Wasteland is a post-nuclear holocaust adventure. Your party, the famed Desert Rangers, have been assigned to investigate a series of disturbances in the desert. The game begins in the Ranger Center where you create up to 4 Desert Ranges to adventure with. Character creation is similar to most Role Playing Games, but it was one of the first to use a skill system. Some of the skills aren't of much use, but it is important to choose a nice balance of skills for all of your characters.
Wasteland is a post-nuclear holocaust adventure. Your party, the famed Desert Rangers, have been assigned to investigate a series of disturbances in the desert. The game begins in the Ranger Center where you create up to 4 Desert Ranges to adventure with. Character creation is similar to most Role Playing Games, but it was one of the first to use a skill system. Some of the skills aren't of much use, but it is important to choose a nice balance of skills for all of your characters. After you create your characters it's time to set off on your adventure.
The game play is similar to other top down Role Playing Games from that era. Combat is similar to some other RPGs including The Bard's
Tale. You select actions for you characters for a combat round then the round will play out in text. What sets Wasteland apart from other RPGs is the fact that there are multiple solutions to most puzzles. In addition to that there are multiple ways to build your character's skills and attributes. Another interesting aspect to the game is how you gain levels. You radio into the Ranger Center to advance your character's rank after they have accumulated enough experience points.
When you advance you also get to add points to your attributes. It's fun just to see what ranks your characters can attain. The graphics are fairly simple, even for the era. Unlike many modern RPGs that offer very linear game play, Wasteland is wide open. You can visit most places from the very start of the game. Naturally you will not be powerful enough for most of the areas, but it's nice to give it a try at any time. Sound is almost non-existent but the game play more than makes up for these shortcomings.
Wasteland is fun from beginning to end. I spent 100s of hours playing this game in the 80's and I still enjoy playing the game on occasion. The fact that there are so many ways to get through the game gives Wasteland a high replay value. The fact that I am writing a review for these game shows that it is worth playing even today. Many believe this is the best RPG of all time and I agree completely. I would highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys classic RPGs. You will not be disappointed.
