Epic (video game)

Epic is a space combat simulation game developed by Digital Image Design and published by Ocean Software for the Amiga and Atari ST in early 1992, with ports for MS-DOS in 1992 and NEC PC-9801 in 1993. On August 1992, an expansion pack Epic Extra Missions was published on coverdisk for the issue 47 of The One.[1] It was available only for the Amiga and was never sold separately. A sequel titled Inferno was released for the PC CD-ROM in 1994.

Epic
Developer(s)Digital Image Design
Publisher(s)
Designer(s)Martin Kenwright
Programmer(s)Colin Bell
Russell Payne
Artist(s)Martin Kenwright
Paul Hollywood
Composer(s)David Whittaker
Øisten Eide
Platform(s)
Release
  • EU/NA: 1992
  • JP: 10 December 1993 (PC-98)
Genre(s)Space combat simulator
Mode(s)Single-player

The DOS version was released digitally in a bundle with Inferno on December 20, 2019 by Piko Interactive on GOG.com with support for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux pre-packed with DOSBox.[2]

Gameplay

Epic is an action-based space flight simulator game. It features eight completely different levels (including two in two phases), which take place either in space or over the surface of a planet. Each has a tight time limit to complete the mission (destroying the assigned targets), with failure not being an option.

Plot

The plot borrowed heavily from the television series Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek and the Star Wars film franchise,[3] focusing on a fleet of ships carrying the human inhabitants of a planet threatened by an imminent supernova. The escape route leads through the Rexxon Empire's territory, which results in war. The player controls the fleet's only hope, one of three experimental Epic class fighters. In the final mission, the fighter is also used to deploy a cobalt bomb.

Development

The game had been in development for about three years and had been repeatedly delayed. At first it was known under the working title Goldrunner 3D and was initially announced to be published by Microdeal as a spiritual sequel to the two Uridium-like Goldrunner top-down shooting games,[4][5] before a deal for publishing DID games was signed with Ocean in 1989.

Much of the technology that was used to create F29 Retaliator had been used to create Epic.[6] The action is viewed in 3D, with graphics being a mix of uniformly-colored polygons and bitmaps (featuring 16 colors for Atari-ST and 32 colors in the Amiga version, largely shades of grey). The music featured in the game is from the "Mars Suite" and the "Jupiter Suite" from The Planets by Gustav Holst.

Reception

Critical reception of Epic was mostly positive, including the review scores of 92% from Mega Zone,[7] 91% from CU Amiga and Amiga User International,[8][9] and 90% from Amiga Action.[10] ACE, for instance, gave the Amiga and ST versions a score of 839 (out of a possible 1000), praising its fast 3D graphics and sense of scale, but disliking its longevity and lack of depth.[11] Among some of the relatively rare negative reviews, Amiga Power (only 34% and 30% for the later 1994 budget re-release) criticized the game for its poor design depth and playability.[12][13]

Sequel
Main article: Inferno (video game)

References

Notes

    Footnotes

    1. "Epic Extra Missions : Hall Of Light". hol.abime.net.
    2. "6 newly-released classic games that deserve your attention". GOG.com. CD Projekt. 20 December 2019. Archived from the original on 20 December 2019. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
    3. Advanced Computer Entertainment 37 (October 1990), p.22-23
    4. "Goldrunner 3D preview from Zero 2 (Dec 1989) - Amiga Magazine Rack". amr.abime.net.
    5. "Goldrunner 3D preview from CU Amiga-64 (Nov 1989) - Amiga Magazine Rack". amr.abime.net.
    6. Computer Gaming World 72, p.28
    7. "Epic review from MegaZone 23 (Aug - Sep 1992) - Amiga Magazine Rack". amr.abime.net.
    8. "Epic review from CU Amiga (Dec 1991) - Amiga Magazine Rack". amr.abime.net.
    9. "Epic review from AUI Vol 6 No 11 (Nov 1992) - Amiga Magazine Rack". amr.abime.net.
    10. "Epic review from Amiga Action 35 (Aug 1992) - Amiga Magazine Rack". amr.abime.net.
    11. Upchurch, David (January 1992). Mike Carter Epic VICE. ACE 13122 (UK magazine published by EMAP), p. 56–61
    12. "Epic review from Amiga Power 15 (Jul 1992) - Amiga Magazine Rack". amr.abime.net.
    13. "Epic review from Amiga Power 42 (Oct 1994) - Amiga Magazine Rack". amr.abime.net.
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