Darkworld

*Darkworld*
Publishers	Michael Williams
Years active	1982 to unknown
Genres	role-playing, play-by-mail
Languages	English
Playing time	unlimited
Materials required	Instructions, order sheets, turn results, paper, pencil
Media type	Play-by-mail

Darkworld is a roleplaying play-by-mail (PBM) game.

History and development

Darkworld was a roleplaying, play-by-mail game published by Michael Williams.^[1] It was launched in 1982.^[2] It was open-ended^[3] and hand moderated.^[4]

As of the end of 1987, the game had approximately 100 players.^[5] By then, only 53 of 900 "blocks" had been explored, with blocks comprising 1,750 sectors.^[5] The game map included over 1.5 million sectors.^[1]

Gameplay

Gameplay occurred on the planet of Darkworld.^[1] Players could roleplay one of 40 available races.^[1] Multiple roleplaying settings were available, allowing players to "take on the gods, fight the evil orcs, delve into the realms of magics, become a king, or just do nothing".^[3] Turns could be played weekly, and included both normal and special actions, the latter requiring narrative descriptions of a desired action.^[3] Game elements included combat, construction, diplomacy, economics, and location (or movement).^[3] Magic was also a key part of the game.^[5] Players could encounter "cities, castles, temples, ruins, dimensional gates, underground valleys, and twelve different types of terrain" with cities as a hub for many activities.^[2]

Reception

PBM Universal's editor, Bob McLain, reviewed Darkworld in its first 1983 issue.^[4] He stated that it was "A 'must' for whomever wants non-stop fun."^[4] Bill Dunne reviewed the game in a 1985 issue of Flagship, praising its diversity of game settings and possibilities.^[6] He stated it was a "standard style of role-playing game with little player interaction and with a creative gamemaster, who puts you in a very nonstandard scenario".^[6]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Williams 1985. p. 13.
^ ^a ^b Webber 1983. p. 10.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Dunne 1985. p. 14.
^ ^a ^b ^c McLain 1983. p. 28.
^ ^a ^b ^c Williams 1988. p. 20.
^ ^a ^b Dunne 1985. p. 15.

Bibliography

Dunne, Bill (Summer 1985). "Darkworld: Intersection of a Thousand Fantasies". Flagship. No. 7. pp. 14–15.
Loth III, John Kevin (March–April 1987). "A Turn of the Darkworld". Paper Mayhem. No. 23. pp. 13–14.
McLain, Bob (November–December 1983). "Gamealog: Darkworld". PBM Universal. No. 1. p. 28.
Webber, Dave (March–April 1984). "Darkworld: A Review...". Paper Mayhem. No. 5. p. 10.
Williams, Michael (Summer 1985). "Darkworld [Ad]". Flagship. No. 7. p. 13.
Williams, Mike (December 1987 – January 1988). "Tales from the Dark Side". The D2 Report. No. 15. pp. 20–21.