Return to Krondor at GoG

[VentilatorOfDoom]

This other Krondor game - what's its name - was allegedly pretty good, so this must be awesome too. You should <a href="http://af.gog.com/en/gamecard/return_to_krondor?as=1649904300">buy it on GoG</a> thus demonstrating your appreciation for proper oldschool RPGs. This game's not bad by the way.

Spotted at: <A HREF="http://www.gamebanshee.com/news/97035-return-to-krondor-now-available-on-gog-.html">GB</A>

 

[Andhaira]

This is an excellent game. Fully turnbased, tactical combat, 3 person party, superb spellcasting system, great story, excellent soundtrack and voice acting.

Only con is that its totally linear, but who cares when the story is so good?

 

[Monocause]

RtK an excellent game? Compared to BaK it's total shit. Torrent it before wasting any money on that one.

 

[bezimek]

This is an excellent game. Fully turnbased, tactical combat, 3 person party, superb spellcasting system, great story, excellent soundtrack and voice acting.

Only con is that its totally linear, but who cares when the story is so good?

+1

 

[Monocause]

Geez guys, are we talking about the same game? Return to Krondor? Terrible Resident Evil-like movement with a fixed camera, slow walking speed, simplistic combat, crappy graphics (even by the standards at the release time), uninspired character system that's a blasphemy when compared to Betrayal at Krondor?

 

[Hory]

A worthy addition to Good/Old Games.

 

[podon]

BAK and RTK

As I recall (I'm old enough to have played it when it originally came out) Return tried to implement FMV (an innovation at the time) but to disastrous effect. The story was there, but the gameplay was terrible; BAK was true turn-based (played that too when it came out) and in the same league with the Realms of Arkania games that came out about the same time.

 

[Erebus]

I bought the game back when it was released, and I don't remember it as being very good. I know I gave up on it rather quickly.

As a side note, the novel adaptation of the game (by Feist himself) is one of the worst POS in the genre of heroic fantasy. Even most D&D novels are better than that.

 

[Andhaira]

Monocause, the combat was deep enough especially by today's standards. It was fully turnbased. The graphics were excellent for its time and hold up well even today.

 

[Cenobyte]

I think Andhaira's right about this game.
RtK is pretty solid. Combat, spellcasting, story and characters are well done. The fixed camera sucks, but you get accustomed to it after a while.

It's perhaps even more an interactive movie than ME or similar games, but very good at this.

@ Erebus: Agreed. The novel is disastrous and one of Feist's worst.

 

[SerratedBiz]

The combat is really the only thing you can appreciate in this game. The puzzles are few, chapters are short (unless you're stuck in the damn sewers running around wondering what script you're supposed to stumble on) and the story is hardly there to propel you forward.

That said, combat is not awful.

 

[Sceptic]

As I recall (I'm old enough to have played it when it originally came out) Return tried to implement FMV (an innovation at the time)

"Old enough" to have played a game released in 1998? Yippee I guess?

And if you really had played it when it came out or remember anything about that time, you'd also remember FMV had stopped being an innovation 3 years earlier and was pretty much dying by this point as 3D accelerators were taking over the world. And the last Realms of Arkania game had already been out for 2 years by then.

RtK an excellent game? Compared to BaK it's total shit. Torrent it before wasting any money on that one.

 

[someone else]

I kinda like the thieving minigames.

 

[SerratedBiz]

Was Betrayal in Antara any good, by the way?

 

[bgillisp]

I thought it was an above average game myself, uses the same ideas for the combat system as BaK (spells/skills are renamed though and work differently). I thought the story went a little too crazy near the end, and I was not a fan of the skill limit system they implement, as they set it too low in the first two chapters (which incidentally, are the chapters you are able to roam around the world the most). But that's my $.02. So if you go into it excepting BaK but slightly worse then you should be set.

That being said, it is probably much better than many games out today.

 

[Andhaira]

Hey there Mighty Mouse, where have you been?

 

[Jaesun]

I am quite surprised they did not do Betrayal at Krondor, which is quite superior.

It makes me wonder the whole process of acquiring these games for GOG, Steam.. etc.

 

[Suchy]

Was Betrayal in Antara any good, by the way?

Not too bad. While the setting was rather uninteresting and characters bland (also terribly drawn), the gameplay is pretty much the same as BaK. Huge world free to explore and loads of quests. It still managed to drag me in for a couple of nights, doing the classic "just one more village, then I go to sleep".

As for RtK, I'm on Andhaira's side. It can't touch BaK, but it was definitely a worthy game. Linear, but well written. Combat was TB. Not perfect, but gives more options than BaK.

 

[Suchy]

I am quite surprised they did not do Betrayal at Krondor, which is quite superior.

It makes me wonder the whole process of acquiring these games for GOG, Steam.. etc.

BaK was released for free by Sierra back in the 90's. I don't think GOG can charge cash for a freeware.

 

[garren]

They could release BaK for free at GoG though if they got permission from Activision (not gonna happen).

Gog has a few free adventure games currently, like beneath a steel sky for example.

 

[Erebus]

Was Betrayal in Antara any good, by the way?

Often asked question !

In many technical ways, it stays close to BaK. The visuals aren't so great (except for the cutscenes), but I liked the setting. The characters are unoriginal, but not unbearable. The plot is rather convoluted.

Where the game really shines, in my opinion, is in the many minor and optional encounters that you can have when you visit the houses of villages. They're very nicely done, entertaining and give a lot of life to the world.

You can easily find a very good playthrough of the game on Youtube.

 

[Andhaira]

If you liked Betrayal at Krondor, you will like Betrayal at Antara.

 

[SerratedBiz]

Sounds good enough for me, thanks for the info.

 

[Serus]

Geez guys, are we talking about the same game? Return to Krondor? Terrible Resident Evil-like movement with a fixed camera, slow walking speed, simplistic combat, crappy graphics (even by the standards at the release time), uninspired character system that's a blasphemy when compared to Betrayal at Krondor?

Exactly. I bought it when it was still full price in the 90s and had the same feelings then - and havent changed my mind since.
It is a very poor sequel to BAK but for some unknown reasons people "remember" it better than it was in reality.
The gameplay was inferior to the original in every way imaginable. The graphics were mediocre even for their time. Who cares about the (laughably bad) story ?
Of the two "sequels" of BAK, Betrayal in Antara is a 10 times better game if you ask me.

BaK was released for free by Sierra back in the 90's. I don't think GOG can charge cash for a freeware.

No it wasnt. It was just available for some time as a download directly from Sierra as part of their campaign promoting "their" sequel IIRC. It was never given a freeware status. Another urban crpg legend.