Deadline
| Implementers |
Marc Blank |
| Release Year | 1982 |
| Genre | Mystery |
| Difficulty | Expert |
TWELVE HOURS TO SOLVE THE MYSTERY. ONE FALSE MOVE, AND THE KILLER STRIKES AGAIN.
It's been called "part of the latest craze in home computing" (TIME magazine), an "amazing feat of programming" (THE NEW YORK TIMES) and the "Best Adventure of 1983" (ELECTRONIC GAMES).
It's DEADLINE, and it pits you, the keen-eyed sleuth, against a 12-hour time limit to solve a classic locked-door mystery. Armed only with the clues inside this package and your own wits, you must sift through myriads of evidence and motives to track down the killer. No easy feat, for all six of your suspects exercise free will -- coming and going, scheming and maneuvering independently of your actions. And some of these personalities are so treacherous that, should you make the wrong move, one of them may do you in.
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From the Library (18 articles)
Realism Comes to Adventure Games Review
An overdose of pills, a nosey housekeeper, a wayward son, and a failing business are but a few of the elements to be considered in the investigation of the death of Mr. Marshall Robner. . . .
~4 minute read
Deadline: An Interlogic Mystery News
Arthur Conan Doyle loved logic, delighted in deduction, and created a character who took these pleasures of the mind to the ultimate, all in the service of good. The means was the solving of mysterious crimes; the medium was the short story; the result was a new genre of fiction that would sell more words than any other save the bible: the mystery. The immortal vehicle for Doyle's expression was Sherlock Holmes. . . .
~5 minute read
First Computer Mystery Announced News
Imagine: instead of passively reading your favorite detective stories, having full control over the investigation, Infocom, creator of the unexcelled Zork adventures, has made another major advance in the development of the electronic novel: . . .
~1 minute read
Deadline Review Low-Q
Deadline is a classic adventure program by INFOCOM, the people currently publishing Zork and Zork II. Happily, it uses the same type of command parser as the Zorks, and it's specialized vocabulary gives you the feeling of really being there. It is frustrating, involved, and realistic. . . .
~2 minute read
Deadline Review
A millionaire philanthropist has been found dead of an apparent drug overdose in his library. You, the chief of detectives, have received a letter from the attorney of the deceased requesting that you be present at the reading of the will and have a look around while you're there. There is also the matter of the possible existence of a new will, made by the dear departed immediately prior to his depeirture, but subsequently, shall we say . . . misplaced. . . .
~3 minute read
The Case of the Micro Mystery Feature
It's three a.m. in the city; decent folks are home in bed. The wind is still blowing in from the desert, hot and dry and steady, fraying nerves to a razor's edge; fingers twitch and eyes glance furtively at shadows or jerk toward the sound of a match being struck and catch the sight of a cigarette end glowing in a doorway. . . .
~10 minute read
The Dectective Had So Much to Learn Review
In this short span of time the graphics of computer games have progressed from the crude "paddles" and light ball of the early Pong to the at least childlike complexity of Pac-Man and Space Invaders. At the same time, new verbal-only games have been developed for personal computers. Here, pictures don't count. . . .
~5 minute read
First Sophisticated Computer Mystery Game Steeped in Treachery and Suspense News
"A dead man, a locked door and a killer who may strike again..." are the dilemmas a computer game buff faces as the detective/player in the first sophisticated murder mystery of the computer age. . . .
~1 minute read
Deadline News
Deadline is a murder mystery game created by Infocom, developer of the game Zork. Deadline casts you in the role of a detective challenged to solve a murder within a 12-hour deadline. . . .
~1 minute read
Cave Games Tech
Some of us at PCommuniques really enjoy cave games and other underground adventures. We were delighted when Zork I and II became available for the PC, but a reader notified us of a bug in Zork I and the simple fix for that problem. . . .
~1 minute read
Deadline Review
The eternal dilemma of the reviewer of mysteries is how to discuss the plot without revealing the ending. But that's not a problem with Deadline, a fascinating new program from Infocom, the creators of the Zork family of adventure games. . . .
~4 minute read
Solve the Crime and Beat the Deadline! Review
You take a deep breath as you gaze upon the Robner mansion, so peaceful in the morning light. Yet appearances can be deceiving. This is anything but a peaceful home. . . .
~4 minute read
Deadline Review
The dead man in Deadline is the millionaire philanthropist Marshall Robner, killed by an overdose of ebullion, a powerful antidepressant. Suicide is suspected, but there are some unanswered questions. It is the Inspector’s job to conduct an investigation and to determine whether Robner’s death was an accident, a suicide, or the result of a heinous murder. . . .
~2 minute read
Deadline Review
As this unusual computer game opens, you are standing on the grounds of a large estate. The owner, a wealthy industrialist named Robner, has died under suspicious circumstances, and you, the detective, must investigate. . . .
~2 minute read
Participatory Novels Feature
I am currently involved in the Robner case. Spread before me are pills found near the body, a photograph of the chalked outline of the cadaver, the lawyer's letter about the will. But unlike my distinguished investigative predecessors, I forswear a violin, hot chocolate and the temptation to ring for my butler. I turn instead to the screen of my home computer. . . .
~4 minute read
Deadline Review
Deadline players become involved —- even obsessed. When they meet, their conversation might begin like this: "Did you find the pieces of the teacup?" "No, but I caught the gardener with the ladder." . . .
~1 minute read
Deadline: As Told by Scorpia Walkthrough Spoilers
Ah, October! A good month; after all, if October is here, can November be far behind? Of course, here at the Tale, it's always November (I arranged for that personally). Anyway, the rush is over, and Fred is back from the Grues Convention. I see he's pouring out your favorite beverage, so settle in by the fire, and we'll talk about Deadline. . . .
~6 minute read
Deadline Review Low-Q
It is always a pleasure to sit down and play an Infocom adventure, even when it's as unusual and different as this. Deadline is the first in Infocom's 'Mystery Series' of adventures (Witness and Suspect being the other two) and gives you the chance to play out the role of an infamous detective, who has been called in to investigate the death of one Mr Robner. . . .
~4 minute read
In the Box (14 images)
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Historical Sales Data
Weekly Sales Ranking
Top weekly ranking: #9
Weeks in top 20: 16
Source: Billboard's "Top Computer Software" charts, ostensibly prepared from retailer-provided sales data. Billboard began publishing software charts on 8 October 1983 and published the charts weekly until 31 August 1985, then biweekly or monthly beginning 14 September 1985. Billboards editors considered computer games a vulgar art and never took them seriously, making many typographical and factual errors in the retail charts, eventually discontinuing them on 27 September 1986.
Units Shipped By Year
| 1982 | |
| 19831 | |
| 19841 | |
| 1985 | |
| 19862 | |
| 87-893 |
Total units shipped: 144,438
Overall ranking: 4 of 32
Accounts for 6% of units sold
1 Includes units manufactured and sold by Commodore
2 Data for 1986 includes units shipped through June 1986 only
3 Data for April 1987 - March 1989
Source: Internal Infocom documents, archived by Steve Meretezky
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