Barbarians

They're on the horizon...

Civilisation in the ancient world was always under threat from outsiders who. though primitive, coveted the riches that their more advanced neighbours amassed. Disorganised tribesmen were usually no match for the heavily-defended cities and their shrewd generals, but, on rare occasions, a gifted individual would unite the warriors and rouse them to a common purpose. Then, the kings, the patriarchs, the farmers and the merchants would have cause to tremble before the approach of the Barbarians!

Barbarians is a game of strategy for one player, running on Psion handheld computers. You take the lead of a civilised league of twelve cities at the very time the barbarians are entering the land. Your task is to raise armies and send them against the advancing hordes, and you will not rest until every last one is wiped out. While this is going on, you have to manage your empire's economy.

Every game is different. A map is generated at random, and your empire might be inland, on the coast, an isthmus or a peninsula, or it might instead be on an island. You may rule over flat, featureless plains, or mountainous or heavily wooded areas. The terrain of your country will dictate the availability of resources and the economics of your campaign. You'll need to trade for resources that your empire lacks.

We hope you enjoy playing Barbarians. If you have any comments, problems, or ideas for future improvements then please send them by email to psion at cyningstan dot org dot uk.

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System Requirements

For EPOC32 machines

Barbarians runs on all EPOC32 machines, from the 4MB Oregon Scientific Osaris to the 64MB netBook. Its memory requirements vary for each machine, depending on the size of the screen. On a Series 5 the game needs 200K to run, in addition to disk space. Maximum disk space for the installed software is 1MB, but the game will take up about half that on machines like the Revo or Osaris with smaller monochrome screens. Saved game files are about ½K each.

For the Psion Series 3a/c/mx, Siena and Workabout

Barbarians will run on the Psion Series 3a, 3c, 3mx, Siena and Workabout, including models with just 256K of memory. The game files take up a maximum of 180K on an SSD or in internal memory, though this can be reduced to under 40K by removing sound and unnecessary graphics files. When running, the game takes an additional 70K of internal memory. On a 256K Series 3a it is therefore recommended to use an SSD if available, or to do without sound if not. Saved game files are about ½K each and are compatible with the Series 3 version.

For the Psion Series 3

Barbarians will run on the Psion Series 3 (128K or 256K), as well as other 16-bit EPOC machines that can emulate a Series 3. That includes the Series 3a, 3c, 3mx, the Siena and even the industrial Workabout computers. The game files take up about 32K of space on SSD or in internal memory, and the game takes another 32K of internal memory when it is running. Each saved game is about ½K.

For the Psion Organiser II

For an 8K model CM or a 16K model XP you will need a datapak of 16K or more, as the program files themselves take up about 11K. A 32K model XP will fit the software in memory, as will the LZ and LZ64, though it's still advisable to have a datapak or a rampak for the software to keep internal memory free. The game takes under 6½K when running. One game can be saved at a time; the saved game file will take up about ½K of internal memory.

Screen Shots

Psion Series 7/netBook

Geofox One

Psion Series 5/5mx and Ericsson MC218

Psion Revo/Revo Plus and Diamond Mako

Oregon Scientific Osaris

Psion Series 3a, 3c and 3mx

Psion Siena

Psion Workabout

Psion Series 3

Psion Organiser II Model LZ/LZ64

Psion Organiser II Model CM/XP

 

Downloads

Game Installation Files

Documentation

Source Code

Extra files