Birth Pangs Role Playing Game
609 words eaten alive on October 30, 2007 - Filed Under computers, gaming, Internet -
Based on his new series of novels, AR Horvath’s Birth Pangs Role Playing Game is like a blast from the past. Literally from the past, back before we could even get the internet around here. Anyone remember what it was like logging into a BBS (Bulletin Board System) to play games? Text based games, or if you were lucky and had a fast enough modem some of them even had ANSI graphics! The 2 I remember best are Trade Wars and Hack & Slash, and while they did have a bit of a steep learning curve, they were great fun to play. They were like the predecessor to current MMORPG games since you were playing against everything else in your local area who also logged into the BBS.
Birth Pangs is like those games and the nostalgia is rather refreshing. There are no graphics, at least as far as I’ve played so far, and it is very difficult if you don’t read the FAQ before playing. When I first started I immediately tried to find a weapons shop, but couldn’t find one, so I went looking for a dungeon. I found an Abandoned Fortress and went inside. Two steps into the fortress and I was knocked unconscious! Ugh, I thought to myself, this game sucks.
But I like to give games a chance, more than just a couple of minutes. I looked back at the screen and realized that even though I was dead, it wasn’t over. It said I would awaken tomorrow and could play again, but in the meantime I was in some kind of afterlife. I went into my Inner Space and from there I had an option to be tormented by Horvath and thus learned that by fighting my inner demons I could gain favor with Horvath and be brought back to life without having to wait a day.
After fighting my demons and being brought back to life I noticed that I had a mail message, upon reading that it had a couple of tips on how to get started. I followed those tips which included foraging for food and buying a weapon. Since I had died I had very little money and couldn’t even afford a sharp stick, literally! So I went to work in the woods and during that little job I found 200 gold. I checked out the bank and found that I was allowed to borrow up to 1500 gold, bringing me up to 1700. With that I was able to buy a rusty iron rod! Now it’s time to go kick some monster ass.
A bit of adventuring in the City Outskirts has gotten me up to level 3 so far, but I’m deep in debt. The bank is worse than a loan shark, charging 20% interest per DAY! My 1500 gold debt is now 2298 and it’s only been a few ‘real life’ hours.
Overall, Birth Pangs is a fun little distraction for those that remember the text based gaming of the old days, but I fear it may have trouble holding the interest of the current generation ADD kiddies who crave the latest flashy graphics. It is a surprisingly deep game though once you learn the ins and outs. It could definitely benefit from a little more clarity though with the way the options are labeled. Or maybe I just need to read the actual FAQ instead of bulling my way through it head first. For now though, I’m dead again, ran into some nasty wasps or bees or something in the forest and died from the poison. Off to fight my inner demons, again, and then it’s on to level 4!
Comments
2 Responses to “Birth Pangs Role Playing Game”
Leave a Reply
This reply has nothing to do with this post. Are u going to be getting Tabula Rosa and its game time cards?(i have no credit card) it comes out november 2nd it a mmorpg/shooter with a monthly fee im quiting warcraft and need something new and this will be the next big thing
I wasn’t planning to bring any in just for stock but I’m sure I can order it if needed. There hasn’t been much interest in the game so far around here that I know of.