Below the Root

Moby ID: 602
PC Booter Specs

Description official descriptions

Below the Root is based on Zilpha Keatley Snyder's fantasy book series "The Green-Sky Trilogy". Following the events in those books, The Kindar and the Erdling societies have joined together. However unrest and distrust still remains. An old woman, D'ol Falla has heard the words "The Spirit fades, in Darkness lying. A quest proclaim, the Light is dying". Choosing one of five available people (of different ages and of either Kindar or Erdling descent) either she believes can help, D'ol Falla assigns the quest of discovering what these words mean and how to quell the racial and political tensions building between the races.

Below the Root is a adventure game and a platform game. Choosing one of five characters (each very different from one another), the player explores the tree-based lands Erdling and the underground-based lands of the Kindar. As an adventure game, goals are primarily accomplished by talking to people (though each character is treated differently by others) and finding the right items to use in specific situations, but also dealing with the challenges of level design in a platform game.

Each character can obtain different items to help with their movement as well as psychic abilities such as pensing (telepathy), kiniporting (telekinesis) and grunspreking (plant manipulation). Violence is abhorred among the Kindar and the Erdling and violent actions tend to harm the player's reputation. Kindar or Erdling factions may kidnap the player's character if they wander into the wrong areas, throwing them into a local "prison house" from which they must escape. The player must eat constantly to retain their energy, however Erdling characters do not eat meat.

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Screenshots

Credits (PC Booter version)

5 People

Programming
Graphics / Artwork
Writing / Dialogue / Story
IBM PC/jr Version
Apple II Version

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 65% (based on 2 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.6 out of 5 (based on 29 ratings with 6 reviews)

A true classic ... in every sense of the word

The Good
It's been almost 20 years since I played this game on my Tandy 1000SX computer off of floppy disk. While I can't remember everything about it, I do recall that it totally absorbed me.

The imagination on which the game was based surpassed anything I had played previously. I was enthralled with the story and thrilled with each success that carried me further into the plot.

The Bad
It was hard to understand exactly what you were supposed to do. In fact, I'm not sure I ever finished Below The Root. When I upgraded my computer, it would no longer play, and I was really sad that I could not continue the quest.

The Bottom Line
Below The Root is truly a classic fantasy adventure. One step above a text adventure, it was released at a time when the original Zork games came out. I would welcome the chance to play it again, if it could run on a Windows 98 system.

PC Booter · by Jeanne (75956) · 2001

I was 7 years old when I played this... I'm 17 now and I miss it so bad!

The Good
I liked everything. The whole game kinda entranced me. I was pretty good too. It's like one of those memories... there's no words for it. I just miss the game so much. It seems almost like a fantasy, but it's not. I struggle to remember parts of it and I would absolutely love to play it again, on the Commodore 64. There was something appealing about the graphics, mysterious almost. It would never be the same with different graphics.

The Bad
I honestly don't remember anything I didn't like about it. I guess the fact that I'm never going to play it again.

The Bottom Line
This game is like playing a dream. The graphics, sounds, movements, colors, everything is like dream. Exactly.

Commodore 64 · by Lisa Bradley (2) · 2004

A Great classic that could use an update!

The Good
The graphics are great for 1985 on the Commodore 64. It is still a great game to play nowadays as you have to rescue a man below the root.

Unlike other text adventures, this game has an arcade element into the game, in which you jump from branch to branch on the grounds, talk to people to get some wisdom and gain skills, like kiniporting, pensing, and growing limbs.

This game is similar to Alice in Wonderland, except that you have to deal with rest and hunger. If any of those stats fall below 0, you go right back to your home, recovering from whatever failure you endured. So, you have to gather some things, like Roast Lapan and all that other stuff, and if you are extremely tired, you'd better hope that someone offers you a nap.

Graphics are excellent, it's an arcade with a twist, and it's a role-playing game all in one.

The Bad
My complaint: Why CAN'T you swim!? It would be a nice addition to the gameplay. Also, sometimes your scuba gets torn if you even fall once or twice. Maybe if some company does make a sequel to this game, then they should at least let them swim.

The Bottom Line
Despite my complaint that you can't swim unlike Alice in Wonderland, it is several games in one. It's an arcade, it's a strategy, it's a role playing game, and it's a command-driven game. Ever since this game came out, it became an instant classic.

Well, if you can still play this game, then by all means go for it! It's still a fun game, despite it being 20 years old, and if they would've update this game and create a sequel, that would be nice!

Commodore 64 · by JDonahue (2) · 2004

[ View all 6 player reviews ]

Discussion

Subject By Date
Sold on Ebay! BostonGeorge (751) Nov 11, 2011
Who is the publisher BostonGeorge (751) Feb 18, 2009

Trivia

Inspiration

Below the Root is adapted from the original 1978 'science fiction fantasy' novel written by Zilpha Keatley Snyder, and is the first in Green-Sky Trilogy, Followed by the books: And All Between (1979) and Until the Celebration (1980).

The game was a direct result of readers' dissatisfaction with the ending of the books. Agreeing with a lot of the criticism, author Zilpha Keatley Snyder decided that a computer game might be used to continue the story and provide a better resolution to the series' events. Much of the game focuses on discovering the hidden truths behind some of the events described in the final novel.

Information also contributed by WildKard

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  • MobyGames ID: 602
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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Andy Roark.

Commodore 64, Apple II added by The Red King.

Additional contributors: Jeanne, The Red King, Garcia, Patrick Bregger.

Game added December 19, 1999. Last modified August 14, 2023.