Teudogar and the Alliance with Rome

Produced by: Wolf Mittag
Website: Teudogar and the Alliance with Rome

Another RPG by Wolf Mittag (who also wrote DARGHUL), Teudogar is a historical RPG set in ancient Germania, the central plot of which concerns a Germanic tribe split between into two factions. One, led by the titular Teudogar, wants to form an allinance with Rome, whereas the other — led by someone called Ortwin — desires to preserve the tribe’s independence. The player has the option to side with either, and will also be faced with many other pivotal decisions, all of which combine to resolve the game in different ways.

Teudogar, unlike DARGHUL and Ultima 7, is not an open-world game, but is rather constructed from a series of areas. This is, as the author explains, largely a function of the game’s historical nature; ancient Germania was comprised of settlements separated by wide expanses of uninteresting forest and swamp, so the location/map-based approach worked better to keep the game’s plot moving along.

The developer also has this to say about the game’s similarities with Ultima 7:

Origin Software invented this sort of twisted bird’s-eye-perspective for their Ultima games series. Insofar as Teudogar follows the same approach, there’s certainly a similarity. And yes, both games use inventory windows that can be moved freely.

But as soon as you compare details (e.g. http://www.teudogar.com/teud-u7.jpg), you’ll realize that that’s where the similarities end: Shapes, outlines, textures and pixel patterns are alltogether different. There’s definitely been no theft, and, to the best of my knowledge, not even “borrowing”.

Teudogar’s graphics have been created independently from scratch by a German graphics artist, Arne Niemuth, who’s been paid pretty well for his work, and yes, I do possess all legal rights and title to them.

Even so, the game boasts a very familiar graphical feel, as well as a plethora of world interactivity features; those familiar with Ultima 7 should feel right at home.