: You had to align the runes shown on screen on the physical wheel to reveal a corresponding code (letters or numbers), which you then typed into the game to continue .
In 1995, floppy disks were easily copied using standard DOS commands. To prevent users from simply passing a set of disks to their friends, publishers utilized "Off-Disk Copy Protection."
Knights of Xentar | Форум Old-Games.RU. Всё о старых играх
: The game usually prompted for a code during installation or at key narrative milestones, such as entering a new town or major dungeon.
Sure, it was annoying. Yes, we lost the wheels constantly. But when you finally got that code right, typed it in with a satisfying clack of the mechanical keyboard, and saw the game finally load... it felt like an earned victory. knights of xentar code wheel
Knights of Xentar had a notable distinction: it was the (predating the compulsory ESRB ratings). It remains the only game in the Dragon Knight series to be released outside of Japan.
The (originally released in Japan as Dragon Knight 3 ) featured a physical code wheel as a form of copy protection commonly used in the early 1990s. To launch the game, players had to align specific symbols or numbers on multiple layers of the cardboard wheel to reveal a password requested by the software. Purpose and Mechanics
Among the many games that utilized this mechanism, the 1994 MS-DOS role-playing game Knights of Xentar (originally released in Japan as Dragon Knight III ) features one of the most memorable code wheels in retro gaming history.
While code wheels successfully deterred casual piracy in 1995, they introduced significant friction for legitimate players. : You had to align the runes shown
It consisted of two rotating discs. The top disc had a small window cut into it, and the bottom disc was filled with rows of symbols, numbers, and runes. When the game booted up, it would ask you to align a specific number or icon on the outer wheel with the correct window. Once aligned, you had to peer through the little cutout to find the secret code to type in.
: Look at the symbols displayed on your monitor.
: The player would rotate the inner disc to align the on-screen symbol with a specific reference point on the outer disc.
In the mid-90s, color photocopiers were rare and incredibly expensive. Black-and-white copiers failed to capture the distinct color coding required by many wheels, and layering multiple moving pieces of paper was too tedious for casual software pirates. Всё о старых играх : The game usually
In an era before ubiquitous high-speed internet, developers faced a massive "sneakernet" piracy problem—it was incredibly easy to copy a handful of floppy disks for a friend.
Today, a complete in-box copy of Knights of Xentar —including the CD, manual, and the intact, unscratched —sells for between $150 and $400 on eBay, depending on condition. Why?
You’d squint at the tiny window, trying to decipher if that blurry pixelated shape was a rune or just a printing error.
When launching the game, players were intercepted by a prompt demanding a code verification string—for example, . To find the password, a player had to follow specific steps: