Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior
1987 · Fighting · Commodore 64 / Multiple
Overview
Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior (1987) is Palace Software's sword-fighting game, notorious for its decapitations and for a box cover photographed with Page 3 model Maria Whittaker.
Deep Dive
Two barbarians fight with swords, each with 12 life points shown as six circles — but a well-timed blow to the neck takes the opponent's head off instantly. In the story mode the player fights eight barbarians to reach the wizard Drax and rescue Princess Mariana.
Developer Story
Steve Brown designed the game, Stanley Schembri programmed it and Richard Joseph composed the music. Palace released it in 1987 for the Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum, and it topped the all-format charts. Barbarian II: The Dungeon of Drax followed in 1988.
Did You Know?
- The box used photographs of Michael Van Wijk and Maria Whittaker rather than painted art, and UK complaints focused on the packaging more than the violence.
- Germany banned the game for its violence; a version with green blood was later allowed.
- In North America Epyx released it as Death Sword.
Sources & further reading
- Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior — Wikipedia
