Computer Entertainer, v8(2)

~2 minute read

May 1989

AMIGA Software

Shogun

SHOGUN (⭐⭐⭐⭐/⭐⭐⭐) is one of Infocom's new breed of interactive fiction enhanced with graphics used for story illustrations, text borders and rewards for success in certain portions of the story. SHOGUN is an interactive adaptation by Dave Lebling of James Clavell's best-selling novel. In the computer adaptation, you take the role of the seventh-century sea pilot, John Blackthorne. The story begins amid storm-tossed seas on the deck of the Dutch merchant ship Erasmus. On this long voyage seeking the Japans, already four of five ships in the fleet are lost. There are fewer than thirty men still alive, and those just barely hanging on, including the captain below in his cabin. The surviving crewmen have been demoralized by the hardships of the voyage, and they doubt even the existence of the Japans. Your immediate task is to keep as many alive as possible while maintaining your authority, in hopes that the ship will soon make landfall. But when you finally reach Japan, you find yourself in the middle of feudal strife as two warring daimyos, Lord Toranaga and Lord Ishido, both hope to become Shogun, or supreme ruler. As a stranger thrust into an unfamiliar culture with people whose ways are much different from yours, you are suddenly drawn into political intrigue. In your role as Blackthorne, your task is to think for him and make his decisions, rather than to solve a lot of puzzles. If you have read the book or seen the TV miniseries based on it, much of what happens in the game will be familiar. Like the character in the book, you must be prepared to think quickly and adapt to the ways of feudal Japan.

Sumptuous Graphics, Excellent Prose, But No Sound

Narrow-minded purists may turn up their noses at -- heaven forbid -- graphics in an Infocom program. We're equally comfortable in a storytelling situation with or without graphics, and we believe that the sumptuous graphics add to the enjoyment of Infocom's typically excellent prose. However, we're very uncomfortable with the lack of sound of any kind in this program. Maybe this lack won't bother everyone, but we really expected at least a little music to go with all that beautiful artwork. Aside from the lack of sound, we liked the program very much. Both Dave Lebling's writing and the artists' stylish graphics are very much in keeping with the theme of Clavell's novel. (Solo play; Mouse and/or keyboard; Not copy-protected; Blank disk required for game-saving.) Reviewed on Amiga. Also available for Macintosh; planned for Apple II and MS-DOS.

Recommended. (MSR $59.95)

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