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	Title: The Mars Saga: A Westwood Original
	Author: Russ Ceccola
	Source: QuestBusters, v6(2)
	Date: Feburary 1989
	Transcription by Steve Derby
-->

*InvisiClues.org editor's note: This review is about the
game* **Mars Saga**, *originally developed by Westwood
Studios and distributed by Electronic Arts.  Activision later
acquired the rights to the game, reworked parts of it, and
re-released it under the Infocom label as* **Mines of Titan**.

<div class="article-sidebar-box float-left" style="border: 3px solid;">
<strong>Type:</strong> Science Fiction Roleplaying<br>
<strong>System:</strong> C 64/128<br>
<strong>Planned Conversions:</strong> Apple II, IBM
</div>

Because there are so many more fantasy role-playing games than those with
science fiction themes, lately I've leaned more toward the latter. Science fiction
RPGs aren't as limited as fantasies in the number of different objects, terrains,
characters and goals. Fantasy quests typically send you out to retrieve some
object, rescue some character or defeat an Evil Wizard, and the majority combine
all three goals.

Science fiction games, however, can take place in many different types of
places, generally have different goals and can involve so many characters and objects
that they aren't as self-restricting. For the most part, fantasies follow the
time-proven formula: dungeons and townes, monsters and parties of characters,
magic and combat. These elements have worked in the past, so why not try
them again? That's the attitude some game designers take. Now don't get me
wrong—I love fantasy RPGs. But playing *Mars Saga* started me hankering for
more original game systems and ideas.

## *The Red Planet Beckons*

Westwood Associates, who did Battletech for Infocom, designed *Mars Saga*.
They seem to know their stuff as far as RPGs go, for both games are very innovative
and adventurer-friendly. *Mars Saga* is set on the red planet and is a lot like
*Wasteland* in spirit. (My comparison is based on the mission's locale: a barren
land in which you must discover the few areas of civilization—so far I've only
found four cities/outposts separated by a vast amount of terrain.) Your mission is
to find out what happened to the Proscenium outpost, from which there have
been no communications in a long while.

Don't expect a simple "explore and survive" scenario, for this one takes a lot
of thought In addition to moving around, you also have to interact with a lot of
characters in order to obtain information, items and help needed to locate the lost
outpost. *Mars Saga* requires solid deductive skills and the ability to remember (or
at least write down) important facts and quick thinking.

Mars is a prison planet where the prisoners mine the precious mineral ilmenite,
from which titanium is obtained. You are a former convict and must
conceal your identity to avoid becoming a permanent resident of the red planet.
You begin with one character and must assemble a party of up to six. You'll need all six, because
there are countless foes to fight and many special functions to perform. Attributes
are: Might, Agility, Stamina, Health, Education, Charisma and Wisdom.
Sex and age are also involved, but the most important factors are the first
four. Uniquely, health is an average of the first three attributes and decreases if
any of them slip, or vice versa. Agility is critical, because it determines the number
of moves the character get per turn.

<img class="float-left" src="/public/img/articles/questbusters-mars-saga-review/mars-saga-screen-shot-1.jpg" alt="Mars Saga screen shot">

Besides attributes, each character can learn a number of skills from a list of
21. These are improved in learning centers and institutions as well as by
practicing them. Most skills deal with combat, weapons and other items. The
Auto skill, for example, determines how well you handle an automatic weapon.
Others include Mining, Medical and Program; Program is very important, for
you'll find plenty of computer terminals scattered throughout the cities. And
you'll have to do lots of hacking to protect your characters and find information
on the lost outpost. The terminals offer a nice touch, allowing you to explore numerous
information files and access other functions, yet this is but one of the game's
fascinating aspects.

## *The Interface on Mars*
You can use a joystick or keyboard, but there are at most only four keys you need
to punch. These represent the four compass directions; they also scroll through
menus that are the crux of the interface. In a window in the upper left comer, you
get a first-person view of the direction in which you're moving. The 3-D graphics
are handled very well and are reminiscent of the *Bard's Tale* style.

In the upper right comer of the screen you'll find the game's most useful feature—a
map. As you move, a colored block map is drawn in this window, revealing
only as much as you've actually explored. The map uses a logical legend,
with different letters and a couple of symbols for certain locations: A for Armory,
B for Bar, C for Computer Center, etc. For me, the map was the game's most
useful utility, and I'm sure we'll soon see more game designers adding this feature
to their creations. You can thank *Beyond Zork* and *Questron II* for making automapping
so popular.

## *Menus and More Maps*

A message window and character summary also appear onscreen. Whenever
you need to do anything other than move around, you can call up a general option
menu by hitting the space bar or pressing the joystick button. This menu lets you do
things such as inspect a character, save and load games and view the full map (you
have enough to do without having to map the entire game universe). By viewing
this map, you can scroll through the locations you've been through, both inside
and outside of the cities. The maps are valid for a certain mine location or the
outside terrain. The little map that's drawn as you move only covers an area of
9 x 9 squares. The general option menu takes care of things necessary to play the
game but not important enough to be placed onscreen.

## *Tactical Combat*

The combat system is unique, allowing tactical as well as computer-controlled
battles. You can control the moves of every one of your characters during each
combat turn, or allow the computer to make what it thinks is the best move for
one or all of them. This flexibility was inherited from war games and fits wells in
RPGs.

You might think such a combat system is commonplace at this point in the game
industry, but Mars Saga adds an extra feature that makes it stand out. After you select
your moves for a combat turn, they are dramatically played out onscreen. In
combat, as well as in mines, tunnels and underground areas, you see the party (and
enemy) from an overhead view. Again, the graphics are very good. Sitting back
and watching the combat moves come to life on the screens contributes enormously
to the important, but sometimes easily boring, element of combat in an RPG.

<img class="float-right" src="/public/img/articles/questbusters-mars-saga-review/mars-saga-screen-shot-2.jpg" alt="Mars Saga screen shot">

The manual is very good at quickly explaining everything you need to know. It
provides the background of Mars from the perspective of someone living in the story's
time frame, plus all the pertinent information on game mechanics. And it
even offers a few hints, useful ones you might not have thought of otherwise. A
codewheel is used for protection, so the disks can be copied. I prefer this method
over having to look up words in a manual.<br>
**Conclusions:** *Mars Saga* is a fun game that's easy to play, yet one that taxed my
brain about what it would be like to play a survival game on a planet populated with
monsters (human and non-human) while solving a mystery. Graphics and sound
are very good, and I was really impressed. The originality, clever plot and great interface
make it the most entertaining RPG I've played in the last month or so.

**Skill Level:** Intermediate<br>
**Protection:** Codewheel<br>
**Price:** $34.95<br>
**Company:** Westwood/Electronic Arts
