Akalabeth: World of Doom - Intellivision

Akalabeth: World of Doom, often retroactively called Ultima 0, is a landmark computer role-playing game created by Richard Garriott, who would later be known as "Lord British" and the creator of the Ultima series.

The game's history began in 1979 when a teenage Garriott, a dedicated Dungeons & Dragons player, started developing it as a hobby project. He initially worked on a school mainframe, and the game, then known as DND, was his 28th attempt at creating a computerized RPG. He later transitioned the project to his newly acquired Apple II computer.

The game was groundbreaking for its time, featuring a combination of an overhead-view overworld map and wire-frame, first-person dungeons. This was a novel approach in computer RPGs and set a precedent for many games that followed. The game's world and dungeons were procedurally generated using a "lucky number" provided by the player, a unique feature that allowed for a nearly infinite variety of adventures.

The story of Akalabeth's release is legendary. Garriott was working at a ComputerLand store when his boss saw the game and encouraged him to sell it. With no real expectations, Garriott packaged the game himself, putting the floppy disks in Ziploc bags with photocopied manuals and selling them at the store.

One of these "Ziploc bag" copies was seen by California Pacific Computer Company, which recognized its potential and signed Garriott to a publishing deal. The game was officially released in 1980, selling 30,000 copies—a massive success for the time and a pivotal moment that launched Richard Garriott's career. It established key elements that would become staples of the Ultima series, including the characters Lord British and the villain Mondain.

Akalabeth has now arrived on the Intellivision, courtesy of brilliant Intellivision developer Oscar Toledo G. This version is true to the original Apple II game. It features both black & white and color version of the game and an in-game soundtrack created by Oscar's brother, Adan Toledo G.

This new version of Akalabeth features brilliant new cover artwork created by Denis Loubet, who also illustrated the original Apple II version of Akalabeth back in 1979, as well as many of the Ultima titles that followed. The packaging was created by William Thorup, who provided additional artwork and put everything together to create compelling box, manual, and label designs for the game.

In addition to the box, manual, and game cartridge, also included is a soundtrack CD featuring the in-game music, as well as analog compositions of those songs. A 10" x 14" poster of Denis Loubet's artwork is included in the box, as well as two controller overlays featuring Denis' artwork. The Akalabeth game is housed in a dark gray, translucent cartridge shell that allows for a larger label versus traditional Intellivision cartridges.

Gameplay

Tis thy duty to rid Akalabeth of the foul creatures which infest it whilst trying to stay alive! At start, select 1 for a classic experience (B&W and beeps) or 2 for a modern experience (color and sound).

Accept your initial stats by pressing Enter (or pressing Clear to reroll). You start inside a shop, buy at least a weapon and all the food you can. (buying: 1-Food, 2-Rapier, 3-Axe, 4-Shield, 5-Bow, 6-Amulet). Exit the shop by pressing Enter.

Find Lord British's Palace (big square with X) to get a mission. Shops are five squares, trees are a single square, and dungeons are marked with X. Commands are 7-Pass, 8-Stats, 9-Attack and then weapon (same keys as shop, except 1 is hand attack).

Inside the dungeon, you can navigate using the disc: up-forward, left-turn left, right-turn right, down-turn around. Some walls are magic and you can go through them. Accomplish your mission and get another one. Some dungeons are twisted, and parts of them are inaccessible. Try other dungeons from the map or use amulets to go more deeply (easier if you are a mage).

Controller Overlays

Two Intellivision controller overlays are included with Akalabeth.  The controller overlays feature Denis Loubet's Akalabeth artwork in the background and highlight the various keypad functions used in the game.  A lifesaver when you're playing the game for the first time and aren't yet familiar with the controls!

Soundtrack CD

Akalabeth includes a soundtrack CD featuring the in-game music composed by Adan Toledo G. (Nyuundere), as well as acoustic tracks of the same music.  The soundtrack CD is professionally produced with silkscreened artwork and is enclosed in a plastic CD case. 

Akalabeth Poster Included Free!

We're including a free 10" x 14" double-sided poster with your purchase of Akalabeth. The poster features Denis Loubet's original, stunning Akalabeth artwork that adorns the box, manual, label, and controller overlay.

Screenshots

Additional Information

Included with Akalabeth is the game cartridge, full color, 12-page manual, professionally printed box, two Akalabeth overlays for your Intellivision controller, a 10" x 14" poster featuring the beautiful artwork created by Denis Loubet, and a soundtrack CD featuring the original music composed for Akalabeth by Adan Toledo G.