Legend (1984 video game).

Title: Legend

Platform: ZX Spectrum (48K) home computer.

Publisher: Century Software (UK), released in 1984.

Genre: Fantasy adventure / interactive fiction with simple graphical elements.

Creators: Programmed by Andrew J. Glaister with writing and game design by John Lambshead and Gordon Paterson.

Legend was part of an early experiment in “Bookware” — a format where a video game was packaged together with the original book as part of the game distribution. The inclusion of the novel served partly as a form of copy-protection and as added value for buyers. The gameplay was primarily text-based adventure style, where much of the interaction and story came through text commands or choices. It also featured very limited graphics, particularly during combat or specific scenes, but these were quite basic compared with other games even at the time. According to contemporaneous reviews, the game came in a large box that included the novel, a map, a keyboard overlay, and the cassette tape with the game. Gameplay was split into two parts — an exploration/adventure phase and a siege/strategy sequence inspired by events from the original novel.

The adventure part was largely menu-driven rather than relying on full text parser commands (you chose from options rather than typing freely). The later siege section involved a simple strategy/minigame, showing your recruited warriors defending against attackers. The game was single-player and designed specifically for the ZX Spectrum’s 48 K memory model.

Legend stands as one of the earliest examples of tying a major fantasy novel directly into a home computer game in a packaged format, predating many better-known licensed tie-ins. While primitive by modern standards, its ambition reflected the experimental spirit of early 1980s home computing. 

It was offered in a case with game on cassette, a map of the game world, a keyboard ovberlay and copy of the Novel.