Re: WTD: Wizardry walkthrough

[rubywand@aol.com (RUBYWAND)]

In article <4t8577$e0j@bmerhc5e.bnr.ca>, jeffr@bnr.ca (Jeffrey Robertson)
writes:

>What, then, is their position on their Apple II titles?  Do they still
>sell them?  Do they support them in any way?  Have they released them
>into the public domain?  Made them freeware/shareware?
>
>Genuinely curious, since this company represents a classic example
>of a developer which has abandoned the Apple II platform ....

     Sir-Tech has gone 'where the users are'. Even if there is a market
for II products, it is relatively small. There is no way to get shelf
space for II games in Computer Galaxy, etc. stores.

     It is kind of expensive for companies like Sir-Tech to maintain II
support. For starters, they must maintain a stock of II products-- which
means doing occasional production runs and using space for storing the
stuff. Unloading your old Apple II wares via a seller like Big Red makes
pretty good sense.

     Still, there is always a chance that a maker will have old wares
piled in some corner. You can call Sir-Tech and ask.

     As far as I know, Sir-Tech has no plans to place Apple II Wizardry
products in the public domain.



In article <31F8C959.2D2@cardshow.com>, Michael Guitton
<webmaster@cardshow.com> writes:

>....
>It is possible to back up the Wiz IV and V disks, but there is nothing =
>
>to do with the boot sides of episodes I, II & III. Such a shame.
>

     This is a classic adventure game series problem. The explanation is
that, after two or three adventures, your characters ceiling-out on
development. Yet, character development is a primary 'fun part' of any
substantial adventure game. 

     For marketing purposes, it is desirable that each adventure be
playable by itself. Naturally, coming up with an adventure which 'works'
for both developed and new characters becomes very difficult by the third
installment of a series.

     I'm pretty sure that the record for _successful_ continuation of a
major adventuring series which allows multi-character transfer is held by
SSI's Pool of Radiance "gold box" AD&D quests (Pool', 'Azure Bonds,
'Silver Blades, and Pools').


Rubywand