Line #1 VideoGame/TheWheelOfTime


1	[[quoteright:285:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wheel_of_time.png]]
2	''The Wheel of Time'' is a 1999 video game based on [[Literature/TheWheelOfTime the popular series of high fantasy novels of the same name]] and developed by Creator/LegendEntertainment, who had previously developed ''VideoGame/{{Unreal}}'''s ''Return to Na Pali'' expansion pack and would go on to develop ''VideoGame/UnrealIITheAwakening''. Instead of attempting to adapt the books into game form, the game instead tells an original story set in the ''Wheel of Time'' universe, taking place a few centuries before the events of the books. The story follows the adventures of Elayna Sedai, an Aes Sedai librarian whose journeys bring her into conflict with the force of the Dark, Shadar Logoth, the Whitecloaks, and even Ishamael himself.
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4	The game uses the ''VideoGame/{{Unreal\|I}}'' engine, with gameplay that is extremely similar to that game, including the way enemies move and attack. Elayna cannot channel the One Power, so instead she uses an arsenal of Ter'angreal artifacts that allow her to cast a variety of spells.
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6	The game's multiplayer component is based around a capture the flag mechanic, in which each of the 4 players has their own fortress guarding a cuendillar seal. Players can equip their fortress with traps and computer-controlled allies, and must raid each opposing player's fortress to obtain all 4 seals.
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8	After over 22 years of being unavailable digitally, the game was [[https://www.gog.com/en/game/the_wheel_of_time re-released]] on Website/GOGDotCom in April 2022 with the aid of Creator/NightdiveStudios.
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10	!!Tropes featured include:
11	* ActionGirl: Elayna, as the game’s protagonist, travels the world and kicks all kinds of ass throughout. She has to be as an Aes Sedai, especially if she’s going to fight a Forsaken.
12	* AmplifierArtifact: Due to her inability to channel ''saidar'' without aid, Elayna needs to use ''Ter'angreal'' to do so. They effectively act as the game's weapons equivalent.
13	* ArtificialBrilliance: For a 1999 game, the AI is quite competent, as the enemies will attempt to dodge Elayna's shots where possible, and use their ranged attacks while relentlessly closing in to melee, where even basic Trollocs will outmatch her. It is also relentless in pursuing her, able to jump from/to higher floors to reach her, and will swim to cross aquatic barriers as well. Using a variation of the A.I. from ''Unreal'' helps a lot in that regard.
14	* AttackReflector: The Reflect Ter'angreal creates a shield that bounces magical attacks back at the enemy, however it only lasts for a few seconds so you have to time its usage skillfully almost like a parry. Whitecloaks also carry shields that reflect magic attacks, so you need to damage them either indirectly (i.e. with splash damage) or with non-projectile attacks like chain lightning.
15	* BloodlessCarnage: Averted. Fallen enemies will at least have their clothing bloodstained, and may be surrounded by pools of blood as well. Killing the enemy with a particularly strong spell will avert the trope...by reducing them to a lump of charred flesh instead.
16	* CaptureTheFlag: This is the Citadel multiplayer game mode. Players place traps within their own citadel to prepare for the combat, then they compete to capture seals from the opposing citadel.
17	* ChargedAttack: Balefire can be charged to hit even harder than it already does.
18	* TheChessmaster: The Hound ([[spoiler: or rather, Mordeth possessing his body]]) manages to play everyone for a fiddle over the course of the game, manipulating Elayna and the other factions into nearly wiping each other out. [[spoiler: He even manages to depower Ishamael himself by tricking him with an artifact that blocks someone from using the One Power]]. Unfortunately for him, he underestimates both Ishamael and Elayna (Ishamael not being as helpless as the Hound would think even without the One Power, and Elayna unexpectedly being skilled enough with Ter'angreal to defeat ''everyone'' and gather all the seals).
19	* EliteMooks: Myrdraal, Whitecloak Archers, and Elite Trollocs are all tougher and more challenging than your average mook.
20	* EmergencyWeapon: The Air Pulse ''Ter'angreal''. It would technically be a RangedEmergencyWeapon only due to having a range slightly longer than a melee attack. Otherwise, it's quite weak even against the first opponent encountered in the game.
21	* EverythingFades: Averted with the dead enemies; their bodies will remain on the level, which was unusual in 1999.
22	* ExpressiveHealthBar: Elayna's health affects the posture of her portrait at the top left corner of the screen. The lower her health, the more slouched over she becomes.
23	* {{Expy}}: The Hound is pretty clearly one for Padan Fain.
24	* FogOfDoom: Mashandar, as expected, can be found all over Shadar Logoth. Its silvery tendrils will quickly kill Elayna and anyone else gripped by them.
25	* HealingPotion: The healing ''Ter'angreal'' isn't a potion, but it in a form of a cup, giving the implication that it would act as a potion.
26	* IdiosyncraticDifficultyLevels: Downplayed. The game has the usual Easy, Normal and Hard options, and the tool-tip at the bottom of the screen denotes a character the game compares the highlighted difficulty to:
27	--> Easy: [[EasyModeMockery Wit Congar]]
28	--> Normal: [[BadassNormal al'Lan Mandragoran]]
29	--> Hard: [[TheDreaded Lews Therin Telamon]]
30	* IntangibleMan: One of the spells, Shift, allows Elayna to teleport through grates and small openings as long as she can see through the other sides.
31	* KnightTemplar: The Children of the Light have this attitude towards everyone else, as they consider all Channelers to be servants of the Dark One, even the Aes Sedai.
32	* MeleeATrois: The four factions (Elayna's Aes Sedai, the Dark, Shadar Logoth, and the Whitecloaks) are all hard-coded to be hostile to each other, but there are actually very few levels in the game where characters from different factions can be found in the same area.
33	* MirrorBoss: All of the game's major bosses are channelers; they move and fight similar to the player character, and behave more like multiplayer bots than standard enemies. Elayna's reflection is a ''literal'' mirror boss.
34	* NoBodyLeftBehind: Anyone killed with Balefire will be completely destroyed, both physically and in the Pattern, leaving nothing behind. This is the only thing that can kill a Forsaken DeaderThanDead.
35	* PurpleIsPowerful: Balefire manifests in this game as a powerful purple beam that can kill things so hard it wipes them from existence.
36	* RocketJump: When timed correctly, Elayna can use Balefire to propel herself vertically. Unlike most examples, what increases her jump height isn't an explosive blast, but the massive recoil of the spell flinging her upwards when aimed to her feet.
37	* ShownTheirWork: The inventory screen has a quotation from the books for each spell, showing where in the books the developers got the idea for that spell.
38	* SkippableBoss: [[TheDragon Ishamael]], the leader of the Forsaken, is the one boss in the game you don't have to fight if you don't want to. You can just grab his piece of the MacGuffin and quickly run away from him back to the exit portal. This is quite helpful as he's likely [[{{Superboss}} the most difficult and powerful boss]] in the game, as expected from the WorldsStrongestMan ([[TheHero Rand]] hasn't been born yet).
39	* SquishyWizard: Elayna can survive less damage than almost all of the enemies in the game. Making it through the game alive involves being quick on your toes as well as intelligent use of Ter'angreal spells to even the odds.
40	* SpikesOfDoom: One of the trap types of the game involves spikes suddenly coming out of the walls and impaling Elayna.
41	* SuperPoweredMooks: [[EvilCounterpart Black Ajah]] can cast many of the same spells your character uses, and can take a lot more damage than you can, making them challenging opponents.
42	* UniqueEnemy: You only fight 1 Whitecloak Questioner in the entire game, which is treated as a level boss, even though it's classified as a Champion-level enemy like Legion or the Giant Trollocs, which are fought several times each.
43	* VancianMagic: Most ''Ter'angreal'' only have a small set of charges that act as an ammo equivalent. Grabbing more ''Ter'angreal'' can recharge them. A few (marked with a bluish aura in their location) can respawn once their charges run out.
44	* WakeUpCallBoss: The Hound, the first full boss you face, is limited to very basic Ter'angreal attacks and doesn't have much more health than you do. The next boss, Elayna's reflection, however, has a much wider and more dangerous selection of spells and more typical boss-level health, making her the first really challenging boss you'll encounter.
45	* WeakButSkilled: Elayna's connection to the ''saidar'' is so weak that channeling is nearly impossible to her on her own. However, she's quite experienced at wielding Ter'angreals as weapons. So skilled in fact, that she can fight the Forsaken themselves and win.
46	* WorfHadTheFlu: At the end of the game, Elayna can fight [[WorldsStrongestMan Ishamael]] and actually win. It's made clear Ishamael isn't as powerful as he'd normally be because the Hound temporarily severed his connection with the One Power, forcing him to rely on Ter'angreal. He's still by far the game's [[{{Superboss}} most powerful boss enemy]].

Context VideoGame / TheWheelOfTime