The Horror of Rylvania - Dave Leary/Adventions RRP $20
         (TADS text adventure for PC, ST and Falcon!)

                 Reviewed by Alan Medley

It's hard to believe it's that time again. Time for my annual
foray into print (well, magnetic media then). Another year gone -
they're definitely getting shorter - in the old days a year would
last for ages.  So it's time for another review - my fifth I
think. I suggested to the editor-who-must-be-obeyed that I should
write about my new toy - the Psion Series 3a palmtop that I'm
using to type this in, half a Meg of RAM cum storage, expandable
to four and a half, 16 bit processor, about the size of a small
doner kebab - but she wouldn't hear of it.  SynTax is an adventure
magazine she said, nobody's interested in that stuff. Yeah, but, I
said, it's got a full-function word processor, a Lotus compatible
spreadsheet, a database, a world clock with loads of alarms, a PC
link, it dials phone numbers and it records and ....  She was
unmoved. I've got to review an adventure!

I had a brainwave. I bought her 'Indiana Jones and the Fate of
Atlantis' on CD ROM. I could have a play with that.  No chance!
The CD drive is on her machine and no, I can't use it. Why don't I
just review something that will work on my steam PC? Like what
then?  She came up with a new TADS game called The Horror of
Rylvania.  Well, I'll give it a go, but don't forget, I am a
renowned adventurer ... NOT.

Well, it wasn't half bad. Only words though - no nice voices and
pictures like Indiana Jones. It was written by Dave Leary, a name
well known to many SynTaxers for his part in Adventions, purveyors
of the 'Unnkulian' series. But this is commercial software - not
shareware like most of his previous works.

You are (or rather, I am) a college graduate, hiking across Europe
with Carolyn. We visit the Central European state of Rylvania,
although Carolyn wasn't keen. She was a little unlucky - lying
motionless on the path with a jagged wound in her throat the
instant we arrive.  Nothing to do with me - honest - I hadn't
typed anything in yet. And it got worse.

A little exploration led me to the office of Doctor Trolovitch and
he proved very willing to help. I took him back to where I'd left
Carolyn but, would you believe it, she wasn't there. I was
mortified. The Doctor wasn't too pleased either - he uttered a few
choice words about childish pranks then cleared off never to be
seen again (OK, so this is only an assumption - I didn't get
anywhere near the end of the game).

So, I had a look around, went in the inn and heard mumblings about
vampires but otherwise drew a blank. I met a tramp, found a
leaflet about Madam Hulga, had a look around the church and found
some useful information in the graveyard. There were gravestones
for, among others, Maryana Olgrisson who died in 1770 aged 23 and
the mausoleum of one Vladmir Von Rhistoven (In Morte Pax).

I found out that I needed to get back into the Doctor's office if
I wanted to progress any further. You have to make plans for this
when you first visit the Doctor in about the third move. Ah well,
start again.

It was all going rather well. I'd picked up a lot of goodies and
was feeling pretty pleased with myself. Suddenly I see Carolyn and
I'm struck dead and I wake up 6 foot under - in a coffin
(really!). Next thing I know, some so and so's digging me up.
Well, I leapt out of the coffin and took him by surprise and gave
him a good biting. He died!  I'm a vampire!

Now I've got to own up. I didn't think of biting him. It was my
tame home adventure consultant. She was bitten by a dog yesterday
(no, it's true - you ask her) so she had the inspiration.

Well, after that you have to go into a maze (which is cleverly
disguised as a forest) and I do know my limitations, so I sat back
and watched the master(ess) at work. Then the game really started
to unfold. I find it very relaxing watching someone else doing all
the thinking and rushing around - much nicer for the blood
pressure. It clearly helps if you understand the way Dave Leary's
mind works which Sue obviously does. She always knew where to
look or dig and was up to 100+ points (out of 301) in no time,
rushing around Castle Gloomfen, the ancestral home of the Von
Rhistovens.

This is a nice game. It's very big and there's lots of booty to
collect and carry. I like that - it makes me feel (wrongly) like
I'm getting somewhere. I found the UNDO command in TADS
particularly useful after making a stupid move - and I did make
one or two, believe it or not. The game has a solemn atmosphere in
keeping with the scenario but there are some nice humorous touches
including some footnotes - but you really need to be an
Infocom/Unnkulian nut to get the best from them.

Yes, I'd recommend it. You can get hold of a demo version from
SynTax or, better still, send off your $21 to Adventions straight
away.  Well, that's it from me for another year. I'll be back in
'95 to tell you more about my Psion Series 3A and the diary and
all the useful plug in ROMs and ...

A happy new year to my reader.