SunDog: Frozen Legacy is a 1984 space trading and combat simulator video game. SunDog was first developed for the Apple II, with version 1.0 being released in March 1984, and version 1.1 (bug fixes) released three weeks later. Version 2.0, which included enhancements and improved performance, was released in October, 1984. An enhanced version was released for the Atari ST in December 1985.
The first game produced by FTL Games, and the only game programmed by Bruce Webster, SunDog not only stored an impressive amount of data in the limited 64K of the Apple II, it also implemented a GUI inspired by the interface developed at Xerox PARC. Although FTL intended to release further games in the series, this was preempted by the success of their follow-up effort, Dungeon Master.
Plot
The game begins with the player assuming the part of Zed, a young man who has been enslaved in the glass mines his entire life. His uncle, Brock Dor-Cede, died leaving Zed his ship, the SunDog. Zed has the chance to earn his freedom if he can fulfil his uncle's outstanding contract to start a colony for a religious order. With little to go on, the player begins on Jondd in the SunDog.
Gameplay
The player begins the game with a top-down view of a spaceship, the player's character represented by a white circle in the center. All actions are controlled by the joystick (or joystick and mouse on the Atari ST). By moving the cursor and clicking a joystick button, the player moves the character about the screen and controls all action in the game.
Zed, controlled by the player, finds himself aboard the SunDog. A quick inspection of the ship finds many systems damaged and several destroyed components. A quick visit to the city's Commodity Exchange finds some goods belonging to the SunDog's captain (now Zed). Zed's bank account holds a few thousand credits (money). Zed's uncle made a contract with a colony to supply them with various goods throughout their settlement. With nothing else to go on, the player must find the colony and attempt to fulfil Zed's uncle's contract.
The cities in SunDog vary in size, though all appear to be neatly laid out. They contain ship parts shops, hotels, gun shops, restaurants/bars and banks. If the player wanders about on foot for long, they will eventually encounter others. Some are beggars, some are hawkers trying to sell Zed items, but most are thugs who will attempt to mug him. The player may use Zed's weapons to fight back against muggers. With the use of bluffs or threats, some muggings can be thwarted without the use of a gun.
There is no set route the player must follow to win the game, but a typical route would have the player first finding the colony on Jondd, the planet the player starts on. The player can do this by taking the SunDog's cargo pod, which can be used like an all-terrain vehicle when detached from the ship. Exploring the continent, the player will eventually find the small colony. Driving into the colony's Commodity Exchange will display what the colony needs in order to upgrade to the next phase. Several items are listed, such as fruits/grains, stock embryos and "Sun suns." All these goods can be purchased in the commodity exchanges of cities in neighboring star systems. Some can even be purchased right on Jondd.
The only way for Zed to fulfil his uncle's contract is by supplying the colony with the items it needs. They have to buy these goods and deliver them to the colony. The colony will not give the player any money, so the only way the player can obtain the goods for the colony is by buying and selling other commodities for a profit. Zed has to adhere to the economic principle of buy low, sell high.
They have a few goods initially, but little money to buy more, especially since the SunDog needs repairs. By visiting cities' commodity exchanges, the player can inspect what is for sale, buy and sell commodities, and, ideally, turn a profit to buy everything the colony needs.
The most important goods the colony needs, however, are cryogens, or cryogenically frozen colonists. These cannot be purchased, but have to be found throughout the neighboring star systems. Zed's uncle has stored them in various commodity exchange warehouses, but has left no documentation specifying where. The only way to locate them is by visiting the planets in the neighboring systems and investigating the warehouses for any items belonging to the SunDog's captain.