The Black Cauldron.

[Tawmis]

Ah, how I've forgotten how this game operates.

Rather than typing commands, you use the Function keys.

F3 = To Select Something in your Inventory.
F4 = Use Something you've selected from your Inventory.
F6 = Action (open door, cabinet, talk, etc)

Well, that keeps throwing me off - I keep trying to type "open cabinet."

So I get the idea of not doing typing - probably because this game was aimed at kids (Disney wanting to target kids with the game... Ironically, also learned -

The Black Cauldron was released in North America on July 24, 1985. Two days later, the film was also screened at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. While officially budgeted by Disney executives at $25 million, the film's production manager, Don Hahn, said in his documentary, Waking Sleeping Beauty, that it cost $44 million to produce the film. The $44-million budget made it the most expensive animated film ever made at the time. The film grossed $21.3 million domestically. It resulted in a loss for Walt Disney Productions and put the future of the animation department in jeopardy (earning it the nickname "the film that almost killed Disney"). It was not distributed as a home video release for more than a decade after its theatrical run after its poor performance. Adding insult to injury, the film was also outgrossed by The Care Bears Movie ($22.9 million domestically), which was released four months earlier by the much-smaller Canadian animation studio Nelvana.

Let me tell you, this game did it no favors.

There's a section where it looks like you need to move through some bushes - and you can - and if you do it wrong - you don't think you did anything wrong - you just end up by a river.

So... no typing for kids... but make, a simple, yet very, very easy maze to misunderstand.

And the whole Function Key system?

That's been a nightmare.

After I did get through the very simple maze correctly, I ran into Gurgi - or should I say he ran into me? Repeatedly? Knocking the guy down and "stunning" him? Over and over asking for treats. So I F3, select Apple, the damn Gurgi moves away, and then Taran decides, "Oh? The apple's for me! It's sweet and juicy!"

RESTORE.

Rinse.

Repeat.

Rinse.

Repeat.

Rinse.

Repeat.

I should have just done Quest for Glory II at this point...

[Rath Darkblade]

Please feel free to play QfG2. I'll be happy to help with the 'maze'.

Good luck typing F3 and F6 fast enough before 'the damn Gurgi' runs away ...

Nothing to do with the game, but ... The Black Cauldron movie was outgrossed by The Care Bears Movie. And now, nearly 40 years later, who still remembers or cares about The Care Bears? =\

[Tawmis]

Please feel free to play QfG2. I'll be happy to help with the 'maze'.
Good luck typing F3 and F6 fast enough before 'the damn Gurgi' runs away ...
Nothing to do with the game, but ... The Black Cauldron movie was outgrossed by The Care Bears Movie. And now, nearly 40 years later, who still remembers or cares about The Care Bears? =\

I keep taking breaks from Black Cauldron, because of frustration, only to continue the frustration in King's Quest III.
As for the Care Bears... you'd be surprised: https://www.carebears.com/

Amazon has a whole section dedicated to Care Bears -
https://www.amazon.com/stores/CareBears ... 690490C7F2

And a youtube channel that has episodes being viewed 25k to 50+k.
https://www.youtube.com/user/carebears?app=desktop

They were relaunched in: 1991, 2002, 2007, 2012 and 2019.

I think the better question is ... who remembers the Black Cauldron?

[Rath Darkblade]

Welp, I stand corrected.

I can only remember the 1980s Care Bears. I was a youngster then (less than 10 years old), and even then I remember thinking these things bored me to tears. An episode of those things came on when I was at my gran's, and all I remember is grabbing a ball and going out to play in the sun. (Yep, typical kid of the 80s)

Now I wonder if kids nowadays go out to play ball in the sun. Or do they all stay home and play video games?

[Tawmis]

Welp, I stand corrected.

I can only remember the 1980s Care Bears. I was a youngster then (less than 10 years old), and even then I remember thinking these things bored me to tears. An episode of those things came on when I was at my gran's, and all I remember is grabbing a ball and going out to play in the sun. (Yep, typical kid of the 80s)

Now I wonder if kids nowadays go out to play ball in the sun. Or do they all stay home and play video games?

These days, I think it's Minecraft.

[goatmeal]

Now I wonder if kids nowadays go out to play ball in the sun. Or do they all stay home and play video games?

These days, I think it's Minecraft.

Or Fortnite...

[Tawmis]

Holy fork.

So other than the few foolish deaths that were my own fault (being pulled under the tide of a current, for example)...

There's a segment where you can swim across an infested alligator moat (six of them or so swimming around) - and scale a wall - and get to a window, eventually - move the vines - but then I couldn't figure out how to "climb in" the window....

So I restored and found a wagon as a way in.

And....

Died.

A lot.

So the idea of needing food and water throughout the game, and that you can die if you don't eat or drink, is unusually callous...

Especially since if you get caught in the prison - they take your food and water (and all your items).

And I've not yet found out where they're stored.

So I have repeatedly either died of starvation or dehydration now.

So now I had to restore further back again, and see if I can prevent being caught, which seems difficult because the goon shows up pretty quick.

I did get to the sword.

But by then I'd died of lack of food and water.

So I know the goon can be knocked out briefly...

Just getting to the sword without getting caught by the goon is proving difficult.

[Tawmis]

Well.

I finally beat The Black Cauldron.

Almost by mistake in the end.

Because...

Walked into a different room and who I needed was there.

Figured he'd be in his "throne room" for the final battle.

Kept trying to get up to there.

Anyway... converting, then will render... commentary will be fun....

[Rath Darkblade]

I can just imagine. For a game aimed at children, this seems unnecessarily ... cruel? *shrug*

[Tawmis]

I can just imagine. For a game aimed at children, this seems unnecessarily ... cruel? *shrug*

The game is quite unforgiving. There's a moment where - I knew there was a tough current because I died by falling into the lake. But I was out of water, so I did the refill there.

Current took my water flask and it disappears forever.

I was like, "Are you effing kidding me? Why not just say, 'This could be too dangerous to gather water here.'"

[Tawmis]

This game was a challenge. So there's no mouse or even really "type" commands - rather everything is done through Function keys (F3 to select an item in inventory, F4 to use the item selected, F6 to do something, F8 to look around). Now this is a bit of a pain on my keyboard, because rather than have Function Keys above the standard 1 to 0 at the top; I have a command buttons like pause, play, mute, etc., with numbers - and a separate function key I need to press to activate the "Function" keys! But even taking that out - this game proved to be pretty difficult. At first I thought the function Key thing was because the game would target kids whom had just seen or about to see Disney's animated "The Black Cauldron" - so it takes needing know how to "spell" things. But then there are things (the rock maze, once you're inside the castle, etc) - that require some thinking or very quick hands (sword to keep stunning the goon). It's also jarring because the function keys to do things aren't in a row... like F2, F3, F4, F5 or something - you have the F5 as the standard SAVE function, etc). There was even a time I scaled a wall, saw a window, pressed F6 to move vines, and it said I could climb in the window, but I could not figure out how to climb in the blasted window!

[Tawmis]

And commentary version -

[Tawmis]

And I asked in the commentary (above) about the window... and folks answered. So I tested - and naturally, they were right!

[Rath Darkblade]

Er, what? Those moat gators look like *ahem* ... murder.

(Also, am I wrong, or do those moat gators look exactly like the ones in KQ1?)

I'm also confused why you'd risk so much danger to get in the window, and then jump off the parapet. And how you'd survive. In a real castle, that would break every bone in your body.

[Tawmis]

Er, what? Those moat gators look like *ahem* ... murder.
(Also, am I wrong, or do those moat gators look exactly like the ones in KQ1?)
I'm also confused why you'd risk so much danger to get in the window, and then jump off the parapet. And how you'd survive. In a real castle, that would break every bone in your body.

Oh, it's very much the same gators from KQ1.

And for jumping from the parapet - I had actually EXPECTED to die. Odd you call fall from a lesser distance and die. But from there, you can survive.

I thought it was hilarious that the goon showed up just after I jumped.