Dungeon Trawler

Deep Dungeon Madou Senki /  ディープダンジョン 魔洞戦記,  HummingBirdSoft 1986, Famicom Disk System I first came across Deep Dungeon  as an article in OLD GAMERS HISTORY Vol. 3 , a chronological treatment of early RPGs. It wasn't a particularly glowing review, and it was more focused on the period than on the game itself, but something struck me: as far as I could tell, it was the second turn-based RPG on console, after Dragon Quest , and the first DRPG on console, period. I decided to give it a shot—and, as its ultra-simple combat and lack of gimmicks turned out to hide a surprisingly enjoyable mapping experience, I finished it. The dungeon is about the same size and depth as Wizardry's; its floors are 30x30 to the classic 20x20, but the thick walls really eat into that space. Unfortunately, all that empty space eats into my paper. C'est la vie ; the more important thing is that the floors are, for the most part, open and geometrically interesting, unlike the disguised straight lines...