C64 Archon: The Light and the Dark
Play 'Archon: The Light and the Dark' on C64 online.
Archon: The Light and the Dark game data
Commodore 64 game name: Archon: The Light and the Dark | Release date:
1983 |
Publisher: Electronic Arts |
Game media type: prg |
Language: en
User rating of this C64 game (you can also rate it under the C64 emulator):
About Commodore 64 Archon: The Light and the Dark
Archon: The Light and the Dark is a strategic board game that combines elements of chess with action-based combat. The goal is to either occupy five power points on the board, eliminate all opposing pieces, or imprison all but one of the opponent’s remaining pieces. Achieving any of these goals results in a win.
The game board resembles a chessboard, but when a piece lands on the same space as an opposing piece, they enter a full-screen ‘combat arena’ where players control the combatants in real-time. The outcome of the battles is not guaranteed, as a stronger piece may not always defeat a weaker one. Each piece has unique abilities, including movement, lifespan, and weapon types, which vary by range, speed, rate of firing, and power.
A piece’s powers are influenced by the color of the square the battle takes place on, giving each player an advantage on squares of their own color. Some squares on the board oscillate between light and dark, making them challenging to hold. The three middle power points are on oscillating squares.
Some pieces have special abilities, such as the phoenix turning into a ball of fire or the shapeshifter assuming the shape and abilities of the opposing piece. Each side also has a spellcaster piece, the sorceress for the dark side and the wizard for the light side, who can cast seven different spells once per game.
The computer opponent adapts over time to help players defeat it. The game is typically won by either destroying all opposing pieces or occupying all five power points. Less commonly, a side may win by imprisoning the opponent’s last remaining piece. If each side has one piece left and both are destroyed in combat, the game ends in a tie.
C64 Archon Game Instructions Manual
In order to play Archon: The Light and the Dark online, click on the start button located below the Commodore 64 emulator window.
This file type doesn't support auto Joystick port detection. Please choose 'Joystick Swap Ports' if needed.
Archon: The Light and the Dark C64 keyboard mapping
When you start a game, each joystick port is automatically turned on. Sometimes this causes a problem as the joystick port is mapped to the keys below. If a game uses these keys, you need to turn off the joystick ports.
C64 emulator joystick - keyboard mappings| DIRECTION | JOYSTICK 1 | JOYSTICK 2 |
|---|---|---|
| LEFT | A | CURSOR LEFT |
| RIGHT | D | CURSOR RIGHT |
| UP | W | CURSOR UP |
| DOWN | S | CURSOR DOWN |
| FIRE | LEFT / RIGHT CTRL | LEFT / RIGHT SHIFT |