King's Quest 4 is #1

[MtnPeak]

For me the best King's Quest will always (or at least until the new non-Telltale KQ comes out) be The Perils of Rosella. They packed so many cool little subplots into this one. This is the KQ that I have the most fun playing through.

Anyone else agree?

I disliked very little about this one. What did you guys like/not like about this game?

[BagginsKQ]

What new 'non-Telltale' KQ game?

How do you know the next "KQ" game will be the best?

[MtnPeak]

I don't know if I will like the new non-Telltale one better than KQ4, so I should have been clearer. It is a possibility that I will.

As for what non-Telltale KQ I am talking about, I am speaking about the one that I know is going to come. Right now it's just in my imagination, but one will come. I'm just thinking positively. Anyway, yeah, my post was more about KQ4, though.

[BagginsKQ]

Hey, even if a telltale one comes out. It doesn't mean that it will be better or worse than a previous game. I look at it as its own platform. I might like it for what it is, if they can tell a good story that keeps me coming back for the next episode...

I personally enjoyed KQ8 even though it has some arguably very different traits added to it, compared to any previous game. It's arguably one of my favorite KQ games for story, not necessarily for the puzzle choices (though I do like some of the physic based puzzles it introduced). KQ3 has the weakest puzzles in the series though (collect spell items as listed in the manual, put spell items together exactly as stated in the manual, and use them exactly as it states in the manual for 90% of the puzzles).

I actually really dug Back to the Future (it felt like Back to the Future), the Walking Dead (never saw the comics or the show, but it has good pacing between action and the puzzles, and the conversation moments: Ya, most of the puzzles are the conversation moments...), and Hector (course the latter game had the benefit of being produced outside of Telltale, by someone who was a big fan of the harder traditional adventure games).

That being said KQ4 is definitely one of my favorites. It has some of the most beautiful well done 16 color graphic ever. Great soundtrack what little there is. Good amount of puzzles and puzzles are diverse. It was the first game to really take the game towards more dramatic story, with personality. The game has a darker tone with a world that matches.

Even KQ3 was more cheery and bright on comparison.

[jeffsbaker]

I liked KQ IV - The Perils of Rosella. I think the neatest part of it for me at the time is that it was the first King' Quest game to use the new SCI engine. So it was the first Kings Quest to use music from a sound card instead of the PC speaker and it was the first one to use 320x200 resolution instead of 160x200.

In fact KQ 4 was the first game to use SCI. The game play was fun. But I still have a special place in my heart for the first King's Quest. Maybe because it was the first graphical adventure game of its kind that I had ever played. It was somewhat difficult. Again, probably because it was the first game I had ever played like it. KQ II was probably too easy, or I just got used to those puzzles because I completed it in the second night I was playing it.

[Lambonius]

I actually think KQ4's graphics are rather on the ugly side--at least, nowhere near reaching the potential of what 16 color SCI graphics were capable of. They don't hold a candle to Hero's Quest, for example.

I love certain elements of KQ4--the open land to explore, the day/night timer, the ghost/graveyard puzzle (minus the ridiculous broken shovel dead end) was always a highlight. The hidden bridle was terrible, among other things. Swimming out to Genesta's island was needlessly obtuse. It was definitely a "how many hint books can we sell?" type of game.

[BagginsKQ]

Ugh, I think Hero's Quest is fugly... The weird color choices for buildings in the town mainly... Forest and castle weren't too bad though.

The gameplay though was top notch... Had more features than in the remake... Ability to drop any item, and pick it up later, etc.

The hidden bridle was terrible, among other things.

The hidden bridle is not exactly hidden in the SCI version. If you look around the boat, the narrator tells you spot something 'glinting'. Which should point you to get closer to the boat, and look around more.

In the AGI version on the other hand, there were not clues...

Swimming out to Genesta's island was needlessly obtuse.

Pretty sure there are a few characters or so that mentions that she lives outside the mainland, on an island. It might even be mentioned in the introduction when you first talk to her.

KQ4 was actually one of the KQ games I mostly completed without any hints. Discovered most of those things on my own.

[MusicallyInspired]

I was 5 years old and discovered Genesta's island by exploring only. But it was kind of a clue in the introduction when Genesta took off to the west away from the mainland. If you just followed her you'd end up there.

People forget that people used to use their brains back in the 80s and early 90s.

[MtnPeak]

Originally Posted by MusicallyInspired

I was 5 years old and discovered Genesta's island by exploring only. But it was kind of a clue in the introduction when Genesta took off to the west away from the mainland. If you just followed her you'd end up there.

People forget that people used to use their brains back in the 80s and early 90s.

I agree! You know what I am sick of hearing? I am sick of the clichéd complaint about how classic adventure games are supposedly so annoying because of so-called illogical puzzles and unwinnable situations. Impossible-to-figure out puzzles were the exception, not the rule. Now, whenever point-and-click classic style adventure games come up in discussion, you always hear somebody say that they don't like these kinds of games because of the so-called ridiculously hard puzzles. Unfortunate puzzle design quirks should not be seen as a core characteristic of the genre; they were just individual design decisions that I bet some designers later wished they could go back and tinker with slightly. I often found the more intricate puzzles in some classic adventure games to be absolutely ingenious and a joy to try to figure out. When done right, challenging puzzles are a huge asset to gameplay, not a detriment.

And you know who I blame, in part, for smearing classic adventure gaming in this way? Telltale. I can't tell you how many times I have read some Telltale representative go on, in a self-serving way, about how they are "evolving" the genre and saving us from those evil, challenging puzzles that we are used to finding in adventure games. They are pushing this line left and right, claiming to be such "great fans" of the classics, while insulting the original designers and essentially telling us that they would have changed so much about the games. "Great fans," my behind! All I have to say to Telltale is, "What you call 'evolving' is really just a gutting of what makes adventure games adventure games. Adventure games are here to stay, no matter how many interactive movies (that are more movie than interactive) you put out."

Anyway, sorry to digress. Back to the subject. I just want to say that I actually beat KQ4 years ago, and I did not need a hint book . I enjoyed every minute of trying to figure out how to beat the game.

[Blackthorne519]

I loved KQ4. One of the first games I bought with my very own moolah. The Day and Night cycles fascinated me too.

Yeah - some puzzles were "illogical" back in the day, but finding them out was half the fun. People are walked through games today. Beating a game used to be an accomplishment, not a requirement - and the fun was in the journey. Not completing something and then saying "Yawn" what's next.

But I still HATE the damn bridle puzzle in KQ4!!!


Bt

[Chyron8472]

I loved KQ4. It was my first adventure game ever. My parents were turned off to adventure games by it because they dead-ended themselves more than once in while playing it.

I borrowed the EGA version of The Secret of Monkey Island from my aunt and uncle--it being my second adventure game ever--because KQ4 made me interested in the genre.

[AdventureGamer]

Many people laud six as the best. Make no doubt about it, six was wonderful. Yet, I have to agree with you that four was the best. I would say six follows closely, though. The emotion behind four, the beautiful storyline of a girl trying to save her father, and the animation of the game was all enchanting. Loved the music, too.

[MusicallyInspired]

They were all spectacular in their own way. My favourite memory of a grand adventure through every type of locale and peril you can think of, was KQ5, though. KQ4 has its own place, though. Great game. As they all are.

[Irishmile]

I like 6, 5, 4, 7, 1, 2, 8 in that order.

[StefPhoenix]

Am I the only one who's actually looking forward to the 3 (?) remakes? Since I'm a big fan of KQ4, I've always found the idea of a VGA remake with voice acting interesting. Unfortunately, I believe the most probable outcome is cancellation for all but it would be interesting to see which one has gotten the farthest when the time comes. Frankly, I find the VGA projects more appealing to my taste but it seems that the 3d version is the most active project, which is just as interesting.

http://www.mmgames.org/KQ4/?page_id=18
http://www.kq4remake.com/gallery.html
http://unicorntales.org/kq4-perilsofrosella-remake/

Have I forgotten any team?

[exo]

Nah, you aren't the only one. I enjoy the remakes. I have played the old ones enough times to know them inside and out. The remakes give me a fresh spin on an old friend.

Not to mention I have several friends that love adventure games, but simply can't cope with a parser. The point & click re-releases may not be as verbose, but it gives my friends a chance to experience the generaly story that I did when I was younger. And it will give my kids something they can mess with that isn't totally anachronistic compared to everything else currently out there.

Graphics may not be the most important aspect of a game, but for people who didn't grow up with them, and don't harbor any nostalgia, they can be a barrier to going back and enjoying these games.

That said, looking at the links you posted is a bit worrisome. The Magic Mirror games screenshot is incredibly blurry, which is either a product of re-sampling the original art to a higher resolution and then blurry it to cover up the pixelation, or just poor quality drawings. I tend to lean towards believing they are using the old art and trying to blur it to make it appear smoother. I dislike it.... quite a bit.

The unicorn tales one is hard to judge. The characters reek of Poser, and the island even looks like it got kicked out of Bryce 3D.... as cheap home software, games with that style always look amateurish. However, they may just be promotional. I didn't see any in-game shots on that site.

Now, the other one, by Nightfable and Westend looks interesting to me. I like the bold colors and the sharp lines. On the other hand... the backgrounds may not be different enough to warrant an entire remake. They could use some more detail. I expect KQ6 level detail from a good remake of the older games. The character portraits look almost as good as some of the original sierra art. Lolotte looks amazing to me, however King Graham's heart attack picture is a bit oddly proportioned... his shoulder seems to be too big for the rest of his body, making his head appear too small for the rest of him.

[Jennifer]

Originally Posted by exo

Nah, you aren't the only one. I enjoy the remakes.

I do as well. I'd love to see a King's Quest IV remake. All of the King's Quest remakes released so far have been really enjoyable.

Originally Posted by exo

Now, the other one, by Nightfable and Westend looks interesting to me. I like the bold colors and the sharp lines. On the other hand... the backgrounds may not be different enough to warrant an entire remake. They could use some more detail. I expect KQ6 level detail from a good remake of the older games. The character portraits look almost as good as some of the original sierra art. Lolotte looks amazing to me, however King Graham's heart attack picture is a bit oddly proportioned... his shoulder seems to be too big for the rest of his body, making his head appear too small for the rest of him.

Yeah, that's the one that interested me the most too. It would be great if it was finished some day.