Like opening a story and jumping into the pages, King's Quest offers an adventure that keeps you 'til the end.
But going back to the origin of the series in 1984, you are put into a storybook fairytale-style adventure, playing the role of Sir Graham, King Edward's best and most courageous knight. The old and withering King Edward, bearing no heir to take his place, sends Sir Graham on a quest to retrieve three magical items that have been taken from the castle's possession and, without them, would cause a great deal of trouble for the kingdom. King Edward tells Graham that if he returns with the three items, he will grant Graham the right of the throne upon Edward's death as his heir.
With that, players control Graham throughout the whole Kingdom of Daventry in search of the three missing items: a shield, a chest that is always filled with gold each time it is opened and a magic mirror which forsees the future. Along the way, Sir Graham will encounter many a puzzle and some devious villians on his quest for the right of the crown of Daventry.
Good: King's Quest has aged well * Colorful and nicely-detailed landscapes * Mixture of text and graphical equally go hand-in-hand successfully * Involving and appealing story * A laugh or two exist within KQ * Classic chidlhood fairytale references decorate and execute excellently
Bad: Some puzzles offer no clue whatsoever * You could chase your tail when the answer is in front of you * The game is picky about commands sometimes * A little too short
Graphics: Games similar to King's Quest were seen usually only in text before this had come out. Text adventures alawys stuck to fans of the genre because it offered the ability to imagine everything that was happening, much like simply reading a book. King's Quest changed that, while providing graphics, still offered the ability to type in commands such as "climb rope" and "examine tree". In early text adventures, movement was done by typing "n" for north, "s" for south, and so on, however players simply use the arrow keys to move about in King's Quest. It offered an interactive graphical and wide world which, at the time and even still, had a look of its own and had very appealing scenery.
Sound/Music: Today, people might refer to the sounds as "loud and irritating". While maybe true, they still get the job done and really aren't as bad as they could be. As for the music, only two tunes are heard: the title/ending music and the death music. The title/ending theme is something almost anyone should be able to recognize: Greensleeves. For an early DOS game, it's composed pretty well.
Difficulty: As far as getting around and gameplay go, it's pretty simple. The hardest part of this game is also one of the annoying parts as well, which would be the fact that some puzzles are so cryptic that nobody even thinks to try. I won't give any spoilers for an example, but people who have played this or are planning too have and will know exactly what I'm talking about.
Gameplay: Moving about in the graphical world while, at the same time, typing in what you want Sir Graham to do like opening doors, climbing ladders, speaking to people, picking up objects and so on go nicely together. It's a sort of style that is unique and actually fun to experiment with.
Controls: Probably as simple as it could get: arrow keys move Graham around, the tab key brings up the inventory, and specific commands are typed in. Basic, but a fun concept.
Overall: By now, there's an entire series of King's Quest games. The classics have been revived and refurbished in graphics, sound, and nearly everything else. But still, sometimes there isn't anything else that compares to sitting back and playing the good ol' classic 1984 version. It's a game that may not appeal to all, but for those that appreciate the classics and this style of game (which has been used in other Sierra games like Police Quest, Space Quest and Leisure Suit Larry), it's one that will keep them playing until the very end and maybe even wanting more after.