History VideoGame / EyeOfTheBeholder

* EndlessCorridor: ''[=EotB2=]'' features a seemingly endless corridor in an already frustrating level, thanks to one of the "sneaky teleporters" of the game, who sends the party back a few squares with no visual clue. Leaving an item on the floor allow one to realize what's going on. There's no way to ever reach the other end of the corridor.

The third game, sends the player into the ruined city of Myth Drannor. It was not made by the original developers, and is generally considered a massive disappointment.

* MissionControlIsOffItsMeds: In ''The Legend of Darkmoon'', the last time Khelben Blackstaff contacts you, [[spoiler:it's actually the bad guy in disguise. He tells you to go to the next room and drop dead, almost literally. Considering your last conversation was [[LostInTransmission abruptly cut off]] by a magic barrier, it should be fairly obvious that something's fishy -- in the Amiga version, it also plays [[MusicalSpoiler distinctly different background music]] for the cutscene.]]

The second, generally thought to be the best of the series, involves the party checking out an ancient temple for Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun. It offers more roleplaying content, and a more proper ending.

* MissionControlIsOffItsMeds: In ''The Temple of Darkmoon'', the last time Khelben Blackstaff contacts you, [[spoiler:it's actually the bad guy in disguise. He tells you to go to the next room and drop dead, almost literally. Considering your last conversation was [[LostInTransmission abruptly cut off]] by a magic barrier, it should be fairly obvious that something's fishy -- in the Amiga version, it also plays [[MusicalSpoiler distinctly different background music]] for the cutscene.]]

* DoubleMeaning: Deep in the first game, at the start of the Mind Flayer level, a wall engraving reads "Alignment must be true." Since this is a ''D&D'' game, you'd expect it to be a cryptic mention about CharacterAlignment. [[spoiler:In truth, it's a hint about how to open the next secret passage, which is a the end of an ''alignment'' of hidden doors.]]

*** The most useful place early on is the kenku (bird-men) level. They're worth a lot of XP but are not terribly dangerous once you neutralize their main attack (''Magic Missiles'') with a pair of mages protected by a ''Shield'' spell in the front row.

** On the other hand, if a beholder ''just'' paralyses some members of the party, you've gotten off lucky.

* FauxFirstPerson3D

''Eye of the Beholder'' is a trilogy (or just [[CanonDisContinuity a pair]]) of [[RolePlayingGame RPGs]] developed in the early nineties, the first two by Creator/WestwoodStudios that would later be known from games such as ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquer'', and the third one by Strategic Simulations Inc., that also published all three games.

All games are first-person, and feature an adventure party, between four to six members, going on quests and fighting evil. The first game has them hired by the lords of Waterdeep to investigate an evil residing under the city. It had an AbsurdlySpaciousSewer, not just one but ''two'' ruins of lost civilizations beneath Waterdeep, and an [[AWinnerIsYou infamous ending,]] where the player was treated a window of text before dumping them back to DOS (the Amiga version, however, added a proper ending cutscene). The second, generally thought to be the best of the series, involves the party checking out an ancient temple for Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun. It had more roleplaying content and much better ending.

The third game, assuming you're willing to [[FanonDisContinuity acknowledge its existence,]] sends the player into the ruined city of Myth Drannor. It was not made by the original developers, and is generally considered a massive disappointment.

The trilogy is now available on Website/GogDotCom as ''[[http://www.gog.com/game/forgotten_realms_the_archives_collection_one Forgotten Realms: The Archive Collection One]]''

** ''[=EotB1=]'': Explosives Runes, but only in the remakes.
** ''[=EotB2=]'': Gas spores.

* EightiesHair: The drow named Shindia Darkeyes.
* AbsurdlySpaciousSewer: The first game begins in Waterdeep's sewers.

* HelpImStuck: In ''[=EotB2=]'', there is a round hole in the ceiling allowing to rise up to the next level thanks to a "whirlwind" button. When found, a beholder happens to be stuck inside, with just its mouth, central eye and a few eyestalks peeking through. It asks the adventurers for their help to be unstuck -- one of the rare times a beholder deign speaking to the party rather than attacking on sight.

** This can also be used to identify unknown magic items. You can taste a potion or fire a charge from a wand to see what it does, and then (especially if a potion proves to be {{Poison|Mushroom}}) reload the game, thus not having wasted a dose or wand charge.

* VoiceWithAnInternetConnection: Khelben Blackstaff, in the second game.

* SaveScumming: Quite useful, especially if you save just before a character gain a level (and thus can "re-roll" the HitPoints for a better result).

* PermanentlyMissableContent: In the first game, on the Drow levels (Floor 7), there are three rooms behind doors close to each other, each with a rare magic item: "Slicer", a short sword +3; a set of +3 bracers; and a ring of wizardry. Opening one door seals the two other close; there is no way to get all three magic items.[[note]]Well, there is a way, but that involves editing the data code of the save file... you're not supposed to do that.[[/note]]

* EightiesHair: The Drow named Shindia Darkeyes.

* DeadEndRoom: ''[=EotB2=]'' has two No Exit examples. To make it all the more frustrating, both of them also give you very good magical equipment, which easily leads the player to think there must be ''some'' way to get out and keep the stuff.
** In Temple Level 2, placing three gems in a niche opens a secret passage. If you go through it and into a room, the passage closes behind you and you're trapped forever.
** In a room on Silver Tower Level 2, if you kill a dying Darkmoon cleric, the door out of the room closes and traps the party inside permanently. Reload your last saved game.
** ''[=EotB3=]]'' has a down staircase, which leads to an infinte dead-end room if you go through without completing some action first.

* PoisonedWeapons: The Drow Shindia Darkeyes fights with poisoned daggers.

* SoLongAndThanksForAllTheGear: Played completely straight with one character in ''[=EotB2=]'' . A {{halfling}} you meet early in the game is locked up, and you have the option to free him. However, the first time you camp with him in the party, he runs off and takes, not the equipment he's carrying specifically, but ''some of the gear of the sleeping party members''. Well, you should have expected it; he's a Thief (the CharacterClass). He even leaves a note basically invoking this trope by name. [[spoiler: You can prevent this by dropping all of your items on the floor before sleeping, leaving him with nothing to take when he leaves.]]
* StatusBuff: Both Mages and Clerics have spells like this. They are quite useful, though for the most part with very short durations (except for the aforementioned ''Stoneskin'').

* HelpImStuck: In ''[=EotB2=]'', there is a round hole in the ceiling allowing to rise up to the next level thanks to a "whirlwind" button. When found, a beholder happens to be stuck inside, with just its mouth, central eye and a few eyestalks peeking through. It asks the adventurers for their help to be unstuck -- one of the rare time a beholder deign speaking to the party rather than attacking on sight.

* StatusBuff: Both Mages and Clerics have spells like this. They are quite useful, though for the most part with very short duration (except for the aforementioned ''Stoneskin'').

** Insal the halfling thief. After freeing him from his cell, [[SoLongAndThanksForAllTheGear he robs you the next time you rest]].

* UniversalPoison: Every poisons in the games, whether from monsters or potions, work the same way: the poisoned character lose 5 hit points at regular intervals, until death or healing.

A remake of the first game was released for the Super Nintendo, and later for the Game Boy Advance. It was also ported to Mega CD, with music composed by YuzoKoshiro. Note that this remake diverges quite a lot from the original game, both in game mechanics and in that it adds sub-boss enemies.

* WarpZone: The magic portals, especially the room with five of them in ''[=EotB1=]''.

* SoLongAndThanksForAllTheGear: Played completely straight with one character in ''[=EotB2=]'' . A {{halfling}} you meet early in the game is locked up, and you have the option to free him. However, the first time you camp with him in the party, he runs off and takes, not the equipment he's carrying specifically, but ''some of the gear of the sleeping party members''. Well, you should have expected it; he's a Thief (the CharacterClass). He even leaves a note basically invoking this trope by name.

* FanRemake: Using the modding toolset from ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights'', the first two installments are available [[http://neverwintervault.org/project/nwn1/module/eye-beholder-i-mk2-eobhakver57z here]] and [[http://neverwintervault.org/project/nwn1/module/eye-beholder-ii here]] .

* InterchangeableAntimatterKeys: The "antimatter" part is handled by the keys being jammed in the locks. The 3rd game actually averts this in several spots.

** In ''[=EotB2=]'', there is a puzzle for which the clue is given of "faith is the key." In the puzzle, a sequence of 4 doors in a corridor must be opened by pulling four levers such that each lever opens a pit in front of the previous one, meaning that the fourth door-opener lever is inaccessible across a pit (albeit not a [[BottomlessPit bottomless one]], since the game doesn't have those). The trick, in this case, was to open the first 3 doors, walk down the partially opened corridor, and push a [[PixelHunt misaligned brick]] on the wall, at which point it becomes possible for the player to make a LeapOfFaith and walk on top of the pit in order to pull the 4th lever and open the last door.
* LevelGrinding: Some actions or locations will spawn monsters regularly and previsibly. This can be used to grind XP pretty quickly with a party properly prepared for the specific enemy, if you're patient enough.

* TurnRed: [[spoiler:Literally for Dran Draggore, who happens to a red dragon.]]

* DiscOneNuke: The magic dagger Guinsoo, obtainable in the very first level of the original game. However, [[GuideDangIt you may never figure out how to get it...]] Although it sounds impressive to have a +4 weapon at low-level, it really only deals 5 to 8 points of damage on a hit. Also, you don't ''know'' it is a +4 weapon, this might be more of a GuideDangIt territory, at least until you reach the Identify Alcove, which you don't ''know'' is an Identify Alcove.

!!Tropes:

* DeadEndRoom: ''[=EotB2=]'' has two No Exit examples.

** To make it all the more frustrating, both of the above also give you very good magical equipment, which easily leads the player to think there must be ''some'' way to get out and keep the stuff.

* ArbitraryHeadcountLimit: You start the game with four characters, even when importing to the sequels. You may get upto six. The second game also has an NPC that runs off, but he won't do it if you reduce your party size after recruiting him.

* DoubleMeaning: Deep in the first game, at the start of the Mind Flayer level, a wall engraving reads "Alignment must be true". Since this is a ''D&D'' game, you'd expect it to be a cryptic mention about CharacterAlignment. [[spoiler:In truth, it's a hint about how to open the next secret passage, which is a the end of an ''alignment'' of hidden doors.]]

* EightiesHair: The Drow named Shindia Darkeyes.

* LevelGrinding: Some actions or locations will spawn monsters regularly and foreseeably. This can be used to grind [=XPs=] pretty quickly with a party properly prepared for the specific enemy, if you're patient enough.

*** The most useful place early on is the kenku (bird-men) level. They're worth a lot of [=XPs=] but are not terribly dangerous once you neutralize their main attack (''Magic Missiles'') with a pair of mages protected by a ''Shield'' spell in the front row.

*** There are spots where a WillOWisp or a bulette will automatically appears as soon as you step in. Dangerous monsters in either case, but once again worth lots of [=XPs=], and easily handled by a well-prepared party.

* UngratefulBastard: At one point in ''[=EotB2=]'', you have the option to help out a beholder stuck into a circular hole in the ceiling. If you choose so, it thanks you... and then immediately attacks the party because it's hungry.

* WizardNeedsFoodBadly: Not so much of an issue though, as the game gives you more than enough rations to last until your cleric can learn a very useful ''Create Food'' spell, that instantly fills the entire party's hunger bars. The first game actually contains enough food to make it through ''without'' the ''Create Food'' spell -- although adventuring without a cleric is a bad idea for other reasons.