Aleshar: World of Ice came out in 1997 and made by a company named Hypothermia. It makes me laugh a little when I think about the name of the game makers, and the fact that the island the game takes place on is always covered in snow. For those of you that haven’t heard of this game his is a bit of background. Make sure you read the manual that comes with this game because it is a complex RPG with a deep story.
(You were born to a minor town mayor and his wife. Right from the beginning they knew you were somehow different from other kids. And they were right. You had the spark of Elemental Powers. Your grandfather once had the same spark. And like the vast majority of young who were like you and himself, he was to become a priest of the Cult of Wisdom - The only legal user of Power. Your grandfather abhorred the priest life. He was given a choice. To be bereft of the Powers for ever, or to become a priest. He chose neither. With the support of some of his friends, he managed to escape the priests. But he was too dangerous an example. He was hunted down and executed publicly.
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The priests were farsighted enough to accuse him of several horrible crimes, to prevent uprising by Alesharians. Most people still believe the Cult is the only answer to their everyday religious needs. But your father knew the truth. The Cult had many good men, true keepers of wisdom, but as every power does, even wisdom corrupts. Cult leaders often became ambitious and greedy. And some became cruel. Knowing this, and remembering his thraumatic experience from childhood, the execution of his own father, he would never allow you to become a Priest. Neither would he allow you to meet the fate of your grandfather. The Townspeople were loyal to your father, and so they arranged for you to disappear. In truth you were sent to an old man, elementalist himself by some claims. To avoid suspicion, he lived far distant from any larger settlement. He was forgotten by the cult. Your father hoped you would be forgotten as well.)
It has good graphics for that time period. This game has some major potential; the battle system takes some time to get used to, but when you get the hang of it the game is easier. It kind of reminds me of old school net hack types of games but the graphics are much better.
The story begins with your trainer asking you to get some supplies from the city. When you get the supplies and are ready to head back you are approached by two priests dressed in red. Then something washes over you and some unknown powers come over you and the priests are killed. (By the way this game is a bit gory so if you have a weak stomach or just ate I won’t recommend playing this game.) You then high tail it back to the cottage your trainer lived at and tell him what happened. Your trainer gets killed as you look out the window and you take off. Your story begins there.
