King's Quest VII: The Princeless Bride
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| King's Quest VII: The Princeless Bride | |
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| Developer(s) | Sierra |
| Publisher(s) | Sierra |
| Release date(s) | November 23, 1994 |
| Genre(s) | Adventure game |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: K-A |
| Platform(s) | MS-DOS, Windows, Apple Macintosh |
King's Quest VII: The Princeless Bride is an adventure game released in 1994 by Sierra On-Line. It featured high-resolution graphics in a style reminiscent of Disney animated films. It is also the only King's Quest game with multiple protagonists, and the only one to divide the story into "chapters."
King's Quest VII is the only game in the King's Quest series to feature Queen Valanice in a major role, and also the only one in which King Graham is not shown or mentioned at all. However, he is listed in the voice credits, so he may have been originally intended to appear in the game (the final game was much shortened from an earlier version).
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[edit] Story
As the game opens, Queen Valanice is lecturing her daughter, Princess Rosella about the importance of marriage. Rosella is somewhat rebellious, and dreams of adventure rather than marriage. She catches a glimpse of something magical in a pond, and dives in. Valanice follows.
Valanice lands in a desert in the land of Eldritch, while Rosella finds herself transformed into a troll and engaged to be married to the King of the Trolls. As the two characters attempt to find each other, they discover that all of Eldritch is in danger. The evil sorceress Malicia has attacked or imprisoned the leaders of the different kingdoms of Eldritch, and plots to destroy the land.
[edit] Name
The name of this sequel is a pun on the title of the novel (and film) The Princess Bride by William Goldman.
[edit] The game
KQVII is very different from other King's Quest games in terms of structure. The action is separated into six chapters, each set primarily in a different region of Eldritch. The player alternates between Valanice and Rosella with each chapter. The two heroines travel through some of the same places during the course of the game, finally meeting up again in the end. Aside from the multi-chapter layout, the most significant change in game structure was the introduction of the "smart" pointer. When playing the game, the pointer lights up when passed over an object that can be used. Players can get or use objects and talk to characters by simply clicking on them. Previous games required the player to choose their actions by selecting Look, Talk, Use, etc., from the icon bar, and did not reveal the location of usable items with the pointer.
Although less linear than earlier King's Quest games, KQVII does not include as many different endings or optional tasks and plot threads as KQVI. Some puzzles do have multiple solutions, and there are two possible endings -- one happy and one sad -- depending on whether Rosella manages to rescue her love interest Edgar (introduced in KQIV) at the very end of the game.
This actually points out a major flaw in the game: Sierra marketed the game as an improvement in the series by stating that completion of earlier King's Quest adventures was not necessary to fully enjoy the game. Yet, a character from King's Quest IV (Edgar) was reintroduced in the final chapter of the game, leaving players who did not complete that earlier adventure utterly bewildered as to his relationship with Rosella.
One of the game's highlights was its graphics; King's Quest VII had very elaborate and colorful graphics for the time with painted backgrounds and animation techniques.
KQVII was met with mixed reviews by longtime series fans, but sales were high despite a number of technical bugs that plagued the initial release of the game.
[edit] The Realm of Eldritch in King's Quest VII
Eldritch is the land explored in KQ VII. Eldritch consists of the Vulcanix Underground, Ooga Booga, Bountiful Woods, Were-Woods, Etheria and Falderal. The magical Realm of Eldritch includes several peoples and lands. It is a land of magic and everyone who resides within knows of the various beings and creatures who occupy the lands. Several of the residents that live in the land of Eldritch are Fairies, Gods and Goddesses. There are also spirits in the land and in the air. All of Eldritch is ruled by Oberon and Titania, the King and Queen of the Faeries.
Falderal
Located in Eldritch, Falderal is a wacky and colorful town where everything is not truly as it seems and many of the physical laws are bent. The town is populated by animal-like creatures such as "mock turtles," mockingbirds (which really hurl insults), and others. The Mayor of town is Archduke Fifi le Yip-Yap. The town includes a China Shop owned by a bull, Fernando, Ersatz's Faux Shop and the Snake Oil Salesman's cart. The Town Hall is run by Archduke Fifi le Yip-Yap.
Upon entering Falderal, one can see a Victorian-styled building, the China Shop, which is run by a formal bull, Fernando (like the cliché "bull in a china shop"). The Faux Shop is also one of Falderal’s prized places. Besides supplying the Town Hall with rubber trees, it is run by an eccentric mock turtle, Ersatz, who specializes in selling the most bizarre and unusual goods. Near the Faux Shop, there is also a small cart that is run by a snake oil salesman who likes to swindle as many people as he can meet. From the mockingbird in the tree to the guard at the door, every animal displays a unique personality. The most noted ones are the hippopotamus lady, Chicken Little, the British badger who guards the town hall, and a beaver who sits by Fifi Le Yip-Yap’s birthday cake.
Despite its wackyness, Falderal holds many deep secrets. It is said to hold a magic statuette which has the power to predict the future, and it is rumored that the passageway to the Vulcanix Underground is located somewhere in the town; more specifically, in Yip-Yap's parlor located in the Town Hall.
Vulcanix Underground
The Vulcanix Underground is populated by trolls and ruled by their Troll King. Like Falderal, this place also holds secrets of its own. The player learns that something is amiss with the king, and finds out that he is actually an impostor placed there by Malicia.
The characters inhabiting the Vulcanix Underground consist primarily of trolls, including the king's nursemaid, various gossipers, a cook with a French accent, a polite gem maker, a blacksmith who flirts with Rosella, and a large troll that guards a bridge. A crystal dragon resides here as well, and Malicia also makes several appearances.
Ooga Booga
When Rosella regains her human form and escapes the Vulcanix Underground, she finds herself in Ooga Booga. Most of the residents of this town are harmless with the exception of the Boogeyman, who has been instructed to capture Rosella, and Lady Tepish, who will cause Rosella to die of fright when approached. The other inhabitants include Dr. Mort Cadaver, the gravedigger, and the mischievous Ghoul Kids, who will attack unwanted visitors but are otherwise harmless.
[edit] External links
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King's Quest I • II • III • IV • V • VI • VII • The Mask of Eternity |
