Asterix and the Magic Cauldron
adventure game for Commodore 64, 1986
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Preliminary Note:
This game was published only in Europe. In the US the game
"Ardok the Barbarian" was published instead, with different
sprites such that the copyrights held in France for the
characters were not violated... Naturally this last game hasn't
had the success expected in the US...
THE OBJECT OF THE GAME
Gaul is divided into three parts... No, four, for one small
Gaulish village in Armorica (Western part of now France) still
holds out against the invaders. Fortified by their magic potion,
they still successfully resist the romans. However, the druid
Getafix's magic cauldron in which the potion was brewed has been
accidentally shattered into seven pieces as a result of a
gigantic explosion in one of Getafix's experiments, and the
pieces were spread all over the countryside. These pieces must
be recovered and safely returned to the village by our heroes
Asterix and Obelix...
The object of the game is then to collect these seven pieces so
that the magic cauldron can be rebuilt. If it doesn't get
rebuilt the Gauls won't be able to brew any more magic strength
potions, and the Romans will overpower them.
Controls: Joystick in port 2, one player only.
GAMEPLAY
Basically the gameplay is a matter of exploring thoroughly in
order to find the cauldron pieces. (A map is provided to make
this rather boring part of the game much easier.) Obelix will
follow Asterix anywhere, but he must be kept nourished with his
favourite food: wild boars. Asterix has 5 roasted boars with
him (how does he carry them?? Obelix must be carrying them...)
and one disappears each time Asterix and Obelix get hungry.
When they are all gone, Asterix has to find and fight a boar.
the fight sequences take place in windows that zoom out of the
main screen. Stamina bars for each combatant appear on the side
of the windows. Defeating a boar adds it to the food tally.
If Asterix loses the fight he is kicked out of the window and he
loses a life. The same system is used when fighting the Roman
soldiers and when Asterix picks up useful objects along the way.
Asterix starts with five lives and a single phial of magic
potion, which can only be used once when he (you) is in extreme
trouble. The pieces of the cauldron are shown at the top of the
screen when they have been collected. Keys can also be picked up
to get Asterix and Obelix into certain areas.
THE DISPLAY
The playing screen is divided into 2 main sections: The top of
the screen holds information about the player, and the lower
80 % of the area contains a picture of the player's current
location.
The status line (top of the screen) contains information about
how the game is progressing. Basically, it contains a number of
icons which indicate how many remaining lives, how the food
is going, if there is a key or potion phial, and what the
current score is. Any of these icons will be flashing before
they are about to reduce in number.
a. The Roasted Boar (a ham?)
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This icon is at the top of the left screen, and is always
present. The number beside it shows how many roasted boars
Asterix is carrying. The boars encountered in the countryside
are used as a food source. If there is no food, Obelix will
not follow Asterix and the game is over.
When Asterix or Obelix gets hungry, the ham icon will flash as
a roasted boar is being eaten.
Note that Asterix loses a life if he is hungry and there is
no food. To obtain extra roasted boars, defeat a boar in a
fight. The dead boar will then turn into a ham, which can be
collected.
b. The Cauldron
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This icon is a picture of the intact cauldron, and is always
present. The number beside it shows how many pieces of the
cauldron have been found.
Remember, there are seven pieces of Getafix's cauldron to be
found, and they must be returnded to the village to complete
the game. Pieces of the magic cauldron are easy to identify,
because they pulse with magic force.
c. The Phial of Potion
----------------------
This icon is always present on the status line. It is a picture
of the phial (small gourd) of potion given to Asterix by
Getafix on the start of the mission. When Asterix drinks the
potion (press fire twice rapidly), the icon will flash until
the effect of the potion wears off. The potion gives Asterix
superhuman strength, but it only lasts for a limited time.
The potion may only be used once during the game, so use it
wisely. After it has been finished, the icon will disappear.
d. The Key
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This icon is a picture of a key, and is NOT always present.
When Asterix has a key in his possession, it will be displayed.
The key allows Asterix and Obelix to go through locked doors
into rooms that they otherwise would not be able to enter.
e. Asterix
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This icon is a picture of Asterix's head and is always present.
The number beside it shows how many lives he has remaining.
When this becomes zero the game ends. The player starts the
game with 5 lives.
f. The Score
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This indicates what the player's current score is. Various
points are awarded to Asterix during the course of the game for
various actions.
g. The Screen Location
-----------------------
This title gives the player a general idea of where he is in
occupied Gaul. It is vital to make a map of the countryside to
help you remember routes from location to location. (A map is
available with these instructions - without it the game would
be extremely difficult as there is no "save game" feature.)
Also, at the end of the game, "game over" is displayed here.
DURING THE GAME
There are two modes of control in the game. You will have
different movements controlled by the joystick in the two
different modes:
1. Walking
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For the most part the player is in the walking mode and the
joystick controls Asterix's movements as he searches the
countryside.
2. Fighting
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Pressing the fire button puts you in the fight mode, which
evokes a group of movements different from when in walking
mode, controlled also with the joystick. Note that it is not
possible to drink the potion when in fighting mode.
Asterix is in fight mode when displayed in a large box. This
is the fight box, and it uses enlarged sprites so the
characters may be easily seen. The stamina of both
participants in the fight is displayed on the sides of the
fight box. Stamina is influenced by blows received, food eaten
and magic potion. When any creature's stamina runs out, the
creature dies.
Thus, to win a fight, bash your opponent until he or it has
run out of stamina. If you are the one that gets bashed, you
can run away from the fight by moving off the sides of the
fight box. Hold the joystick in that direction for a couple
of seconds, and you should be able to escape from the fight.
The fight mode is invoked during a meeting between Asterix and
some other inhabitants in the game (such as a Roman soldier or
a boar), or whenever Asterix or Obelix approach such objects
as gold, keys, and pieces of the magic cauldron.
To gather these objects, when the fight box appears, move
Asterix (or the following Obelix) on top of the object, and it
will be gathered up automatically.
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Some useful keyboard shortcuts
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[PAUSE] - stop/continue game
[F9] - quick load game state
[F12] - quick save game state (still stored after leaving the site)
[F11] - toggle fullscreen mode
[ScrollLock] - quick switch control ports
[PageDown] - make a screenshot (320x200)