early CRPG immigration patterns

By: Unknown on 13:30

Some early D&D-type games for home computers allowed the importation of characters from other early D&D-type computer games.  Above is an attempt to map some of them.  Not all versions supported this features (the C-64 version of a game might support such a feature, while the Apple II version does not, etc.) so this map is at best an ideal.  A few interesting bits of trivia:

• The earliest version of Wizardry II straight up required you to import your PCs from the original game.  Someone eventually figured out that this limited their sales to people who had played the original and a chargen feature was eventually added.
• Deathlord is a fairly obscure computer RPG with a mythic Japanese setting.  Thieves and fighters imported from other games find themselves transformed to ninja and samurai.  Also, if you like overland exploration in the vein of Ultima III and IV, Deathlord's wilderness map is supposed to be much larger than either of those games.
• Dragon Wars started life as Bard's Tale IV, but corporate shenanigans ensued.  It's supposed to be pretty dang good.
• You can't bring your Ultima III characters into your Ultima IV game, but maybe PCs from both adventures can join forces together in Bard's Tale III!