Level 9 Computing: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|Video game developer and publisher}}

{{RefimproveMore citations needed|date=September 2014}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}}

{{Infobox company

| name = Level 9 Computing

| logo =

| products = [[Video games]]

| foundation = 1981

| defunct = 1991

| founder = Mike Austin<br>Pete Austin<br>Nick Austin

| location_city =

| location_country = United Kingdom

}}

[[File:Return to Eden cover (original release).jpg|thumb|right|This version of [[Return to Eden (game)|Return to Eden]] illustrates the general cover design used for most of Level 9's self-published releases. The "L9" logo is used as a background motif.]]

'''Level 9''' was a British developer of computer software, active between 1981 and 1991. Founded by Mike, Nicholas and Pete Austin, the company produced software for the [[BBC Micro]], [[Nascom]], [[ZX Spectrum]], [[Commodore 64]], [[Oric Atmos|Oric]], [[Atari 8-bit family|Ataricomputers]], [[Camputers Lynx|Lynx 48k]], [[Research Machines 380Z|RML 380Z]], [[Amstrad CPC]], [[MSX]], [[Amiga]], [[Apple II]], [[Memotech MTX]], and [[Enterprise 128(computer)|Enterprise]] platforms<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mocagh.org/rainbird/level9-history.pdf|title=Level 9 Computing History|website=mocagh.org|access-date=27 November 2023}}</ref> and is best known for its successful [[interactive fiction|text adventure games]] until a general decline in the text adventure market forced their closure in June 1991.

Level 9's first release was an extension to Nascom [[BASIC]] called ''Extension Basic''.<ref name=plan6_34>{{cite journal | url=https://archive.org/stream/Page_6_Issue_34_1988-07_ABACUS_GB#page/n11/mode/2up | title=Level 9 - Masters of Adventure (and nice people too!) | journal=[[Page 6|Page 6 Magazine]] | date=July 1988 | issue=34 | pages=12–18 }}</ref> The first game, also for the Nascom, was called ''Fantasy'' and was similar to ''[[Valhalla (computervideo game)|Valhalla]]'', but with no graphics.<ref name=SUser>{{Cite journal |title=On the level|newspaper=[[Sinclair User]]|date=May 1985|issue=38|pages=60|url=https://archive.org/stream/sinclair-user-magazine-038/SinclairUser_038_May_1985#page/n59/mode/2up}}</ref> Other products from that era were ''Missile Defence'', ''Bomber'' and ''Space Invasion'' — all for the Nascom.<ref>{{ cite journal | url=https://mocagh.org/redherring/redherring7.pdf | title= Level 9 - Past Masters of the Adventure Game | journal=Red Herring |date= Oct 1992 | pages=41–50 }}</ref> The tapes were duplicated and sent out by mail order by the brothers based on orders generated by the [[Classified advertising|classified advertisements]] they ran in the ''[[Computing Today]]'' magazine. They were originally based in [[High Wycombe]], [[Buckinghamshire|Bucks]]<ref name=pcg04/> before moving to the [[West Country]].<ref name=cvg43>{{ citation | url=https://archive.org/stream/Computer_Video_Games_Issue_043_1985-05_EMAP_Publishing_GB/Computer__Video_Games_Issue_043_1985-05_EMAP_Publishing_GB#page/n105/mode/2up | journal=[[C+VG]] | title = Level 9 On the Move | date=May 1985 | issue=43 | pages=106 | publisher=[[Future Publishing]] }}</ref>

==A-code==

Level 9 devised their own [[Interpreted language|interpretationinterpreted language]], A-code, around 1979. It was very memory efficient, mainly due to the advanced text [[lossless data compression|compression]] routines which could compress texts to about 50%.<ref name=nowgamer>{{cite web | url=http://www.nowgamer.com/company-profile-level-9/ | title=Company Profile: Level 9 | date=2008-12-16 | accessdate=2015-06-08 | url-status=live | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304195140/http://www.nowgamer.com/company-profile-level-9/ | archivedate=2016-03-04 }}</ref> The game data, which was identical for all platforms, was incorporated into the executable file for specific machines, together with the interpreter part. A-code underwent a few revisions: there are three distinct versions in all, plus several extensions which form new A-code versions of their own.

(Level 9 A-code should not be confused with the A-code language developed by Dave Platt in 1979 for the purpose of writing the highly popular [[Colossal Cave Adventure#Later versions|550 points extension]] of the original Adventure game.)

In some ways A-code and the A-machine [[virtual machine]] were even more impressive than rival [[Infocom]]'s ZIL and [[Z-machine]]; both companies initially designed games for computers with 32K RAM and ZIL was in many ways more sophisticated. But Infocom products of the era required a disk drive, alleviating the memory restrictions of the platforms of the time. Level 9 due to different dynamics in the British market had to deliver their text adventures on [[Compact Cassette tape#data|cassette tapes]], which generally meant that programs had to be loaded in one go and that they had to completely fit into memory.<ref name="maher20121022">{{cite web | url=http://www.filfre.net/2012/10/level-9/ | title=Level 9 | work=The Digital Antiquarian | date=2012-10-22 | accessdate=10 July 2014 | author=Maher, Jimmy | url-status=live | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140711194242/http://www.filfre.net/2012/10/level-9/ | archivedate=11 July 2014 }}</ref> Andrew Deeley, who worked for Level 9 on Software Development, recalls how the use of the A-Code interpreter enabled L9 to produce hundreds of cross platform versions of their entire catalogue in the space of 18 months, "with so many 8 bit computers on the markets and the introduction of Macs, {{sic|Amigas}} and Atari STs, developing for cross platform versions of a game was becoming prohibitive in cost back in the late 1980s / early 1990s. Level 9 were able to hold their own as a small developer because they were able to optimise cross platform production of their games".<ref name=nowgamer/>

The first game to use this system was ''[[Jewels of Darkness#Colossal Adventure|Colossal Adventure]]'' in early 1982, a faithful conversion of ''[[Colossal Cave Adventure|Adventure]]'' by [[Will Crowther]] and [[Don Woods (programmer)|Don Woods]],<ref>{{cite book|title=The Inform Designer's Manual|first=Nelson|last=Graham|authorlink=graham Nelson|page=349|publisher=Dan Sanderson|year=2001|isbn=0-9713119-0-0|url=http://inform-fiction.org/manual/DM4.pdf|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107005951/http://inform-fiction.org/manual/DM4.pdf|archivedate=2015-11-07}}</ref> but with 70 extra locations<ref name="An Interview with Pete Austin">{{Cite web|url=http://l9memorial.if-legends.org/html/austin.html|title = An Interview with Pete Austin}}</ref> to the end game to fulfill Level 9's preexisting claim in advertisements of "over 200" locations; a remarkable achievement given that [[Gordon Letwin]]'s port of ''Adventure'' to the [[TRS-80]] required a disk drive. That year the company produced two sequels, ''Adventure Quest'' and ''Dungeon Adventure'',{{r|maher20121022}} both of which featured the Demon Lord [[Agaliarept]]. The three titles became known as the ''Middle-earth'' trilogy,<ref name=pcg04>{{ citation | url=https://archive.org/stream/personalcomputergames-magazine-04/PersonalComputerGames_04#page/n31/mode/1up | journal=[[Personal Computer Games]] | title = Level 9 Advertiesment | date=March 1984 | issue=4 | pages=30 }}</ref> with a reference in the instructions to ''Dungeon Adventure'' to the city of [[Minas Tirith]], which features in [[J. R. R. Tolkien]]'s ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]''.<ref name=SUser/> When enhanced versions of the three games were published by [[Telecomsoft|Rainbird Software]], the reference to [[Middle-earth]] was quietly deleted; the series became known as ''Jewels of Darkness''; and [[Minas Tirith]] became Valaii. In 1985 Level 9 started to develop their games for disk based systems also.<ref name=cvg43/>

''Snowball'' was the first adventure in the ''[[Silicon Dreams trilogy|Silicon Dreams]]'' trilogy, followed by ''[[Return to Eden]]'' and ''[[The Worm in Paradise]]''.<ref>http: name="An Interview with Pete Austin"//l9memorial.if-legends.org/html/austin.html</ref> ''Red Moon'' and its sequel ''[[The Price of Magik]]'' were bundled together with ''[[Lords of Time]]'' by [[Mandarin Software]] to create yet another trilogy: ''[[Time and Magik]]''.

"''[[Lancelot" (video game)|Lancelot]]'' was published by [[Mandarin Software]], a division of [[Europress Software]] in 1988. The first person to solve the puzzle in the game won a replica of the Holy Grail, made of solid silver, encrusted with semi-precious stones (amethysts, garnets and opals), with the inside plated in 22-carat gold.

==List of gamessoftware==

* ''Extension BASIC for the Nascom'' (198x)

* ''rqFORTH for the BBC Micro'' (198x)

* ''rqFORTH toolkit for the BBC Micro'' (198x)

* ''Compass for the Lynx'' (198x)

==List of action games==

* ''[[Colossal Adventure (Level 9 game)|Colossal Adventure]]'' (1983)

* ''[[Adventure Quest (Level 9 game)|Adventure Quest]]'' (1983)

* ''[[Dungeon Adventure]]Fantasy'' (1983198x)

* ''Space Invasion'' (198x)

* ''Bomber'' (198x)

* ''Missile Defence'' (198x)

==List of text adventure games==

* ''[[Colossal Adventure (Level 9 game)|Colossal Adventure]]'' (19831982)

* ''[[Adventure Quest (Level 9 game)|Adventure Quest]]'' (19831982)

* ''[[Dungeon Adventure]]'' (1982)

* ''[[Snowball (game)|Snowball]]'' (1983)

* ''[[Lords of Time]]'' (1983)

* ''[[Return to Eden (game)|Return to Eden]]'' (1984)

* ''[[Emerald Isle (video game)|Emerald Isle]]'' (1985)

* ''[[Red Moon (video game)|Red Moon]]'' (1985)

* ''[[The Worm in Paradise]]'' (1985)

* ''[[Adrian Mole#Other media|The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾]]'' (for [[Mosaic Publishing]], 1985)

* ''[[The Archers (video game)|The Archers]]'' (for Mosaic, 1985)

* ''[[Erik the Viking (video game)|The Saga of Erik the Viking]]'' (for Mosaic, 1985)<ref name="An Interview with Pete Austin"/>

* ''[[The Price of Magik]]'' (1986)

* ''[[Jewels of Darkness]]'' trilogy (for [[Rainbird Software]], 1986) (also known as the ''Middle-Earth Trilogy'')

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** ''Red Moon''

** ''The Price of Magik''

* ''[[Lancelot (video game)|Lancelot]]'' (for Mandarin, 1988)

* ''[[Ingrid's Back: Gnome Ranger 2]]'' (for Mandarin, 1988)

* ''[[Scapeghost]]'' (1989)

* ''The Legend of Billy the Kid'' (for [[Ocean Software]], 1990; never released)

* ''[[Champion of the Raj]]'' (1991)

* ''[[It Came from the Desert]]'' ([[IBM PC compatible|PC]] port for [[Cinemaware]], 1991)

== References ==

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== External links ==

* [http://www.if-legends.org/~l9memorial/html/home.html Level 9 Memorial]

* [http://ftpmirror.ifarchive.org/if-archive/level9/info/Level9_Facts.txt Level 9 Fact Sheet]

* {{dmoz|Games/Video_Games/Developers_and_Publishers/L/Level_9}}

* [http://ftp.ifarchive.org/if-archive/level9/info/Level9_Facts.txt Level 9 Fact Sheet]

* [http://www.sinclairlair.co.uk/level9.htm Level 9 - Past Masters of the adventure game] by Richard Hewison

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071008083858/http://www.sincuser.f9.co.uk/038/htsquad.htm "On the level"] by Chris Bourne

*[http://www.triumphoverchallenges.com/working-at-mandarin-software/ History of Time and Magik and Lancelot at Mandarin Software]

* [https://archive.org/stream/Page_6_Issue_34_1988-07_ABACUS_GB#page/n11/mode/2up Level 9 - Masters of Adventure] (In-depth 1988 interview of Pete and Mike Austin) from ''[[Page 6|Page 6]]'' magazine]]

{{Level 9}}