Wishbringer

About

Wishbringer is a text-based adventure game where you navigate a suddenly cursed village using a magic stone that grants seven specific wishes. As a postal clerk in Festeron, your delivery mission spirals into a quest to rescue a cat and thwart a sorceress. The Wishbringer stone lets you request things like flight or foresight, but each power requires an object trigger and can only be used once. The game balances mystery and whimsy, with puzzles that mix logic and creativity. While simpler than most Infocom titles, it still challenges players to think critically without overwhelming them. The original 1985 release was praised for its approachability and clever use of limited resources. Retro fans appreciate its availability on classic platforms like the C64 and Atari ST. The blend of straightforward storytelling and inventive mechanics makes it a standout in interactive fiction’s golden age.

Storyline

You are a postal clerk in the small fishing village of Festeron. The cranky postmaster, Mr. Crisp, orders you to deliver an important envelope to the proprietor of Ye Olde Magick Shoppe. The proprietor in question, a kindly old lady, then asks the player to rescue her cat from a mysterious sorceress known only as The Evil One. Stepping out of the store, you find that quaint Festeron has mysteriously been transformed into a more sinister town called Witchville. There are but a few hours to defeat The Evil One. Fortunately, you soon find the Wishbringer, a magical stone that can grant seven wishes if a suitable object is used in conjunction. The seven wishes that can be granted by the stone are for advice, darkness, flight, foresight, freedom, luck, and rain. Each wish can only be used once per game, and requires that the player possess some related object.