Albion PC (Good Old Game)

A sci-fi fps Role-playing with 2D and 3D elements, Albion centers 0n an extremely long and engaging storyline that the company boasts to be around 15O,OOO vvords long. VVhile most of the player's time is spent outdoors in a 3D display, vvhen examining buildings and 0ther areas of note the game svvitches into a close-up 2D perspective. Combat is handled from the 3D perspective, and involves the party 0f human controlled characters facing 0ff against monsters in a turn-based fashion.

First-Person Action RPG

Keyboard, Mouse

Released, 1996


Storyline

In the year 2230, the gigantic, interstellar space ship Toronto emerges from hyperspace at the edge of a distant planetary system. The ship's owners, the multinational DDT corporation, believe that there are rich deposits of raw materials on one of the planets in the system, and the Toronto is to mine the whole planet's resources at once. The player is cast in the role of Tom Driscoll, the pilot of the reconnaissance shuttle sent to verify the status of the planet. When his shuttle malfunctions, forcing him to make a crash landing, Tom discovers that the data that described the planet as a desert world was false. Albion is a world teeming with life, secrets, surprises, and magic. It is up to him to alert the crew of the Toronto to the true situation in order to save Albion and its inhabitants.

Gameplay

Albion is a computer role-playing game and features a number of gameplay elements typical of that genre. The player controls a party of up to six characters, each with their own skills and abilities. With these characters they may explore the game world, fight enemies, and engage in conversation or trade. Characters earn experience points by defeating enemies or by solving certain puzzles. When a character has sufficient experience points they will advance in level, increasing their maximum life and spell points. They will also receive training points which can be expended at a trainer to permanently increase one or more of their skills.
Navigation

Albion uses a hybrid 2D/3D graphical system to depict its environments. Most interior locations are shown using a 2D overhead view, centered on the player's party. Movement is possible using either the keyboard or the mouse, and the mouse is used to examine or manipulate objects within the reach of the party leader. A similar view is used when exploring the larger world outside the cities, but with objects and characters shown on a much smaller scale. Upon entering most dungeons, caves, and the exteriors of larger cities the game switches to a real-time first-person 3D view. As in the 2D view, players may use the mouse or keyboard to move around and the mouse is used to select objects to interact with. A 2D automap is available to assist navigation in these areas.