An Elder Scrolls Legend: Battlespire

Battlespire is an action-adventure video game in which the objective is to progress through a series of seven levels by defeating enemies, solving puzzles and collecting objects.^[1][2] In contrast to its series predecessors such as The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, Battlespire is a linear game set in a dungeon.^[3] Players navigate through the world from a fixed first-person perspective,^[4] and pressing the enter key allows players to look around freely in their current position.^[1] The arrow keys are used to move, and players use the mouse and point-and-click control to look around and interact.^[4] The function keys can be customised as hotkeys for various actions, including use of inventory items or casting spells.^[1][5] Players create a character at the start of the game, altering their appearance from one of six races and selecting one of eighteen classes, or manually creating a custom build by spending a limited amount of points to adjust the character's hit points, skills and attributes, starting magic spells and equipment.^[6][7][8][9]

Combat consists of clicking and dragging the mouse button to swing weapons in one of four directions.^[4] A primary and secondary weapon can be equipped and changed by pressing a key.^[9] Magic spells are obtained at character creation or acquired from scrolls found in libraries, and can be customised by type, area of effect and range, and assigned to a hotkey.^[4][6][10] Skills can be incremented by using them throughout the game.^[7] When a level is completed, players earn experience points that can be used to increase skills and attributes.^[6] Players can interact with characters using a dialog box with responses chosen from a dialog tree.^[4][11]

Battlespire supports multiplayer using a local area network or via the Internet using Mplayer.com.^[2][6] In 'Co-operative Scenario', up to eight players can complete the campaign co-operatively one level at a time, with additional monsters in each level. 'Team vs. Team' tasks players to complete levels in one of two groups with a maximum of four players, with the first team to complete the level winning.^[11] In these modes, players cannot save the game during the level or enter dialog with non-player characters.^[6] Competitive multiplayer modes include 'Deathmatch ', which involves player versus player combat for up to eight players set in the game levels.^[11]

On the edge of the realm of Oblivion, a pocket universe enhanced by magic, is a floating fortress named the Battlespire. The Emperor of Tamriel, a continent on the planet of Nirn, created the Battlespire in this alternate dimension as a training base and college to train aspiring elite Imperial Battlemages who act as his bodyguards. As one of these Battlemages, players are sent to the Battlespire, whose trainers, the Preceptors, have been killed by Daedric monsters under the command of the Prince Mehrunes Dagon. They must investigate what has caused the Daedra to overrun the Battlespire and save it from destruction by following them through a number of other settings throughout Oblivion. They are guided by the notes and messages of another adventurer, who ascended the Battlespire before players.^[12][13][14]

Upon entering the Battlespire, players are trapped inside and cannot return. Upon investigation, they learn a servant of Mehrunes Dagon corrupted a mage in the Battlespire to betray the Empire and let the Daedra inside. The Daedric army is revealed to be assembling in other realms and plan to use the Battlespire to launch an invasion of the world of Tamriel. Players follow the path of the Daedra as they open corridors through the realms, including the Soul Cairn, Shade Perilous, Chimera of Desolation and Havoc Wellhead. They meet lovers Jaciel Morgen and Deyanira Katrece, who have been attacked by the passing army. Deyanira sacrifices herself to assist the player's progress, and Morgen vows to help them defeat Mehrunes Dagon. After defeating Dagon's bodyguards, players call on Jaciel to distract him for long enough to kill him and cast him into an empty void of Oblivion. Having defeated Dagon, players free his captives and return to Tamriel to receive the praise of the Emperor in liberating the Battlespire.^[15]

Following release of The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall in 1996, developer Bethesda Softworks simultaneously prepared three projects to capitalise on the success of the game.^[16] Battlespire was first planned by Bethesda Softworks as an expansion pack for the game as Dungeon of Daggerfall,^[12][15][17] but instead, the studio decided to simultaneously produce several spin-off titles set in The Elder Scrolls universe — Battlespire and The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard —^[12][14][18] announced at E3 1997.^[19][20] The spin-offs aimed to present further stories and worldbuilding set in The Elder Scrolls setting of Tamriel,^[21] and fill the gap between development on the planned release of a sequel to Daggerfall, The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, which had been delayed to allow more time for development and accommodate the release of the side projects.^{[12][14][15][22]} Intended as simpler, more action-focused counterparts to the main series,^[17] the games reflected feedback from players of previous The Elder Scrolls titles that the scope of Daggerfall had been too large.^[22]

Development of Battlespire was directed by lead programmer Julian LeFay, who had worked as a lead on previous Elder Scrolls titles.^[21] The game was made using Bethesda's proprietary game engine named XnGine used in Daggerfall,^{[8][14][23][24]} upgrading its graphics to the Super VGA standard.^[6] Le Fay stated that whilst the game was broadly based on mechanics in Daggerfall, it presented an opportunity to "try a few new things", including modifications to the combat system, dialog and artificial intelligence of enemies.^[25] The developers opted to use two-dimensional billboard sprites for non-player characters and enemies instead of 3D, to provide a higher level of detail and allow the team more time to optimisation and other features.^[13][18] The relocation of additional staff from Morrowind to the project allowed for development of a narrative and characters that were not originally intended to feature in the game.^[15] 3D animation cutscenes were created by XL Translab.^[26]

Battlespire was shipped on 4 December 1997.^[27][28] In 2022, Bethesda re-released Battlespire on Steam and the Xbox Game Pass alongside other Elder Scrolls titles.^[29][30]

Several Bethesda staff reflected that co-development of Battlespire and Redguard was strained and their unsuccessful release led to a period of contraction for the studio. Both executive producer Christopher Weaver and LeFay considered that the studio overextended their resources to produce these titles, and as a result experienced attrition of several employees, including LeFay.^[22] Studio director Todd Howard stated that Battlespire and Redguard did not benefit the company, and were "close to going out of business" by the time of the company's acquisition by ZeniMax Media in 1999.^[44] Whilst the developers could not identify what elements, if any, made their way into future Elder Scrolls titles, Weaver stated the games gave the studio time to test gameplay ideas and provide opportunities to further plan and develop Morrowind.^[22]