Catacomb Abyss

Catacomb Abyss
Catacomb Abyss title screen
Developer(s)Softdisk
Publisher(s)Softdisk
Designer(s)Greg Malone
Programmer(s)
  • Nolan Martin
  • Michael Maynard
  • James T. Row
Artist(s)
EnginePrototype of Wolfenstein 3D engine
Platform(s)
Release
November 1992
  • DOS
  • November 1992
  • Catacombs Pack
  • Microsoft Windows, OS X
  • March 2013
Genre(s)First-person shooter
Mode(s)Single-player

Catacomb Abyss (also known as The Catacomb Abyss or The Catacomb Abyss 3-D) is a fantasy themed first-person shooter (FPS) game developed by Softdisk and released in November 1992 for DOS.[1] It is the fourth entry in the Catacomb series of video games. Its predecessor, Catacomb 3-D, was developed by id Software as part of a contract with Softdisk.[2] When the contract ended, Softdisk kept ownership of both the 3D engine as well as the intellectual property of Catacomb 3-D.[3] The company formed a new, in-house team to develop three sequels, known as the Catacomb Adventure Series. This trilogy consists of Catacomb Abyss, Catacomb Armageddon and Catacomb Apocalypse. Softdisk published a shareware version of Catacomb Abyss, which could be freely distributed and played to encourage gamers to purchase the full trilogy.[4]

The plot is a continuation of the events in Catacomb 3-D. The player again takes the role of the high wizard Petton Everhail. After the death of arch-rival Nemesis, his minions construct a mausoleum near the Towne Cemetery to honor their deceased master. Soon evil forces start to emerge around the mausoleum. It is once again up to Petton Everhail to end the terror with the use of his magic spells.[5] The gameplay consists of navigating through the town cemetery, the mausoleum and other environments, while battling the servants of Nemesis with magic spells. Keys need to be collected to unlock doors. The game also contains an item shaped like an hourglass, which temporarily freezes time when picked up.

PC Gamer did a retrospective review of Catacomb Abyss in 2021. The reviewer describes the game as "incredibly primitive", yet also "an interesting glimpse at a direction shooters could have gone, had Wolfenstein and Doom not laid down the templates for the next few years".[6]

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