Hezarin
Topologika 
1981
- Language:
- English
- Authors:
- Alex Ship, Jonathan G. Thackray , Steve Tinney
- Systems:
- T/SAL
- Platforms:
- Amstrad CPC , Archimedes , BBC/Electron , PC , Spectrum
- Genres:
- Fantasy, misc., Magic
- Entered by:
- dave, Gunness, iamaran
- Added:
- 10-05-2010
- Edited:
- 19-08-2016
Synopsis
Plot
You have been transported to the strange and wondrous land of Hezarin, a world held in the grip of an evil tyrant - the sorcerer Arijith. As a sworn-in member of the Adventurer's Guild, you cannot ignore the inhabitants' plea for help, and although no doubt this will not stop you from acquiring the odd treasure along the way, your ultimate task is to overcome the tyrant and free the peasants from his oppressive reign...Rumour has it that the Ruling Council of Hezarin, an omniscient body that works in mysterious ways, foresaw the rule of the old tyrant and crafted a magic device, in the form of an old panelled box, which could be used to overcome him; but over the passage of time the box has been lost and the secret of its use forgotten. Other sources say that Arijith himself has consigned the box to a secret location deep in the bowels of the earth, and has woven dark spells and set hidden traps so that no ordinary man may chance upon it...
Resources (Upload file)
- Solution
- by Richard Bos
- Map
- by Canalboy
- Map
- by Canalboy (trizbort)
- Clue sheet (BBC/Electron)
- by ?
- Review
- by Canalboy
- Further Info:
- Search at Complete BBC Games Archive
- Search at CPC-Power
- Search at Museum of Computer Adventure Game History
- Search at Spectrum Computing
- Search at The Tipshop
- Search at World of Spectrum
[+] Users who have solved this game
[+] Users currently playing this game
- —
Unusually for a game from the Phoenix stable this one has a few typos and several more flagrant bugs that kick you out to a DOS prompt. Jumping from the east end of the air duct near the aeolian harp, attempting to open the earthenware jar with the sword and throwing all objects when above the Infinite Plain on the flying carpet are three such instances. None of these are game breakers however as all three actions are unnecessary. It is still a great Odyssean-like journey. As tough as a pair of knee length leather boots however.
It has never been completely clear whether this game, which only survives via Jon Thackray's DOS port, is the largest or second largest of the Phoenix fifteen, at least in terms of the number of locations. It is certainly similar to Acheton which has 403 including the endgame.
As the original mainframe version of Hezarin seems lost forever I am going to retry it and check every nook and cranny to get a definitive room count; that is if I can remember how to navigate it unaided.
Richard Bos has produced an excellent statistical overview of the Phoenix canon but merely assessed Hezarin as having >305 rooms, presumably as it wasn't an exact science to compare one mainframe game with the DOS conversion of another.
And the answer appears to be.....yup 402. This must have been very similar if not identical to the original mainframe version; so that would still be one room smaller than Acheton.
Replaying it after some time reminded me of the toughness and occasional unfairness of these great games. The Music Room puzzle, the Blarney Stone Puzzle (which doesn't make sense) and the Nightmare Cavern are three of the most obscure set pieces I have ever come across.