1983 · Maze · Strategy

Drelbs

Drelbs is a maze game written by Kelly Jones for the Atari 8-bit family and published by Synapse Software in 1983.

Released: 31 December 1983
Platforms: Apple II Atari 8-bit Commodore 64 Commodore C64/128/MAX
Genres: Maze Strategy
Developers: —
Publishers: —
Perspective: Bird view / Isometric
Themes: Action
Country: United States
Languages: English

About

Drelbs is a maze video game written by Kelly Jones for Atari 8-bit computers and published by Synapse Software in 1983. An Apple II port by Jonathan Tifft was released the same year. A Commodore 64 version followed in 1984 implemented by Miriam Nathan and William Mandel. The objective is to rotate the walls of the maze to make boxes. Some reviewers found the overall collection of elements to be eccentric and unique.

Jones later teamed with fellow Synapse designer Bill Williams on the biofeedback game suite, Relax.

Keywords

maze

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

The playfield is a maze of gates, similar to the Lady Bug arcade game, which can be rotated 90 degrees by pushing into them. The player controls a walking eyeball called a drelb, with the goal of flipping the gates so they create closed boxes. Pursuing the drelb are square trollaboars who can also use the gates, but can't seal them into boxes. There is an empty border on the outside the maze patrolled by screwhead tanks which shoot at the drelb.

Occasionally one of the boxes becomes "drelbish window to the dark corridor". This leads to a separate screen where the goal is to free—by touching—as many drelbs as possible while avoiding gorgolytes. Completing the dark corridor, or kissing a randomly appearing "mystery lady", awards a bonus based on the number of completed boxes.

Reception

8 out of 10. Bryan Welch wrote for Antic: "Kelly Jones deserves a hand for an excellent job of programming. With great graphics and sound, and a neat idea, Drelbs is a real winner." In ANALOG Computing, Lee Pappas concluded his review with, "If you are on the lookout for something different, Drelbs combines interesting graphics with a challenging scenario."

A 3 out of 5 review in UK-based Commodore User stated, "Fun to play and commendably different." Games magazine called it "visually and aurally beautiful".