Rating KING'S QUEST

[Tawmis]

So - if you had to rate the games from best to worse - what order would you put them in?

Maybe say what you liked or disliked, to explain the order, to generate some conversation?

[MusicallyInspired]

1) King's Quest V - Unparalleled feeling of adventure and exploration. Risk and reward. Not too convoluted, just a simple premise and plot and your let go to figure out how to solve it. Grande. It also features the best composers Sierra had to offer all working together. Not much to say, but sometimes less is more. Just love the atmosphere more than anything. It's a beautiful world to explore, which is what an adventure game (and more importantly, a King's Quest game should be). And KQ5 did this the best out of all the others.

2) King's Quest VI - Unparalleled storytelling compared to the rest of the series. Really tugs those emotional strings. Great plot surrounding young love and the adventurous spirit in kind of an opposite way to King's Quest V. You're still on a journey but instead of an older man trying to save his beloved family, it's a journey as a young man not only seeking his first-sight-love (which, realistic or not, is a timelessly compelling archetype) and, in some ways, his place in the world and what kind of man he wants to be. You help people along the way like KQ5 but in a slightly different way in that you discover the plot to pit the island inhabitants against eachother and not only set things straight simply for their good, but for the betterment of the story as a whole and it affects the entire outcome and ending. Beautiful artwork and music as well. Still prefer KQ5 for its art, locales, music, and premise.

3) King's Quest I - The SCI remake is one of my most favourite KQ games (obviously, being third on the list). Absolutely stunning EGA storybook artwork rivaled only by Colonel's Bequest and with Ken Allen's wonderful musical touch. Can't go wrong. Unlike other remakes, KQ1SCI was also largely rewritten by Josh Mandel and as such is much more refined and has a place all its own. SQ1VGA sort of did this too but not to the degree KQ1SCI did. The original gets props for launching a genre, but the remake I largely prefer.

4) King's Quest III - Impressively unique premise and design for a game by putting the overcoming of the antagonist at the beginning rather than as a showdown at the end. It was also neat that they attempted (and succeeded) to catch fans off-guard by making them think it was about a brand new character unconnected to the Royal Family of Daventry only to discover you are DIRECTLY related. Fantastic sense of tension implemented here.

5) King's Quest (2015) - The series of chapters by The Odd Gentlemen was remarkably charming and a return to the nostalgia. Graham is far more like Guybrush Threepwood which rubs me the wrong way, but I got used to it after a while. Some of the storytelling bits seemed a little contrived not to mention Chapter 3 being pretty much nothing but a Telltale-style "Dialog Tree: The Game" design and the entirety of the 4th chapter being nothing but logic puzzles (which is NOT WHAT WE MEANT by "please add more puzzles!", The Odd Gentlemen!), but I think that's probably do to the slashed budget they received after the first chapter failed to live up to ActiVision's expectations sale-wise. The first chapter was very well done and presented and I enjoyed it immensely. I also loved the throwbacks in the last chapter. Overall a very well told story that takes place in between (and sometimes during and retelling) the stories of the original games. And the music was phenomenal. Very well matched to whatever was happening on-screen at any given time. Beautiful. It kind of retcons a few details, but then hangs a lantern on that by hinting that Graham is mis-remembering details or playing it up for Gwendolyn's benefit and enjoyment of his storytelling. Nice touch. I think it's a great homage to the original games and honours them well. It's too bad they didn't get the budget they could have had. I would have liked to have seen what the following chapters could have been like. Great characters, great story, great experience. Atmosphere is very storybook and funloving. Not much exploration, though. I also appreciated that it has deaths, even if they're followed by retries.

5) Mask of Eternity - I haven't beaten this game at all, but I do appreciate the attempt to take King's Quest in a new direction even if it is "heresy". I've heard as the game goes on it gets very tedious and cumbersome in some areas, but playing that first area in Daventry and seeing how they designed puzzles it was clear to me that they didn't want to just make an RPG game with the King's Quest title slapped on it but tried to marry the puzzle-solving adventure style with a 3D environment and combat. I don't mind this at all. I reminds me of Morrowind which did this MUCH better and which is a much-loved game. My dad beat it and he said he enjoyed it and I trust his opinion which is close to mine. I will get through it one of these days. I also love the music, simple as it is.

6) King's Quest IV - Beautiful game. Some nice music cues, but not a very comprehensive soundtrack at all. I also like that it was the first to have a real day/night cycle. Really adds to the sense of progression and accomplishment. Not the best design in the world, however. The whale and the troll comes to mind obviously. It's basically a "super AGI" game. What I mean by that is that it takes the design approach of your average AGI game and just adds the polish of what SCI can bring to the table so it didn't really innovate too much beyond the notes I mentioned. But it's a great game. Was nice to be able to play as the other sibling of Daventry.

7) King's Quest II - This is basically what KQ6 was based on except it did it far better. There's not a lot to say. It's a passable game with a passable story. The graphics are MUCH better (what a step up from KQ1AGI!) but there's very little improvement done here. But I like it. I really wish it could have gotten a similar treatment that KQ1 got with its SCI remake. Rewritten, freshened up and fleshed out with pretty new graphics. This is what I wanted to accomplish with KQ2SCI but I'm just not a good writer or storyteller. I just don't have any ideas. And making backgrounds (while a fun distraction) is time-consuming and draining because I'm just not an artist either and I'm not capturing the spirit of KQ1SCI that I wanted to (I imagine few can, honestly). Of course, KQ2VGA+ was great, but it went too far as far as fleshing things out is concerned. Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike it. I love it. I love the AGDI King's Quest-verse with the Father and Legenimor and everything. I have nothing bad to say about it. But as far as wanting a remake for KQ2 is concerned I would have REALLY liked one in the style of KQ1SCI.

8) King's Quest VIII - This is technically a better game than KQ2 but it's last on the list because I simply don't like anything about it. I do like the puzzles at the very beginning because it's a lot like Myst where you're just plopped into a strange world with no guidance and no hints as to what to do and you have to figure it all out for yourself. It depends on experimentation and logical reasoning. Love it. But that's not what King's Quest is known for. I also don't like limiting the interaction even more by removing all icons and just having a single interaction cursor that lights up on things you can manipulate or look at. Too easy. As for the rest of the game....ehhh...I just don't care. It's too silly for me. And the animation I don't think was done particularly well. It is kind of neat to play certain areas as one character only to revisit them as the other character later on. Ending is a joke. Worse than Curse of Monkey Island's (which isn't terrible, but was rushed and therefore disappointing).

[JasefWisener]

My favorite has always been 7. The aesthetic is everything I want, I think the story is really neat (very Disney, which is what I grew up on and was very into when I first played), and I love the variety of the worlds. Ooga Booga is still one of my favorite video game locations ever.

I don't really have an order for the rest. I've only beaten 5 and 6 of the others (and the VGA remakes of 1 and 2), but I don't really think anything of them other than that they're fine. I was definitely not a King's Quest kid, but KQ7 is still one of my favorite Sierra games for sure.

[adeyke]

I'm not sure I'll be able to give a meaningful response to all these threads. It's just hard to compare things that are so different. And it's hard to know in what context to judge the games. Some aspects of the games are really significant and innovative while also being bad. I have really fond memories of some games that don't actually stand up to scrutiny. There are games I've replayed a lot and others I've not replayed at all, but this isn't necessarily indicative of how much I like them. And of course the experience of a game would be very different going in blind vs. just replaying it for the experience. It all makes rating things very difficult.

[Tawmis]

King's Quest IV - The fact that the lead was a female was great to me! And then the day and night cycle? WHAT?

King's Quest VI - Because the story is amazing. The puzzles are fun. It's so vibrant and alive.

King's Quest II - For it's graphics I thought it did a good job creating new areas (and a new dimension) to explore. It had a tad bit more story than the first one.

King's Quest III - Despite my hatred of Manananananana - this isn't my least favorite. It would rank higher if Manananananan wasn't such a pain (needing to hide the spell components took way too long to figure out in my youth). And the damn path out of Mananananana's house was brutal. But once you do away with him, the game becomes incredibly enjoyable. (Though that eagle feather was another pain point)

King's Quest V - Cedric. Oh, how I loathed your voice. But the rest of the game is actually quite enjoyable. But Cedric's constant voice throughout is annoying.

King's Quest VII - I enjoyed this - but the "side scrolling" way it felt, felt like a step back. It was beautifully animated though.

King's Quest I - It was the start, and it's fun - but there's not much of a story.

Mask of Eternity - It wouldn't even be on my list, because of my seething hatred of it.

[Semi-Happy Partygoer]

As adekye said, it's hard to create a definitive listing as each game has different strengths and weaknesses, and not every entry set out to achieve the same goals. Nonetheless, here's my personal take on the ones I've completed:

King's Quest VII - Yes, my nostalgia glasses are definitely on for this, but this was the first game I ever played and therefore it will always be special to me. Yes, it has some clunky animations and is very cartoonish, but for a fantasy-loving 6-year old it was an absolute treat. I appreciate it as an adult on a different level, as the wholesomeness and whimsy of the story acts as a tonic to all the toxicity in the world. I never get tired of revisiting this one and never will.

King's Quest VI - What can I say that hasn't already been said elsewhere? Great plot, music, art...everything. Yes, I prefer the floppy release without the voice acting, but that's just so I can concentrate on all the beauty of the surroundings. A true work of art.

King's Quest V - I'm with MI on this one - the atmosphere is absolutely phenomenal. Certain gameplay portions may be frustrating and out of left field, but the landscape is incredibly rewarding and makes it worth revisiting. I can honestly say I adore every single location in this game. I wish it were larger, sometimes, because it's so fun to explore. I prefer the floppy release so I can just concentrate on the scenery and the music.

King's Quest IV - I always liked Rosella in VII, and was thrilled when I learned she starred in another game. This was the very first "type in command" game I ever played, so that was a fun experience. The story definitely has that "cut and paste storybook" feel of the earlier entries, but it's more fleshed out this time around. The music may be limited, but what's there is stunning. I love the locations in Tamir and getting to explore both day and night views. I wish Lolotte had more screen time!

King's Quest I (EGA) - A charming and elegant fairy tale - nothing more, nothing less. The artwork is beautiful and evocative, and the color palette suitably subdued. I enjoy it for what it is, but I don't feel the urge to replay it often.

King's Quest II - This was the first AGI game I ever played. Now having played the first AGI title as well, I love how it's truly a sequel. Same art style, continuing the same story. I enjoy Kolyma and it's locations, and the realm where the tower is located is quite beautiful. Not a masterpiece, but a respectable sequel.

King's Quest I - I know I've put this at the bottom of my list, but that doesn't mean I don't like it. It's not exactly a masterpiece by today's standards, but I respect it immensely for being the first of its kind. And it's still enjoyable in its own right. Not exactly a deep game, but certainly a pleasant adventure nonetheless.

[BBP]

Of the ones I finished:
1: KQ6
Pro: marries whimsy with creepy well, excellent storyline, two paths, great characters on the whole... I love fooling the genie at the pawn shop. Some excellent puzzles: fooling the gnomes is so elegant!
Con: Rollo gets on my nerves...

2: KQ7
Pro: Gorgeous setting, can't help but feeling really happy walking through the woods. Also tombstone messages, bringing back Elspeth, fixing up the woods and Lady Ceres, freeing the kitty, befriending the dog... So many feelgood moments!
Con: Fifi Le Yipyap and all the screetching characters of Falderal.

3: KQ3
Pro: good sense of menace, Schubert
Con: I need a break!

4: KQ2
Pro: Batman, magic carpet ride, magic fish ride, magic seahorse ride
Con:
>MARRY GIRL
Don't be impatient: you've just met. Take some time and get acquainted.

>TALK GIRL
"My name is Valanice, what is your name?"

>MARRY GIRL
"Yes, of course I will!"

Of the ones I failed to finish:
1: KQ4
I'd have loved this game if it weren't for the ghastly troll cave...

2: KQ1
Haven't played it enough but it is charming...

3: KQ5
Sound is painful throughout the game, even when you're ignoring Cedric. There isn't much to puzzle. That said, the Weeping Willow tree song is gorgeous...

4: MOE
"No stop walking in that direction! I wanted you to walk through the door! Oh no there's something I need to fight and I can't even control that pixel blob!"

[Fender_178]

Well with me
1.KQ6 will always be my favorite because of the great story plot and the great voice acting they got for the game.
2, KQ4 I liked the game even though certain aspects of the game scared me. The troll cave, being pressed for time, and the infamous Roberta Williams's face in her 16 Color EGA glory. And that stupid shark that would sneak up on you.
3. KQ3 Because of the magic casting (even though it can get on your nerves if you keep making mistakes) and turning the Wizard into a cat makes all your hard work worth it.
4. KQ7 I like the idea of being able to play as two characters to tell the story. The two things I hated about KQ7 is Falderal and that stupid dog in Malica's house.
5. KQ1 (AGI/EGA) A very good game for the first attempt at creating adventure games of this type. The Story is basic and I remember my brother getting 159 of 158 due to a point's bug with the fill bowl which was the first game that that I had played that had a points bug.
6.KQ2 I played KQ2 only a handful of times compared to the rest and there were some cool points such as killing Dracula and the Batmoible and the Batman easteregg.
7. MOE Well it disappointed me as well as lots of loyal KQ fans hoping to see a continuation of what happens after KQ7 but what we got instead was a huge pile of crap. It disappointed me so much as a 14 year old who grew up playing games 1-7 to cheat to see the ending and even that was a disappointment.
8. KQ1 SCI I only played it once or twice because the game itself is disappointment because all they did is took the SCI Engine from KQIV and made KQ1 with it. I wish they would have made KQ1 with 256 colors like they did with KQ5, and the remakes of PQ1,QFG1, and LSL1 and used the Engine of KQ5. If they would have done that then it would be worth playing. AGD Interactive fixed that with their remake.