The Minstrel Song appears in the computer game Starflight
, originally released in 1987. Within the context of the game, the player may encounter different alien
lifeforms in the depths of space, and communication is possible with most of these. The most peculiar of the lot is the wandering Minstrel race (also referred to as the the Delasa'Alia). Free-floating in the void
without any need for technology, they drift on the light currents over the course of eons. When hailed, they sing the Minstrel Song:
Through the windless night we sail
To watch the timeless dance unfold.
Out of joy we share the tale
To any who would have it told.
Time, it seems, doesn't flow...
For some it's fast, for others slow.
In what to one race is no time at all
Another race may rise and fall.
The virus spread like burning fire...
The sea of dread rose higher and higher.
The crystal ones had to fight
By causing suns to ignite.
...self defense. It is their right.
Back when all the stars were young,
Before the Minstrel songs were sung,
When this galaxy was new
There came from far the crystal few.
Gradually they spread through space.
They were the first...the only race.
And harder still to recognize
That which lies before one's eyes.
So many races have believed
In only what was preconceived.
That which is ancient may be new...
It all depends on point of view.
From inward out the races flee
Searching for a place to hide...
Ever in a wave of war
And on the crest the strongest ride.
We are the watchers of the dance.
Many wonder at us...
But how could there not be an audience
For the greatest of all comedies?
Though it seems meaningless at a glance, it is in fact an important summary of the background story of the Starflight
universe. The "crystal few" of the song are in fact the Ancients, a race thought to be long-vanished in the time of the game. All across the known universe one may encounter monument
s and artifacts left behind on scattered worlds, alongside lumps of Endurium
, a peculiar substance used as starship fuel. The specific goal the player has as captain of a starship is to get to the bottom of the principle mystery of the game. A wave of flaring stars is moving through the local region of space, causing stars to go nova, evaporating the oceans of entire worlds and scouring their atmospheres down to trace particles, leaving a trail of destruction that extends through the spiral arm. The Minstrel Song cryptically provides many clues which would prove vital to solving this mystery, though the faint interstellar warblings of the void dwelling creatures are often ignored at first... there is simply no context, until the player begins to gather other clues - and suddenly the realization can set in that, all along, these Minstrels have been imparting valuable information on the course of history. This is part of the appeal of the game itself - the detailed storyline of the Starflight universe is revealed to the player through subtle means. Many are the times where one experiences the pulse-racing excitement of an epiphany
regarding the nature of the imaginative Starflight universe. This feeling of unexpected startlement and wonder is arguably essential to good science fiction
, and is one of many reasons why the game is a classic.