Set in the recognisably Tolkienesque world of Midnight, the game pitted the player, controlling The Free (an alliance of humans and “Fey” – in effect, elves) against the encroaching northerly power of Doomdark, a dark lord straight out of the old school. The familiar setting, however, does nothing to capture the experience of playing. Each day, the player moves his forces – originally limited to four heroes. One of these, Morkin, is able to resist the Ice Fear (a debilitating psychic effect which makes lesser allies rout and flee as it, and Doomdark, grows stronger) and destroy the Ice Crown, thus ending Doomdark’s power.
To do so, however, he must travel into the heart of the northern territories, and killing Morkin is a condition of Doomdark’s victory. So, players could either go for the Frodo option, or salt Morkin away in a secure castle and send the other characters out to recruit armies against Doomdark, winning the military victory that tends to elude the forces of good in high fantasy narratives. Or, for the hell of it, do both – the “epic” option.
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As a pure game experience, Lords of Midnight remains a masterclass, and a demonstration of what one sufficiently imaginative programmer can do with a solid and extensible mechanic.
If there is a means to play it, it should be played, at least once, whether by emulator, DOSBox or port. Unforgiving, emergent and with an easily grasped ruleset allowing for significant variation in each game, it is strangely both influential and in many ways a path not taken.