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Part VI: Future Generations
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King's Quest IX
(PC)
Although the series seemed (officially) long dead, it has recently been revealed that Telltale Games has been given the greenlight to continue the series. It appears that Telltale Games has rebooted several franchises already, so they may just be able to pull it off! Only time will tell what direction the series will take, but King's Quest fans can someday look forward to a King's Quest IX.
[UPDATE: April 2013 -- Telltale Games has officially cancelled this project. Darn!]
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King's Quest: Kingdom of Sorrow
(PC)
This one's based on a novel called "Kingdom of Sorrow". Though little has been officially revealed about the direction of the game, we do know that it takes place after the events of King's Quest II; Prince Alexander is still missing. However, the Kingdom of Daventry is suffering from a nasty, elongated winter, and it is up to Graham to travel to the Kingdom of Sorrow to put an end to the chills. Production values are supposedly high. Of particular note to me is the inclusion of an ICS: the Improved Cedric System, where Graham can count on companions to assist him in his travels. What a wonderful name for a video game mechanism. It's official now: I think we should wedge Cedric into all games somehow. Katamari Damacedric? Assassin's Cedric? Metal Gear Cedric? Oh, my shorts are already quaking with anticipation.
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King's Quest II: Romancing the Stone SCI
(PC)
One man who calls himself MusicallyInspired is responsible for this remake. It is intended to upgrade the graphics of King's Quest II to VGA quality. We're talking 256 colours here! As well, the introduction and concluding scenes will be modified to provide a more thorough telling of the story. However, other than these points, the game will remain more or less consistent with the original release over 25 years ago.
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King's Quest IV: The Perils of Rosella VGA
(PC)
Progress is being made on this update to King's Quest IV by Magic Mirror Games. Early screenshots show hand-drawn backgrounds, as opposed to the pixelated wonder we experienced in 1988. Let's see where this goes.
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The Silver Lining
(PC, 2010-present)
The Silver Lining is an extravagant take on the King's Quest franchise, offering a very solid commitment to top-notch visual and audio quality while staying true to the spirit of the series. Utilizing characters from all over the series -- though focusing on those of King's Quest VI more than anything else -- The Silver Lining aims to tell stories about the royal family after the dust had settled from the previous adventures...in 3D! It is planned to be released in five different episodes (four of which are already available), and they're all free! It even has the praise of the designer of all eight official King's Quest games, Roberta Williams! How's THAT for an endorsement?
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Thus ends our King's Quest retrospective. If you're interested in checking out these games, most of them are readily available. The King's Quest Collection, holding King's Quest I through VII, plus many of the bonus games featured in Part III, has been released multiple times in stores; versions that are supported by modern operating systems (64-bit machines; Windows 7) are available for purchase at GOG.com as well. As for the fan creations, they are readily available across the internet at their own respective websites. I hope you enjoyed reading about the Royal Family of Daventry. This series was a relevant aspect of my youth and holds a special place in my gamer's heart. I hope that the continuation of the series with King's Quest IX is as satisfying as its predecessors.
(Screenshot for King's Quest: Kingdom of Sorrow provided courtesy of the Infamous Adventures website)
(Screenshots for King's Quest II SCI and King's Quest IV VGA provided courtesy of the King's Quest Omnipedia)
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