Deluxe Nostram

Into the Wonderful

This takes me back as I remember playing the original thanks to a magazine cover disk. It was a good platformer, but some screens were fiddly, so I didn't get very far. It was a freebie, so I shouldn't complain too much! Deluxe Nostram is the sequel and much the same, but with better controls.

Released in 1993 by Powerfist, it was programmed in STOS by Daniel Walton with graphics by Ian Wilkinson. The map is ginormous with an incredible amount of rooms to pillage. The documentation has a line that I thought was brilliant: "THE GREATEST ADVENTURE YOU WILL EVER EXPERIENCE". Well, that's surely a bold statement and one that only made me excited for great things. (Yeah, I'm easily pleased)

Wait, this sounds too good to be true? Maybe, but let's crack on and check out two screenshots...

Oi, you with the helmet head, this is the starting screen where your adventure begins.

Ah, a doorway and it looks wide open too. Don't be fooled, a key is still oddly required...

Don't fall asleep

Today's muscular hero is an adventurer in a castle tower with bizarre monsters. The objective is to collect five crystals scattered throughout the castle to escape and regain the Wings of Flight. During the journey, there are obstacles, trinkets to collect and locked doors granting access to mysteriously hidden places.

Any platformer demands effortless, instinctive controls that are responsive and precise. Deluxe Nostram nails this, especially as the jump mechanic was later improved, so our warrior is agile. However, numerous screens are void of monsters or dangerous obstacles, which means little reason to exercise these controls.

That makes this a rather strange game, as I expected content similar to any generic platformer. Nope, Deluxe Nostram presents more of an exploration adventure with a few puzzles along the way. It's mostly just us wandering about looking for keys and crystals if I'm brutally honest. Are you still interested?

Nevertheless, it's the explorational element that appealed to me. It's possible to visit all rooms without resorting to a cheat, as there's little to endanger you! So I enjoyed the entire game rather than worrying about impossibly tough screens. Although I doubt many reading this will feel the same way?

You're still here? That's good! Okay, let's take a look at more purple and orange screenshots...

A weird purple monster walking against the purple background. Hmm...

One of the more bizarre enemies you will come across. I'd say kill it before thinking of moving on...

Aesthetics

Graphically, this is <cough> very familiar thanks to a design all too godlike, albeit less sophisticated. I appreciated this display because it's clean and concise, so it works well. Sadly, there isn't enough variation, so everything looks samey after a while. I was also weary of seeing the same colour scheme!

The audio is less than favourable as there is no music, and the effects are limited to hitting monsters or collecting stuff. Basically, it's silent, and that's a shame as a chiptune would have been welcome.

Fancy a gander at even more purple/orange screenshots? No? Well, I'm in charge, so tough luck...

One of the stupidest screens, as it's impossible to pass the two blades without losing energy!

See that crystal over there? You need that, but how will you get it? Make a map!

The CryptO'pinion?

Deluxe Nostram isn't the best platformer, but it's far from the worst. The castle is huge, but there are too many rooms with little to do. Ie, no moving platforms, slides, acid pools, or even roaming monsters! As a platformer, it fails to engage the player, and I fear that might dishearten a lot of potential players.

Oddly, for me, this was a nice change! It enabled me to travel through the castle, and that's why I enjoyed mapping it. Deluxe Nostram is for those who enjoy exploration, so I doubt it will appeal to most platformer fans. This is a weird one. I will definitely be interested to know what you guys think in the comments below.

The floppy can be downloaded, but PP has adapted a better version that you can grab by clicking here.

The Maps!

Here are the thumbnails for each of the four levels. As you can see, they are all complete, but I wasn't able to exit and finish the game as the door (top/left of map 3) looped back (in error) to map 4. And that is the same as the door on the second floor, so I can only assume it's a bug seeing both doors lead to the same place.

Yes, I am totally gutted by that!!

On map 1, the door on the first level takes you to the dungeon level (which is map 2).

On map 1, the door on the fifth level takes you to map 3 (bottom/left door there).

On map 1, the door on the third level is used as an entrance only.

On map 3, the door on the first level takes you to the entrance door mentioned above.

On map 3, the door on the second level takes you to map 4.

On map 3, the door on the fourth level also takes you to map 4 (perhaps a bug?)

Don't hang around, come and get the hi-res maps downloaded!

[Map 1] This is where we begin our adventure...

[Map 2] The Dungeon, a tiny level that (erm) looks nothing like a dungeon!

[Map 3] Possibly the best level of them all, albeit still with few monsters to contend with!

[Map 4] presents another place to explore. See what I did there? You would if you had played it... ;)