"King's Quest" is a 2015 video game, so also over five years old now and I played this with somebody else for the first time from beginning to end not too long after it came out. And I played it again very recently and I will try to memorize my thoughts on it and give you a full-length review here, so getting close to 10k characters. As you can see from the amount of stars I gave it, I really, really enjoyed the outcome here. I will start with the basics: There's a total of five chapters and an epilogue here. The first chapter was released in summer 2015 and the epilogue came out around the Christmas holidays 2016, so the entire release took almost 1.5 years. There were gaps of roughly four or five months between the release of two chapters with the exception of the gap between chapter four and five, which was minimally under a month, so they were really going for closure quickly then, which is a bit surprising because they released an epilogue then two months afterwards again, even if this was really not part of the key story anymore, but just an addition for the fans. I am still glad they made it. I will elaborate on the individual chapters a little later. What they were all about and how I liked them. For now, it must of course also be added that this video game here is closely linked to the story King Graham that already started with the very first King's Quest back in 1984, the year I was born, so a really long time before this one here came out. Over 30 years in fact. Needless to say that approach and graphics could not be any more different. I have actually come across some people not really being too happy with The Odd Gentlemen and Activision in charge of the making of this video game because of other stuff they worked on in the past, which was maybe not the highest quality (and I at least slightly agree), but if there was any need for them to make up for past sins, they sure did it with the newest chapter to this long-running saga of video games. I applaud everybody who was a part of this.
You will find a few familiar names in the voice cast here too. I am of course mostly talking about Christopher Lloyd from Back to the Future who voices the protagonist here and also about Wallace Shawn who voices the key antagonist this time. However, I cannot say anything about their work because I played the synchronized version in my language German, but there the voice actors did a pretty good job, so I am also sure the original ones did fine. Would be shocked if I did not like them. Now the two characters I just mentioned are really part of every single chapter from this game. No surprise at all. I will focus on these chapters now and just keep going through them chronologically. The first chapter was probably by far the longest if I remember correctly. Maybe you will be slightly disappointed afterwards then than the other chapters are not that long after playing the beginning, but it's all good. This beginning is really about how Graham taking part in a knight tournament first of all and not yet about how he became king. The framework is the now with a really old Graham and he tells all these stories to his granddaughter. In this first chapter, there is a massive contest in which Graham has to deal with a handful competitors. Most of these become his friends in the process, but the one who seems to be his closest ally early on turns out to be his biggest foe eventually. I would not say that I give this first chapter really the highest rating right away, but it was still very good and entertaining. The characters were amazing no matter if we are talking about Whisper or Acorn or Achaka or the other villagers there like the Hobblepots, Wente and Amaya. With the last three, it was a crucial story line who is the most similar to you. Will you be courageous, witty or compassionate. These three words may not be 100% correct, but I do not remember the exact terms anymore. But I do remember that the adjective was added to "King Graham the xyz" eventually. So your choices there in certain situations (what you say and what you do) will have a major impact on how all this turns out then. Oh and I shall not forget about Olfie. No way I could. He also brought some great delight in this chapter. In the end of chapter one, you get a summary which traits fit you the best, depending on if you stole etc.
I am actually not yet finished with the description of this really long chapter because I also have to talk at least briefly about Achaka. He is Graham's mentor to some extent, even if they are rivals and he teaches him a lot, like how to use bow and arrow. But his inclusion also results in maybe the first emotional highlight of this video game, namely when he is caught and killed by the dragon down there in the well. Graham and Achaka may not have been friends for a really long time, but you can see how much he meant to Graham with the statue later on or also when he sees Achaka's spirit when he himself is old. And the epilogue offers a very special surprise there too, one that gives us back a little bit of Achaka and his muteness. The second chapter was maybe my least favorite from them all. This also had to do with the darkness attached to it. It all takes place down there in the caves of the goblins. It already starts pretty gloomy when Graham has to go outside into the pouring rain and is abducted. How we see the invaders move there on the roofs and see him not seeing them was still nicely done. The rest of the chapter all feels a bit like Groundhog Day. You have to prove you are a worthy king and leader not only by getting out of prison somehow, but also by serving your people and saving them. However, it is unfulfilling in a realistic way if I remember correctly because you cannot save each and every one of them. This made me a bit sad, which already showed how this game really got under my skin because I wanted them all to live. Yes, also Mr. Fancycakes or Herr von Schling how he was called in the German version. This was maybe the most moral-themed episode as you need to decide who lives and the question about who is the strongest fighter to support you comes into play as well as the mathematical quantity of people and also an unexpected pregnancy. I may have said this is the episode I liked the least, but that does not mean I did not like it. It was really good and smart too and with awesome attention to detail and I cannot begin to describe how happy I was when we find out that actually everybody lives in the end.
The third chapter then is the one that is really, really close to the Frozen movie with these two girls up there in the tower. It is almost a bit of a dating game here with how he talks to the girls, does (or does not) favors to each of them, how they even play a boardgame together, how the witch there sends them on a mission (i.e. An adventurous date) together to obtain something. Yep, there is a witch in here too, but, as we eventually find out, she is more of a tragic character than a really evil character and in the end, she is even a friend and Graham helps her out of the castle and tells her it is not too late yet before climbing up there to save the girls before they are killed. I think this was a very sweet and inspired chapter as well with many nice inclusions and ideas. Whisper shows up again unexpectedly and it was funny how he could easily break the barrier because he loves himself so much. Also this chapter almost felt like a bit of a statement against obsession with physical beauty which I liked, at least in terms of the witch and her mistakes. The two young women are of course pretty stunning. Kinda smart also how they mentioned the women's names in short form and how they both could be Valanice. In-between chapters three and four, there is a lot happening. We see how Graham is now together with his queen and they have kids and Manny shows up and abducts the boy and then there is a huge jump in time, like 20 years and all that happened during these years is the story from an old King's Quest game. Very smart how they handled this. For chapter four, Graham's son is back already, managed to flee from Manny, who is the evil sorcerer Manannan, something the fans of the old games probably saw coming way before me. Anyway, there is not a lot to say about this fourth chapter. It is maybe the one that Portal fans etc. Will love the most. Riddle-packed from beginning to end, but basically all the same key idea behind it. Like Tetris a bit too. I thought it was good that they included it. Lots of plot before that, so time for some riddles. What really broke my heart though was the ending with Vee and Neese. Actually, I thought that the big cat there would be the one left behind, but turns out it was Manny. Really, really surprised me, although we knew about his feline background before.
The last chapter got me emotional again with Triumph's memorial, also how he has aged a lot in the previous chapter, of course with how the villagers are all dead with Graham himself old now, even if he meets the Feys again in some retro video game 2D reference. Or also the idea of Graham forgetting about his past slowly with the fire everywhere. It is not even that something heartbreaking happens there. It really is just how time is more destructive than anything really and will end everything sooner or later. Struck really close to home this game and ending, even if the epilogue is uplifting again. Before I run into the character limit, let me also mention my favorite quote here. It was something that Graham said to his wife when they were both old that went like how he never loved her more than this very moment. Utter sweetness and something everybody should want to find. Not being together out of habit, but because you still love your significant other after all these years. All in all, a wonderful game and I recommend playing it so much. Or at least watch a Let's Play if you're not the gamer type.
