A few impressions after finishing the game. (long & gushing)

[spacecadet]

Hi all. I've somewhat belatedly made my first full playthrough of the game, and having just finished, I'd just like to thank all you people behind this incredible work of art and tell you what an exhilirating ride it's been. I used to play the original occasionally as a child but never actually got past the first half of the game due to parser trouble during spellmaking, as well as a general inability to handle the time constraints imposed by the game. So IA's remake was my first introduction to actually playing through the final acts of the game, and to doing so in a more facile, less unforgiving manner than in the original; which was very much appreciated! IA's version remains a worthy adaptation, and there was much I liked about it.

"Redux", however, is in an altogether different league. AGDI's decade's worth of experience in the craft really shows. This is the sharpest, most polished and professional of the four remakes on the site, and the end result surpasses even Sierra in its heyday both quality-wise and in remaining true to the spirit and feel of Sierra's "quest" adventures. You people really have set the bar way, way up there for other teams in the future, with amazingly high standards in each and every department. Compelling, well-paced design and content both reworked and original; Wookie's cool storyline continued, which has once again left me hungering for more; the inspired, quirky and hilarious new messages and dialogue throughout the game; a clear and intuitive interface; crisp, natural-looking and beautifully nuanced animation; JP Selwood's stunning background art that I could just gaze at all day long; Brandon's stirring soundtrack; the professional voice acting all the way through, from the lively narration to the lowliest minor character; the delicious audio quality and lovely SFX; and the meticulous attention to detail, stability and playability.

In short, I feel that this remake in particular, perhaps as a kind of middle ground between the "1:1" and "Plus" formats of your other remakes (the porridge or bed that's "just right", if you will), deserves a place among the all-time greats of the genre as your finest work yet. I'm excited to know the same talented people are now turning their attention to original commercial games over at Himalaya Studios, and will definitely purchase Mage's Initiation once it's released, as, like many others, this is just the kind of game I've been waiting for.

A few more impressions, and more to the point:

I finished the game with 206/210, and in a little under two hours (ETA: game clock obviously. In real time I took my time and basked in the glory that was this game). Apparently a few things eluded me, such as the wizard's letter and the possibility of listening in on the bandits.

I really enjoyed the Seran act of the game for its refreshing original charm. Even though it was basically just a linear progression of traps in the style of KQ6's isle of the beast, and lacked the recourse of turning away from it to go do something else – it was still well thought out, and fun to think your way through for a change. The gate riddle I figured out on my own, but the (apparently much-disputed) "priorities test" threw me off as well. I did listen to Seran's instructions, but for some reason I thought this was more of an open-ended "test of character", of personal value, like Smaude's questions or Sekhmet's "weighing of the soul" test from QfG3. I figured it could be a loose "worthy/unworthy" criterion, and picked the book first, only to realize the point of the exercise upon the next attempt.

Regarding the voice acting: I have to really, really praise John Bell for his fantastic narration work (once again) which was a joy to listen to, and often elicited snorts and chuckles from me which were only partly due to the content of the message text, and partly due to his delivery. Not to mention his role as the voice of Mannanan, which I felt made the wizard the best character in the game. Coincidentally, I really loved this interpretation of Mannanan – true to the original game's manual, it seems – as a frailer and croakier nasty old man, with more of a personality than IA's version of the character ever had. This is the fleshed-out version of the wizard that I'll remember, the one that replaces the generic, blocky and pointy lifeless sprite from the original.

Also, the actress voicing Rosella sounded awfully familiar... from one of Sierra's KQ games, it appears? I gather she couldn't be given credit under her real name for legal reasons, but I wonder why she was assigned the role of Rosella specifically. It seems obvious who she should have voiced, by her vocal qualities alone. I think the final act would've benefited from a switch, as both sounded totally off as their respective characters, but just right as one another.

Regarding the soundtrack: MI, let me just say your forum handle is no idle boast, as the music was just that – inspired and thrilling; at times epic, at times quietly haunting, at times whimsical, and always great fun. As a soundtrack fan, I would be very interested to know when it is going to be available for download. I especially loved the various Mannanan themes around the house; most notably during his "attack mode" and game-over sequence, a tune that just perfectly conveyed the shock of his sudden vengeance and the feeling of terrible power being unleashed in rage. I loved the eagle theme and how originally it incorporated both the KQ1 condor theme and, later in the piece, the KQ5 starving eagle theme, into one beautiful and lengthy whole. I also really enjoyed the cute playground tune that played during Alex and the Yeti's scramble through the cave openings. And finally, although that was Tom's work here and in KQ2+, I found myself waxing nostalgic over musical cues such as that of the blasted Daventry (from the second cloud test vision) when I descended from the mountains, or the strange little ditty sung by an enchantment-induced Gwydion in the tavern, the music and lyrics of which invoked the memory of ol' Stoneface and the sad tale of however it was he came to be a door.

One thing I didn't unreservedly like was the final act and the ending sequence. They seemed a bit uneven, what with facing the dragon being an almost too-easy task for a "final boss"; THEN having to hoof it through a hellholish Daventry and across a couple rather pointless obstacles, with sis in tow. If there'd been more to interact with in that wasteland it might've been worth the trek; as it was, a laconic Father and a couple sparse explanations from Rosella were not. Was there something else to meeting the Father beyond a few reluctant words? I wasn't able to get him to respond to anything I tried, though the full irony of trying to give him the "worthless relic" was soon to be made clear. One thing I didn't mind, though, was the "magic green pinball" doing its work. That actually looked cool, what with the streaking through the sky and renewing the elements and stuff.

So, to conclude, I'd just like to say, once again, kudos and a humongous THANK YOU to one and all who've taken part in this fantastic achievement. Fanmade or not, remake or not, you've earned your place alongside the best of them by sheer dedication and passion toward making these games the best they can be. Your future prospects and challenges may be bigger and better (and certainly better-paying), but the work you've done here, reinvigorating and reinventing classics that are often inaccessible (in more ways than one) to today's gamers – that work is born of love, and its fruits will continue to provide both veterans and newbies with a smooth introduction or reintroduction to the worlds of KQ and QfG2. From posts on here it seems even very young children are discovering these worlds thanks to your remakes. I know mine will.

[DaemonDarqueGS]

I have to completely agree with your sentiments regarding the game. I didn't feel that there was anything wrong with the ending sequence with the dragon, but then again, I've never played the original KQ's3 game. I have seen it, though, and in particular watched Paw's review of it on ThatGuyWithTheGlasses and at least know how it worked.

I will admit that perhaps what made the ending feel strange was that after defeating the dragon, which took very little time, it felt 'odd' to have to actually walk all the way back. I suppose it's sort of like where I expected to be 'teleported', if you will, back Castle Daventry. It wasn't bad, just what I had not expected.

The voice acting, particularly for a fanmade game, was excellent Coming from even new and professional games were the voice acting kind of fell flat (yes I am looking at you, ME2), this was a great and wonderful surprise. I liked Alexander's voice a lot. He had a soft sort of voice, making him seem unassuming and then when you turn Manannan into a cat, even then it didn't change much, but you could just hear the success and pleasure in his voice.

From a technical aspect, I'm really grateful that they added the timer on top, color-coded and everything. I'm someone that really stresses when time-limits are imposed and from the sound of it, the original game was pretty unforgiving in that respect. Despite the time limit and some of the frustration with those spells I had at times, that was actually my favorite part of the game: wandering around to grab the ingredients and then make the spells. It was nice that they all came into play at some point later. I wasn't sure I'd play the game because of the time thing, but AGDI did such a great job from what I saw and I had played KQ1 and KQ2+ and I'm glad I did. It was great!

[MusicallyInspired]

Thank you for such an in-depth thought-out review! It really means a lot to us who developed the game that you took the time to write down your thoughts on pretty much every aspect. Thank you.

As for the soundtrack ETA, I'm not sure. It's going to be a lot of work to rework everything (I lost most of the source files a few years back) but I will get it done eventually. I have a few tracks redesigned already. Perhaps I'll share a little preview in the future of what it will sound like.

[Anonymous Game Creator 2]

Hey, thanks for the feedback! It's always inspiring to sit down and read one of these long replies (well, as long as it's mostly positive! ) It also helps to gauge which areas people enjoyed most, which will hopefully benefit our future games.