attacks. Switching the mode does not take up playing time, and the player can set the level separately for each attack.

Enemies

The set of enemies in the game basically corresponds to the genre. A character, having met an enemy of a new type, can get some initial impression of him by using the “see” command. With repeated meetings, the information becomes more detailed - the character eventually remembers the typical speed of this kind of enemies, average and maximum damage, etc. However, the enemies also gain experience, and their characteristics grow as the player kills their relatives. As a result, enemies, especially those of many types, multiply quickly or are often called upon by other monsters (rats, jackals, gremlins), by the middle of the game they become extremely dangerous. Among the information provided by the “see” team, there is the experience of a monster: inexperienced, a little experienced, etc. Having met on the path of an “extremely experienced” gremlin, the character of a skilled player will prudently step aside, not trying to figure out how many “critical hits” in a row this cute little animal will inflict.

Some monsters have special types of attacks that can kill even an advanced hero in one turn. To counter them, the player must take special steps in advance - sometimes put on a specific amulet, sometimes plug your ears, etc.

The corpses of monsters are often a source of food for the character, and sometimes add special qualities to him (speed, immunity, control of teleportation, etc.). However, some corpses are poisonous or cannot be eaten for any other reason.

Cats

The cat family (cats, tigers, lions, etc.) is in a special position in ADOM. Their fate is not indifferent to some “ Cat Lord ”, with which the character will meet in the middle of the game. If a player kills at least one feline during the game, he will have to fight with the Cat Master, and if he doesn’t kill, he will get a unique magic ring from him.

Religion

Depending on the worldview , the character worships a certain deity, there are a lot of them in the game. During the game, the deity can be sacrificed, thus winning his location. In response, the deity can give the character useful blessings and even assist the player, especially in times of dire need.

An interviewer for the game’s author in 1998 reported that despite the many bagels available on the Internet, ADOM is one of the best dungeon games and a gem among bagels, which goes far beyond commercial games like Diablo ^[28] .

In 2015, RPG Codex advised fans to play once, but without the intention of winning, and at the same time play without saving for several hours, without looking at the encyclopedia of the game and be calm even after the twentieth death. If it becomes difficult and uninteresting, then try looking at the help information, and if it does not help, then try to play something else ^[29] .

In 2015, Rock, Paper, Shotgun placed Ancient Domains of Mystery in 28th place in its ranking of the best role-playing games of all time ^[27] .

Comments

Sources

• - the official website of Ancient Domains of Mystery.
• The ADOM Guidebook (with detailed spoilers).
• ADOM in DMOZ .
• Interview with Thomas Biskup for Rogue Temple .
• Drakalor Chain Board of Tourism (unavailable link from 05/14/2013 [2289 days] - history ) (Spoilers).
• Forum
• Russian Hall of Fame, a large collection of walkthroughs and spoilers .
• Translated spoilers .
• Russian-language Encyclopedia ADOM .
• English language encyclopedia ADOM .
• Interview 1998
• 24 Years of ADOM in 24 Minutes - Thomas Biskup .

Conferences

• news: /rec.games.roguelike.adom
• news: /fido7.ru.game.adom