King's Quest 1: Quest for the Crown

by Sierra Entertainment

Product Details

• ASIN: B000F813NA
• Media: CD-ROM
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #40,492 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars The Adventure Game That Started It All (But Get The Newer Version!), February 1, 2010

By 

Zachary Koenig "K-Dawg" (Forest Lake, MN) - See all my reviews

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: King's Quest 1: Quest for the Crown (CD-ROM)

In today's video game environment, first-person shooter games are unquestionable at the top of the pack. Whether it be the Call of Duty series or those all-night Halo marathons, games that show the action from your perspective (as well as armed with a variety of weapons) are the most popular sellers. Yet, older (or, as I prefer, "more seasoned") gamers will remember a time when a different kind of gaming experience was paramount, with the King's Quest series leading the pack.

King's Quest I: The Quest For The Crown was released in 1984 and, though crude in the graphics department (by today's standards the screen is filled with little more than multi-colored blobs and a crudely-pixilated protagonist), was a landmark in terms of its gameplay and plot style. Basically, you control Sir Graham of the Kingdom of Daventry, who is sent on a mission by the King to retrieve the country's three most prized possessions (a sword, a magic mirror, and a chest full of gold). That's where things really start to get interesting.

As you leave the King's chamber and are escorted out of the castle, you find yourself surrounded by Daventry...with no instructions on how to proceed. Much in the style of the later "Myst" games, the onus is placed on you (not any game prompts) to figure out what to do. This requires a great deal of exploration, as well as the ability to pick up certain items and use them at your discretion. Roberta Williams (the game creator) tries to make the solution of each puzzle relatable to some sort of fairy tale in order to help you along, but it will still take a decent amount of thought and maybe even a few nights sleep to get things squared away. If you are short on patience, this is where you get off. However, if you take great satisfaction in taking in your surroundings, exploring at will, and slowly but surely figuring out what you need to do, then you will be hooked! Though many gamers will not agree with this statement, and find these types of games to be akin to watching paint dry, to me there is no greater feeling than finally making a "huge breakthrough" after struggling for so long to figure out your next move.

Before I get too ahead of myself, though, I highly recommend (unless you absolutely require the original version for some reason; in which case good luck finding a hard-disk drive these days) downloading a newer version of this game. This is crucial for two reasons: 1. The graphics are actually passable, and you won't have to spend hours clicking on every little pixel to make sure you didn't miss anything; and 2. The re-makes do away with the text-based command system (which can feel like an albatross) in favor of the point-and-click interface that makes things oh so much smoother. I recommend the "4.0" version from AGD Interactive for the best gaming experience.

So, I highly recommend two groups of gamers to check out this old classic: Those who are a fan of DOS-based gaming in general, or those of you who played this back in the day and would like to experience it again with better graphics and an easier format. Either way, controlling Sir Graham on your quest through Daventry will immerse you and leave you wanting more. While not by any means the best game of this series, this first effort does succeed in introducing the public to a new form of gaming...the adventure.