Classic playthrough: "Spellcasting 101: Sorcerers Get All The Girls"

New game!

I've never played a game by Legend Entertainment before. I didn't even know this company existed until I read about it in The Guide To Classic Graphic Adventures. It's part of why I started doing classic playthroughs for this blog; I definitely wanted to finally fill that gap in my knowledge. And so that particular personal quest starts with Spellcasting 101: Sorcerers Get All The Girls. A game that probably wouldn't see the light of day in our current times. I mean, just look at that cover; this is Porky's or Revenge of the Nerds except with magic. We're definitely not in that 80s frame of mind anymore...

Such an overwhelming UI...

I'm Ernie Eaglebeak. Suffering a violent stepfather, it's my intention to enroll into Sorcerer University, learn some cool spells, whoop his ass, and finally win the heart of my nextdoor girl of my dreams, Lola Tigerbelly. And perhaps those of several others as well, since I'm basically a horny teenager, it seems. The game starts with me locked up in a room, and I need to escape. After some time has passed, a buddy of my stepdad shows up and carries me off to work for him. Game over. 

Finally arrived at Sorcerers University!

This game is a melange of user interfaces. It's a text adventure, but it does have graphics as well, even with some small animations now and then. It's not only a text parser game, because it also supports a point 'n click interface where you can choose the necessary verbs and hotspots from on-screen lists with your mouse. But it's pretty overwhelming, because there are over one hundred different verbs to choose from, and the hotspot list not only includes everything there is to see in a particular location, but also your entire inventory. I often forgot whether I was already carrying an object with me or not.

This university is huge and I have no idea what to do!

It took me a whole hour to finally escape not only my room but also my street - where stepdad's buddy would still grab me - and reach chapter two where I suddenly find myself at the Sorcerer University. I had to restore and even restart several times because that guy kept showing up and dragging me with him. Apparently there's an in-game clock with fixed events at set times, and every action you perform takes five minutes. So my strategy is basically just exploring, trying out stuff, restoring when necessary, until I've figured out what it is I'm supposed to do and then go back to the start of the chapter for  a quick and efficient playthrough.  

The plot has thickened!

It took me another two and a half hours to figure out what I'm supposed to do at that university, since the place is huge and there's lots to see and do. I found a kind of magic-VR-room to practice spells, located some frat houses and brought a girl back to my room (to keep her safe from the other boys, I promise!), had to deal with a professor's wife coming on to me (what is it with the women in this game...) and discovered a maze which actually wasn't that hard to navigate for a change. Then suddenly the university is attacked, a very special magical object stolen, and I find myself all alone. With a modified surfboard in hand I'm supposed to travel elsewhere, I guess, but I haven't figured out yet where. I had a feeling this was going to be a difficult game, but it still blows the mind...

You can find the Spellcasting games on Steam and on GOG!