Sandleford Warren . . . this was never shown in the Watership Down TV Series, only mentioned, as the show's story begins differently from the original novel.

Instead of starting off in the warren and planning to leave in fear of being destroyed, Hazel, Fiver and their friends have already fled; scenes depicting Fiver's vision of Sandleford's destruction, how he and Hazel went to talk to the Threarah and how the rabbits finally left the warren, were completely omitted.

If you've ever wanted to see how these scenes might have looked, check this out . . .

This German PC Game is called Unten am Fluss: Auf der Suche nach dem Watership Down
(Down the River: In Search of Watership Down). It is the first of three PC games.


Here is info for all thee games:

1 - Unten am Fluss: Auf der Suche nach dem Watership Down
(Down the River: In Search of Watership Down)
In this one, the player must help Hazel, Fiver and their friends get away from Sandlford, overcoming many obstacles and finally reach Watership Down.
Release Date: 5 July 2001

2 - Unten am Fluss: Neues Zuhause - Neue Gefahren.
(Down the River: New Home - New Dangers)
Release Date: 20 August 2001
Finally at their new home of Watership Down, the rabbits face many dangers.
Bigwig gets caught in a trap, Pipkin is attacked by a weasel, so Fiver must save Bigwig in order to save Pipkin and they ultimately have to catch the weasel in a labyrinth with the help of Hannah, a mouse (phew!). Captain Holly has arrived at the Down after fleeing the destroyed Sandleford Warren.
Oh, and there is an owl to defeat!
 

2 - Unten am Fluss - Die Befreiung der Stallkaninchen
(Down the River: The Liberation of the Stable Rabbits)
The rabbits must find more rabbits if the warren is to survive.
There are hutch rabbits at the nearby farm  . . .
Release Date: 11 October 2001

Videos and Buying the Games

You can watch parts of the first game here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHRXjzm0WBA

You can also buy the CDs online.
 

Screenshots

Here are some pictures of the first few scenes of Game # 1 (the rest of this game basically follows the Series plot up until when the rabbits reach Watership Down - and
I have yet to find any screenshots / videos of the other games) . . .




Sandleford Warren - Some very nice artwork here and I find those two lanky rabbits furthest away most amusing.
 

The Sign - Fiver has his vision and says they should flee. Hazel believes his brother but suggests they should ask the 'Oberkaninchen' (Chief Rabbit) first.

Enter Bigwig - Hazel and Fiver meet Bigwig, a member of the 'Leibgarde' (lifeguard / military), who is guarding the entrance to the burrows (and the Chief Rabbit's quarters). It appears the brothers must answer some questions before being allowed in to see the leader.
 

Groovy Move - Sorry, had to . . . Bigwig does this groovy move
as he turns to lead Hazel and Fiver into the burrow . . .

Groovy Move 2 - Hazel, not to be outdone, executes an even groovier stance!
I'll stop now . . .

The Chief Rabbit Himself! - Hazel and Fiver explain about the vision and that they think everyone should leave the warren. The Chief (who looks a bit like the character Moss) is not pleased. . .
(Note: In the game you can collect food for using later - in the case of this scene, taking the Chief's nosh!)

Explosion - The Chief Rabbit tells Bigwig off for letting Hazel and Fiver in.
I believe Bigwig resigns from the 'Liebgarde' (or, annoyed, sides with Hazel and Fiver),
which leads the Chief to order Bigwig's arrest.

Run Away - Bigwig runs from the Chief Rabbit's burrow and has to find Hazel and Fiver - there's a danger of the Owlsa/Military catching him. He may bump into a funny character along the way ( I mean seriously, funky hair, dude . . . !)

Oh N-o-o-o - Huh?  - The Owlsa! It looks like they've got some even more funky hairstyles . . . and GREEN markings!

Outsiders - Bigwig meets up with Hazel and the rest of the rabbits leaving Sandleford.

The Fight! - Hazel and the gang must fight with the Owlsa.
This involves some sort of boxing match . . .

 

There we are then!

I hope you enjoyed this little look into the PC game!


 

Graphic / art (c) Windhowler
Game images / characters (c) of their respectful owner/s