Spellbound Review

By Peter Parrish Published 19 October, 2007

A knight to remember.

Version tested: Retro

The second of the Magic Knight titles, Spellbound marked the point at which the series deviated from an action-platformer approach and adopted a more cerebral feel. Before Dizzy had even stretched his eggy legs, David Jones and Ron Hubbard's character was pioneering object-based puzzle shenanigans. They were also among the first developers to release a quality game straight to budget - meaning a price tag of £1.99-2.99, rather than £9.95.

Having given up on pilfering royal treasure, Spellbound's Magic Knight finds himself (or herself, according to the author) interacting with things via a system dubbed "Windimation." This is, in effect, a more rudimentary version of the systems which would later become commonplace in graphical adventures - such as Monkey Island's SCUMM. Through a series of pop-up menus, Magic Knight is able to examine objects, give items to characters, read texts and so on. It's a little clunky in retrospect, but an extremely insightful piece of design.

'Spellbound' Screenshot 1

Using this system, the perpetually-helmeted one must attempt to free himself (or her ... well, you get the idea) and a handful of colleagues from a daunting castle - where they've each been transported by a botched spell. Alongside the adventure aspects, a few arcade moments from Finders Keepers (the first in the series) have been retained. Bouncing balls and strenuous exploration can sap Magic Knight's strength, which must be kept topped up to prevent death from exhaustion. Indeed, one of the earliest conundrums is how to replenish lost energy.

Some of the puzzles can border on obtuse at times, and the potential for sudden deaths - like the hilarious moment where Magic Knight dies from falling over in the dark - can result in some slight aggravation. Nonetheless, Spellbound deserves its accolades for being at the forefront of graphical adventures.

8 / 10

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About Peter Parrish

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Comments (6) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • furrycheeky #1 4 years ago

    Another great puzzler series of games. I loved the characters in these and actually managed to finish them without resorting to cheats.

  • Blerk #2 4 years ago

    Sod Dizzy, we need Magic Knight back.

  • Killerbee #3 4 years ago

    I came to this series quite late on, having already enjoyed Dizzy. I have to confess I found the puzzles a little bit too obscure and never really got into it. Shame really...

  • speedofthepuma #4 4 years ago

    This 3(?) game series to my mind was the real revolution in adventure gaming, although I admit I could be wrong chronologically.

  • Blerk #5 4 years ago

    It was a four-game series if you count Finders Keepers, but that wasn't really very much like the others (Spellbound, Knight Tyme, Stormbringer). Worth playing the 128k versions if you only played the 48k versions as a kid, too - they're nicely "extended" with extra rooms and puzzles and stuff rather than just being exactly the same but with music bolted on.

  • GamesConnoisseur #6 4 years ago

    I played the whole series from Finder Keeper (£1.99 from Mastronic I believe, got it from iffy corner shop!) but this was the best sequel at really taking it forward from maze based orginial.