Archon III
Encyclopedia
Archon III: Exciter was a fan-made, unofficial sequel of the highly acclaimed computer game Archon
and Archon II
, created in 1985 for the Commodore 64
computer. Archon III was never published by Electronic Arts
or any other company, nor was it ever formally reviewed by a video game magazine. It was, however, freely copied amongst Commodore 64 users.
The noticeable lack of quality in Archon III added further proof of its unofficial status. In Archon III, players fought with sluggishly moving, sprite
characters in the game's combat sequences. The battles did not involve the use of melee
or projectile
s but rather a circle of "fire" (similar to the Banshee
character in the original Archon) that could reduce the health of the other player should it make contact. Different characters all moved and acted based on weighted strategy, thus winning was based on choosing right characters. Any kind of board game
strategy plays, a feature which existed in the original Archon games, was completely non-existent. There was no single player mode or computer AI
, meaning that it was strictly a two-player game, unlike either official Archon game.
Archon (computer game)
Archon: The Light and the Dark is a computer game developed by Free Fall Associates and distributed by Electronic Arts. It was originally developed for Atari 8-bit computers in 1983, but was later ported to several other systems of the day, including the Apple II, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, ZX...
and Archon II
Archon II: Adept
Archon II: Adept is a 1984 computer game developed by Jon Freeman, Paul Reiche III and Anne Westfall, and distributed by Electronic Arts for various platforms....
, created in 1985 for the Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
computer. Archon III was never published by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
or any other company, nor was it ever formally reviewed by a video game magazine. It was, however, freely copied amongst Commodore 64 users.
Summary
The creators of Archon III borrowed heavily from the original Archon title and credit screens, crediting Electronic Arts as publisher, and Anne Westfall, Jon Freeman, and Paul Reiche IV (Paul Reiche III developed Archon and Archon II) as the authors. This initially confused many people who saw the game into believing that it was an official sequel. The most telling sign of its forgery however, was the title screen editing of "Free Fall Associates". The word "Fall" was replaced with "Fuck" by Archon IIIs authors.The noticeable lack of quality in Archon III added further proof of its unofficial status. In Archon III, players fought with sluggishly moving, sprite
Sprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
characters in the game's combat sequences. The battles did not involve the use of melee
Mêlée
Melee , generally refers to disorganized close combat involving a group of fighters. A melee ensues when groups become locked together in combat with no regard to group tactics or fighting as an organized unit; each participant fights as an individual....
or projectile
Projectile
A projectile is any object projected into space by the exertion of a force. Although a thrown baseball is technically a projectile too, the term more commonly refers to a weapon....
s but rather a circle of "fire" (similar to the Banshee
Banshee
The banshee , from the Irish bean sí is a feminine spirit in Irish mythology, usually seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld....
character in the original Archon) that could reduce the health of the other player should it make contact. Different characters all moved and acted based on weighted strategy, thus winning was based on choosing right characters. Any kind of board game
Board game
A board game is a game which involves counters or pieces being moved on a pre-marked surface or "board", according to a set of rules. Games may be based on pure strategy, chance or a mixture of the two, and usually have a goal which a player aims to achieve...
strategy plays, a feature which existed in the original Archon games, was completely non-existent. There was no single player mode or computer AI
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
, meaning that it was strictly a two-player game, unlike either official Archon game.