ISHAR – A Forgotten RPG Gem from the DOS Era

The first half of the 1990s saw the release of many unusual RPGs. One of them was Ishar, a series created by the French studio Silmarils, which today remains a somewhat forgotten gem of the DOS era.

The first game, Ishar: Legend of the Fortress, was released in 1992. Players entered the land of Kendoria and had to face the evil sorcerer Krogh. The game stood out with its colorful graphics and vast world viewed from a first-person perspective. Instead of being limited to dungeons, players could explore forests, cities, coastlines, and mountains.



A year later, Ishar 2: Messengers of Doom was released. The sequel expanded on the ideas of its predecessor, offering a larger world divided into islands, a day-and-night cycle, and a more advanced party system. Interestingly, players could carry their characters over from the first game.

The trilogy concluded in 1994 with Ishar 3: The Seven Gates of Infinity. This time, the developers introduced the concept of time travel. Mysterious gates allowed players to visit different eras, giving exploration an entirely new dimension.

The series was developed by Silmarils, a studio that had previously created Crystals of Arborea – a game that can be considered a predecessor to Ishar. The games combined exploration, combat, character development, and party management, while their greatest strength was their remarkable atmosphere for the time.

Today, Ishar may feel somewhat archaic, but for fans of classic DOS RPGs, it remains an interesting example of the European approach to game development.

Fun Facts

• Ishar 2 allowed players to import their party from the first game.
• Each party member had their own preferences regarding the other characters.
• Ishar 3 featured time travel as one of its main gameplay elements.
• The series had a predecessor – Crystals of Arborea, released in 1990.
• Ishar 4 was planned, but the project was eventually cancelled.