Screenshot of the day: Realm of Impossibility

This 1984 co-op action-adventure, part of Electronic Arts's early lineup of games, was not so great. Certainly it never attained the classic status of peers like M.U.L.E., Seven Cities of Gold, or Archon. You ran around, with or without a buddy, in these quasi-isometric maps -- you could pass in front of structures but not behind them -- dodging zombies and picking up ancient scrolls and keys. As with many 8-bit offerings, the lavish box design promised more than the technology of the day could really deliver. What's memorable from the vantage point of 2016 is its cheerful mash-up of an Indiana Jones aesthetic with Lovecraftian overtones, its bouncily rousing title tune by Dave Warhol, and the overtly Escher-like level designs. In part because of the overall simplicity of the gameplay, in part because of the awkward and too-sensitive controls, the Escher-paradox stuff was never able to have a meaningful impact on the game. No matter whether the level defied the laws of perspective and logic, you were just bumping around on pixels and trying to climb up finicky ladders. But it was a good look, all the same. The precise concept -- 3rd-person co-op action/adventure with a Lovecraft vibe and Escher-esque levels -- might make for a hell of a game nowadays.

Comments

[Brad Werth]

Dude, the height of C64 perspective-screwing-with is Spindizzy. Totally aggravating.