The Hound of Shadow
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| The Hound of Shadow | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer | Eldritch Games |
| Publisher | Electronic Arts |
| Producer | Joss Ellis |
| Designers |
|
| Programmer | Mike Lewis |
| Artist | Carl Cropley |
| Platforms | |
| Release | 1989 |
| Genre | Interactive fiction |
| Mode | Single-player |
The Hound of Shadow is an interactive fiction illustrated text adventure game created by Eldritch Games and published by Electronic Arts in 1989.[1]
Loosely based on the works of H. P. Lovecraft, the game is set in London during the 1920s, and incorporates historical elements such as the character of Elizabeth Báthory.
The player can choose a pregenerated character, but otherwise must first create a character, choosing gender, economic class, occupation, age, skills, and nationality (English or American). As reviewer John Scott noted, these all have an influence on the game. For example, a woman character will be refused service in a pub, in keeping with English alcohol laws of the 1920s, and a character with military service in World War I will be more prone to mental disabilities that are exacerbated by dabbling with the dark forces at work in the game.[2]
The game starts with the player's character being taken to a seance. Although the medium is clearly a fake, he is suddenly possessed, and in a woman's voice, warns the person sitting next to the player's character that he bears the mark of the Hound of Shadow. From there, the player and the "marked" person must investigate what this means before it is too late, and take action to prevent a tragic end.[3]
Development
The Hound of Shadows was developed by the British studio Eldritch Games as the first in a planned series of linked adventures called the Timeline series, in which players would be able to migrate their protagonist from game to game. The Hound of Shadows was published by Electronic Arts in 1989, with versions for the Amiga,[4] Atari ST,[1] and MS-DOS.
Although Eldritch Games created more games in the same horror investigation milieu — Daughter of Serpents (1992) and The Scroll (1995) — the concept of a continuing Timeline series was never fulfilled.